Bottle conditioning cider (inconsistent results)

[Pyg]

I made 5 gallon hard cider last November.
Fermented with Notty ale yeast
I ended up using 3.7 oz of prime sugar for 4.5 gallon of cider.

It seems every other bottle is barely carbed.
The bottles that are carbed, have a quick head and then the head disappears.

But why the inconsistent bottle carbing, every bottle came out of the same bottling bucket, every bottle was conditioned in the same place and same temp fluctuations?

Is cider just a jerk when it comes to bottle conditioning?

 

[Maylar]

Cider doesn't sustain a head, so that part is normal. The most likely reason for inconsistent carbonation is that the priming sugar wasn't thoroughly mixed so some bottles got more than others. Beyond that, I dunno what to tell ya.

 

[bernardsmith]

I think Maylar may be absolutely right. But there is another possibility. What kind of bottles are you using and what kind of caps? Might there be a poor fit between the cap and the bottle such that CO2 can escape? Are you using plastic bottles with screw tops? or Grolsch-type bottles (flip tops) that may need new O rings?

 

[Pyg]

I think Maylar may be absolutely right. But there is another possibility. What kind of bottles are you using and what kind of caps? Might there be a poor fit between the cap and the bottle such that CO2 can escape? Are you using plastic bottles with screw tops? or Grolsch-type bottles (flip tops) that may need new O rings?

Regular beer bottles with regular crimp caps!
The same bottles and silk at caps work on all my beer

 

[Scrumpy!]

If you mixed dry priming sugar directly into your bottling bucket, it might not have completely dissolved before you started bottling. It is best to prepare a priming sugar syrup to avoid this. If you are sure you mixed your priming solution and cider completely, it is likely that you have a capping issue.

You can test your capping by giving each bottle a good shake then turn it upside down. Those with real bad caps will fizz around the edges within a few minutes. To find ones that are not as bad but still leak enough to lose pressure, turn them upside down in a dry wine box and check for damp spots the next day. It doesn't take much of a leak to lose carbonation.

You can always re-prime the leaky ones. If you have more than a few, uncap them, pour the cider into a sanitized container and let it sit until the cider is flat. Add priming sugar at the rate of 4.2g/l for each vol of CO2 you need. Something on the order of 2.5 vol gives a moderate level of carbonation. Be sure your bottles and caps are well sanitized. This is a little risky because your cider is most vulnerable to spoilage organisms when it is fully fermented so this second bottling should move to the front of your shelf for drinking sooner than the others once it is fully carbonated again (3-5 weeks).