Flat Beer ?!?!?!

[Mike COusineau]

So I have been brewing for a couple of months now and usually don't need to bottle any beer as I am brewing Belgian Ale's but this go around I brewed a nice Winter Stout and want to age the beer for a couple of months. Its been sitting in a keg for about 16 days and the carbonation is perfect. Would you all recommend I add .25% of the regular amount of priming sugar and bottle the 50 beers or just throw it in the bottles as is and hope the carbonation is still G2G around Xmas time?

So the .25% would be right around 1oz of priming sugar to 3/4 cup of water and just add a little in each bottle just before racking the beer from the keg?

Thoughts?

Reason I am asking is I bottled one 6 pack of some Belgian ale to give to my Dad, let it sit for about 4 weeks and opened it.....the beer was flat as hell.

 

[lump42]

I would just increase the regulator 2-4 psi before you bottle it. You'll lose some during the bottling process. I'd fill and cap them in individually or in small batches, ideally cap onto of the foam

 

[Mike COusineau]

I would just increase the regulator 2-4 psi before you bottle it. You'll lose some during the bottling process. I'd fill and cap them in individually or in small batches, ideally cap onto of the foam

Ill give that a shot. I like that idea. Only concern is when I fill into a bottle you have to turn down the PSI or all you get is a ton of foam. Ill play around with it tonight

 

[Toxxyc]

Why not just buy a baggie of carbonation drops? They're expensive per-weight if you compare it to sugar, yes, but for small batch bottling convenience they're impossible to beat.

 

[yoop89]

What method are you using to cap? Are you sure that you are getting a good seal? I always expect some carb loss when bottling from a keg but they should definitely not be flat or lose any more carbonation once they are capped in such a short time.

 

[jmcquesten]

How are you bottling? Beergun? Counter pressure filler?

So I have been brewing for a couple of months now and usually don't need to bottle any beer as I am brewing Belgian Ale's but this go around I brewed a nice Winter Stout and want to age the beer for a couple of months. Its been sitting in a keg for about 16 days and the carbonation is perfect. Would you all recommend I add .25% of the regular amount of priming sugar and bottle the 50 beers or just throw it in the bottles as is and hope the carbonation is still G2G around Xmas time?

So the .25% would be right around 1oz of priming sugar to 3/4 cup of water and just add a little in each bottle just before racking the beer from the keg?

Thoughts?

Reason I am asking is I bottled one 6 pack of some Belgian ale to give to my Dad, let it sit for about 4 weeks and opened it.....the beer was flat as hell.

 

[Mike COusineau]

How are you bottling? Beergun? Counter pressure filler?

I am using a growler filler that attaches to my regular keg tap.

 

[Mike COusineau]

What method are you using to cap? Are you sure that you are getting a good seal? I always expect some carb loss when bottling from a keg but they should definitely not be flat or lose any more carbonation once they are capped in such a short time.

I am using the old fashion red capper. I believe the ones that i capped back in the day did not get a proper seal.

 

[jmcquesten]

I am using a growler filler that attaches to my regular keg tap.

I would think it's going to be tricky getting that dialed in. Might consider a different bottle filling solution if possible. They all have a slight learning curve to them, but would probably work better than a growler filler.

 

[lump42]

Ill give that a shot. I like that idea. Only concern is when I fill into a bottle you have to turn down the PSI or all you get is a ton of foam. Ill play around with it tonight

I typically overcarb the beer slightly by 2-4 psi. Then at the time of bottling, I release the head pressure, bottle at 4 psi, and cap on the foam. I've never had issues with carbonation. If your capper is working correctly, you should be getting a good seal to last a few months. If you're losing pressure in 4 weeks, it may be equipment issues.

 

[JaymzMF]

Might want to also get a bench capper. I had all sorts of issues with different types of bottles with the red one you have. Bench capper solved this for me.

 

[jmcquesten]

If you're getting a lot of foam, that's co2 coming out of solution which will cause flat/under carbonated bottles. Also, if you have to release the pressure in the keg, that can cause flat beer because the pressure is no longer keeping the co2 IN the beer.

 

[camonick]

Ill give that a shot. I like that idea. Only concern is when I fill into a bottle you have to turn down the PSI or all you get is a ton of foam. Ill play around with it tonight

You might have the materials on hand to make one of these. https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/we-no-need-no-stinking-beer-gun.24678/
I fill bottles from my kegs all the time using this method. I have a 15' length of 3/16" beer hose with the picnic tap and racking cane with stopper and fill all my bottles at serving pressure (14 psi for me). Slowly release pressure, top up bottle which foams just a little bit and cap on the foam. It takes a little practice to get it figured out, but seems to work well. I use a Red Baron wing style capper FWIW.