Question on bottle carb'ing

[love2brew]

Hello

I have bottled some brew about 4 days ago in one litre PET bottles. I used 3/4 cup priming sugar into about 4 3/4 gallons on beer. I left about an INCH of head in the bottle.

First, was what i have done correct

Second, is there any way to tell if carbing has been done without opening the bottle? Im not in a rush just curious.

thanks.

 

[PinkyOFloyd]

Depends on the beer style but you should be okay on the carbonation. Might be a wee bit high. I would let them sit at least a week or more before opening. If they're stored @ ~70F they should carb up pretty quick. Never used PET bottles. Can you squeeze them when they're empty? If you can then you might be able to tell by the firmness of the bottle now. It'll still be fairly green beer at this point.

 

[Burro2882]

Don't make the same mistake we all do and pop one open early to "test" one out. You will be dissapointed every time. Wait a couple weeks, they should be fine.

 

[Frodo]

Second, is there any way to tell if carbing has been done without opening the bottle?

With the PET bottles they'll harden up as they're getting carbed. You should notice them starting to feel harder within a couple/few days. It's always best to wait 3 weeks before opening the first though.

 

[love2brew]

im waiting minimum 2 weeks before cracking one. at which point ill cave in and try one. But ive made wine my whole life and I know its not worth it untill its at its best

 

[TechyDork]

Don't make the same mistake we all do and pop one open early to "test" one out. You will be dissapointed every time. Wait a couple weeks, they should be fine.

I disagree. i like to sample one every few days after the first week. this gave me an idea how the process was coming along so that in the future i would have a better idea of my time line.

that said they are always much better after 4-5 weeks in the bottle.

 

[jimmywit]

I disagree. i like to sample one every few days after the first week. this gave me an idea how the process was coming along so that in the future i would have a better idea of my time line.

that said they are always much better after 4-5 weeks in the bottle.

I agree, I use 22 oz bottles but always bottle 3-4 12 oz bottles to find out the process and see how my brew is doing. For your first few brews I think tasting at 1,2,3,and 4 weeks does wonders because you can taste for youself how much your beer improves with time. Just don't freak out when you taste one at a week or 2 and think it is bad wait and find out how much time does help. As for the question you asked, I think it will be just fine.

 

[air_dog69]

Yeah, you'll be surprised what a week or even a few days will do.
I've had beers that I've opened after 10 days that had almost zero carbonation, 4 days later and BOOM nearly fully carbed. Basically if it's not good, keep waiting.

After bottling, I really like opening beers at intervals along the aging process to try and get an understanding of how specific things like carbonation, taste, clarity, progress once in bottles.

 

[DrinkNoH2O]

I like to have as many bottles of good mature beer as possible. I'll usually taste one bottle or so along the way but tasting several before the 3-4 week mark seems like a waste to me. You're not going to learn anything by "seeing how they're doing" or "how they're coming along"... it's not a process that you have any control over at that point so just let it run it's course.

All the more reason to build up a pipeline.

 

[jimmywit]

I like to have as many bottles of good mature beer as possible. I'll usually taste one bottle or so along the way but tasting several before the 3-4 week mark seems like a waste to me. You're not going to learn anything by "seeing how they're doing" or "how they're coming along"... it's not a process that you have any control over at that point so just let it run it's course.

All the more reason to build up a pipeline.

Thats the whole point. When you start brewing It is hard to just take some ones word. It worked for me alot better to taste beers young so I did realize how important it is to let your beers age. So of course you can learn something. You will always understand something better if you do it rather then read it.

 

[love2brew]

I see your points in regards to tasting beer along the way, but at this point there is nothing I could due to fix a problem.

I have this batch bottled, and two, five gallon batches sitting in the primary, so im well on my way to making a pipeline

With the amount of beer I drink, there is no other option lol.............but with a little patience ill have beer that is well aged.

 

[Burro2882]

im waiting minimum 2 weeks before cracking one. at which point ill cave in and try one. But ive made wine my whole life and I know its not worth it untill its at its best

That is exactly what i meant. Just give it a couple weeks. I dont know of any beer that is going to be at its best in less than two weeks and often a brew continues to get better for weeks even months more. So i still dont see the point in trying it while its still soooo early in its development. But hey... to each their own

 

[billvon]

Second, is there any way to tell if carbing has been done without opening the bottle?

