Advice for Imperial Stout that is under carbed

[TxBigHops]

I've been brewing about two years now. I have around 8 brews under my belt. My most ambitious brew is my Russian Imperial Stout brewed in June 2015. OG on this beer was 1.098. It spent 5 weeks in primary, then racked to secondary for another 5 weeks on a bourbon soaked oak spiral. Tasted about right, so time to bottle. FG was 1.026. Since it spent 10 weeks in fermentation, I decided to add one package of EC-1118 champagne yeast to the bottling bucket, in case the original yeast (S-04) was no longer viable. Not absolutely necessary, but I felt it was reasonable insurance. I had about 4 gallons of beer and wanted to carb to style, so I used 2.75 oz of corn sugar which should have gotten me to 2.0 volumes.

After over six weeks in the bottle and four days in the fridge, the attached pic was what I got from a vigorous pour. It's not flat, but there's certainly no head to speak of. I didn't want a huge head, but surely this is not what 2.0 volumes should look like, is it?

It sure seems as though I have plenty of yeast. The EC-1118 was properly hydrated before adding to the bottling bucket. Six weeks in the bottle in a dark closet at 75-78 degrees ought to be long enough for the beer to carb. So I must not have added enough sugar, right? I'm thinking of making a sugar solution, opening each bottle and adding it, then recapping. Good or bad idea? I have a lot of time and effort invested in this brew, and would like it to be at it's best. On the other hand, it certainly is drinkable the way it is. Not what I was hoping for, but still a very tasty RIS. And I'm planning to continue aging some of the bottles up to a year or more. Will more time help? Is there any downside to what I am considering? Any thoughts, analysis, or suggestions appreciated.

 

[geoffey]

How many bottles have you opened? If just one then try a couple more to gauge the batch as a whole before you take any action. One issue I had as a beginner was inconsistent levels of carbonation within the same batch as I wasn't getting my priming sugar evenly mixed at bottling time.

Also, have you checked your scale so you know the sugar was measures correctly?

 

[TxBigHops]

How many bottles have you opened? If just one then try a couple more to gauge the batch as a whole before you take any action. One issue I had as a beginner was inconsistent levels of carbonation within the same batch as I wasn't getting my priming sugar evenly mixed at bottling time.

Also, have you checked your scale so you know the sugar was measures correctly?

Thanks for weighing in. I brewed this with a friend and we split up the bottles. I had a big uneven carbonation with my first brew, so since then I stir well after adding my priming sugar. Each of us has opened two bottles, one at two weeks (him) one at three weeks (me) and we each opened one last weekend. Results were similar. I have no reason to suspect that the scale (digital) is not reasonably accurate. All other recent brews have carbed up nicely.

 

[dwhite60]

Give it time.

Big beers usually take more time to carbonate, in my experience.

RIS and barley wine usually are not carbonated to very high levels. I did a barley wine earlier this year. 2 gallons carbed with 3 tablespoons of corn sugar. This would be a little under a half cup for 5 gallons.

All the Best,
D. White

 

[brewcat]

I would bet more time helps. The carbonation actually looks pretty good from the pic.

 

[TxBigHops]

Thanks guys. So any thoughts on whether opening a few and adding some sugar solution will do any harm? I'm wondering how to compute how much to use, and how much longer to condition them afterwards.

 

[Calder]

Give it more time. I've waited a few months before now.

Probably be ready for Christmas.

 

[Subdivisions]

Thanks guys. So any thoughts on whether opening a few and adding some sugar solution will do any harm? I'm wondering how to compute how much to use, and how much longer to condition them afterwards.

Impatience will give you bad results. Opening them will expose them to oxygen. Adding more sugar may give you bottle bombs in the future and it's not going to make the yeast work any faster. Big beers take a lot longer to bottle carb.

 

[snow16]

That beer's nearly 10% ABV. Stop opening them and let the yeast do their jobs!

I'm sure it'll be a great beer when it's ready!

 

[TxBigHops]

Thanks guys. Yeah, I was patient during ten weeks of fermentation, and my original plan was to wait until my birthday in November to open the first one. Then my brewing buddy opened one of his, and I got the fever. I did bottle three of mine in 7 oz bottles for the express purpose of observing the conditioning process. With two down I'm waiting 3-4 more weeks to check out the third one. Is that long enough, or are you guys suggesting I let them age several more months???

