Under primed brew

[Donjon]

I've just bottled a brew and I found loads of sugar undissolved in the bottom of my bucket. According to my priming calculator, brews fermented at lower temperatures require less sugar to carbonate. Should I allow these bottles to prime at a lower temperature to ensure sufficient carbonation?

 

[DocAnna]

Oh been there and mumphed about it myself. If the sugar is there undissolved then it isn't in your bottles and odds are they will be under carbonated. Your options are:

1: Cry into the bottom of a pint, repeatedly ... not effective but perfectly satisfactory way of consuming beer in commiseration
2: chill to 0 deg C or thereabouts, add 50% sugar solution with a syringe and recap: Award yourself a gold star of technical brilliance and consumption of time.
3. Drink and be merry (in moderation of course)
4. Empty all the bottles out into a bucket with added sugar solution then rebottle. Award for no feart minded determination that will likely be effective but you'll always wonder was it worth it?

For reference I've tried most of these approaches.. personally if you've already bottled it then serve at 5 to 2 deg C and describe in sonorous tones how you are at one with the old English ways of serving ale.

Anna

 

[dwhite60]

Just roll with it. It will probably be fine, a little under carbed but fine.

Now, don't make the same mistake again.

 

[Mavroz]

I've just bottled a brew and I found loads of sugar undissolved in the bottom of my bucket. According to my priming calculator, brews fermented at lower temperatures require less sugar to carbonate. Should I allow these bottles to prime at a lower temperature to ensure sufficient carbonation?

Did you not dissolve the sugar in boiling water (allowing to cool after dissolving) before putting the solution into the brew??
Just leave them to see what they turn out like and learn from the mistake.

 

[Donjon]

No, I didn't dissolve the dextrose and never have. So would that be preferable?

 

[DocAnna]

No, I didn't dissolve the dextrose and never have. So would that be preferable?

If you are trying to dissolve the dextrose in chilled beer after cold crash then it is much more difficult to both fully dissolve it and disperse it evenly. Making up a 50% dextrose solution is much easier in hot water, which should be boiled to sterilise for one minute (1). It's not necessary to boil the water for longer than this and pragmatically even getting it briefly to boiling is going to be adequate for water quality from the tap. The solution will disperse much more easily. One consideration from personal experience is that you might want to use a little less concentrated solution ie a larger volume of water if adding to a really cold beer since otherwise the solution can crystallise out before dispersal which defeats the point of adding it in solution.

Anna

1. https://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/dwq/Boiling_water_01_15.pdf

 

[An Ankoù]

If you leave it long enough, it'll come good. At least some of the sugar will have gone into solution, I would hope. I remember reading in Wheeler that you shouldn't prime bottles at all, but I never followed that advice. Fingers crossed. Get another brew on and wait a few months for this brew. If you can get hold of a 500 ml PET, you could pour the contents of one bottle into it to keep an eye on how things are going.

 

[Donjon]

Brilliant. Thanks people

 

[dwhite60]

I bottled a stout yesterday. Half a teaspoon table sugar per 12 ounce bottle. The 740ml bottles got a full teaspoon as did the full liter bottles.

Works a charm. Easy to do. Sure. Never a problem.

 

[Doive]

Batch priming in a bottling bucket with a cooled solution of 100g sugar and boiled water usually provides sufficient carbonation. I put the solution into the bottom of the bucket, then transfer onto it to ensure a good mix throughout. Now I keg, but the same process for bottling.