bottling

[Sparkz]

finally my bottle capper came, not new to homebrewing but new to bottling.

I have quite a few empty real ale bottles which I will be using (hell, may as well buy the beers, so i get the beer and the bottle instead of just the empty bottle ). Many hobgoblin bottles .


My beer is stored in pressure barrels so if im correct in thinking would I need to add 1/2 teaspoon of sugar (ill try a bit less) to each bottle, fill with beer from barrel, cap and store?


Want to avoid exploding bottles so would less than 1/2 be ok?

 

[jamesb]

1/2 a tsp is perfect for real ale style carbonation.

The most important thing is to make sure that the beer has fermented out completely otherwise you will end up with bottle bombs.

Make sure the temperature of the beer is right (20deg +/- 2) and that your hydrometer readings are constant for two or three days running and about 1010 (+/- 4) - depending on the original recipe.

 

[Sparkz]

thanks,

yea fermentation seemed complete. 10 days in the FV, started around .35, ended at about .08,

 

[jamesb]

Sounds ok to me.

 

[Sparkz]

excellent, thanks for your help

 

[Alan Robinson]

I personally prefer to rack the beer into a clean bucket, make some syrup and pour it in, then stir well. Putting a bit in each bottle is too fiddley for me.

Provided the brew is just about finished normal fermentation, to get a gentle fizz use 10g sugar per litre of beer, 11g per litre is a medium fizz, and 12g per litre is just about the maximum without exploding bottles. I managed to break off a few bottle bottoms before I decided these figures were a decent guideline. :clap:

 

[graysalchemy]

Sorry to be a party pooper but I have always had problems with hobgoblin bottles if you are using a hand-held crown capper. However if it is a bench one you will be fine.

Sorry.

 

[Alan Robinson]

I had a problem with Old Speckled Hen bottles; the hand capper couldn't grip the tops. The problem turned out to be the capper, not the bottles, because I bought a new capper of the same type, and it works perfectly.

 

[graysalchemy]

There is a post about it a while back

clicky

Most people have problems with them, some say they are able but it is fiddly.

 

[Alan Robinson]

Yeah. I have two double-lever two-hand cappers. One that works, and one that doesn't. Don't know why I keep the one that doesn't. :wha:

 

[graysalchemy]

must be pot luck then.

 

[richc]

I've found that the lever cappers are much easier to use if you get the bottle below you (eg. on a stool) before trying to get the cap on.

 

[Alan Robinson]

I've found that the lever cappers are much easier to use if you get the bottle below you (eg. on a stool) before trying to get the cap on.

I go even further............bottles on the floor.