Over fizzy on opening and color

I am a new brewer and I am trying to make a better batch! I was wondering if anyone has experience with beer that is overly fizzy after conditioning when they have it opened up. It seems like I can't get that right! Also, what can help change the color of a batch? Is it dependent on the grains mostly or should I worry about my hops and malt too?

Over fizzy is referred to as "gushers", and we have all gone through that at least once. Before you bottled, did you take hydro reading at least three days apart without change? If so, then something may have gotten a slight infection. Also, at the end of your room temperature bottle conditioning, did you leave them in the fridge for a week or close to it? Cold liquids absorb gas better. As far as color goes, generally speaking the type of grain controls that, but extra long boils can darken the wort too. You don't say how many batches of beer you have brewed, but if they are all gushers, you are doing something constantly "wrong". If you are new, don't beat yourself up too badly. It takes practice to produce good bear every single time, and even the seasoned pro's i'm sure, have an troublesome batch now and then.

You should provide all the detail you can so someone can give you meaningful direction on resolving the carbonation issue. How long did you ferment and at what temperature? Did you take gravity readings? If so, when and what were they? How much sugar did you use to bottle how many gallons of beer? How long did you condition them and at what temperature? How long were they in the fridge before you opened them?

That is the type of information that will point to a solution.

Hey thanks for the replies!

Until today I didn't have a hydrometer so I didn't take hydro readings. That will change! I have brewed 3 complete batches (one was 'supervised' by a friend and that one was perfect, no problems) and have one about a week into fermenting right now. I usually only leave the beer in the fridge overnight or for 2-3 days afterwards unless I get a lot of gushers (in that case I usually just leave the batch in the fridge all together...ha!). I have fermented each for two weeks at room temperature (or a little less, the fermenter was soaked in a bucket with lukecool water and wrapped in a towel during the process). I am currently only doing 1 gallon batches due to being new and not wanting to make 5+ gallons of skunk beer until I know what I'm doing. The sugar I'm using came with a couple kits, they are little almost rock candy looking things so I'm not sure how much sugar is in each and couldn't report that accurately. I conditioned for two weeks at room temperature and then 1-4 days in a 65 degree (F) fridge.

Any help is awesome! Like I said I'm super new to this but really want to impress friends and family with amazing beer skills!! haha

Everything in your process sounds good. Find a priming calculator. Go to the LHBS and buy some corn sugar or just use table sugar. Ask your friend to weigh out the proper amount. If he doesn't have a scale, ask your friends if they have a "gram scale." You'd be surprised how many people do.

If you can't find a gram scale, you can use Tablespoons. But use table sugar, not corn sugar as it can pack and give inconsistent measurements. 2 cups of table sugar is 1 lb. 8 ounces in a cup. You want one ounce or less per gallon. 16 Tbsp in a cup give 2 tablespoons per ounce. So two tablespoons or a little less like 5 teaspoons should give you the proper amount of CO2 in your beer.

Note that is for an actual gallon of beer into the bottle which is almost 11 beers. If you are only getting 9 or almost 10 out of a batch, you have to adjust the sugar. You should also look at a priming calculator and decide what volume you want in your beer. I like about 2.5 volumes.

I would just add that the 2-3 day period for cooling them is probably not allowing all of the CO2 enough time to go back into solution. That will cause the beer to foam a lot as it tries to escape quickly out of the bottle, bringing some of your beer along with it.

Follow dgr's advice about using a priming calculator - that is an invaluable tool. After bottling, keep the bottles at room temperature for 3 weeks. Finally, let the bottles chill in the fridge for 5-7 days before opening to allow the beer time to fully reabsorb the CO2. That extra cold conditioning time will also let any chill haze settle out. End result: crystal clear, perfectly carbonated beer.

Awesome thank you all for the help! I will try your suggestions and post my results!!