Bottled and Under Missing Carbonation

[maggator]

I bottled my second brew last Sunday. I tried one tonight and it's barely got any carbonation

Its a Midwest Amarillo Ale. 4 weeks primary and 2 weeks in secondary

Used dextrose at bottling. Package that came with kit.

Did I wait to long to carb? Will it improve? Should I add more sugar and recap????

 

[Golddiggie]

Bottle carbonating takes 3+ weeks at 70F. You also need to chill any bottle you want to sample/test for 3-7 days BEFORE you pour into a glass. Otherwise, the CO2 won't be in the brew, but in the space above it. Depending on the OG of the batch, and other factors, you could need more time to carbonate too. IMO, racking an ale to another vessel after 4 weeks in primary is pointless (other than being more work than you need to do, and increasing the risk of contamination and oxidation).

Try letting the bottles carbonate a few more weeks, chill a bottle (or a few) for 4-7 days, and THEN pour one into a glass and sample.

 

[saintdog327]

Yea, what he said.

 

[tv187u]

Bottle carbonating takes 3+ weeks at 70F. You also need to chill any bottle you want to sample/test for 3-7 days BEFORE you pour into a glass. Otherwise, the CO2 won't be in the brew, but in the space above it. Depending on the OG of the batch, and other factors, you could need more time to carbonate too. IMO, racking an ale to another vessel after 4 weeks in primary is pointless (other than being more work than you need to do, and increasing the risk of contamination and oxidation).

Try letting the bottles carbonate a few more weeks, chill a bottle (or a few) for 4-7 days, and THEN pour one into a glass and sample.

+1 on everything hold just said minus the part about the secondary, which wasn't even asked for but it is an opinion. Which is all there is the the secondary debate. Some people like and prefer to do it and others don't.

But back to the question at hand, how long has it been bottled? And temps and how long did you chill it for? And how high was the OG on this brew? The answer can only be found in the details.

 

[maggator]

Thanks everyone.

It's been bottled a week

OG was 1.050

Temps are just above or below 70 depending on the day

 

[Golddiggie]

IF you bottled properly, you just need to give it more time. IMO, opening up the bottles, adding more sugar, then capping is asking for disaster to strike.

It sounds like the brew has been bottled barely over a week. Not nearly enough time. Leave it the hell alone until at least three FULL weeks since being bottled. THEN chill one for 4-7 days and sample. If carbonation is good with that sample bottle, then chill more and enjoy. If not, then chill another bottle (since it's been another week) and sample 4-7 days later... Rinse, repeat...

 

[maggator]

I only chilled 24 hours before drinking...

 

[phuff7129]

Ditto. It's just not done yet. I have never had a brew not carb. Some carb in 10 days in the bottle and others 3-4 weeks. The higher gravity the brew the longer it will take to carb. Temperature plays a role. Cooler temps = slower carbonation, warmer temps = faster carbonation. About once a week I give the bottles a little shake. I don't know if it helps, I just do it. Patience is hard but necessary!

 

[Golddiggie]

I only chilled 24 hours before drinking...

IMO/IME, not nearly enough time... Follow the above outlined time frames and have patience.

IF you're really not up for waiting for the brew to be carbonated, then you'll probably want to get into kegging your batches sooner rather than later. Even then, though, it's best to go two weeks at serving pressure before pulling a pint. The longer you give the batches, typically, the better they will get.