Two suggestions. One, put some of your beer into sanitized 16oz plastic Coke bottles, then squeeze them periodically to see how rigid they have become. When they have gotten rigid, you have enough CO2, although it may take a few more days to properly dissolve. It takes me 7-10 days to have the bottle get to its final pressure.

Two, fill a bunch of Coronita bottles, then sample them periodically. That way you only waste 7oz of beer each time.

 

[kwaidonjin]

can you chill after 2 weeks? or should you leave at room temp longer?

 

[Bacchus]

Just make sure when you're sampling to have some commercial beer on hand. As most of us know, a little alcohol in the blood stream has a sinister way of saying, "Go ahead....try another one." LOL! Next thing you know, you're into week two and you've "sampled" your way through two thirds of your beer. Been there and done it!!

 

[Bacchus]

can you chill after 2 weeks? or should you leave at room temp longer?

I bottle condition in a heated cabinet and so typically two weeks at about 75F and my lighter ales (kolsches and blondes) are usually fully carbed and so I refrigerate them for a couple of more weeks. But my heavier beers like Belgians sometimes have to sit for a month at that temp to get fully carbed.

It kind of depends on what type of beer you're brewing.

 

[DrinkNoH2O]

BTW, anything you'd ever want to know about bottling is covered in Revvy's thread:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/bottling-tips-homebrewer-94812/

 

[brewagentjay]

+ 1 Million on tasting them as they go....I do that with every batch except I find now that I have mature beer I can wait longer but I do enjoy a taste after every 7 days or so.

 

[kwaidonjin]

So, once you put a bottle in the fridge, it doesn't condition/improve anymore????

 

[DrinkNoH2O]

So, once you put a bottle in the fridge, it doesn't condition/improve anymore????

Once you put a bottle in the fridge the yeast basically go dormant - so carbonation stops. The beer still "ages" in the fridge however - which can aid in removal of off flavors.

 

[PolishLogic]

I agree, I use 22 oz bottles but always bottle 3-4 12 oz bottles to find out the process and see how my brew is doing. For your first few brews I think tasting at 1,2,3,and 4 weeks does wonders because you can taste for youself how much your beer improves with time. Just don't freak out when you taste one at a week or 2 and think it is bad wait and find out how much time does help. As for the question you asked, I think it will be just fine.

I'm another that does this. Partly to make sure the carbonation process is moving along nicely, and also because I actually enjoy being able to taste how the beer moves along in its "refinement" from greenness to goodness, so to speak.

 

[TechyDork]

I like to have as many bottles of good mature beer as possible. I'll usually taste one bottle or so along the way but tasting several before the 3-4 week mark seems like a waste to me. You're not going to learn anything by "seeing how they're doing" or "how they're coming along"... it's not a process that you have any control over at that point so just let it run it's course.

All the more reason to build up a pipeline.

I agree and disagree with you. i agree that having as many bottles of mature beer is a good thing. however, i disagree that you do not learn anything by sampling along the way. how else are you going to learn how "your" beer matures. I mean the temps that i condition my beer at in my home are probably totally different from where someone else does. I am not saying that with every batch of beer i do i sample along the way, but i try to do so when i brew a new style for the first time. it just allows me to konw that my IPA is best after 4 weeks in the bottle, while my smoked porter is better after 6 weeks+ in the bottle and my pales are best after 5 weeks....

but to each his own, afterall this is a hobby so everyone does things a little different, but we all make beer in the end.

cheers,

 

[love2brew]

I think next time ill try using a couple smaller bottles for a taste test along the way. This batch is all 1litre bottles so i dont wanna waste that on something premature.

Good advice on squeezing the bottle tho, i squeezed mine and im pretty sure its way firmer then initially

 

[TechyDork]

I think next time ill try using a couple smaller bottles for a taste test along the way. This batch is all 1litre bottles so i dont wanna waste that on something premature.

Good advice on squeezing the bottle tho, i squeezed mine and im pretty sure its way firmer then initially

that sounds dirty

 

[love2brew]

haha ah man that is hilarious.