Struggling to get beer head since cold crashing

[JutyL]

I am relatively new to homebrewing but my first batch came out great and after a while bottle conditioning the beer had carbonated and I got a good head on my beers when pouring. I have since got a beer fridge with temp controller so have decided to make use of it and cold crash my beers to get the clearer. The last 2 batches one an apa and the other a scotch ale have no head on them at all and feel like they arent carbing up as much. They have been sat in a warm fridge conditioning some for up to 6 or 7 weeks yet still the same. The picture attached is a scotch ale that has been conditioning for just over 5 weeks now at around 19 degrees celcius and it just looks like coca cola when poured with no head at all. Is this a result of cold crashing? If so I may look to stop doing it in future if its just going to help clarity at the expense of proper carbonation.

 

[pocketmon]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1938469356/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

page 95.
"
The point of slow cooling is to prevent thermal shock of the yeast cells and subsequent excretion of fatty acids and other lipids. These lipids can interfere with head retention and will readily oxidized, ...
"

This is new to me. I am buying it after reading your experience.

 

[springinloose1]

Cold crashing doesn't affect carbonation levels; yeast count and amount of priming sugar (or whichever sugar you've chosen to carb with) does. For example, if you fermented for a long period of time, eventually, the yeast will die and fall to the bottom, leaving none to carb with. If that's not the case, after looking at temps and duration in the bottle which you've covered, my best guess is you didn't use enough priming sugar. Check more bottles for consistency. Could also be a faulty cap that didn't seal right.

 

[bleme]

Nearly every brewer I know cold crashes and we don't get flat beer. Logically, when you let carb for 3 weeks at 70F then put the bottle in the fridge, THAT is cold crashing too.

If they aren't carbing up, then you mis-measured your priming sugar or it wasn't distributed evenly.

If they were well carbed (which I know you said they weren't) then it might be your glassware. JetDry in the dishwasher ruins head.

An infection can ruin head too, but it doesn't sound like that is the case here. There would be other symptoms as well.

Process changes, especially in mashing, can mess up head but you would know if you mashed for 8 hours or something crazy like that. I can't think of any small changes here that could get the result you are seeing.

 

[flars]

Usually it is the fermentor that is cold crashed to get the suspended excess yeast and sediments to drop out faster. Bottle condition at about 22° to 24°C. Cool bottle conditioning temperatures can cause the yeast to drop out and become dormant. This can readily happen with the more flocculant yeast strains.

Warm some of your headless beers to room temperature and then gently invert the bottles a couple of times to resuspend the yeast. Give them two weeks or more before refrigerating one for two to three days to check the amount of head. High ABV beers will take the longest to carbonate.

As others have said the right amount of priming sugar well distributed to each bottle and a clean glass is necessary.

 

[JutyL]

I thought I had used enough if not more sugar for priming as the recipes were for 20 litres and I had around 13 litres so used 3/4 of the recipe sugar. I have been putting my glass bottles in the dishwasher to clean before spraying with star san and bottling. Would dishwashing them cause that much of a problem. There is a hiss when opening so there is some carbonation going on.

 

[flars]

I thought I had used enough if not more sugar for priming as the recipes were for 20 litres and I had around 13 litres so used 3/4 of the recipe sugar. I have been putting my glass bottles in the dishwasher to clean before spraying with star san and bottling. Would dishwashing them cause that much of a problem. There is a hiss when opening so there is some carbonation going on.

How much of what type sugar did you use for priming? I like to use this calculator.
https://www.northernbrewer.com/priming-sugar-calculator/

Star San solution won't clean a glass that has some residue.

 

[JutyL]

I used normal white table sugar as recommended by the recipe. The recipe called for 100g of sugar for the 20 litre recipe. As I had around 13 litres I used 75g. I put the priming solution in the bottling bucket first then racked the cold crashed beer on top of it so it should mix properly.

 

[bleme]

Dishwashers nearly always use an agent that prevent water-spots and streaking which is bad for head, whether it is in your bottle or in your glass. As soon as I pour a bottle, I rinse it and set it upside down to drain.

 

[flars]

I used normal white table sugar as recommended by the recipe. The recipe called for 100g of sugar for the 20 litre recipe. As I had around 13 litres I used 75g. I put the priming solution in the bottling bucket first then racked the cold crashed beer on top of it so it should mix properly.

That amount of table sugar would yield about 2.4 volumes of CO2 if the highest temperature the beer reached after active fermentation was 21°C.

I would warm these beers and give them more time.

 

[bleme]

I put the priming solution in the bottling bucket first then racked the cold crashed beer on top of it so it should mix properly.

I did this when I first started, but had several batches where some bottles were nearly flat and some were gushers. Then I started dissolving the sugar in a half cup of boiling water, put that in the bucket, rack on top, then gently stir mixing bottom to top.

 

[JutyL]

I do dissolve the sugar in boiling water and place the solution after cooling a bit in the bottling bucket rather than just putting the sugar in. I dont stir it however after racking the beer on top as things I have read suggest it should mix fine. I have just been out to the garage and turned the fermentation fridge up so it keeps between 22 and 24 degrees see if that helps