liaison with j'étais allé

Question

I noticed that in your audio of "j'étais allé", there is not a liaison. Is it optional?

Accepted Answer

Myrna, 
yes, it is an optional liaison. 
Although I regularly hear liaison with ‘ je suis ..’, in everyday speech I can’t recall hearing anyone use the liaison after ‘ j’étais…’. 
It is optional and most, but not all, spoken French I hear is ‘from the East’ so could be regional, but my impression is that it is one of those optional liaisons not frequently used nowadays in everyday spoken French. 
https://www.lawlessfrench.com/pronunciation/optional-liaisons/