[Clint Yeastwood]

I am going to keg my first imperial stout. I will keep it at 38 because it won't have its own keezer and will have to accept what other beers deal with. I'm putting it on CO2. I have beer gas, but it feels wrong for imperial stout.

Any suggestions for CO2 volumes? I like Old Rasputin's level of fizz a lot.

[Richard]

The style guide says 2.2 - 2.8 volumes. I like 2.6 for mine.

[goose]

I use 2.5 volumes for all of my ales, including my stouts.  For beers like a Saison I go to 3 volumes because they need to be more effervescent.
 At 38 degrees, 17 PSI for a week should do the trick for your stout but consult a carbonation chart if you are in doubt.  FYI, I hit mine with 30 PSI at 35 degrees for about 24 hours and can drink it the next day.

[Kevin]

I use 2.5 volumes for all of my ales, including my stouts.

Same here goose. I don't have the ability to set different PSI for each keg so I settle on one setting for nearly everything.

[HEUBrewer]

So I understand you can serve at only 1 temp but why not increase it and let the chips fall where they may for your other beer?   All the work and expense you are going through for a highly flavorful beer just to kill it at such a cold temp.  Just a thought


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[goose]

The colder temperature allows the beer to absorb CO2 faster as the gas dissolves more easily in colder liquids.  I serve my beers in the 40 degree range after carbonating at around 35 degrees with no ill effects on the beer.

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[John M]

So I understand you can serve at only 1 temp but why not increase it and let the chips fall where they may for your other beer?   All the work and expense you are going through for a highly flavorful beer just to kill it at such a cold temp.  Just a thought


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Amen brother. I serve mine at 45F, which is about a cold as I like any of my beers. I prefer my stouts around 55F, but they get there quick from 44 if I let them sit for a few minutes.

[Clint Yeastwood]

I don't drink a ton of beer at a sitting, so a glass lasts me a while. No matter how cold it is when I pour it, most of it will warm up considerably before going down the hatch. I would rather have it go in the glass too cold than have it warm up too much before I drink it.

A three-beer night is a binge for me.

[goose]

I use 2.5 volumes for all of my ales, including my stouts.

Same here goose. I don't have the ability to set different PSI for each keg so I settle on one setting for nearly everything.

I do not have the ability to set different serving pressures for different beers either, Kevin.  However I have found that the beers that are carbonated at 3 volumes or so do not seem to lose much effervescence when I serve them at 8-10 PSI.  They are still well carbonated when served at that pressure throughout the entire keg. 
The rule of thumb and the laws of physics say that if you serve beer at a lower pressure the carbonation will drop out of the beer to equalize it with its surroundings.  But to my palate, they remain well carbonated and effervescent while the other beers seem to maintain the proper carbonation at 2.5 volumes of CO2.