Over Carbonated Bottles

Since this is the 2nd batch in a row that this has happened to me, I must be doing something wrong. Once I open a bottle, it flows over on me instantly, however the beer itself tastes normal (not over carbonated at all).

I made sure fermentation was over, so that's not it.

2 weeks primary
2.5 weeks secondary
2.5 weeks in bottles

The recipe is for a partial boil, 5 gallon. I am adding 5oz of corn sugar, is it possible that it's too much?

5 ounces should be fine. How long do you chill them before opening?

I know chilling does help a bit (just as with my last batch), but I didn't chill this one yet. That shouldn't be a deal braker though, should it? I should just be able to open these without chilling.


Also, I made sure the the sugar was evenly distributed in the bottling bucket before bottling.

Oh, chilling will make a HUGE difference! Cold beer "holds" co2 easily, and warm beer tends to have more co2 in the headspace. If you chill one at least 24 hours, but even three days would be better, you may notice a big improvement.

Thanks, I'll try that.

Yea, put them into the fridge for a day or two. I've had bottles that do this and thought I could just "chill" them by throwing them into the fridge for a few hours. That really does nothing.

+1 to this advice...chilling the beer should help...It will help reabsorb the co2 into the solution....give em at least 48 hours...but if you can hold off, let them go a week.

ant8344 said:

Since this is the 2nd batch in a row that this has happened to me, I must be doing something wrong. Once I open a bottle, it flows over on me instantly, however the beer itself tastes normal (not over carbonated at all).

I made sure fermentation was over, so that's not it.

2 weeks primary
2.5 weeks secondary
2.5 weeks in bottles

The recipe is for a partial boil, 5 gallon. I am adding 5oz of corn sugar, is it possible that it's too much?

Click to expand...

I've only got two batches (third will be tomorrow) under my belt, so I'm by no means an expert.

However, I've unfortunately been filching beers from both stashes in their various stages of maturation, and as unbelievable as this may seem...that extra .5 of a week of bottle conditioning could make a HUGE difference!

I've found and been amazed at how much a difference just a few days makes...even as late as 2 1/2 weeks, I had some bottles that weren't as well carbed as others...some would gush when I popped the top...and amazingly....at three weeks...bottle samples appear to be uniformly carbed.

Then as others say..pop 'em in the fridge for a couple of days. It'll blow you away.

In the interest of science. Chill one a couple of days. Drink it. And either concurrently, or afterward, drink a hot one too. Take notes of the differences.

TampaTim said:

I've only got two batches (third will be tomorrow) under my belt, so I'm by no means an expert.

However, I've unfortunately been filching beers from both stashes in their various stages of maturation, and as unbelievable as this may seem...that extra .5 of a week of bottle conditioning could make a HUGE difference!

I've found and been amazed at how much a difference just a few days makes...even as late as 2 1/2 weeks, I had some bottles that weren't as well carbed as others...some would gush when I popped the top...and amazingly....at three weeks...bottle samples appear to be uniformly carbed.

Then as others say..pop 'em in the fridge for a couple of days. It'll blow you away.

In the interest of science. Chill one a couple of days. Drink it. And either concurrently, or afterward, drink a hot one too. Take notes of the differences.

Click to expand...

Poindexter did a nice video that shows this...

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FlBlnTfZ2iw]YouTube - time lapse carbonation[/ame]

A lot of times the gushing in the early bottle means it has nearly reached the max amount of co2 production, but it has simply yet been reabsorbed in the solution, which is the true meaning of carbonation, it's not just a head...its the timy bubbles that you see actually in the liquid, rising from the bottom and sitting on the sides. Chilling will help saturate the fluid with the gas.

I also have a blog on the topic. http://blogs.homebrewtalk.com/Revvy/Of_Patience_and_Bottle_Conditioning/

Just in case you haven't been told this yet...sample a bottle or two to test for carbonation. If the carb level is good then you're supposed to take the whole batch and place them in the fridge (or cold garage) to retard further carbonation from building.

After a couple of days you can drink them or remove them.

TampaTim said:

However, I've unfortunately been filching beers from both stashes in their various stages of maturation,

Click to expand...

Heh, twice this week I've grabbed a green bottle of beer. In the interest of science, right?

CiscoKid said:

Heh, twice this week I've grabbed a green bottle of beer. In the interest of science, right?

Click to expand...

All in the interest of science! (I'm puttin' my lab coat on as we speak.)


In regards to the last post of the previous page..

Just in case you haven't been told this yet...sample a bottle or two to test for carbonation. If the carb level is good then you're supposed to take the whole batch and place them in the fridge (or cold garage) to retard further carbonation from building.

