over-carbed

[bradsss]

Bottled a beer and just had a few. They open up like champagne! Probably about 5 minutes of foam come out. I must have put too much sugar when carbing....anything I can do? Any tricks to help or am I screwed? It was such a good beer too..I'd hate to waste it.

 

[m00ps]

how old is the bottle? If its only been like a week and they are already gushing id get them into a tub and covered ASAP. They will likely start exploding due to pressure building. This can be very dangerous, trust me

Did you use a priming calculator for the sugar?

Another possiblity is the sugar wasnt mixed evenly. Are they all gushers? Or just some of them? If they all are, you either overcarbed, bottled too early and the yeast didnt finish attenuation, or youve got an infection. The first option is about the only one that may not result in bottle bombs

 

[bradsss]

They are 9 days old. One was perfect, the next three were gushers. I used a packet of sugar that's like 4 oz for a five gallon batch at my brew shop. Because I have used this before, I am hoping that it was just uneven but I will cover em up just to make sure nothing bad happens.

 

[bradsss]

I had an idea, What about getting the beer near freezing or freezing? I have heard that it will diminish the Co2 levels. Can anyone attest to this?

 

[Hello]

I had an idea, What about getting the beer near freezing or freezing? I have heard that it will diminish the Co2 levels. Can anyone attest to this?

The bottles could break. I wouldn't freeze them. I would stick them all in the fridge now. You could uncap then recap, but if there is still sugar for the yeast to eat, then they'll just keep carbonating.

4 oz of sugar for how many gallons? I know, a 5 gallon batch, but what was your actual bottling volume? What was your starting gravity and what did it finish it? How long did it ferment before you bottled?

Did you chill the bottles before opening? If so, how long? And list to @m00ps for sure. Those bottles could be dangerous.

 

[Komodo]

Bottled too early? How long did you wait from pitching yeast til bottling?

 

[Resonator]

They could just be gushing from not absorbing the CO2. 9 days isn't long enough to really carb them up.

Was your beer flat with a lot of head or was it carbonated beer and gushing?

What was your SG and FG at?

 

[bradsss]

I typically wait 2-3 weeks for them to correctly carb. But I like to get a sneak preview. After I had one, I thought it was good so i should have another. A gusher. Then the next two were as well.

Does it just take more time to absorb the Co2 possibly? I've rarely had a situation like this before so it was a surprise. My impression from the other commentator was that it will just get more and more pressurized?

All of them did not taste flat. They tasted great after I waited 5 minutes for the foam to clear. What's the difference between it tasting flat or not? I am curious so I can try to understand what's going on here...

My SG was 1.055, FG was 1.005

 

[bradsss]

Let me add...the beer was fermented for about three weeks. By no means did I rush to bottle this one.

 

[Resonator]

If the beer was flat it means that the co2 hasn't been absorbed into the beer yet, and the gushing would be normal after only a few days.

If it's still gushing and it's carbonated, it could be over carbed, or there's a possibility that it's caused by an infection. (Doubt it though)

It usually takes at least 2 weeks for the beer to absorb the co2. It does get more pressurized, but that pressure is what carbs the beer.

I would just leave them for another week or two before trying another, and give it a chance to absorb the co2.

Since your FG was so low, I don't think that you'll have problems with bottle bombs or anything like that.

 

[agrazela]

1.055 to 1.005 is over 90% ADF, what yeast did you use?

 

[bradsss]

Omega Labs - Saisonstein's Monster Yeast. It's a small company from Chicago. Unlike Wyeast, it comes in a yeast slurry. I have used two of their yeasts so far and like the results. If you can get your hands on some, I would recommend it.

 

[bradsss]

Thanks again everyone for helping me out on advice. I know us novice brewers can easily freak out when something is going wrong and be quick to run onto here. I realize most things work out unless you did them totally wrong, and time has a way of fixing things as well, but I am glad there's somewhere to go to just in case. I learn a lot in the process

 

[ricshayne]

Saisonsteins Monster is a badass yeast. I use it as my house yeast for all my Saisons. 3 weeks should have been enough time for it to ferment completely as it finishes pretty quickly due to the french strain that is part of the blend. this sounds to me like you probably have some sort of bottle infection, 4oz of sugar in 5 gallons isn't enough to make them gush like that. I carb up to 3.0 vols in saisons and that ends up being almost 6oz in 5 gallons with no gushers. i would soak all of your bottles for a few days in pbw or oxyclean free, and then hit them pretty good with a brush before sanitizing them.

 

[Resonator]

You did boil your priming sugar in water before adding it right?

 

[bradsss]

:rockin:

 

[Resonator]

Yea, uneven distribution of sugar would be the only other thing I could think of, other than co2 not yet absorbed or an infection.

 

[bradsss]

I did boil the sugar, perhaps I could look at the package again and double check the amount of oz. when I get home. I remember pouring into the pot to boil and thinking..that kind of looks like a lot...

As for infections, I did not physically see or taste anything off so I don't suspect that but you could be onto something.

 

[Resonator]

Sure it's fine, and just needs more time. Just put them in Rubbermaid containers if your concerned about them exploding.