Beer head issues

[Newbie123]

Hello

I’m hoping someone can solve why my beer never has a head or has a minimal head.

I have made Coopers Irish red ale twice and a Woodford Admirals reserve once and followed the recipes exactly. Left the beer to ferment and clear out for about a month then used an online priming sugar calculator; melted the sugar in a little water and syphoned the beer to second vessel and added the sugar and bottled. After conditioning they have all been carbonated but when I pour them there is never any or very minimal head. I’ve hand washed, rinsed and towel dried my glasses. I hope that’s enough info but happy to answer any questions.

 

[goodolarchie]

Can you post a link to the recipes?

In general, there's carbonation (how much you primed), head formation, and head retention. Generally speaking you diagnose them in that order. If you're undercarbed, you won't see much head formed unless you tip the bottle upside down, and with no head formed there's little to retain. So let's start from the top. What carb volume did you calculate, how much sugar and what kind did you add to how much beer to get there?

 

[RM-MN]

Oils or detergent residue anywhere in your system will kill the heading on your beer. It isn't just the glassware but the mash tun, boil pot, fermenter, bottling bucket, and bottles all can be the cause. There is also time in the bottle. Less than 3 weeks give me carbonation but the heading is weak and doesn't last.

 

[Newbie123]

Can you post a link to the recipes?

In general, there's carbonation (how much you primed), head formation, and head retention. Generally speaking you diagnose them in that order. If you're undercarbed, you won't see much head formed unless you tip the bottle upside down, and with no head formed there's little to retain. So let's start from the top. What carb volume did you calculate, how much sugar and what kind did you add to how much beer to get there?

Here is the link to the coopers brew Irish Red Ale

The carb volume was 2.2 and I used table sugar 107.1g added to 20L of beer.

 

[rburrelli]

In priming sugar calculations it is important to determine amount to use based upon the highest fermentation temperature reached. If you are basing it upon a lower temperature you will be undercharging.

 

[Newbie123]

Oils or detergent residue anywhere in your system will kill the heading on your beer. It isn't just the glassware but the mash tun, boil pot, fermenter, bottling bucket, and bottles all can be the cause. There is also time in the bottle. Less than 3 weeks give me carbonation but the heading is weak and doesn't last.

Thanks for the advice. I think I cleaned everything carefully and also left the bottles to condition for 4 weeks before starting to try opening them.

In priming sugar calculations it is important to determine amount to use based upon the highest fermentation temperature reached. If you are basing it upon a lower temperature you will be undercharging.

Thanks for the reply. The room my fermenter is in ranges from 18-20C so I put the higher figure in the BF calculator.

 

[LokiM4]

Thanks for the advice. I think I cleaned everything carefully...

More important question is what you are cleaning with?? Household dish cleaning agents have surfactants in them to eliminate foaming and help rinse and dry clean and spot free. If you are using one even with rinsing multiple times it can inhibit the head into your pour.

try using a dedicated brewery wash on everything if you already are not.

 

[Newbie123]

More important question is what you are cleaning with?? Household dish cleaning agents have surfactants in them to eliminate foaming and help rinse and dry clean and spot free. If you are using one even with rinsing multiple times it can inhibit the head into your pour.

try using a dedicated brewery wash on everything if you already are not.

I think you may have found something worth exploring. I have been using washing up liquid and doing a double rinse on my bottles and equipment. I’ve ordered some brewing cleaner and might do a small batch to test the theory.

 

[cactusgarrett]

In priming sugar calculations it is important to determine amount to use based upon the highest fermentation temperature reached. If you are basing it upon a lower temperature you will be undercharging.

The rule of thumb, I believe, is that the highest temperature after primary fermentation needs to be accounted for. This is typically for instances of long-term or barrel aging. Whether you ferment a lager at 55F versus a belgian ale at 75F, you're still going to have roughly the same residual CO2 in solution.

 

[rburrelli]

The rule of thumb, I believe, is that the highest temperature after primary fermentation needs to be accounted for. This is typically for instances of long-term or barrel aging. Whether you ferment a lager at 55F versus a belgian ale at 75F, you're still going to have roughly the same residual CO2 in solution.

The higher the temperature of the wort/beer during fermentation, the less CO2 will be in that solution as I understand it. At any point during the process. Primary or secondary.

 

[goodolarchie]

The higher the temperature of the wort/beer during fermentation, the less CO2 will be in that solution as I understand it. At any point during the process. Primary or secondary.

Most fermentations cease activity at their warmest temperature (by our design), but if you had something pitched at, say 75, and then it was lowered to 65F, it will still be creating CO2 which would remain in solution at the 65F mark. Beer has no memory as to what temperature it used to be, or at least the physics of fluids and gasses don't. However if fermentation is complete, no more CO2 is being created, so if you raised the temp back up to 75, more of the existing CO2 in solution would want to come out.

So I have to agree with garrett, it's the highest temperature at-or-after the end of fermentation, whichever is higher. There are some exceptions to this, like if you were fermenting in a keg/unitank, warmed it up but trapped the CO2, then cooled it again. You could even accomplish this with a stopper on a carboy or tank... just don't blow anything up!

 

[rburrelli]

Most fermentations cease activity at their warmest temperature (by our design), but if you had something pitched at, say 75, and then it was lowered to 65F, it will still be creating CO2 which would remain in solution at the 65F mark. Beer has no memory as to what temperature it used to be, or at least the physics of fluids and gasses don't. However if fermentation is complete, no more CO2 is being created, so if you raised the temp back up to 75, more of the existing CO2 in solution would want to come out.

So I have to agree with garrett, it's the highest temperature at-or-after the end of fermentation, whichever is higher. There are some exceptions to this, like if you were fermenting in a keg/unitank, warmed it up but trapped the CO2, then cooled it again. You could even accomplish this with a stopper on a carboy or tank... just don't blow anything up!

Thanks. We are saying the same thing only you two were stating it better than I. I was assuming your high temperature would occur after primary fermentation.

 

[InspectorJon]

So let's say I have an ale that I let rise to 72 degrees at the end of fermentation and use a mylar balloon to keep oxygen out of the system while dry hopping. The beer is then crashed to 35 degrees for a couple days to drop the hops. All this happens while sealed against o2 but not really under any pressure. What temperature should I put into the priming calculator?

 

[hottpeper13]

72*

 

[InspectorJon]

Not to be argumentative, I have read both sides to this discussion and I am still wondering. Some say the beer will reabsorb CO2 out of the head space when it is cold crashed and to use the lower temperature. I tend to disagree but I still wonder. I can see where it might absorb some but not to its full potential.