American Pale Ale - What did I do wrong ?

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Mutilated1

Mutilated1

Beer Drenched Executioner
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I opened a couple bottles of my American Pale Ale today. Both tasted great, I think the smell and the taste were right on, but neither one was carbonated all that well.

What do you think I might have done wrong ?

Its been bottled for over a month.

I also notice that there is not as much yeast at the bottom as there was with some of my other beers.

If only it was a bit more carbonated, I would be proud for anyone to taste it and know I made it. The taste is great.

I think I can drink it anyway, but in the future I'd rather have a bit more carbonation.

You think maybe I let it sit in the secondary too long ?
 
You could take the remaining bottles and shake them every day for a week (at room temp). Especially if you used gelatin or some fining agent.
 
Bobby_M said:
What temp did the bottle sit in for all that time? I'd rouse them a bit and put them in 75-80F for a week.
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Its been in the bottles in my house and regular house temperature, probably about 72-75F something right around that.

You think if I shake em up and set them out in the garage where its warmer for another couple of weeks it will help it out ?


Yooper Chick said:
And how much priming sugar (or DME if you prime with DME) did you use?
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The usual amount, premeasured priming sugar from the home brew store. I think its about 5-6 oz. Basically the same amount as I've used before and it worked great.
 
Don't "shake them up". Just gently turn them upside down and back to rouse the yeast and then store them at 75 degrees if you can. They'll carbonate!
 
Or gently roll the botte and put them back down for another week or two. I had an Amber Ale do the same thing, and they didn't fully carb for about 4 to 6 weeks. I'm just guessing here, but you used dry yeast? Well, at least that was my issue. I had it in secondary for 26 days, bottled it, and had that issue, and I had used dry yeast. Don't worry about it, my friend. They'll come around. And in the mean time, just drink them around 55 degrees and pretend that it came out of a beer engine.

Cheers,
 
Yes it was dry yeast - Safale US-05

Well I won't mind waiting a few more weeks, I've got plenty of other beer

I was more concerned with figuring out if I'd done something wrong so I don't repeat - I'm brewing again soon and I want to make sure my next Ale is carbonated by middle of December
 
Mutilated1 said:
Yes it was dry yeast - Safale US-05
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Yup, that's what I used. You'll be fine. Throw down on some Wyeast 1056 for your next ale and make a starter. Anything I've done with liquid yeast has always carbed up within a few weeks, even if I let it sit in secondary for a long time.

Cheers,
 
Is it a problem at all, or am I just being impatient and need to give it a bit more time ?

I haven't ventured into liquid yeast yet, but I've never had this problem with regular dry yeast yet. It seems to me that if there is enough yeast in there to ferment the entire batch of beer that it shouldn't really matter one way or the other if it was dry or liquid when it was put in ?? Maybe I'm missing something.

By the way.. with regards to yeast, what does "attenuation" mean ? I understand that that word means with respect to light or electricity, but I see it used with respect to yeast/fermentation quite a bit. What gives ?
 
Well, it *should* have carbed by now, but I wouldn't panic. Rouse the yeast gently as had been suggested and let them work for another week. Make sure they're in a fairly warm area, ideally right around 70° and out of the sun.
 
Two things not covered. Maybe you had an uneven distribution of priming sugar. Some bottles got more, some less. You might have grabed a few of the lesser ones. If you let them sit someplace near 80F for another week and still have nothing, I'd be surprised if they'll ever carb up. Also, try putting one in the fridge for at least 4-5 days. If the priming did produce CO2 pressure, it will best be absorbed by the beer if you let it chill a while. If you try flash cooling the bottle and open it, a lot of that co2 pressure is lost immediately out of the headspace.
 
i totally agree with bobbym. I have had beer that one bottle didnt carb at all and another one gushed like old faithful. NOT ROCKET SCIENCE. uneven priming. Also (i might get shot for this) I would be willing to bet that the guys who trash talk dry yeast couldnt tell the difference if multiple beers were put in front of them and they had to taste and tell you if it was made with dry or liquid was used. I would be willing to bet you just didnt prime with enough sugar. Drink some flat beer and fix it next time.
 
Mutilated1 said:
Is it a problem at all, or am I just being impatient and need to give it a bit more time ?

I haven't ventured into liquid yeast yet, but I've never had this problem with regular dry yeast yet. It seems to me that if there is enough yeast in there to ferment the entire batch of beer that it shouldn't really matter one way or the other if it was dry or liquid when it was put in ?? Maybe I'm missing something.

By the way.. with regards to yeast, what does "attenuation" mean ? I understand that that word means with respect to light or electricity, but I see it used with respect to yeast/fermentation quite a bit. What gives ?
Click to expand...

Attenuation is the yeasts ability to convert the sugars to alcohol usually listed as a % .
 
tdavisii said:
Also (i might get shot for this) I would be willing to bet that the guys who trash talk dry yeast couldnt tell the difference if multiple beers were put in front of them and they had to taste and tell you if it was made with dry or liquid was used.
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would you like a cigarette with your blindfold? :D

no, the only real difference is going to be taste, but being able to "tell" is a different story. quality for certain styles demands liquid yeast at this time...even though they are coming out with good dry yeasts all the time.

really, i just like to see my starter at work ;)
 
DeathBrewer said:
would you like a cigarette with your blindfold? :D

no, the only real difference is going to be taste, but being able to "tell" is a different story. quality for certain styles demands liquid yeast at this time...even though they are coming out with good dry yeasts all the time.

really, i just like to see my starter at work ;)
Click to expand...

Make an APA with 1056 or US 05 and I dare you to tell the difference unless you F-up one:p
 
I'm pretty sure the problem was I let the beer sit in the secondary too long combined with trying to drink it too soon. I opened another one up last night, and it had enough carbonation that it was enjoyable to drink, but I noticed that there is not near the amount of yeast cake at the bottom of the bottle that I've seen with other beers. It still could use some more carbonation, but its good enough to drink and I only made 5 gallons so that'll be gone by the end of the weekend.
 

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