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**jagg** · 08-01-2007, 08:53 AM

OK, I made an Imperial stout and 2 IIPA's, and they are flat, I used .75 cup Muntons DME to prime, not enough? help please! thanks.

libs · 08-01-2007, 11:05 AM

Per 5 gallon batch is about right. Did you disolve the water in boiling water?

brewt00l · 08-01-2007, 12:21 PM

Need more info....how long in the bottle? What temps have the bottles been kept? Where these beers in a secondary for a long time?

SW Brewer · 08-01-2007, 12:43 PM

How long did you leave them in the secondary? If it was more than 8 weeks, you need to pitch additional yeast into the bottling bucket when you bottle. After about 8 weeks in secondary there are not enough yeast cells left to provide carbonation. My Northern Brewery IIPA kit instructions state that I need to pitch more yeast at bottling time.

Greg

FlyGuy · 08-01-2007, 01:01 PM

No, that's probably not enough. 3/4 of a cup of sugar would have been about right, but you need more if you used DME. Typically, about 1 and 1/4 cups is about right.

All is not lost -- you can re-prime. Here are some instructions (copied and pasted from a recent thread):

You can add new sugar to the bottle if you have access to carbonation tabs. The Muntons tabs are better because they are small and you can control your carbonation level by selecting the correct number of tabs. I don't like the Coopers drops because they are too big to allow good control over how much sugar goes into the bottle.

Before you add your carb drops, you MUST get rid of any existing CO2 in the bottles. Otherwise, when you place a carb drop in the bottle, it will cause a major gusher (you can guess how I discovered this). Make sure the bottles are at room temperature, then shake them gently to drive out some of the dissolved CO2. Pry open the cap just enough to vent the gas, and repeat (you may have to do this more than once). Before you take the cap right off, chill the beer down in the fridge overnight.

Once the beer is cold, it won't foam when you put the drops in. Working quickly, take the top off the beer, add your drops, and replace the top. A spray of StarSan on the mouth of the bottle would be a good idea, too.

Once the beer is capped, move to a warm spot for 2-3 weeks and enjoy!

malkore · 08-01-2007, 02:51 PM

still, even with not enough DME, it should still be carb'd...just under-carb'd.

**the_bird** · 08-01-2007, 02:53 PM

Imperial stout doesn't really want to be fizzy, so before adding any more sugar answer us the questions regarding time and temperature. 3/4 cup DME would be a little flat, but might be just about right for the style.

Big Al · 08-01-2007, 03:03 PM

One of my first batches I made I did the same thing, under primed. I brewed it on Super Bowl Sunday and it's now just right as far as carbonation goes. So your other option is to wait for 5 or 6 months and it will get better.

You need 1 1/4 cup DME for 5 Gallons (add a 1/4 cup for each gallon) If you are using Dex then you use 3/4 cups.

With an IIPA and an Imperial Stout I'd age them longer anyway as they will just improve with time. Carbonation should improve as well.

**jagg** · 08-01-2007, 04:26 PM

secondary for 2 weeks, bottles stored at 70 f + or - a degree or 2, I thought since you would use .75 cup priming sugar you would use the same amount of DME, this really sucks, I will try the suggestion from you Flyguy, any other tips appreciated, thanks guys.The beer iis about 2.5 months in bottle.

FlyGuy · 08-01-2007, 05:08 PM

Yeah, they definitely sound undercarbonated. But heed Bird's advice on the stout -- it is a style that should have low carbonation. With 3/4 cup of DME, that should get you into the low end of the recommended range of carbonation for an imperial stout.

I suggest that you re-prime your IPA first, and see how that goes. In the meantime, rouse the yeast in your stout by gently rolling the bottles across a table and keep them at 70F for a couple weeks. Sometimes that will get them carbonated a bit more. They might be fine. Otherwise, use your IPA's as a guide, and re-prime the stouts, too -- but with a lower dose (you will need the small carbonation tablets to do this).

Cheers!