First sample - St Peters Ruby Red ale

[shd]

So i've just sampled my St Peters Ruby Red ale, albeit with a little trepidation.....
WOW.....even if i do say so myself, its brilliant !
As some will recall, i used 4 x carbonation styles.....some 1 carbonation drop, some 1.5 drops, some 2 drops and the remainder with 0.5 teaspoon of sugar
This was a 1 carbonation drop
When opened, a little *fizz* was heard
Smells lovely
Tastes lovely
Looks lovely

Its a little cloudy but its only been in the fridge for 2 days and so i believe it will improve day on day but overall, i'm chuffed to bits and am hooked
As this was my first homebrew attempt, i know that i peppered this forum with a number of questions so thanks to everyone that replied and helped me get to this point

I can thoroughly recommend the St Peters Ruby red ale....you WONT be disappointed if it turns out anything like mine has

Cheers

 

[Agentgonzo]

Looks fantastic! Clarity will come with time in the fridge.

 

[The Baron]

Well done that's it your hooked now.
Lovely shiny things in the upcoming sales

 

[shd]

So, i think i may have spoken too soon
As shown at the top of this thread, i sampled the first of ruby red ales where i used 1 carbonation drop
It was ace and i was thoroughly quaffable
So i next tried one of my bottles where i used 2 x carbonation drops and also another where i have used one carbonation drop
Both were virtually flat and frankly, tasted old and i poured them away
I've used brand new PET plastic bottles and lids
My bottles are currently in the garage at around 7 degrees and before drinking, i pop them in the fridge for 2 days

Can anyone advise as to what may have happened here please ?

You may recall that i bottled prior to a vacation and left the bottles in the house with blankets etc but we had the cold spell then so i can't vouch for the temperature that was achieved and for how long so upon returning home, i stored in a bedroom with heating on and maintained 18-20 deg for 4 or so days before putting in the garage

Why has 1 worked so well but the next 2 have been naff considering they have all been stored identically ?
Should i bring them in and warm them up for a week ?
Are the rest recoverable in terms of taste and carbonation ?
Is it the plastic bottles and lids ? (the wife has bought me a set of glass bottles and a capper for Xmas so its glass next time !)

hashtag disappointed as this was mean to be my new year tipple and now i'm going to have to buy some

 

[Rwilts]

How many bottles did you get out in the end ? Couple of failures doesnt mean it's all bad
If you had a successful beer your process works , there may be other factors for those two, were they sealed properly, did they get missed by priming sugar?(it happens)

Are the bottles firm to the squeeze?

You could also try not serving at fridge temp.. I like my ales a bit walmer and some of the co2 will come out of suspension (?)

Red ale has recently become my favourite and is my next brew..

 

[shd]

How many bottles did you get out in the end ? Couple of failures doesnt mean it's all bad

Are the bottles firm to the squeeze?

You could also try not serving at fridge temp.. I like my ales a bit walmer and some of the co2 will come out of suspension (?)

Red ale has recently become my favourite and is my next brew..

@Rwilts - i got 38, of which i did the following :

10 x 1 carbonation drop
10 x 1.5 carbonation drops
10 x 2 carbonation drops
8 x 0.5 teaspoon of granulated sugar

yes i would say they mare mostly firm, but not rock solid

seems a little unlucky that the first was so good and then the next 2 so bad

i think i'm more concerned about the poor taste any why that that has happened for the 2

 

[Rwilts]

Sounds a bit like it's oxidised. Which could add to the thought that they have not been sealed.

But don't loose faith , chalk it down to experience and try to mitigate next time , those crazy temps you mention could have contributed as would the seal..

Try a few more and report back ( all In the course of science )

 

[shd]

@Rwilts - thanks....i'll try another this evening and report back
I've just found this article which is pretty good : The Trick To Avoiding Oxidation In Homebrew - Wine Making and Beer Brewing Blog - Adventures in Homebrewing

As this was my first time, i used a syphon which was a bit of a faff as it got blocked initially, and then move around a bit and so stopped the flow and from that article, may have introduced air and bubbles until i got the right position
Lesson learned i guess is to fasten the syphon to the outside of the fermenter which frees up your hands also

I did bottle the 1 drops first, followed by the 1.5 drops then the 2 drops and then the sugar for the last 8 so from memory, i recall getting into a good bottling rhythm after a few attempts so likely the earlier bottles will be the best

As i say, yep i'll report back

 

[Haversham]

I would leave them for a while. You bottled them just under 4 weeks ago. Forget what it says on the tin/box, my limited experience tells me that the longer you leave them, the better. In my case (after just 3 brews) about 12 weeks is getting towards optimum. What I don’t know is whether beer that seems flat after 4 weeks in bottle can find its fizz again. But if you were very happy with your first bottle, I’m guessing that there will be others that will be good to drink. Might be a good idea to get another lot going while you wait. It’s good to aim for a sort of rolling supply to ensure that you’re not tempted to drink beer too young. But easier said than done.

 

[shd]

@Rwilts @Haversham @the baron ......so i tried one of my bottles where i used half a teaspoon of sugar last night (photo attached)

So i have to say it was far far better than the previous 2 that i tried, not as good as the first which was absolutely fab in all ways (taste, smell etc)
If my first one was a 9/10, this was a 6 or 7/10 and the previous ones were 1 or 2/10 at best

As i've said, this was the breakdown and the order that i bottled :

10 x 1 carbonation drop
10 x 1.5 carbonation drops
10 x 2 carbonation drops
8 x 0.5 teaspoon of granulated sugar

....and oxidised and the issues that can cause does seem to fit the description and outcome from the text i shared previously

I think i was desperate to get bottled before going on vacation so a timing/planning issue and again as mentioned, i did have a few challenges with the syphoning at the start, and then certainly towards the end as the usable wort is getting low, both times with bubbles and blockages
That said, i didn't expect the bubbles to ruin those bottles if that was the cause but equally, it could've been the cold snap we experienced

What i'm hoping is to find both a 1 and 2 drop bottle both really good, to see the different level of carbonation for comparison so i'll leave them in the garage a while longer before sampling again

I've got a Wherry next, also from Muntons so will get that planned and on the go

thanks for all the inputs as always

 

[clib]

I don't generally have oxidation issues with bottled beers. The fermentation in the bottle uses up the oxygen available. But your flat bottles have either not fermented or the CO2 has leaked. I would say you want the bottles warmer than 18C for a couple of weeks then move to cold. And make sure the lids are tight.

Glass bottles and 2 weeks warm conditioning are the way forward!

 

[Haversham]

@Rwilts - thanks....i'll try another this evening and report back
I've just found this article which is pretty good : The Trick To Avoiding Oxidation In Homebrew - Wine Making and Beer Brewing Blog - Adventures in Homebrewing

As this was my first time, i used a syphon which was a bit of a faff as it got blocked initially, and then move around a bit and so stopped the flow and from that article, may have introduced air and bubbles until i got the right position
Lesson learned i guess is to fasten the syphon to the outside of the fermenter which frees up your hands also

I did bottle the 1 drops first, followed by the 1.5 drops then the 2 drops and then the sugar for the last 8 so from memory, i recall getting into a good bottling rhythm after a few attempts so likely the earlier bottles will be the best

As i say, yep i'll report back

You might want to buy a second FV, one with a tap. You can use this as a bottling bucket. The advantages are that you can:
- siphon the beer in FV1 off its sediment into it
- add a priming sugar solution to the bucket instead of individual bottles
- use a bottling wand eg 'little bottler' for quick and easy bottling.

This is less messy and should reduce the risk of oxidising.