over carbonated

I just opened my blueberry witbier a week early because....hay its superbowl today and i wanted to drink it. My problem is that it tastes really carbonated. Its making bubbles like a soda would just sitting there. Im mean its creating a head just sitting on the table. I get a carbonation burn when i drink it, almost making it taste sour. Any comments on what might have caused this? I followed the kit directions and used only the priming sugar that came with it. Could it have maybe been the blueberry flavor? Was there sugar in it?

I had the same problem with a brown ale I made recently. Even pouring gently I was getting 2/3 of head in the glass with the same "soda feel" to it. The only thing I can think of is maybe scaling back the priming sugar. I used 3/4 a cup.

i bottle conditioned for 2 weeks in a room with no light at about 75. I put them in the fridge last night it is really cold but the carbonation is giving it as weird flavor and theres no blueberry taste at all. I know i used the BB flavor you buy in the little bottle made for beer.

This is a great question. My first brew was an Oktoberfest and had the same issue. My next beer, a Belgium Wit, was perfectly fine and I used same amount of priming sugar. I thought maybe I got an infection in the Oktoberfest, but not sure what it is.

Is it gushing? If you crack open a bottle and don't pour, will the foam rise out of the bottle? That could be an infection or the result of bottling too early.

For the flavor issues, it could improve. You said you opened one early. The Blueberry may be covered up by the carbonation right now.

Had the problem too I would say possible wild yeast or wasn't done fermenting yet. Did you check the specific gravity or anything before bottling

No gushers. Opening is just fine. Theres just so many damn bubbles in the glass. The carbonation is giving it this real sour taste almost burning when you drink it. The FG was 1016 which it stayed there for a couple days. OH well i guess i made a bad batch i ll just leave it in the fridge for a while and see if it gets any better.

When I was new to brewing I had that problem quite a bit when I bottled too early. I used to bottle once the airlock slowed to less than a bubble per minute which was usually around 7 days. Now I let it sit in primary for 2 weeks no matter what and I have not had that issue since. (I don't do a secondary but that's just me)

martn55 said:

I just opened my blueberry witbier a week early because....hay its superbowl today and i wanted to drink it. My problem is that it tastes really carbonated. Its making bubbles like a soda would just sitting there. Im mean its creating a head just sitting on the table. I get a carbonation burn when i drink it, almost making it taste sour. Any comments on what might have caused this? I followed the kit directions and used only the priming sugar that came with it. Could it have maybe been the blueberry flavor? Was there sugar in it?

Click to expand...

Not giving it it's full time for the co2 to be absorbed back into the solution. Just because you opened in KNOWINGLY early, doesn't mean there is anything wrong with the beer, just your patience level.

The 3 weeks at 70 degrees, that we recommend is the minimum time it takes for average gravity beers to carbonate and condition. Higher grav beers take longer.

Stouts and porters have taken me between 6 and 8 weeks to carb up..I have a 1.090 Belgian strong that took three months to carb up.

Temp and gravity are the two factors that contribute to the time it takes to carb beer. But if a beer's not ready yet, or seems low carbed, and you added the right amount of sugar to it, then it's not stalled, it's just not time yet.

Everything you need to know about carbing and conditioning, can be found here Of Patience and Bottle Conditioning. With emphasis on the word, "patience."

Look at poindexter's video, in the thread and you will see why your beer is behaving the way it is. It's perfectly normal for what you experienced to happen. The so2 may be in the headspace, but not in the beer. The beer is not really overcarbed, it's just that the gas hasn't dissolved back into the beer yet.

hey Revvy i really appreciate any advice from you man. I actually have read that post you had before. I was just hopping that 2 weeks was going to be good. I know the basic rule is 3 weeks but it was superbowl sunday and i got a craving for Blueberry beer. I do have another question though. What about reawakening the yeast by swirling the carboy? would that help with getting down the FG of a beer?

Good thoughts above regarding high level of carb. Just another possibility - remember that carbonation is a function of the ratio of priming sugar to the volume of beer. If you used the full amount of priming sugar but did not bottle the full recipe volume (didn't top off enough, left too much behind when racking to the bottling bucket, etc.) . . .you will carb to a higher pressure.

As far as the taste - as McGarnigle & Revy point out, 2 weeks is too early to judge. Give it a couple weeks. Blueberry witbier sounds kinda good, hope it turns out.