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adding sugar to bottle or making a solution? which is better?
Ok so I've been reading about of different ideas about this! Alot of ppl say make a solution with water and sugar and add it so it will evenly desperse through out the beer...and some ppl say add the sugar striaght to the bottle then fill and cap. I've tried both...and only had one bottle explode!! ha scared the hell outta me! and that happened when i added boiling water and sugar then added it to the beer. so which one is better?
I say sugar in water first. Its easier and more consistent than measuring a little bit of sugar for each bottle.
+1 on making priming solution and adding it to the whole batch. It's quicker and it's easier and your bottles will carb more evenly.
Plus, do you really wanna sit there and measure out sugar 50+ times for a 5 gallon batch , then add it one by one into each of those 50+ bottles with a little measuring spoon? I know that I don't. Bottling is already a big enough pain in the backside. If you can avoid it, there's no reason to make it any more difficult.
YES very true..and I did notice when i did make the sugolution (haha just made that up) it did make the beer have more head on it when pouring it then when i just poured it in on my first batch...
Congrats on your first batch, nothing like pouring your first brew. One thing I would suggest is to try every method. I used to bottle all my batches priming with table sugar in each bottle, had a special measure for that. I also used carb tabs, coopers carb drops, and yes adding the priming sugar in a water base to the bottling bucket.
Adding the corn sugar to water, boiling it, and putting it in the bottling bucket, then adding your beer on top is the easiest way to get consistant carbonation. It will take a few batches to nail the levels that you like, and will also depend on how much finished beer your looking to carb. You didn't think you where going to make exactly 5 gallons of beer every time did you? Ha, ha, like most of us, i'm sure you did. You will be plus a half gallon, or minus a half gallon, and eventually you will get the hang of that also.
No one can tell you the way to do somthing, and everyone does things different. Hell, half of these A holes on here haven't naturally carbed a beer in years, ha ha. Take your time, do it a few different ways, and see how you like to do things. I still use my sugar measure to carb up a few bottles before I bottle the whole batch.
boltonbrewing wrote:
I've tried both...and only had one bottle explode!!
Chances are your bottle didnt explode because of the method of adding sugar. Chances are you added the sugar to an underattenuated, or unfinished beer. When beer ferments it releases co2, when all of the fermentation is done, it stops releasing it, which is why we add just a wee bit more sugar, then capture that co2 by closing it into a bottle. If there is still some fermentation to be had, even say 5-10% left, then not only are you going to get the co2 produced from the priming, but also from the additional fermentation co2 produced.
Now there is also the chance that when you added the solution to the beer before bottling, it did not mix thoroughly, and a few bottles may have been filled with a more sugar rich beer, giving that the extra oomph.
Last case is there could have been poor sanitizing with that bottle, and an infection caused additional microbes to eat the remaining sugar that yeast stop at, creating further pressure.
All in all though, bottlebombs can be scary, and if you have any remaining bottles from that batch I would suggest chilling them as soon as possible, and store them cold in a cooler. That way if they do explode, the glass and mess is contained.
I personally am one of those Aholes bruguru mentioned and keg 99% of my beer, however if I do make a batch that I was able to get more from than will fit in my keg, I bottle the little remaining extra in seperate bottles and measure corn sugar per dose and add it directly to the bottle with no dissolving.
I bottle straight out of the fermenter keg and add the cane sugar to the bottles individually....it works for me doing 2 gallon batches...
yeah thats what the instructions say to do with the mr beer kit...but im trying to brake away from that and learn on my own! lol Ive done 4 batches now following the instructions..just seems so bland..and a quick way to do it!
boltonbrewing wrote:
yeah thats what the instructions say to do with the mr beer kit...but im trying to brake away from that and learn on my own! lol Ive done 4 batches now following the instructions..just seems so bland..and a quick way to do it!
boltonbrewing I've done over 30 Mr. Beer recipes according to plan...their plan. Now after researching a lot on my own I know that to enjoy brewing you really need to do what works for you without it feeling like work. I brew and bottle only on weekends and I share kitchen time with others so I don't do too many more 'beer things' than I have to...to enjoy my brewing.
I also know now that using a Bottle Priming Calculator is a great way to learn on your own and break the mold out of being the new MB brewer. It teaches you how to carbonate your beer according to the style of beer your trying to make. It also helps you select the right amount of cane, corn, honey or DME to use per bottle or batch.
Screwy
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