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Expert: - 4/10/2011


Question
When re-racking is it important to use a secondary container that is the same amount as the beer?. In other words, can I go from a 5 gallon carboy to a 6 gallon or does that cause oxidation problems?

Answer
Hi Kelsey,

While I haven't heard of any real oxidation issues with volume changes in fermentation vessel swaps, IMO, it can't hurt to be conservative. I'm never one to mess with fate, when to comes to either sanitation, or oxidation. So I always try to rack to a relatively like-volumed vessel.

Keep in mind, though, that your beer will still be producing SOME CO2 - just not at the rate it was in primary. So it will still fill that head space...just not in the timely manner it did previously. And with a switch that minimal (from a 5-gallon to 6-gallon), you're really not seeing that much of a difference in volume. If it were 2 gallons being transferred into a 5-gallon secondary, I'd have much more concern. But with that little disparity it's ok.

That said, I think that the less head space it has to work with, the quicker you'll eliminate any exposure to air filling said space.

So, in short, why take chances? Just go ahead and use a secondary that's close to the volume of your batch. But you're fine with your specs.

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Matt Simpson

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I can answer all questions about beer, the brewing process, ingredients, history, styles, glassware & serving temperatures, beer & food pairing, cellaring, the craft beer industry and much more. The only area in which I'm wholly unfamiliar (but still able to find out through direct, personal inquiry) is the purchasing of large-brewery equipment.

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I've been involved with craft beer, in one regard or another, for almost 2 decades. I've taught craft beer courses at Emory University, I'm a BJCP Certified Judge, an Administrator for RateBeer.com (arguably, the largest beer website/database in the world, with over 100,000 members) and have been interviewed by ABC News, CNN, NPR, the Washington Post, FOX Business’s Cavuto Show, TheStreet.com, the Associated Press, the Houston Chronicle and many others. I'm an award-winning homebrewer, with multiple ribbons won (including the AHA’s National Homebrew Competition), and owner of one of the largest, most robust and comprehensive beer cellars in the world. I write the “Ask Beer” column for Beer magazine, “Beer Talk...From the Wings,” for Hooters Magazine, the quarterly beer column for In The Mix magazine, a beverage-oriented publication that reaches such hospitality industry establishments as The Four Seasons and Four Points Sheraton, and “Ask the Beer Sommelier,” for Atlanta’s Finest Dining magazine as well. I've been hosting craft beer tastings since the 90’s, and am truly privileged to call some of the most accomplished brewers and beer aficionados in the world, friends.

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