Why does belgium wit hate me??

[tallbrew81]

Hey everyone
Been brewing about 2 years now, 25+ batches under my belt and recently made the blessed switch from extract to partial mash (AG still a dream, but not too far away). I have only had 3 batches go bottle-bomb, foamy, disgusting bad on me within 2 weeks of carbonation completion. AND ALL 3 WERE BELGIAN WITS! I generally add fresh orange zest and ground coriander, along with standard other ingredients, but nothing too different than other beers. Bottling and sanitation still the same. Was wondering if anyone else has consistent problems with wits and if they have any tips, or is it just dumb bad luck that every wit I've made has gone bad.

 

[slcdawg]

I've only done one Wit and it came out fantastic, however I did have problems along the way. I got a stuck fermentation. I had to add some yeast nutrient after a week of inactivity and then let it go for another week to hit my FG. If you're getting bottle bombs, it may not have fermented out completely and then finished in the bottle causing the bottle bomb. That would have resulted in it being overly sweet too. Just my 0.02.

What was your FG?

 

[kickflip_mj]

SO funny you say this because I have had the exact same problem on two occasions! Stopped making them for that reason.

 

[Bsquared]

Bottle bombs or gushers? A bottle bomb is where your bottle spontaneously explodes from too much pressure building up in the bottle causing the glass to fail. A gusher is where when you open it there is a sudden and rapid release of CO2 causing a volcanic release from the bottle.

Both can be caused by an infection, but Gushers can also be a result of Oxalic acid the precipitates out of solution in when in the bottle. When you open the bottle the crystals act as nucleation sites for the CO2 to come out of solution, much like a mentos in a soda. This is usually due to water chemistry but can be due to bacterial infection too. I'm fairly certain that if it is due to your water chemistry this can be addressed by adding some gypsum to the boil. But you should look it up to make sure.

 

[Rickthescot]

Had the opposite issue with mine. 4 months and very little carbonation.