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Beer Conditioning
Beer Maturation Systems
Conditioning tanks are either vertical or horizontal and are usually constructed of stainless steel, as shown in Figure 14.1. The traditional form of the tank is horizontal. The greater ratio of surface area to beer depth for horizontal tanks provides a distinct advantage over vertical tanks in the maturation of the beer. Although horizontal tanks use more floor space per barrel of capacity, they offer quicker clarification, and the sediment has a shorter distance to fall, than in upright vessels. Conditioning tanks are normally fitted with impellers for mixing, an attemperator jacket or coils, and devices for maintaining a selected gas pressure. For rapid processing there is, however, a tendency to dispense with the attemperators and circulate the beer through a heat exchanger either continuously or spasmodically.
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