I just cracked a bottle of my nut brown ale and there's virtually no carbonation. There was a 'hiss' when I opened it, but no bubbles and no head. I followed the directions and that I know of didn't make a mistake. Do I need to wait longer on this batch? I will say, the beer does taste fine to me. I won't be wasting any of it!
Bottled two weeks ago and beer is flat?!?!
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Some questions I often ask are:
What was the OG and FG? What yeast did you use? How long was it in primary before bottling? What is the temp of the room where the bottles are being stored? How much priming sugar did you add? Did you mix it in the beer?
What was the OG and FG? What yeast did you use? How long was it in primary before bottling? What is the temp of the room where the bottles are being stored? How much priming sugar did you add? Did you mix it in the beer?
mrdail87
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It's totally normal for conditioning to last longer than 2 weeks, especially during the colder months. Move it to the warmest spot you can find in the house.
Had this problem myself, it was around 68 F downstairs, and the floor was even colder. Moved my next bottled batch up stairs, and had full carbonation in just one week.
Had this problem myself, it was around 68 F downstairs, and the floor was even colder. Moved my next bottled batch up stairs, and had full carbonation in just one week.
Thanks for the quick replies!
I did not take any gravity readings. This was my first batch, and it was suggested by others that I focus on the process the first time through and not worry about that.. probably a mistake on my part not doing it.
As far as the process...
This was a brewers best kit which was a powered yeast. Primary fermentation lasted for 7 days, secondary for two full weeks, and now two weeks in bottles. It's been in my closet upstairs and has been at about 68 degrees the entire time. When I added the priming sugar, I was instructed to put the solution in the bucket first and then siphon the beer in. Seems to me like it would have been better to add the priming sugar after siphoning the beer in the bucket. What do you think?
I did not take any gravity readings. This was my first batch, and it was suggested by others that I focus on the process the first time through and not worry about that.. probably a mistake on my part not doing it.
As far as the process...
This was a brewers best kit which was a powered yeast. Primary fermentation lasted for 7 days, secondary for two full weeks, and now two weeks in bottles. It's been in my closet upstairs and has been at about 68 degrees the entire time. When I added the priming sugar, I was instructed to put the solution in the bucket first and then siphon the beer in. Seems to me like it would have been better to add the priming sugar after siphoning the beer in the bucket. What do you think?
Best to do the priming sugar as you did. Be sure the siphon hose can coil a bit on the bottom of the bottling bucket so as the beer siphons in it swirls the beer to completely mix the priming solution into the beer.
68 is a bit cool for carbonating.
68 is a bit cool for carbonating.
BrewinBromanite
Well-Known Member
Making a priming solution, then siphoning wort on top of it is pretty standard - the thought being that it helps mix it up better. I still like to give it 2 or 3 gentle stirs before I bottle (careful not to splash - you don't want to get too vigorous and get oxygen in there). With the info you provided, it's hard to break down the process much more to diagnose any specific potential issues. As was mentioned, 2 weeks isn't always enough time. There's a bunch of other variables at play, but the best advice would be to put it somewhere warmer for another week or 2, preferably somewhere at least 70 or a little warmer. The laundry room sometimes is a good spot. Just keep it off the cold floor (put it on a phone book or a box or something).
Going forward, taking gravity readings, monitoring how warm the beer got during the fermentation, measuring the actual final volume of beer in the bottling bucket (not the volume before you take it off the yeast cake), using a priming sugar calculator based on a target carbonation level, etc., is the best way to ensure proper carbonation. But again, just warm it up and give it a little more time. It might just not be ready yet.
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Hoppity
Just brew it!
siphoning onto priming solution is standard practice. Swirling it together during bottling helps keep an even distribution of sugar. Be careful not to over-agitate as this could introduce Oxygen. A CO2 bath into bottling bucket eases fears of oxidation. As you learn, collect all data you can and keep logs. You'll be surprised how much hindsight info can help you refine the process and help you re-create the best beer you ever made. Happy brewing!
heckler73
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Another thing to remember: Even after the beer has had time to carbonate, the CO2 has not fully dissolved into the beer. Much of it remains in the headspace until the beer has been refrigerated for at least a day or even longer.
As mentioned above, I have found that gentle stirring after the beer is siphoned onto the priming sugar is needed, else I get uneven carbonation even when the hose is coiled to give it a natural swirl. I am not sure why it is needed for some and not for others. I suppose that the height difference between vessels during transfer affects the mixing action. You might find out that some bottles are indeed heavily carbonated already.
Ditto on the warmer temps recommended for carb'ing, a likely candidate for what you are experiencing.
Ditto on the warmer temps recommended for carb'ing, a likely candidate for what you are experiencing.
