Carbonation Question

After bottling, I put my last batch of beer right into the basement. After two weeks I stuck one in the fridge and tried it last night. Flat beer! Up til now I have carbonated in a back bedroom at room temperature with no problem. Checked the basement temp and found it to be around 61 degrees. Question, is this too cool for carbonation and if so, will returning these bottles to room temperature for a week get the yeast working again?

Yes, it's too cool (especially, if like me, you have concrete floors and the beer is on the concrete- it's much colder there) and yes it'll carbonate if you warm it up to about 70 degrees. It might take two or three weeks, though, not one.

Lorena

Thanks for the ease of mind. The brew is a honey stout and wasn't that bad without the fizz.

Took a look at your image page. Nice family!

Herman

Thanks for the compliment- they are a nice couple of kids, even though they're teenagers now.

Honey stout can benefit from the longer conditioning anyway, so you've done some extra conditioning. The bad part is still waiting!

Lorena

I’m new to homebrew, but enjoy it. It has been a real lesson in patience. Waiting has never been one of my strong points. Even without this mistake it would have been early, but I had hoped to show off this brew at our Easter get together.

Enjoy the kids (even the teenage years.) Not so sure I’d want to go back in time, but both of mine are married and on their own. My son is somewhere under the Indian Ocean heading to who knows where. We miss them.

Herman