The Relative Importance of Temperature and Time in the Cold Conditioning of Beer

Abstract

The impact on the development of turbidity from chilling lager-style beer at constant low temperatures and alternating to low temperatures has been investigated. Irrespective of whether a beer is held isothermally or has received a change in temperature of storage, the magnitude of the haze that develops is determined by the extent of chilling that the beer encounters. Equally, the length of storing a beer at a prior, higher temperature does not influence the extent of haze development when the beer is subsequently brought to a lower temperature. These observations support the contention that in the formation of insoluble material during cold conditioning of beer, a short period at a very low temperature (e.g., −2.5°C) is more efficacious than a prolonged period at a warmer temperature (e.g., 0°C).