Is my beer carbonating?

[DanInSydney]

Just bottled my first batch & carbonated using carbonation drops. I plan to leave them for a few weeks to condition.

I was wondering is there any way visually I can tell if my beer is carbonating as it should? Waiting 2-4 weeks to open & find out if it’s actually worked is a killer!

Can I just shake and watch for bubbles? Should I see bubbles anyway without shaking, etc?

 

[RM-MN]

The best way I have found to determine if the beer is carbonating is to package one plastic water bottle. It will get firm if the beer is carbonated. The second best way is to open a bottle and pour it into a glass, then drink it. I've found decent carbonation in less than 2 days with priming sugar solution but it may take longer with the carb drops. What I also noticed is if I open a bottle early I get almost no heading on my beer and the flavor may not be the best so I wait longer for the rest. How long I wait depends on the beer. Beers with higher amounts of alcohol and beers that are darker take longer to mature. I may leave a stout for 6 months to get the best flavor (to my palate) but a wheat beer might be ready to drink at the 2 week mark.

 

[rburrelli]

Just bottled my first batch & carbonated using carbonation drops. I plan to leave them for a few weeks to condition.

I was wondering is there any way visually I can tell if my beer is carbonating as it should? Waiting 2-4 weeks to open & find out if it’s actually worked is a killer!

Can I just shake and watch for bubbles? Should I see bubbles anyway without shaking, etc?

If you followed all the instructions with the kit and primed as stated, then it is most likely going to work. Barring some strange thing you might not have told us, it WILL work. I would open a bottle at one week if you have let it sit in about 70 degree Location and then chilled for a day.
I don’t think there is a visual way to see if it is carbonated.

 

[Dovage]

If you bottled in glass then there is no visual way to check, if in plastic you can squeeze the bottles and if there hard, no laughing, then it's carbing. If it's not a big beer, I usually give it 10 days then throw 1 in the fridge for a few hours and drink it to see where it's at. If it is where you want it, throw a bunch in the fridge, if not wait a few more days.

 

[thehaze]

I don't use carbonation drops, but they will do the same as plain sugar, so there is no need to wait 2 weeks, and definitely not 4 weeks. It shouldn't take longer than a few days, as long as your process was correct.

For every batch I bottle, I always have a few smaller bottles ( 200-300 ml ) that I will open to check the progress of the beer. I try a bottle at around 4, 7 and 10 days. For styles that you want to drink fresh, you don't wait 4 weeks.

 

[DanInSydney]

Thanks for the tips, guys. I’ve bottles in glass so will throw a bottle in the fridge in a couple of weeks and just trust the process!!

 

[DanInSydney]

Soooo... I grabbed a bottle and gave it a swirl to check for bubbles. Couldn’t help myself!

Looked like not a lot was going on so threw one in the fridge. Great result - carbonated perfectly and mouth feel was fine! Spot on taste too!

 

[RM-MN]

Congratulations. Now you have a better idea of how long it takes to carbonate the beer. Your beer appears to be lacking heading, a common problem I have seen when opening a bottle early. I would expect better heading in another week and an improvement in flavor too. Add another week and you beer will be even better with proper heading.

 

[BrewInspector]

No
No and
No

Just give it some time.

Toss one in the fridge every week untill you see the carbonation level you want then put the rest in.

They will improve in quality over time so resist the urge to drink them all too quickly.

Start the next batch 'cause these will be gone before you know it.
Resistance is futile