Bottle conditioning

[Prague_1989]

Evening Lads,

I'm about 4 days into my first brew and I've a dilemma.

Basically, I was bought this kit for Xmas and being bored and eager over the holidays I started straight away. My issue is that after my first fermentation, I have nothing (after I've added the sugar) to put my beer in before bottling. Could I add the sugar to my batch and then siphon it into the bottles to ferment for the 14 days as suggested or do i need to purchase a separate cask to ferment... then bottle it once this has completed?

I know this has been covered a few times but any advice is appreciated.

 

[runkelia]

I am not understanding you completely.
The Process is as follows: When your fermentation is complete (You have reached and sustained you final target gravity), you boil water with your sugar for 5 minutes. I use 2 cups water, and .8 ounces by weight per gallon of beer. I then dump that into the bottling bucket, rack the beer on top, mix gently for 1 minutes, fill bottles and cap.

 

[m3n00b]

Do you have a bottling bucket? You don't want to add priming sugar to primary as you'll stir up all the trub at bottling.

 

[saeroner]

What type of beer kit is it? The maker probably has a YouTube channel or just search for something similar if you want to see how the process works. It's pretty simple. No you should not be siphoning anything into the actual bottles.

 

[flars]

Leave your beer in the primary for three weeks. During the third week you can be checking for Final Gravity. If it is a big beer four weeks may be needed in the primary.

In the meantime go out to buy a bottling bucket. A plastic bucket with a spigot that you will attach the bottling wand to.

When you have your bottles boil the appropriate amount of priming sugar in 2 cups of water. Use one of the on line calculators for the weight of priming sugar. This one gives you the options. http://www.northernbrewer.com/priming-sugar-calculator/

Begin sanitizing your bottles and bottling equipment. Starsan is a great no rinse sanitizer.

Add the priming solution to your bottling bucket. Siphon the beer without splashing. With the siphon tubing curled at the bottom of the bucket the natural swirl while siphoning will mix the priming solution into the beer.

This is just the basics. Come back to have details filled in.

 

[progmac]

if for some reason you are bottling straight from the primary, add sugar to each bottle, then fill the bottles, then cap and store until carbed. i think it works out to about 3/4 tsp per bottle but please don't take my word on this amount. don't try to mix the sugar into the primary.

 

[Rockn_M]

If you’re asking about the additional sugar that is needed for the beer to carb in bottles, I always make a syrup solution and carefully add it to the fermenter. Carefully stir with a sanitized spoon and let is sit for about 30 min. Letting it sit will let any trub that was disturbed to settle back down.

To make a simple syrup solution take your priming sugar and had about 1 cup of water and boil it for a few min. Let it cool to the temperature of your beer and carefully add. Make sure that everything that touches the beer is sanitized.

There are several different ways to do it. You’ll need to figure out what works best for your setup.

Good Luck!

 

[flars]

If you’re asking about the additional sugar that is needed for the beer to carb in bottles, I always make a syrup solution and carefully add it to the fermenter. Carefully stir with a sanitized spoon and let is sit for about 30 min. Letting it sit will let any trub that was disturbed to settle back down.

To make a simple syrup solution take your priming sugar and had about 1 cup of water and boil it for a few min. Let it cool to the temperature of your beer and carefully add. Make sure that everything that touches the beer is sanitized.

There are several different ways to do it. You’ll need to figure out what works best for your setup.

Good Luck!

This is a radical advanced brewing technique. For the sake of new brewers we should advocate more standard methods to help them develop consistency from the fermentor to the well conditioned bottle.

 

[progmac]

If you’re asking about the additional sugar that is needed for the beer to carb in bottles, I always make a syrup solution and carefully add it to the fermenter. Carefully stir with a sanitized spoon and let is sit for about 30 min. Letting it sit will let any trub that was disturbed to settle back down.

To make a simple syrup solution take your priming sugar and had about 1 cup of water and boil it for a few min. Let it cool to the temperature of your beer and carefully add. Make sure that everything that touches the beer is sanitized.

There are several different ways to do it. You’ll need to figure out what works best for your setup.

Good Luck!

interesting! i would be afraid the sugar would end up down there with the trub and to get it mixed in enough for even carbonation would make the beer trub-central. doesn't sound like you have that problem. i always like to hear how other people do things.

so how do you get the beer to the bottles? are you fermenting in a bottling bucket? or do you siphon to a racking cane?

 

[Rockn_M]

interesting! i would be afraid the sugar would end up down there with the trub and to get it mixed in enough for even carbonation would make the beer trub-central. doesn't sound like you have that problem. i always like to hear how other people do things.

so how do you get the beer to the bottles? are you fermenting in a bottling bucket? or do you siphon to a racking cane?

I ferment in a bottling bucket then hook up a bottling wand up to the spigot open her up. I can typically bottle 5 gallons on just a few min.

I've never had a problem with under carbed beer. This way will always get you even carbonation. I very carefully stir the sugar in the beer. Then wait about 30 min for things to settle the down. You won't bottle extra trub and it's much faster and consistent than adding sugar directly to bottles.