Bottle Priming

[John2]

Hey everyone,

I know about the importance of the pour when it comes to home brew that was bottle conditioned. I've always left that last 1/4" to 1/2" in the bottom of the bottle to avoid pouring the yeast int the glass. But recently a friend of mine drank a beer right out of the bottle. I laughed and asked him how he felt afterwards and how it tasted fully expecting a horrible response. He just told me that it was a great beer and said he felt fine afterwards.

I was a bit confused, this went against everything I've read or been told. But then today I started reading about some brewery beers that are bottle conditioned (one in particular is Moon Man by New Glarus). How does one bottle condition without leaving yeast in the bottom? The Moon Man sure tasted fine and didn't leave me feeling gassy or ill. And as far as my own home brew...well, maybe I made a lucky mistake. Although I will say that I took a sip from the bottom of one of my bottles and there was definitely yeast in there. Maybe mixed with the rest of the bottle it wouldn't have tasted so apparent...who knows?

I guess what I'm asking is...how do the pros bottle condition in such a way that you can drink right from the bottle and drink all of it at that?

 

[hmmmbeer]

I too started out with the same mindset as you, NEVER drink from the bottle! After a friend of mine just drank out of the bottle I too had to try, wasn't bad but I still like to keep it in the glass. I have also always secondary fermented as well so that gets rid of MOST of the yeast left behind. Thats my 2 cents

 

[devilishprune]

Most beers that you buy at the store are force carbonated with CO2 and then put into bottles already carbonated. You can buy bottle conditioned beers, and they have yeast in them like our brews do. Should have the same effect on you that other home brews do, but it's a possibility that they're pasteurized.

 

[Revvy]

It's not that drinking out of a bottle is bad, or will make you sick or anything, it is just that drinking out of a glass is BETTER. Pouring a beer into a glass, with a mouth wider than that little bottle opening helps to lift the flavors AND aromas, so you get a much broader, much rounder tasting experience, you get all the complex flavors and even aromas. Drinking out of the bottle is fine for an icecold, pretty tasteless lager, but you are cutting off a lot of the experiences by drinking GOOD beer out of the bottle...but it can be done.

And yes, it will also leave behind the yeast.

The yeast i the beer is not a bad thing, in fact it is full of vitamin B complex, and the Belgian's practically worship it for it's healthful benefits. But most folks, especially Americans who for generations have been weened on crystal clear, pasturized and filtered "dead" beers like BMC are frightened of the cloudyness and yeasty taste of bottle conditioned beers with a lot of yeast in it.We have been encultured to be used to bland, tasteless, massed produced pablum, so many folks are downright scared of "Real" things that may be sour, or raw, or earthy.

And yes folks do have issues, initially, dealing with the oligosaccyhrydes in yeast, so folks in the beginning do get gassy, or some, have GI issues, but eventually we tolerate it.

 

[John2]

Thanks for the insight Revvy. I guess I kind of assumed that most breweries (other than the mega major ones like Miller and Bud) followed the same procedures as us home brewers do.

And devilishprune, I know that it's impossible to give an exact answer but about what percentage do you think force carbonates their beers? And despite being untraditional and more cost effective do you think that if these breweries bottle primed their beers they would taste better or is force carbonation a relatively reasonable alternative?

 

[devilishprune]

I have no way of telling you these numbers, but I have a theory about bottle conditioning versus force carbonation regarding beer aging. Also, here is a list of bottle conditioned beers that you could seek out if you were so inclined: link

Since there are live yeast in bottle conditioned beers, they can consume products that would lead to staling and oxidation over time (to a certain extent). I think that beers that are bottle conditioned last longer and get better with age than those that are force carbonated.

Anecdotally, I had some fat tire given to me by a friend that was about 5-6 months old, and it tasted terrible; as far as I know, it isn't bottle conditioned. But I've had other beers that are years old that tasted great (this may not be the best example, and your mileage may vary). In the short term, I don't think that there is any difference in the two really.

As far as flavor goes, on a homebrew level, you can prime your beers with something like brown sugar or honey which could contribute some flavors to the beer that you might notice, but I don't know if that is something going on on the commercial level. As far as taste goes, they taste the same to me unless you have some residual priming sugar that hasn't fermented yet.

 

[Revvy]

I have no way of telling you these numbers, but I have a theory about bottle conditioning versus force carbonation regarding beer aging. Also, here is a list of bottle conditioned beers that you could seek out if you were so inclined: link

Were you trying to link this?? Yeasts from Bottle Conditioned Beers Your link is broken. Or do you have a different source. This one is old, but the only one I've been able to find. I've cited it for years.

 

[devilishprune]

Yeah that's the one. I'm having some computer issues at the moment, so thanks for the link!

 

[Revvy]

Yeah that's the one. I'm having some computer issues at the moment, so thanks for the link!

Oh I was hoping you had a different and maybe more up to date source.

 

[GaryJohn]

Nothing bad about drinking the yeast itself, and it only minorly effects the flavor (unless you get a whole lot in one sip!). It's better in the glass, as previously stated, but not harmful or disgusting out of the bottle by any means.

Don't forget though...some yeast can give you gas a few hours later. It's happened to me. Best to avoid!

 

[Encinoman]

I have drank some beers, specifically coopers like their sparkling ales, that have yeast in the bottle. They recommend "tilting" or "rolling" the bottles to release the sediment in to the beer, then you pour it in to a glass. Sometimes it adds a little extra character to a beer.