Recover Flat Bottles?

Hi kids,

So after making my 2nd batch, a good friend from out of town came out and we decide dto make a batch together. We did fine with the primary, I xferred to secondary and then came time to bottle. I messed up when adding the priming sugar by adding it directly to the secondary without making a solution out of it first. As a result, now that I open the bottles 3-4 weeks later, all the beer is flat.

This was a special brew with my friend - if I am willing to rebottle/recap everything, is there anyway for me to save it?

--Matt

carb tabs 9 10

eriktlupus said:

carb tabs 9 10

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9-10 tabs per bottle? Pretty sure they wont explode?

No, no, no! Carb tabs according to the package directions! Open the capped bottles, and add 3 tablets (I think, double check that!) to each 12 ounce bottle. However, since you added priming sugar, I think you are going to have a combination of flat bottles and overcarbonated bottles. I mean, the priming sugar went somewhere, and it seems like it isn't in the few bottles you've opened. So, open them over the sink because you might have a few gushers. It goes without saying, but only add the carb tabs to the flat bottles.

(The last poster typed 9, 10 because you have to have a certain minimum to post and he was just filling up the space!)

You can either use carb tabs or uncap and put some dextrose in each bottle then recap.

If you decide to recarb your bottles, here is some advice (based on personal experience):

First, you need to try to de-carbonate all your bottles before re-carbing them, especially since you know some of your bottles must be over-carbonated (add carb tabs to them and you will have beer grenades!). I suggest gently prying open the caps just a wee bit to vent them, then agitate them a bit, and do it again.

Once de-carbed, cool your beer as cold as you can get them. Then add carb tabs (they are much easier than measuring out a small and precise amount of dextrose) to the cold beer. If you try to add the carb tabs before de-carbing the beer, especially if they are warm, you are going to cause instant gushers! (Trust me on this one!!!)

Now recap with new caps, and let them sit at room temp for a few days. Then agitate them to ensure the carb tabs got dissolved, and leave them at room temperature for at least another week. That should do it -- best of luck!

I am a newbie at all of this so excuse me if this is a dumb suggestion but couldnt he just start over? Open all the bottles and dump them all into your bottling bucket and mix everything properly. I dont know if adding more sugar would be the way to go or to rebottle everything and place Co2 tablets in the bottles.

Good question trainfever. I think the newbie has a point. If sugar was added but not mixed right, it would all be fermented now anyway after 3-4 weeks. Just dumping them all in the bottling bucket and repriming might be a good idea.

trainfever said:

I am a newbie at all of this so excuse me if this is a dumb suggestion but couldnt he just start over? Open all the bottles and dump them all into your bottling bucket and mix everything properly. I dont know if adding more sugar would be the way to go or to rebottle everything and place Co2 tablets in the bottles.

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Well, no, that wouldn't work. The main reason is because if you open the beer and pour it into the bottling bucket, you'll aerate it something awful. It might mix up better, but it would be exposed to oxygen and would be ruined.

I guess Yooper Chick is right. That wouldn't work, but I still say it was a good question for a newbie though.. I never had a not carbed batch.

I am drinking a good carbed batch of Yooper Chicks "Fat Tire" recipe right now tho :rockin:

It would be very difficult to pour out 2 cases and not aerate the hell out of it. I vote for carb tabs.