1 Bottle Bomb, Fizzy Beer. Saveable?

[danbrewtan]

I went on vacation for a week and came home to find that one of my beers that I was keeping in the cabinet had exploded. I carefully opened another one and found it was way overcarbed. Not sure what went wrong and I'm considering it said and done.

My question is - Is there anyway to save the beer? It was a very special christmas beer that I spend a lot of time, energy, $ on.

Could I open them all up and recap? Or pour them all into a bucket and rebottle?

 

[insanim8er]

Spray the tops with starsan as well as the bottle opener (to be safe) then slightly open the bottles just enough to release the gas, then secure the cap back.

Just keep an eye and do it a few times if needed.

 

[IslandLizard]

Slightly open the bottles to release the gas, then secure the cap back.

Just keep an eye and do it a few times if needed.

Wear gloves, long sleeved shirt, face, and eye protection.

 

[danbrewtan]

Should I be worried about other bottles spontaneously exploding while I'm handling them? They survived the first bottle bomb right next to them and although the one I opened was over carbed it wasn't anywhere near the crazy projectile volcano I was expecting.

 

[danbrewtan]

Wear gloves, long sleeved shirt, face, and eye protection.

Guess I'll bust out my refinery PPE for this task...

 

[insanim8er]

Wear gloves, long sleeved shirt, face, and eye protection.

Or simply go with a bomb disposal uniform.... JK play it safe obviously.

 

[Calder]

Open another bottle. Pour some of it into an hydrometer jar and take a gravity reading when it has gone flat. This will tell you how much extra fermentation has gone on. As a rough guide, its is about 1 volume of CO2 for every gravity point.

Standard bottles are only designed to take 3 volumes, but can often take 6 volumes, maybe even 9 if you are lucky. Variations in glass thickness and flaws in the glass result in a wide range in capability of the bottles.

If you really want to save the bottles, I'd suggest placing them in a fridge to stop any further action by the yeast.

 

[harrymanback92]

I've never heard a standard bottle be able to take 6 volumes, let alone 9. Pretty sure standard bottles at the most can take 3.5.

I just bottled my Brett beer in champagne bottles because those can hold 6 volumes. Not sure of anything that can hold 9.

 

[Calder]

I've never heard a standard bottle be able to take 6 volumes, let alone 9. Pretty sure standard bottles at the most can take 3.5.

They are not guaranteed to take the pressure, but most will take considerably more than 3.5.

If you bottle to any more than 4 you are risking bottle bombs, but at 4 I would expect it to be a very rare event.

 

[danbrewtan]

Pics always tell the story better, so here are a few! I ended up just letting the bottles completely release the pressure as I was scared of opening the bottles, causing tons of fizz, then closing them quickly. I felt like there was a risk of a pressure build up before the CO2 went back into solution. If they come out slightly flat, whatever. It's a strong ale so it will probably still be enjoyable.

 

[AlCophile]

You can bleed them down by very gently use of a standard opener, but, be gentle. It may take a few hours, as you want to lose a minimum of liquid. Wear gloves. When done, gently squeeze the caps back into shape. You don't need to recap or sanitize.