On priming sugar and Bottling Tech.

[KPatrick]

I've about 4 gallons of beer to bottle towards the end of this week, and I was wondering about the best way to prime.

I've seen some tap a tbspn of sugar into each bottle, rack, cap, and shake.

Others mix some amount of sugar plus boiled water into the beer, and rack that new mixture.

The second seems the easiest to me.

I'm using 12oz bottles, and I have about 4 gallons of beer to bottle. And finally to the question: What's the best way to bottle of the two above, and how much corn sugar to adequately carbonate 4 gallons in 12oz bottles?

Thanks all.

 

[slimer]

What style are you bottling?

Note: This is for a 5 gallon batch, so multiply the amount of sugar by .8

How to Brew - By John Palmer - Priming Solutions

Figure 65- Nomograph for determining more precise amounts of priming sugar. To use the nomograph, draw a line from the temperature of your beer through the Volumes of CO2 that you want, to the scale for sugar. The intersection of your line and the sugar scale gives the weight of either corn or cane sugar in ounces to be added to five gallons of beer to achieve the desired carbonation level. Here is a list of typical volumes of CO2 for various beer styles:
British ales 1.5-2.0
Porter, Stout 1.7-2.3
Belgian ales 1.9-2.4
American ales 2.2-2.7
European lagers 2.2-2.7
Belgian Lambic 2.4-2.8
American wheat 2.7-3.3
German wheat 3.3-4.5

 

[Blender]

Adding the boiled and cooled sugar and racking into it is definately the best and easiest.

Here is a nice thread on bottling. >> https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/revvys-tips-bottler-first-time-otherwise-94812/

 

[KPatrick]

It's a Cooper's Dark Ale Extract Kit. It's sitting at about 70*F.

 

[slimer]

Beersmith says 2.5 oz of corn sugar for 2 vols of CO2.

Boil, put sugar in, crash cool, add to bottling bucket, stir gently, bottle, stir gently after every 12 or so.

 

[ChshreCat]

Here's a good calculator to figure out how much sugar to prime your batch with:

TastyBrew.com | Homebrewing Calculators | Botting Priming Calculator

Bring a few ounces of water to a boil, add in the proper amount of sugar, stir until incorporated.

When it's cool pour that in the bottom of your bottling bucket.

Rack your beer onto it, and give it a gentle stir.

Bottle away.

 

[EcuPirate07]

I was going to bottle today, I keg now but am doing this one in bottles for a friend, I dont wanna rack since its already in my bucket with a spout. So would it be ok just to pour straight into the top of the bucket as long as I keep stiring through the bottling process?

 

[slimer]

Primary or secondary?

Even if it's either, you rack to leave trub behind.

 

[Arkador]

Adding the boiled and cooled sugar and racking into it is definately the best and easiest.

+1
If you do sugar in each bottle you have less control.

Put the boiled sugar water in your bottling bucket, then rack the beer ontop of it, so that it swirls while it flows the bottling bucket to make sure it mixes in.

 

[KPatrick]

Just finished bottling the first batch. 35 bottles, not a full batch. Looks, good. I tasted a little. Of course it was still, and room temperature, but it was defiantly beer. 3 weeks in the bottle will do it some good, I think, however. Thanks for all your help!

 

[Ian777]

Quick Question.

I am constantly under priming my beers (fear of exploding bottles). When they mention the amount of beer (5 gal.) is that the recipe size or the 'actual amount' minus the trub left at the bottom of the fermenter? I usually carb for 4.5 gal. because of the loss from the sediment at the bottom. Any helpful tips would be appreciated!

I am using the Priming Calculator in Beer Smith 2 for the record.