too much head

[greg2536]

OK, this may sound like an odd problem but I have brewed 3 Big River Brown Ales from MW and have enjoyed them and yet after following the recipe I get a very large head in the glass. It does not matter whether the glass is cold or not the head is the same. I have varied the amount of priming sugar between 5 and 4 oz without any difference. any ideas?

Mod Edit: Moved to the correct forum

 

[stever]

are you chilling the beer before serving? What is your process? are you going from a secondary into a bottling bucket or from the primary? maybe you are not letting your beers finish and have to many yeasties still floating around eager to much up any sugars they can find. We need some more details.

 

[Revvy]

How long are you letting them carb and bottle condition before chilling and drinking?

It doesn't look the the co2 has time to reabsorb in the bottle....

That looks like the early too pour in the video I have on my carbing/conditioning post...

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showpost.php?p=558191&postcount=101

 

[greg2536]

I leave the brew in primary for at least 3 weeks and move to secondary for at least 2 and then add priming sugar to bottling bucket and leave for min of 3 weeks prior to chilling and serving. This one was bottled a month ago before chilling .

 

[stever]

What was your final gravity?

 

[Revvy]

Can you type up the recipe's on the kits, I want to run some numbers in beersmith...also any idea what the temp of the beer is when you are bottling it?

 

[IrregularPulse]

-subscribed-

 

[TheH2]

Wash your beer glasses in the dishwasher, that should get rid of the head (tic). Just thought I'd give the opposite advice that is given to the people that need more head.

 

[Displaced MassHole]

You can never have too much head

Sorry couldn't resist!

 

[Arneba28]

Sounds like your beer is being aged fine. When you are carbonating the bottles all that Co2 that is being produced goes into the neck of the bottle and just sits there, when you chill the beer off the carbonation will be able to overcome the resistance that it would of previously had diffusing into the beer. If you let the beer chill in a fridge for 2 days or so I would bet that this problem will go away. And wash your glass before you pour into it.

Edit: There is no such thing as too much head. I am revoking your man card!!

 

[Revvy]

Edit: There is no such thing as too much head. I am revoking your man card!!

Took care of it for you

 

[springer]

must not be married.....................

















Also is that pint glass frozen? I tend to just rinse the glass in cold water and just serve without wiping the glass out. How are you pouring ?

 

[Displaced MassHole]

Took care of it for you

Now thats funny

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

Try pouring down the side of the glass until it's about 3/4 full and then pour the rest down the middle.

 

[IrregularPulse]

Yes Boo to the frozen glass. Just a freshly rinsed wet glass is all you need. You're not pouring BMC there! The idea is to NOT shock your taste buds into hibernation anymore since moving away from BMC.

 

[ohiobrewtus]

How high do you fill the bottles? All the way to the top, to the neck, or in between?

 

[greg2536]

Arneba28, I usually leave several bottles in the fridge days on end but the glass is put in the freezer, I have poured into a warm glass with the same results. I'll try a freshly washed one and see if it is different.

 

[greg2536]

Try pouring down the side of the glass until it's about 3/4 full and then pour the rest down the middle.

I always pour down the side and in the past with some less foamy beers, finish down the middle.

 

[greg2536]

Yes Boo to the frozen glass. Just a freshly rinsed wet glass is all you need. You're not pouring BMC there! The idea is to NOT shock your taste buds into hibernation anymore since moving away from BMC.

I guess I was following the example from resterants with the frosted glasses. What is BMC?

 

[greg2536]

How high do you fill the bottles? All the way to the top, to the neck, or in between?

I use a fill stick and fill to the rim then pull it out leaving a space for expansion.

 

[springer]

I guess I was following the example from resterants with the frosted glasses. What is BMC?

bud

Miller

coors

 

[greg2536]

what affect does the amount of priming sugar have on the beer?

 

[stever]

what affect does the amount of priming sugar have on the beer?

quite a bit. If you don't let your beers finish fermenting (which is why I asked what the final gravity was) you can end up with over carbed beers since there are a lot of fermentable sugars left in the wort then you add priming sugar on top of that, you can end up with over carbed/bottle bombs. I am not saying that is what happened but it could be one explanation.

Try this calc and see how much it corn sugar it recommends.

http://www.tastybrew.com/calculators/priming.html

 

[cheezydemon]

You will find that good beer actually tastes a lot better slightly warmer than you are used to.

It only takes a little getting used to, but "ice cold" is a gimmick that actually numbs your taste buds. It doesn't make beer taste better, it just makes bad beer taste less bad. The goal of BMC.

The pour could be the problem too. If you just dump beer in like it was Kool-aid, it will froth like hell.

 

[greg2536]

I tried the room temp glass freshly rinsed and slow pour but the same head. It tastes great just takes a while to get it in the glass. I did not record the gravity of the brew sorry.

 

[stever]

how long was the beer in your primary before you racked to the secondary?

 

[p4ck37p1mp]

You can never have too much head

Sorry couldn't resist!

+1 - no such thing as too much head

 

[greg2536]

I believe it was in the primary for 3 weeks and secondary for about 2

 

[stever]

you certainly waited long enough, what type of yeast did you use?

 

[greg2536]

I was talking to my son tonight about this problem and he reminded me that the first batch I used Munton's 6 gm dry yeast and the last two I used White Labs British Ale 005 pichable tube. Think that might be it?

 

[stever]

I was talking to my son tonight about this problem and he reminded me that the first batch I used Munton's 6 gm dry yeast and the last two I used White Labs British Ale 005 pichable tube. Think that might be it?

For the muntons? YES!! that **** is the worst and hardly ever gets below 1.020 which leaves way too many fermentables. Did you create a starter for the Wyeast? if not that could be the problem too. A regular packet of the wyeast pitchable yeast does not have enough cells to really do the job and could result in the same result as the muntons dry yeast.

 

[greg2536]

I needed to clarify that the first batch with the dry yeast did not over foam but the last two with the White labs did. So could that be the problem?

 

[Brewer3401]

IMHO.............you can never have.............

Seriously, over carbed, didn't let ferment out enough, poured too fast ?

 

[Coastarine]

I don't know why kits tell you to use 5 oz of priming sugar. That's pretty much the most I'd ever use in a beer. I've used 5.5 for a tripel, but even for a beer bottled on the warm side, 5 oz is too many volumes IMO.

 

[Brewer3401]

I don't know why kits tell you to use 5 oz of priming sugar. That's pretty much the most I'd ever use in a beer. I've used 5.5 for a tripel, but even for a beer bottled on the warm side, 5 oz is too many volumes IMO.

Good thought. ProMash shows 4.39 oz priming sugar to get to 2.50. 5.50 will get you close to 3.00.

My brother in law got a "mr beer" kit, and blew up all of his bottles following their instructions. I guess mr. beer has an interest in the bottle market.

 

[fat x nub]

You can never have too much head

Sorry couldn't resist!

i knew somebody would have to