After a couple of days you can drink them or remove them.

Click to expand...

Since Revvy's watching this thread...I'll ask this:

My second batch (All Grain) seemed to have been carbing up at an alarming rate. Today is Day 14 in the bottle for that batch. Based on the above quoted post...Should I put them in the fridge? Or should I leave them out for another seven days?


Since I filched so much of my first batch "in the name of science, and the slaking of the thirst of knowledge of homebrewing", I'm reluctant to keep dipping in the well so to speak. That first batch turned out so well after day 21 in the bottle..it's amazing..and I'm pissed that I wasted so much of it while it was green....albeit good whilst green, it is awesome now.

However, they are two wildly different beers. The first is an extract/specialty grain, over-hopped, IPA kit beer from Mid-West. The second is a Pale Ale, constructed from a homebrewed All-Grain recipe derived from studying simple recipe's. So each beer is unique.

Leave it be. If you used the proper amt of priming sugar and didn't bottle to early, they won't explode. On the other hand, if u put them in fridge too soon you drastically increase carb, and aging times. Some beers you can do that with as they age quick. But just give it its 3 weeks.
Imho
-john

strider said:

Leave it be. If you used the proper amt of priming sugar and didn't bottle to early, they won't explode. On the other hand, if u put them in fridge too soon you drastically increase carb, and aging times. Some beers you can do that with as they age quick. But just give it its 3 weeks.
Imho
-john

Click to expand...

Three weeks in the primary.

3/4 cup dextrose. 2 cups water for five gallons of wort.

Should be okay.

yup, ur fine, assuming ur sg was good at bottling, priming was reasonably mixes and no infection. Bottle bombs r not common w/ good methods.

The gravity was funny.

I had two consecutive readings of 1.015 (close enough to where it should have been), and a third of 1.020....no bubbles either.

I didn't know what to make of that.

God knows...I tried my damndest to screw that batch up. I hit my strike temps in the Mash, covered it. Left it alone for an hour. Took the lid off, and it had risen to 161 for God knows how long. The gas in my propane tank started petering out somewhere in the middle of my boil, so I didn't get the expected evaporation I was looking for. My efficiency was all over the place...either I did bad..or lost count of how many pitchers of wort I collected...It was a disaster...but...in the name of science..I just finished a beer from that batch that is carbed nicely, chilled and it's damn near one of the best beers I've ever had.

Can't wait until next week when it clears up in the bottles the CO2 gets fully into the solution and all the flavors marry. It'll be great.

One thing I've learned after two batches about carbing up a beer. The carbonation acts much like the crowd at a home game for a sports team. An invisible player if you will. It's not on the grain bill, or the adjunct list, but it's vital as hell, and adds the last bit of what's needed to make your concoction taste it's absolute best.

I'm new to home brewing, I recently bottled a hefe. I opened one 3 days after bottling and had some cleanup. Is a cup of corn sugar too much for a 5 gallon batch? Should I leave them at room temp or refrigerate? They taste great, just hoping the aging will help. (Gravities were spot on)

Am I thread jacking?? First post

Larbos said:

I'm new to home brewing, I recently bottled a hefe. I opened one 3 days after bottling and had some cleanup. Is a cup of corn sugar too much for a 5 gallon batch? Should I leave them at room temp or refrigerate? They taste great, just hoping the aging will help. (Gravities were spot on)

Am I thread jacking?? First post

Click to expand...

http://www.northernbrewer.com/priming-sugar-calculator/

Use the calculator and let us know.

'da Kid

A little fizzy but when put in the fridge for a couple days it was awesome. Everybody loved it. Thanks

Welcome to the addiction... Parience, patiente, patience, dammit it's hard to get it right, uh, umm, oh yeah, patience, that's it. Almost every new brewer has a hard time with it, sometimes the old die hard folks get a little thirsty too. In the back of our minds, we know somewhere, all the way in the back of the closet, underneath the galoshes, behind the rain slickers, there lies a bottle of the nectar of the gods we stashed two winters ago. It then dawns on us, we promised that bottle to the christening of our god (niece, nephew, first cousins baby,etc.) At that point we kinda say, "screw it, I'll just drink something else, a promise is a promise". Or not.

EDITI just remembered some apple jack from September 2013 . Yum! OMGosh, it's really hard to describe. Even though the proof is pretty high, it is really smooth, and I can't really say what the flavor is. I have never had store bought Apple Jack, so I can't make a comparison. This is the second time this particular bottle has been sampled, but I doubt is is oxidation I taste with such a high ABV%.