But each to their own liking I suppose
Absolutely. I guess I assume everyone uses finings since it speeds the clarification process. If you aren't getting the beer clear with fining then it will absolutely take 6 weeks or longer to pour clear beer.
Having worked in a production brewing environment for 13 years I apply the same philosophy to my homebrew: the fresher the better. Get it out of the tank and into glasses, free up storage and try to limit the use of energy. I don't see that much difference between a clear beer at 2 weeks or 6 weeks. Once it is crystal clear and carbonated it is ready to drink. At 6 months the beer should still be good but starting to get long in the tooth (though, of course, no reason why it shouldn't last for a year or more if taken care of).
High-gravity lagers do taste better with a little more time, just probably not as much time as a lot of brewers think. Usually after about 2-4, maybe 6 weeks just about any beer should be ready to drink. The only beers I see getting better with age are very high-gravity beers (and of course, some sours).
I'm not picking sides here, I'm just curious...
If a beer clears in 2 weeks, there is no chance that beer can't taste better in 4 or 8 or 12 weeks? Is this a lager thing or does this apply to all styles? I've never found clarity to be the timer going off, but then I don't make many lagers.
Love the discussion.
In my experience and my brewing practices, no (the exception here "may" be some higher gravity lagers, but even then 4-6 weeks should be plenty). My experience and brewing practices won't reflect everyone else's (obviously).
For me, I'm constantly surprised when a beer tastes good after 6 months of "lagering" (meaning, stored in kegs in a cold room or refrigerator). But it almost always tastes better fresh and definitely within 8-12 weeks.
I think some homebrewers romanticize the idea of aging or lagering beers for a certain period when in reality the beer may actually have tasted best when it was only a few weeks out of the FV. That's my experience and YMMV.
I should add: if you aren't fining in the FV then your experience will be completely different from what I am trying to accomplish. Still, many malt flavor and especially hop flavors will start to fade--especially by 6 months.