13,594
edits
Changes
updated Aging to include a paragraph about headspace and fermenter size
| Glass carboy, wood stopper (not recommended) || 20 || 0.10
|}
Headspace and fermenter size are also concerns when it comes to aging beer with living ''Brettanomyces''. This includes sour beers, [[Brettanomyces_and_Saccharomyces_Co-fermentation|non-sour beers with ''Saccharomyces'' and ''Brettanomyces'']], and [[100%25_Brettanomyces_Fermentation|100% ''Brettanomyces'' beers]] that are aged. The larger the headspace, the more air will be sucked in when a vacuum occurs. The smaller the fermenter, the more headspace becomes a problem. Smaller vessels in general have a larger surface area to volume ratio. Therefore, they have more potential for exposure to oxygen. A large headspace in a smaller vessel exacerbates this problem, therefore it is advised to top up small fermenters. For example, a 1 gallon jug should be filled all the way to the neck if possible. A 5 gallon jug could also be filled to the neck, but a little more headspace is permissible.
One misconception about aging beers is the claim that CO<sub>2</sub> is heavier than air and forms a blanket that protects the beer from oxygen. This is not true unless CO<sub>2</sub> is constantly being produced from the beer. The [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ideal_gas_law Ideal Gas Law] states that unlike solids or liquids of different densities, the gasses will eventually mix. See [http://beerandwinejournal.com/can-co2-form-a-blanket/ Dr. Chris Colby's explanation of this on Beer and Wine Journal.], and this [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oLPBnhOCjM science documentary demonstration of how gasses eventually mix] (note that the molecular weight of bromine used in the video is 160 g/mol and the weight of CO<sub>2</sub> is 44.01 g/mol, so CO<sub>2</sub> would diffuse into air faster than bromine <ref>[https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/Dibromine Bromine. PubChem. Retrieved 1/1/2016.]</ref><ref>[https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/280 Carbon Dioxide. PubChem. Retrieved 1/1/2017.]</ref>).