Intentionally reactivate yeast in bottles

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Apt31

Member
Joined
Nov 6, 2014
Messages
12
Reaction score
0
Alright guys, I feel pretty dumb on this one but it has to be asked.
I believe my fermentation stopped short due to letting my temp drop too low for a day. Regardless, I racked to secondary & bottled.
Now, obviously, I have a bunch of bottled Oatmeal Stouts coming in at a whopping 2% and tasting like some sugary garbage water.
In an effort to reactivate the yeast within the bottles(I figure only for a couple days or so) I have left them at about 70-75° for a few days now. Haven't seen any change in FG when checking again, after waiting a bit to let the co2 escape the beer.

Before you say it:
-I know I'm an idiot.
-I known there's risk of bottle bombs, don't worry...they're in a vacant apartment next to me, so I'm not too concerned.

Any suggestions? Or am I calling this batch a total loss?
 
What was your expected ABV? If it's much higher than 2% (which I am sure it is) all of those bottles are going to explode, as you mentioned. If they don't, they will be bottle geysers when you open them.

At this point your options are pretty limited. If it is worth it to you, you might consider uncapping and pouring the bottles into a sanitized fermenter and allowing the beer to finish properly. You could also pitch new yeast. If there is an appreciable amount of fermentation remaining, the oxygen introduction from pouring them out won't be much of a concern.

I would think that that approach would be preferable to cleaning up glass shrapnel and making the batch a definite total loss.
 
So...yeah...you're definitely going to have bombs. I'd cut your losses. Any effort you put into trying to finish it in bottles isn't worth your time compared to the risk/potential benefit.

Easiest thing to do might be put balloons on the bottles, let them all go and then drop carb tabs in before capping.
 
Yeah, you should open the bottles soon (before they start exploding) and wear protective gear when you do. This might sound like overkill, but it is likely some bottles will explode when handling them (slight pressure in the neck from the opener etc.)
 
Bottles have been dumped, and a small piece of my soul died. Thank you guys for the help. Currently brewing a small batch Pale Ale to take the pain away.
 
Make it your plan to have your beer in the primary for 21 days, no secondary. The beer in the bottle will be worth it.


Absolutely, I've read smaller batches are fine oxygen-wise as long as they're not transferred - so that's the plan! Can't wait (but I will!)
 
Back
Top