will I get bottle bombs? What to do!

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Dr_Gordon_Freeman

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 4, 2009
Messages
259
Reaction score
4
Location
Black Mesa
I know there probably isn't much I can do about this but here is my dilemma:

This is the first beer I've fermented at below 60deg and my first batch with US-05. It's a dead guy ale clone.

I followed the recipe and fermented at 60deg and all was well. I noticed after about a month there was no action on the airlock and I checked the grav and it was at 1.014 which is exactly where the recipe said I should be, so I bottled. NOTE: when I was steeping the grains I thought I'd use some powdered alpha enzyme to increase conversion, not sure if that matters but it's the first time I've used the powder. I used 3/4 C. table sugar to prime. It has been bottle conditioning at around 60deg also.

Now as per my ritual I cracked one open after about a week just to check on it, and it was WELL carbonated (only was in the fridge for a few hours though, not overnight). This MAY have been because it wasn't in the fridge long enough to dissolve the CO2 in the liquid, but it was definitely cold when I opened it. The problem was that it was TOO SWEET! Priming sugar alone isn't enough to affect sweetness greatly, am I right?

I am thinking I screwed up somehow and I am just trying to figure out how to salvage the situation IF I start to get bottle bombs.

Am I paranoid? Should I start testing them? Should I pour back into the fermenter and let it go longer?

This is my 8th batch or so and I've never had a problem... I'm hoping I don't pop my bottle bomb cherry on this one.

CLIFFS:
-first time using enzyme during steeping
-first time with S-05
-first time fermenting/bottle conditioning at below 70deg
-sample at bottling seemed OK, maybe a little sweet.
-sample after 1wk in bottle was very carbed and still seemed quite sweet!
-worried about bombs
 
Patience grasshoppa.

Well obviously adding any amount of sugar to your beer will sweeten it. Conditioning colder will result in slower carbing. Opening bottles before they're condtion will result in eruptions of foam because the CO2 hasn't properly dissolved into the beer. Never freak out about the flavor/aroma of the beer before a minimum of 3 weeks at 70 degrees of conditioning.

I've noticed hoppy beers don't really get all that great until maybe a month in the bottle. The flavor of the beer is a combination of the actual taste, the aroma, the mouthfeel, and so on. Hop aroma is carried out of the liquid and into the air through the carbonation bubbling to the top. Unless your beer is properly carbed it's not going to taste exactly as it should.

I'd try a beer every 4-5 days from now until it hits 3-4 weeks then report back. It'll probably be awesome by then.
 
haha... thanks for the pep talk... I just stuck another one in the fridge to test tomorrow.

This is really my first stress-out in about two years of brewing!
 
Back
Top