I can't, in good conscience, send out a product I've yet to sample. So, I chilled an 888 tonight, despite my insistence that I'd wait till August, and poured it into one of my recently acquired
Mikasa beer glasses (the fat tulip one). To my dismay,
it was BARELY carbonated. There was a hiss when I opened the bottle, but the beer poured with no head, and it was nearly flat. Due to the long clearing period and high ABV, I knew this was a possibility. I also primed for slightly less than 2.0 volumes, but I did add some Nottingham when bottling. I estimate less than 1.0 volumes of carbonation - just enough to hint at CO2.
I'm not going to give any tasting notes because I want honest feedback, but the high ABV and some of the strong flavors I'm getting sort of lend themselves to a nearly still beer (dare I say, like Utopias?).
I'm really enjoying it, even mostly flat, which leads me to my dilemma:
Do I attempt to fix it, or do I send it out as is? I have no equipment on hand, but EdWort is a short drive away, and he could help if I choose to uncap each bottle, sprinkle in a few grains of dry champagne yeast, and recap.
I think I run the risk of overcarbonation (probably not bottle bombs) should I attempt to fix the issue, and this beer definitely lends itself to undercarbonation vice too much. Also, the beer has only been bottled for a month (to the day), and it might continue to carbonate slowly over the course of the next few months.
So, if you were the recipient of my beer, would you rather have me try and fix it, or leave it as is? I'm leaning toward shipping it as is, but if the response is strongly toward attempting a fix, I can be persuaded. Either respond within this thread or PM me as you see fit. I'm open to suggestion, with my aforementioned bias.
EDIT:
I'm NOT asking HOW to fix the "problem"...simply if you'd like to see me try.