Priming sugar too hot?

rphtx · 06-17-2010, 03:13 AM

I boiled my priming sugar a bit late and due to having to get to work didnt have time to let it fully get under 80 degrees. I dumped it into the bottling bucket about 20 minutes before adding beer. I don't know what the temp was but would guess around 100-110 if I had to guess.
Obviously, once a good amount of beer mixed in it would cool it rather quickly and not be much an issue. However, what effects if any besides shocking the yeast in the first few 100 cc's of beer to hit the hot mixture? I don't think it was hot enough to lyse the yeast and doubt if it did it would create off flavors to any noticeable extent. Anything I might be missing?

wulfsburg · 06-17-2010, 04:06 AM

I always pour my priming sugar into my bottling bucket hot right off the boil. Doesn't hurt my beer any.

Professor Frink · 06-17-2010, 04:26 AM

There's plenty of yeast in there and it cools down quick. Nothing to worry about.

**Lcasanova** · 06-17-2010, 04:35 AM

I haven't noticed any problems and mine is sometimes hot when I add it to the bucket, but the room temp beer usually equalizes the temperature pretty quickly so I wouldn't worry about it so much

rphtx · 06-17-2010, 04:57 AM

Figured as much. I brew with AHS kits and happened to look at their instruction sheet (which I normally ignore for the most part) and noticed it said to make sure its cooled to 80. I hadn't thought about it much until I read that and figured I'd post in the newb section for a quick answer : )
Thanks for the replies.

kable · 06-17-2010, 07:10 AM

I have done this before. The only problem I may have noticed is that it took longer than normal to fully carbonate my bottles.

Special Hops · 06-17-2010, 11:42 AM

Always poured it in boiling when bottling. no worries.

**Revvy** · 06-17-2010, 12:29 PM

You're fine, dumping it in is going to cool it off as it falls, touching any sanitizer residue is going to cool it, the minute the first few ounces of beer is racked onto it, it's going to cool, and when the rest of the 5 gallons of liquid hits it, it's going to be cool.

For the benefit of all the new brewers out there, you will not kill your yeast with your priming solution. There's a ton of yeast in suspension in your beer when you rack it, regardless of whether you secondaried or not. Even if a few little yeasties were damaged intitially, there's still plenty more to do the job.

Carbing is not mysterious, it's not something that is "touchy." The majority of the time you see a carbing issue in this forum, is purely impatience on behalf of the bottler. He's not waiting long enough. (3 weeks @ 70 minimum for normal grav beers) A higher grav or a lower temp will mean it takes longer. That's really all there is to it.

You can't screw this up, except by not adding your sugar to begin with. (of course the amount of sugar determines the level, but that's a different story.)

I'll say this again, your sugar will mix properly, and the temp of the priming sugar at the temp you add it doesn't matter. All these things that people think affect their bottling/carbing DON'T.

So don't worry about it. Just give your beer enough time in an above 70 environment, and your beer will be carbed.

Bret86944 · 06-17-2010, 04:37 PM

I dump my boiling sugar water straight into my wort. It's going to cool down way to fast to do any damage. Think about it this way, if you dump 5 cups of 212 degree water into 5 cups of 70 degree water, the resulting mix would be 141 degrees. Would that even be lethal to yeast? Plus, you are dumping 5 cups of water into 5 gallons, not 5 cups.

Do the math and dumping 5 cups of 212 degree water into 5 gallons at 70 degrees raises the temperature 3 degrees.

MartinSmith · 09-24-2010, 02:12 AM

Revvy - Thanks a ton. I was following the directions from my local homebrew store, and it did not say to cool sugar. I bottled about a week ago and have read over and over since that I should have cooled the sugar. Man have I been worried. This makes me feel much better.