 

[bruteforce]

The barleywine I brewed back in May had almost no carbonation for 3 months. Then month 4 in the bottle and it was perfect. Give it a little more time, you've got some and will soon have more.

 

[thejuanald]

You spoke of making a sugar solution now, did you make a solution with water, boil it to dissolve, and then cool it down before bottling or did you just add the dry sugar? The first beer I made, I just added the dry sugar and got lopsided/under carbonation in my bottles. Also, did you transfer your beer from the carboy/fermentation bucket to a bottling bucket? Did you transfer first and then add the bottling sugar?

I found the best way to go is to make the sugar solution and cool it down, then add that first to my bottling bucket, then transfer from the fermenter on top of that, all while putting the tubing from the racking can on the side of the bucket to create a bit of a whirlpool while filling to mix it a bit. Then I give it a bit of a stir at the end to make sure everything is as homogenized as possible.

The barleywine I brewed back in May had almost no carbonation for 3 months. Then month 4 in the bottle and it was perfect. Give it a little more time, you've got some and will soon have more.

This happened to me as well with a 10.5% RIS I made. I tried one bottle at 3 months and it felt undercarbed. I didn't try any more until 8 months and it was perfect. Big beers take forever to carb in bottles.

 

[TxBigHops]

You spoke of making a sugar solution now, did you make a solution with water, boil it to dissolve, and then cool it down before bottling or did you just add the dry sugar? The first beer I made, I just added the dry sugar and got lopsided/under carbonation in my bottles. Also, did you transfer your beer from the carboy/fermentation bucket to a bottling bucket? Did you transfer first and then add the bottling sugar?

I found the best way to go is to make the sugar solution and cool it down, then add that first to my bottling bucket, then transfer from the fermenter on top of that, all while putting the tubing from the racking can on the side of the bucket to create a bit of a whirlpool while filling to mix it a bit. Then I give it a bit of a stir at the end to make sure everything is as homogenized as possible.

What I was referring to was adding more sugar now that the beer has been in the bottles for 7 weeks. I don't have any issues with my original priming procedure, which is quite similar to yours. I was just concerned that I might not have added enough sugar at that time. But the many responses have allayed my fears. I will give my beer more time. Good things come to those who wait...

 

[sablesurfer]

What I was referring to was adding more sugar now that the beer has been in the bottles for 7 weeks. I don't have any issues with my original priming procedure, which is quite similar to yours. I was just concerned that I might not have added enough sugar at that time. But the many responses have allayed my fears. I will give my beer more time. Good things come to those who wait...

The issue won't be the sugar available to the yeast. Adding more sugar will probably just stress the yeast even more.

I have a RIS that was supposed to be ready (1yr) in Sept. Was pretty flat, but then just about a month or so later it is now holding about half finger of foam. So that is about 13 months for a 10.5%.

 

[TxBigHops]

The issue won't be the sugar available to the yeast. Adding more sugar will probably just stress the yeast even more.

I have a RIS that was supposed to be ready (1yr) in Sept. Was pretty flat, but then just about a month or so later it is now holding about half finger of foam. So that is about 13 months for a 10.5%.

Why would the yeast be stressed? It was freshly hydrated and added to the bottling bucket just prior to bottling. It's alcohol tolerant up to 18% and my beer is only 9.5%.

 

[snow16]

Why would the yeast be stressed?

The yeast may be tolerant to an environment of 18% alcohol, but that doesn't mean it's an ideal condition for the yeast to thrive. When you pitch yeast into cooled wort and it begins to ferment, the yeast has a chance to acclimatize to the conditions as alcohol is slowly produced. But when you pitch yeast directly into a beer of 9.5% alcohol - it doesn't have that opportunity and it can stress it out. Generally speaking, the higher the alcohol content - the more time the yeast requires to do its thing.

It'll do it, though.

 

[Gar]

I've been brewing big stouts for years. time is your best friend here not only for bottle condition but if you save back a 6 pack and try one every 6 months you'll wish you aged every one of them.

 

[TxBigHops]

Thanks guys. All the helpful comments really make me feel a lot better about this beer. So it sounds like what I really need to do is brew next winter's version of this pretty soon, so it has tons of time to age, condition, and carbonate. Brewing in June this year just didn't allow for enough time. This thread has been a great learning experience. HBT rocks! :rockin: