Justibone
Well-Known Member
The better way to do it, with Mr. Beer, is to siphon the beer off of your yeast cake into a bucket (or other container) already containing your boiled sugar solution, and bottle from there. The reasons to do it that way are:
1) boiling the sugar solution means that the oxygen is gone
2) boiled sugar water also has no living microbes in it!
3) siphoning on top of it will mix the beer and sugar more evenly, with minimal stirring
4) no need to shake the bottles!
I bet your beer would be better if you took an extra step or two to reduce oxidation. I'm sure you're not storing it for six months to a year before you drink it, but if you have a palate for oxidation you can taste it pretty quick, according to some beer judges, I've heard.
The container can be anything, even an iced tea dispenser from Wal-Mart or Target. It would be better, of course, to attach a hose to that spigot so the beer doesn't splash down into the bottle, so as to avoid that source of oxidation as well.
1) boiling the sugar solution means that the oxygen is gone
2) boiled sugar water also has no living microbes in it!
3) siphoning on top of it will mix the beer and sugar more evenly, with minimal stirring
4) no need to shake the bottles!
I bet your beer would be better if you took an extra step or two to reduce oxidation. I'm sure you're not storing it for six months to a year before you drink it, but if you have a palate for oxidation you can taste it pretty quick, according to some beer judges, I've heard.
The container can be anything, even an iced tea dispenser from Wal-Mart or Target. It would be better, of course, to attach a hose to that spigot so the beer doesn't splash down into the bottle, so as to avoid that source of oxidation as well.
but i think i will from now on 
