Carbonation for comp ?

[lehr]

Need some help guy's I keg my beer but I want to send some to a comp to ensure good carbonation from keg to bottle what should I do ?

Thanks all

Pat

 

[VonMessa]

Put everything (keg, CO2 tank, bottles, etc) that you will be using, in the fridge until it is all the same temp. Cuts down a lot on foaming. It will still foam a bit as the gas is trying to escape from solution.

Let a little bit foam out of the top of bottle (to purge O2 in bottle) and cap quickly.

Always works for me.

 

[Yooper]

The best thing I've found is the BMBF- https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/we-no-need-no-stinking-beer-gun-24678/

Ideally, I'd have a beer gun, but I don't bottle that often and usually just fill growlers for my friends and personal use so I didn't want to invest in the beer gun. I have used the BMBF with good results.

The key is to get the proper amount of carbonation in the beer to begin with, then simply fill under pressure to retain that carb level and reduce foaming. It helps if the bottles are cold. Bobby_M's video really shows how to do it, and it's simple!

 

[remilard]

Need some help guy's I keg my beer but I want to send some to a comp to ensure good carbonation from keg to bottle what should I do ?

Thanks all

Pat

Minimize foaming as you fill, as that is how carbonation escapes during filling. I can fill a growler with a piece of hose on a picnic tap with about a quarter inch of foam in the neck when it is full. Here is what I think is important.

1. Bottle is colder than the beer.
2. Fill very slowly (like 1 PSI) until the level is a bit above the bottom of your hose. Almost all of the foaming happens right at the beginning, after this point you can fill faster.
3. Bottle is wet
4. Beer is as cold as is conveniently possible. This is much less important than 1 though.

Other considerations.

1. Cap on foam to minimize oxidation, this will require you to intentionally make enough foam to fill the headspace (tapping the filled bottle with a second bottle will do this) which leads to
2. Think about juicing the carbonation up a bit. This will make up for any lost carbonation due to foam and also consider that judges will swirl the beer and look at it and maybe warm it in their hands for a while before they drink it. A little overcarbonated is way better than a little undercarbonated.
3. I do most of my bottles that won't be drunk the same night with a counter pressure filler that can purge the bottles. I don't think it truly matters for beers you are about to send off to a comp. Everyone will tell you to build a BMBF which is quasi counter pressure (the bottle is intermittently under counter pressure with this method), but I don't see the point. It can't purge the bottle and you can fill with virtually no foam without (quasi) counter pressure (with the steps above). Just be aware that any of these ad hoc methods are not optimal from a sanitation or oxidation point of view, but you don't need to optimize these parameters for beer to be drunk within a couple of weeks.

 

[maida7]

I use a counter pressure filler. Works great, you can even purge the bottle with CO2 before filling.

 

[lehr]

Thanks for all the great answers.

Pat