How much priming sugar to use?

[Hoobs]

From my research there seems to be 2 schools of though. The first one is simply to use 5oz of priming sugar for a 5 gallon batch going into bottles. The second seems to use a chart or calculations based on the amount of carbonation desired and the fermentation temperature.

I have a golden ale in the fermenter and I'm trying to plan the next step. It seems I can go with either the 5oz (or .71 cups) or closer to 0.55 cups based on the chart for an amber ale (golden ale wasn't listed). I've read that 5oz is too much and can cause exploding bottles, so I'm leaning toward the 0.55 cups.

What are people's opinions on how much priming sugar to use?

 

[CKing]

I typically prefer lower carbonation levels in most of my beers. That being said an average corn sugar amount of 4.0 - 4.25 ounces for 5.5 gallons is what I use.

 

[Sailingeric]

I use this http://www.brewersfriend.com/beer-priming-calculator/ and it has not let me down. And you can adjust up or down based on batch size.

 

[Paradingbull]

This gives about 2.5-2.6 volumes of CO2 at 70F. Does not sound too excessive to me.

 

[kf_]

I used this link works for me
http://homebrewmanual.com/priming-sugar-carbonation/

 

[olotti]

I've been using 4.5oz corn sugar in all my beers and that's worked out giving a nice head. I purposely undercarbed a stout with 4oz corn sugar and had issues with carbonation and head retention Lthough I think the head retention was a diff issue. Just experiment and find a level u like.

 

[beergolf]

Use one of the calculators to get the proper amount of sugar for the beer you want to carbonate. There is no one size fits all, for the different styles of beer. Use a scale to accurately weigh the sugar. Volume measure is different than weight measure.

I use everywhere from 2 oz for a lightly carbed style up to 6+ oz for something I want highly carbed.

I've read that 5oz is too much and can cause exploding bottles, so I'm leaning toward the 0.55 cups.

If your brew is done fermenting, then 5oz is no where near so much that it can cause bottle bombs.

 

[unionrdr]

I agree. If the 5 gallon batch is fully fermented, 5oz of sugar shouldn't be near enough to cause bottle bombs. I like to use calculators to prime " to style". But you'll need a digital scale, like from Walmart or any other store that sells such kitchen gadgets. I got mine for $20 @ Wallyworld. Here's the two calculators I use, as one may cover a beer style the other doesn't; http://www.northernbrewer.com/priming-sugar-calculator/
http://www.tastybrew.com/calculators/priming.html
It's also good to boil 2C of water for a couple minutes, then take it off the heat to stir in the weighed amount of priming sugar till the water goes clear again. Cover & cool a bit while you get the bottling bucket & equipment ready. Then start racking the beer into the bottling bucket, pouring the priming solution into the surface of the rising column of beer without splashing to prevent oxidizing it.

 

[m00ps]

^^^
That northern brewer prioming calculator is a godsend. You can simply choose by style or just type in your own desired VolCO2. They even have alternative priming sugars like Honey or Molasses

 

[unionrdr]

I've chosen VCo2 in the range given for the style myself, in case the lower one given is too low for a bottled ale. The NB one list some styles the Tastybrew one doesn't, so I alternate between the two style-wise.

 

[aprichman]

I use the equivalent of ~5.8oz dextrose per 5 gallon batch and have never had an exploding bottle. Papazian recommends 1/2 cup - 1 cup per 5 gal. depending on the style which is what I have always gone by.

 

[maffew222]

unionrdr pretty much nailed it. Make sure that beer is done fermenting! couple follow up comments-->

1. Do you mean "belgian strong golden ale" or like an american blonde? BSGA typically have higher carbonation, and a blonde would likely be in that 5oz/5gallon ballpark. But it's your choice at the end of the day how you like your fizz.
2. As unionrdr pointed out a kitchen scale is really the way to go when measuring sugar. And the other part of the equation is making sure you really have 5 gallons of beer to bottle. If you have more or less than that, your calculations will be off anyway.

Good luck!

 

[Hoobs]

Thanks for all the informative feedback. It was great to get this amount of information on my first post.

I'm doing this first brew from a kit marketed as a golden ale at around 4% alcohol. I'm thinking it is more like an American blonde than a Duvel (although I think Duvel's are a great beer).

 

[NCarolinaN8]

5oz for 5 gallons

 

[Devilsnight]

Also make sure you gently stir the priming sugar in. Racking on top is usually not enough. Otherwise you may end up with a few bottles that are, not bombs but, fairly explosive.

 

[NCarolinaN8]

Has anyone herd of DME as a priming sugar. I just seen it and dont know if its true.

 

[aprichman]

Yeah you can use anything that has fermentable sugars to prime. The ~5oz per 5 gallons only works with dextrose though so make sure you use the right amount.

 

[sky4meplease]

There are varying thoughts on beer temperature as it relates to priming for carbonation.
It seems most online calculators I have seen ask for beer volume and temperature in order to provide an amount needed for priming.
Some use the current temperature of the beer (which may be quite low if you have cold crashed) while others will use a fermentation temperature and plug that into the calculator.
I think once you have decided what works best for you then it is a matter of being consistent with your calculations, precise with your measurements and making sure your beer has completed fermentation prior to bottling.

 

[eadavis80]

I just toyed around with that NB priming sugar calculator and while I think it's a valuable tool, I think each batch really varies IMO. There were batches that said they required only about half a cup of corn sugar or so and others were a third of a cup. I put all 5 ounces in every batch and some that allegedly required less priming sugar carbed less than ones that required more. The beers might have been different temps or maybe one batch had another 20 or so ounces - who knows? All I know is the 20 extract kits I did this year the 2 that had the most carbonation - by far - were my Caribou Slobber and Ace of Spades black IPA kits.

 

[Yooper]

I've been using 4.5oz corn sugar in all my beers and that's worked out giving a nice head. I purposely undercarbed a stout with 4oz corn sugar and had issues with carbonation and head retention Lthough I think the head retention was a diff issue. Just experiment and find a level u like.

I do about the same. I use .75- 1 ounce of priming sugar per finished gallon in all of my beer, always. I use .75 ounce for things that aren't highly carbed, and then 1 ounce for things like lagers or more highly carbed styles.

The reason is that most people who buy commercial beer expect a certain level of carbonation. It's true that real ales and things on cask are not carbed like that, but when I open a bottle of beer I expect carbonation.

The priming calculators are another story. I hate them because if you're not extremely careful the calculator can tell you to have flat beer (1.5 volumes for a stout is totally flat) or bottle bombs (4.5 volumes for a weizen).

 

[ScrewyBrewer]

I like to use the bottle priming calculator located on the brewing tools page of my website. The calculator has been available and providing very accurate results for well over four years now.

There are as the other have mentioned a lot of other priming calculators out there too, but I tend to use mine because....well it's mine. Find a calculator that works best for you then stay with it and you'll have perfectly carbonated beer too.

 

[Patrick87]

FWIW, when I got started with extract batches I did the whole 5oz pack of corn sugar the kit came with for 4.75-5 gallons of finished beer and all mine were significantly overcarbed. I now use Northern Brewer's priming sugar calculator, and have switched to regular table sugar and a scale. (cause 5lb bags from Walmart are crazy cheap compared to the little packs of corn sugar)