Piss poor carbonation

[mrkrausen]

I brewed a Kolsch on June 21st. I didn't secondary it, but cold crashed for the first time and did it for a full 24 hrs and bottled it on the fourth of July. I used 4.5 oz of corn sugar per the tastybrew bottle priming calculator. I fermented at 62°F but I would say the beer got down to 36°F while cold crashing. The way I read it, the temperature it asks for is the fermentation temp so that's what I entered. So it is now July 18th and still very minimal to no carbonation in the beers. I've tried 3 different ones with all the same results. I know it's only been two weeks but I usually have some decent carbonation by this point. Two of them I put in the fridge for two days prior to sampling and this last one I had warm. I did notice that there is a bit less yeast collected at the bottom than I usually see in my beers. This is the first batch that I've had any issues with carbonation so it's a bit discouraging. If anyone has any idea why this happened or how I can salvage it I would greatly appreciate it. The beer tastes good, but I think having the proper carbonation would make it great.

Also, I didn't let it warm back up prior to bottling. Not sure if I should have done that or not.

 

[Reno_eNVy]

Dude just relax and wait. It'll get there...

Are you keeping the bottles at 70*F? If not, it will most certainly take longer than 2-3 weeks.

 

[Yooper]

4.5 ounces of corn sugar is just about perfect, so it'll carb up nicely- don't worry!

There is no reason to warm up a beer from cold crashing prior to bottling- you can bottle it cold just fine.

Keep them in a warm (70-75 degree) dark place for two more weeks and then check one.

 

[mrkrausen]

I know I know, I just need to be patient. Usually I am but it is my first AG batch so I'm a little critical and impatient. Yeah they are actually in a closet sitting at 75 degrees. I'll just stop by the local BeerMecca to keep my mind off them. Thanks again for being patient with me seeing as I'm sure this comes up more than it should.

 

[caioz1jp]

It could just be too much yeast crashed out so you need to wait for them to repopulate again. patience patience patience. You got antsy and didnt secondary. So you really didnt save any time in the end. As a chemist by profesion, I can confidently say you always lose when you cut corners.

 

[zachattack]

It could just be too much yeast crashed out so you need to wait for them to repopulate again. patience patience patience. You got antsy and didnt secondary. So you really didnt save any time in the end. As a chemist by profesion, I can confidently say you always lose when you cut corners.

What corners did he cut? It just looks like he's being impatient, which is a problem that plagues all of us here

 

[Reno_eNVy]

It could just be too much yeast crashed out so you need to wait for them to repopulate again. patience patience patience. You got antsy and didnt secondary. So you really didnt save any time in the end. As a chemist by profesion, I can confidently say you always lose when you cut corners.

How is not doing a secondary cutting corners?

And doing a secondary would reduce yeast concentration as well, so he'd still have to be patient.

 

[caioz1jp]

Whoa take it easy guys. Yes i think skipping secondary is cutting a corner. Any time you try to reduce the time from brew to drink is cutting a corner to me. to me impatience and corner cutting are the same thing. I my self still suffer from it. I am not trying to insult anyone here. For me i have learned to always go 2 weeks primary and 4 weeks secondary. I keg so going the extra times are easier since im not waiting for bottles. when bottling i always went 1 week primary and 2-3 in secondary. Im sorry if my post came off rude, it was meant to be very light hearted.

 

[Reno_eNVy]

Whoa take it easy guys. Yes i think skipping secondary is cutting a corner. Any time you try to reduce the time from brew to drink is cutting a corner to me.

Or, you can do what many on here do, and eliminate the secondary unless completely necessary, and leave in primary for at least 3 weeks (and easily longer.) With the larger concentration of yeast that you'd otherwise lose in the secondary, it cleans up just as fast.

And just to cover bases, autolysis off-flavors due to long primary are a complete and total myth on the homebrew scale. I've left beer in primary for 6 months with zero problems.

Unless it's necessary, the only thing secondary does (aside from remove the beer from the majority of the yeast) is increase the amount of surface area your beer touches and can possibly introduce oxygen.



EDIT: Also, what about wheat beers or milds that are meant to be enjoyed early? I guess my 10-day grain-to-glass hefe is a corner cutter even though it won a medal


EDIT2: Sorry if you detect hostility. There is none to be had... it's just hard to convey inflection

 

[pabloj13]

Whoa take it easy guys. Yes i think skipping secondary is cutting a corner. Any time you try to reduce the time from brew to drink is cutting a corner to me. to me impatience and corner cutting are the same thing. I my self still suffer from it. I am not trying to insult anyone here. For me i have learned to always go 2 weeks primary and 4 weeks secondary. I keg so going the extra times are easier since im not waiting for bottles. when bottling i always went 1 week primary and 2-3 in secondary. Im sorry if my post came off rude, it was meant to be very light hearted.

Always transferring at 1 week in primary is more of cutting a corner than the OP's method, IMO.

 

[Reno_eNVy]

Always transferring at 1 week in primary is more of cutting a corner than the OP's method, IMO.

This

 

[sb68]

Unless it's necessary, the only thing secondary does (aside from remove the beer from the majority of the yeast) is increase the amount of surface area your beer touches and can possibly introduce oxygen.

You stated unless its necessary in at least two posts, help a rookie brewer out and give some examples of when it would be necessary. Thanks!

 

[mrkrausen]

I transferred at that point because it had reached its target FG and a lot of the kolsch recipes I've read have short primaries and some don't secondary. I am by no means an expert. On the contrary I'm constantly learning new things or things that I thought were right to be wrong, but that's one of the reasons why I love this hobby. My intent wasn't to cut corners. I've learned that patience has a great affect on the final product and I think that ultimately we all want to get better as we go. This one did get the best of me but I picked up some fine craft brews to help with that. I do appreciate all the the input though. No matter what it is helpful to get multiple viewpoints. Get your brew on! :rockin:

 

[Reno_eNVy]

You stated unless its necessary in at least two posts, help a rookie brewer out and give some examples of when it would be necessary. Thanks!

You got it! In general, you want to secondary when the beer has to age or if you're adding more stuff (i.e. fruit, dry hop additions, etc.) But even the latter has some grey areas because some homebrewers add that stuff to the primary after fermentation has ceased. Lagering also mostly occurs in secondary and sour beers usually take a long time so secondary helps there.

 

[mrkrausen]

Just an update. This Kolsch is now six weeks into conditioning and still no carbonation. The closet Im' conditioning in stays just above 70°F. I'm really not sure what I did wrong here. I've never had carbing issues. The only differences were this was my first all grain, which I don't see how that would matter, and the first time I cold crashed. I had it in the fridge which was at 35°F for 24 hours. My only guess is too much yeast dropped out. I guess I'll just keep waiting. I'm definitely not pouring it out. I'm not above drinking flat beer, I just hate having to.