Barleywine not carbed after 2.5 months

[pomofo]

I brewed my first barleywine at the beginning of April, starting gravity was a little low at 1.087, and the yeast was S-23. I bottled on July 2nd, finishing gravity was 1.017. After a month in the bottle I opened the first one and was treated to a completely flat beer. So I moved the bottles from the basement into my den where the temperature was in the mid-70s, and shook the bottles every few days to attempt to rouse the yeast.

Over the past month I have sampled a further 6 crown-cap bottles and 3 swing-top bottles. The first swing-top bottle, drunk on 9/10, was carbonated and tasted extraordinary. The others were all flat. So what went wrong? Why would one bottle carbonate and not the others?

I brewed a 1.088 baltic porter last winter that carbed after a few weeks, so I don't know why most of these bottles haven't carbed. At first I thought it might have been the oxygen barrier caps, but now that the swing-tops aren't carbed either, I'm wondering if maybe the yeast isn't just tired out. I'm considering adding more sugar or maybe adding some granules of S-33 when I open my next yeast packet in a few weeks. Or should I do both? Or just dump everything back in the bottling bucket and try again?

 

[cheezydemon3]

Yikes.

Evidence suggests, maybe the 1 carbed had an infection that carbed it.

If the yeast are pooped at that abv, new yeast will be less able to cope with the beer than the yeast already present.

If you primed. no more sugar is necessary.......

If you could dump it all and start over without oxidizing all of it that might be good.

I would let it sit another 2 months if I were you.

 

[pomofo]

Yikes.

Evidence suggests, maybe the 1 carbed had an infection that carbed it.

If the yeast are pooped at that abv, new yeast will be less able to cope with the beer than the yeast already present.

If you primed. no more sugar is necessary.......

If you could dump it all and start over without oxidizing all of it that might be good.

I would let it sit another 2 months if I were you.

Well, that must've been some infection, both my parents and I thought it was one of the best beers we'd ever had.

If I let it sit another couple months and they're still not carbed would it still be safe to add more yeast or sugar, or would the 4.5 month wait have given bad bacteria too much time to gain a foothold. I really don't want to give up on this batch.

 

[cheezydemon3]

1 bad bottle (and yes, there are a few infections that leave NO off flavors, but unchecked will cause nice carbonation after a month or so, but uncontrollable gushing after 2) is no cause for alarm. If that is even the cause.

Poorly mixed priming solution is a more dangerous scenario, and just about the only other explanation.

Barring a bad mix, 4 months is sometimes needed to let a big beer carb, and the only option I see at this point.

 

[DrinkinSurfer]

Sometimes they carb up slow, but the yeasts definitely sound kind of tired. Bacteria are not going to get a foothold in a barley wine that has already fermented (though beware of absolutes), the alcohol has killed off anything already. Time is your friend and enemy in this situation.

 

[cheezydemon3]

Mostly correct drinkin surfer, but GUSHER doesn't mind alcohol and can hit 1 or 2 bottles.

How do you explain 1 perfectly carbed while 8 or 9 others are completely flat?

Either way. Time and patience.