Hello. I've always added my priming sugar to each bottle. This time I want to add it while transferring my brew to the bottling bucket. Is pouring it in while the beer is going into the bucket good enough ? Or should I gently stir it afterwards ? I don't want to introduce oxygen to it, if I can help it. Thanks.
First Time Adding Priming Sugar to Bottling Bucket
- Thread starter Culchie
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I guess it depends on exactly how you do the transfer. If you can get your transfer tubing on the bottom of the bucket and running along the edge, then you can get something of a whirlpool going as the beer flows in and that should give you pretty good mixing. And a gentle stir at the end isn't going to introduce much more oxygen then the open transfer did in the first place.
Out of curiosity, why the change?
Out of curiosity, why the change?
Don’t forget to gently stir the contents of the bucket every 6 bottles or so because the sugar will stratify.
FYI I always mix the sugar with 8oz of distilled water and microwave for a 2 min boil then stir (sanitized spoon) mix and nuc for 1m. Cool add slowly down along the tube in the beer. Mix very slow -- I hit a shot or 2 of CO2 but mostly likely does nothing. Dont splash dont stir wild just swirl . That way no sugar gradual to dissolve
Welcome to HBT!
You just switched to a method similar to mine (and that of many others). Dissolve sugar in water, bring to a boil briefly to sanitize, let it cool some, pour into the bottling bucket, rack beer on top of that, give it a gentle stir with a long spoon, bottle. Easy-peasy.
You just switched to a method similar to mine (and that of many others). Dissolve sugar in water, bring to a boil briefly to sanitize, let it cool some, pour into the bottling bucket, rack beer on top of that, give it a gentle stir with a long spoon, bottle. Easy-peasy.
Just out of curiosity, my targeted 1.7 vCO2 takes 1.1 g/bottle. How many actually weigh out the sugar, v. a simple volume of, e.g., a teaspoon/bottle?
ISTM that weighing the dose for each bottle is going to be pretty slow.
Thanks everyone. I don't think I'm even going to get to try it this time. I just opened the lid of my fermentation bucket to take my FG and transfer to the bottling bucket. I leaned down to take a smell, and it, for a better term burnt the inside of my nose. Kind of like when you take a good bit of wasabi into your mouth. I've never experienced that before. I have a feeling it's ruined. Any ideas what might have happened ? 
No. Once the sugar is fully dissolved and well mixed with the beer, it will NOT spontaneously stratify. If there is any stratification, it is because the sugar solution was not well mixed initially.
Brew on
Probably a non-issue. Breathing an atmosphere that is close to pure CO2 will give you a good nose/lung burn. This is due to carbonic acid formed when the CO2 reacts with moisture in your body.Thanks everyone. I don't think I'm even going to get to try it this time. I just opened the lid of my fermentation bucket to take my FG and transfer to the bottling bucket. I leaned down to take a smell, and it, for a better term burnt the inside of my nose. Kind of like when you take a good bit of wasabi into your mouth. I've never experienced that before. I have a feeling it's ruined. Any ideas what might have happened ?
Brew on
Thanks Doug. I'll go ahead and bottle it then, and see what happens.Probably a non-issue. Breathing an atmosphere that is close to pure CO2 will give you a good nose/lung burn. This is due to carbonic acid formed when the CO2 reacts with moisture in your body.
Brew on
Don't worry about it - that's normal. It's just the CO2 burning your nose!Thanks everyone. I don't think I'm even going to get to try it this time. I just opened the lid of my fermentation bucket to take my FG and transfer to the bottling bucket. I leaned down to take a smell, and it, for a better term burnt the inside of my nose. Kind of like when you take a good bit of wasabi into your mouth. I've never experienced that before. I have a feeling it's ruined. Any ideas what might have happened ?
I love the smell of carbonic acid in the morning!
Back when using a bottling bucket I never found any need to stir. Just racked on to the boiled priming sugar/malt, which mixed it in fine. There's no risk of sugar stratification either, IMHO. But I do understand the fear of uneven carbonation.
Smells like Victory malt.
BrewnWKopperKat
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People who brew small batches probably do it - as it offers more control over the carbonation level. ('slow' and 'time consuming' are personal evaluations of time measurements and I'm not going there).
Over time, they may move to the "make a solution / dose with a medicine dropper" approach (or package in small kegs).
Fresh-brewed at home is always best!!
Of course. My "pretty slow" comment was based on an assumption of a five gallon batch in 12 ounce bottles..
I think the best reason for per-bottle priming is to avoid transfer to a bottling bucket, with its added oxygen ingress.
One approach would be to pre-load a bottling keg with priming solution, purge it with fermentation gas, then do a closed transfer, and then fill bottles. This might be less hassle than per-bottle priming.
One approach would be to pre-load a bottling keg with priming solution, purge it with fermentation gas, then do a closed transfer, and then fill bottles. This might be less hassle than per-bottle priming.
I have preloaded a keg and purged with fermentation gas. In fact, I did a couple batches like this. The only major difference is that I just let the beer carbonate and condition right there in the keg. If you’ve got it this far keeping the O2 out, you’re only a tap & tank away from keg dispensing!
I did forego this approach as I became concerned about the sugar sitting in the keg, in the dark, with moist gas coming through, (which initially would have some residual O2 in the keg). I started worrying about mold growth, and in response to my concerns posted here, it was recommended that I inject a sugar solution through the gas post after filling. This is what I now do, and as a long bottle by bottle sugar and fill guy, I can say that this is a lot easier. (I did sugar all the bottles first.)
Yes, kegs make great bottling buckets.
You're a tap, tank, and kegerator away. Or at least an extra keg-sized refrigerator.
Pasteurized priming solution in a sanitized keg? I'm not worried.
I agree there's most likely no cause for concern placing primer in a to-be-purged keg, but I think a post-purge/pre-fill injection is a more elegant solution, as one can also shoot a tsp of ascorbic acid in there at the same time and help keep the packaged O2 ppb down...
Cheers!
Cheers!
