Why the HELL isn't my beer carbonating

rph33 · 01-06-2009, 08:18 AM

Of my last 2 brews:

Brew 1: Imperial Brown Ale with significant honey additions... ~1.080 OG, added more honey in secondary. Stayed in secondary for 5 months at no lower than 63 degrees and no higher than 70. I think maybe the loonnng time in secondary is what caused a problem with the yeast, but anyway, I bottled about 5 weeks ago with around 1/2cup of corn sugar and its still flat as anything.

Brew 2: Dubbel Abbey Ale, very straightforward. Around 1.077 OG, one week in primary, 2.5 weeks in secondary. It's been in the bottle for 13 days now, and I just can't get a head to come out of a pour. Very flat and sweet and I'm worried that it might not improve.

What in the hell is going on. Flavors are good if not great, had no problems in fermentation, I sanitize everything that contacts the beer with StarSan.... UGH. What is going on!?!?! It just sucks to spend 40 goddamn dollars on a beer and wait for months and months and then have it practically ruined by it mysteriously refusing to carbonate. If this happens for my Double IPA which is in secondary right now, I'm seriously going to punch a baby.

**944play** · 01-06-2009, 08:38 AM

Those are pretty high gravities. Give them more time and keep the temp up, 70F or even a little more.

lordbeermestrength · 01-06-2009, 10:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rph33

Of my last 2 brews:

Brew 1: Imperial Brown Ale with significant honey additions... ~1.080 OG, added more honey in secondary. Stayed in secondary for 5 months at no lower than 63 degrees and no higher than 70. I think maybe the loonnng time in secondary is what caused a problem with the yeast, but anyway, I bottled about 5 weeks ago with around 1/2cup of corn sugar and its still flat as anything...

Good luck...

I did a barleywine that secondaried for about 6 months with about a 1.08 OG and bottled. Left at 70dF for 3 weeks and got no carbonation whatsoever. The yeasties are just too tired to go on at that point. Many people say that they have bottled after 6-9 months and not had a problem, but I don't think they are bottling high ABV beers.

Here's what I did (learn from my mistakes!) I poured all the beer back into the carboy. Added 2 packets of dry yeast to get fermentation going again. Still nothing. Dead. All the yeast fell to the bottom and died, choking on the alcohol.

Here's what I would do if I were you...

pour all your beer into a corny and force carbonate, then re-bottle. If you can't do that, dump your beer into a carboy. Get another batch of something going and add the krausen plus 3/4 cup corn sugar or table sugar into your imperial brown. Then re-bottle. If after 3-4 weeks you still have no carbonation... well you may want to try blending that beer with something else or just drink it flat.

**Revvy** · 01-06-2009, 10:16 AM

You mention your temps for secondary which is irrevelent to bottle conditioning/carbonation...

What temps are the bottles STORED at?

If you have a high gravity beer it could take A couple MONTHS AT 70 degrees to carb up.

We say 3 weeks at 70 for a normal sized beer...and that's just a general rule...when dealing with living things anything is just a general rule of thumb.

Heck even for a stout or porter, which isn't the highest gravity beer in the world I've had them take 8 WEEKS to come up to even the faintest carbonation.

You don't have to f with it, you don't have to dump it like lordbeermestrength posted back into the secondary or rack to a corney (Unless you want 5 gallons of liquid cardboard)...all you have to do is walk away for months, you leve the bottles alone in a warm closet...why the heck to you thing people leve BArleywines in bottles for a YEAR????? Lordbeermestrength, they ARE BOTTLING AND STORING HIGH GRAV BEERS, THAT'S HOW THEY KNOW IT TAKES TIME!

(Seriously, that is some of the worst advice I have ever heard on here...we're talking beers that need to be aged, and pouring into a secondary or a carboy is going to be the one thing that would cause the beer more than likely NOT TO AGE WELL....Oxydation takes months to develop...so basically when the beer reached maturity it would have oxydized...sheesh.)

This is a game of patience...and the stronger the beer the longer it takes...it doesn't mean there's anything wrong...it's not koolaind your making, but some of the strongest beers around...

1.070, and 1.080 are pretty honking big ales..

THINK in terms of Months, people, Months!!!!

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/558191-post101.html

If you want quick beers, make and drink hefes or low grav beers, but if you are going to invest money and time in making strong ales, then have patience to let them mature into the great beers they are supposed to be...

nealf · 01-06-2009, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Revvy

(Unless you want 5 gallons of liquid cardboard)

(Seriously, that is some of the worst advice I have ever heard on here...we're talking beers that need to be aged, and pouring into a secondary or a carboy is going to be the one thing that would cause the beer more than likely NOT TO AGE WELL....Oxydation takes months to develop...so basically when the beer reached maturity it would have oxydized...sheesh.)

Correct me if I am incorrect; but, if the corny in question was purged of all O2 and flooded with CO2 wouldn't the risk for oxidation be decreased? I was actually planning on "unbottling" and force carbing but was going to make sure I got rid of every bit of O2 in the corny itself before carefully transferring the beer from bottle into keg.

**Revvy** · 01-06-2009, 01:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nealf

Correct me if I am incorrect; but, if the corny in question was purged of all O2 and flooded with CO2 wouldn't the risk for oxidation be decreased? I was actually planning on "unbottling" and force carbing but was going to make sure I got rid of every bit of O2 in the corny itself before carefully transferring the beer from bottle into keg.

If you want to risk it, have at it...me I think no matter if you purge, you are still POURING out of bottles and you are bound to pick up some O2 molecules on they way down...

Seriously, would YOU try it? Especially just because you were too impatient to wait for your beer to possibly carbonate naturally?

uglygoat · 01-06-2009, 01:57 PM

revvy's already in the bag at six am?

if they're bottled, leave em be... but i doubt there's any yeast left in the barley wine to carbonate. next time, mix a half packet of dry yeast in with your priming sugar, and you should be good to go.

you can also pry the caps up gently, and put a few grains of yeast in each bottle, but it's hardly worth the effort.

nealf · 01-06-2009, 01:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Revvy

Seriously, would YOU try it? Especially just because you were too impatient to wait for your beer to possibly carbonate naturally?

Honestly, I was planning on it because the 999BW was my first BIG beer and I never knew they took longer to carb than regular strength beers. So, now I have changed my mind and will let them take as much time as they need.

I certainly am glad that I bottled a few of them into plastic bottles so I will be able to test for carbonation as the weeks and months go on!

Neal

**Laughing_Gnome_Invisible** · 01-06-2009, 02:21 PM

How about decanting the bottles when wanted into a PET bottle an hour or two before you want to drink it, and force carbing with a tire valve/co2 cartridge arrangement? If the beer tastes good now, that would be one way to drink it without oxidising it?

**Revvy** · 01-06-2009, 02:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Laughing_Gnome_Invisible

How about decanting the bottles when wanted into a PET bottle an hour or two before you want to drink it, and force carbing with a tire valve/co2 cartridge arrangement? If the beer tastes good now, that would be one way to drink it without oxidising it?

WTF...Gnome, talking brewing????

Did someone steal his account? Or is this a "new year, new you" kinda thing?