# Sugar vs carbonation drops.



## Cobba (3/5/15)

Just wanted people's thoughts on sugar vs carbonation drops, my first batch I used carbonation drops 2 per 750 ml longneck, I tried after 2 weeks in the bottle and it didn't have the carbonation that I expected, do I just be a bit more patient? Or do I use sugar? The beer I'm making is the coopers pale ale.


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## luggy (3/5/15)

Be patient, 2 drops is plenty for a longneck


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## Grott (3/5/15)

More patience is definitely the go. Search the forum as there is another thread on this topic.
Cheers


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## Grott (3/5/15)

Look under carbonation drops vs sugar.
Cheers


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## Ducatiboy stu (3/5/15)

leave them for at least 4-6 weeks


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## Cobba (3/5/15)

Thanks lads, il try another beer in about two weeks see if it's any better.


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## Ducatiboy stu (3/5/15)

It will be. :chug:


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## Feldon (3/5/15)

The carbonation drops will dissolve in the beer but can sit at the bottom in a thickish, syrupy layer. The yeast floating around in your beer will eat it up in time and in doing so will carbonate your beer, but it make take longer.

A good idea is to go back the day after bottling and just give the bottles a gentle upside-down turn to get the sugar up off the bottom and mixed uniformly throughout the beer. This makes it much easier for the yeast to do their thing.

Also, after bottling store the beer room temp (~20C) so the yeast are active and get straight to work. If you store freshly bottled beer in a cold shed or room it might eventually carb up, but it can take a longer time.

Good luck with it.


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## Danscraftbeer (3/5/15)

Carb drops are the safe bet in my experience. I have 640 to 750ml long necks so 2 drops each the 750ml will be a touch lower carbonation but still good. Kegged beer you can push higher where sometimes half the glass is head on the first pour but its easily fixed. Gotta love kegging.
Fuller body beers can seem under carbonated too.


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## zeggie (3/5/15)

3 weeks is the minimum before I test a brew these days. Also ensure its had a good 24+ hours in the fridge before cracking it open.


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## Cobba (4/5/15)

It's a bloody addiction this brewing caper, I've got a coopers home brew kit, any good ideas for making my coopers pale ale better, yeasts, sugars, etc. thanks again.


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## Unclestewbrew (4/5/15)

I use carb drops and I've always been happy with my carbonation.
Bottle conditioning is very important so make sure you keep them in a warm place once bottled
As the others have said , patience is a big thing , if you can hold off drinking them for at least 6 weeks you will notice a big difference

I recently brewed a Coopers Pale Ale with 1kg LDM plus 300 grams of dex , added a Cascade hop tea 4 days out from bottling and it was a very nice drop for something pretty basic

Cheers


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## Red Baron (4/5/15)

Carb drops have got to be one of the most expensive ways to buy sugar. I use a slightly more than level teaspoon (actual teaspoon measure) of plain white sugar in my tallies.

It also allows me to adjust for different style eg. level teaspoon for lower carb'd beers like stouts and barleywines, and more than normanl for ciders to give them good fizz.

Cheers,
RB


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## Reman (9/5/15)

Bulk prime FTW!


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## Bribie G (9/5/15)

When you say longnecks, are they PET or glass?

If PET then the ideal cheap and reliable carb method is simply to pop one of these into each bottle. CSR brand at any supermarket. That's all I ever use when I am doing beers for competitions.


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## panzerd18 (9/5/15)

Started out with carbonation drops as they came with the Coopers starter kit. 

Now I just use a home brew sugar scoop and plain white sugar as its cheaper.


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## DU99 (9/5/15)

i use to use a 3 way sugar scoop,placed required amount in each bottle then fill/cap and once all capped i would tip them upside a few times to mix sugar thru.


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## panzerd18 (9/5/15)

DU99 said:


> i use to use a 3 way sugar scoop,placed required amount in each bottle then fill/cap and once all capped i would tip them upside a few times to mix sugar thru.


Same as what I do and find I have better carbonation compared to carbonation drops.


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## Pogierob (9/5/15)

Reman said:


> Bulk prime FTW!


I'll see your bulk prime and raise you a kegging set up FTW.!!!


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## Nizmoose (11/5/15)

I use a combo of specifically designed sugar scoop as mentioned above and bulk priming, I have to say that after a few bulk primes going well then one where the last few bottles had heaps of sugar and other very little the scoop is the method I feel I can trust the most, carb drops are a stupidly expensive way to buy sugar, scoop and table sugar is the simplest and easiest imo


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## DU99 (11/5/15)

i find this the best type of scoop it cover's 375/500/750ml


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## Nizmoose (11/5/15)

DU99 said:


> i find this the best type of scoop it cover's 375/500/750ml


Yep that's exactly what I use


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## manticle (11/5/15)

OP - only one person hinted at it as far as I can see but your bottles need to be around 18-20 degrees to carb in 2 weeks. Warmer, they will carb quicker but too warm can **** the beer. Too cool will send the yeast dormant.
Carb drops vs sugar is simply preference (considering carb drops are sugar).


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## marksy (11/5/15)

I found carb drops in at my house make my beer to fizzy. Convenient, for sure, but over fizzy beer no way. I like using malt and batch priming. I always add a tad less then the software tells me and seems to work every time. 

Give them all a gentle swirl to mix up the sugar.


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## Mikeyr (11/5/15)

If your storage area is anything like mine then it's been somewhat chilly over the past few weeks. 

*Your beers may need a cuddle or a blanky! *

Had a mate whos bottles were flatish after 4 weeks, he put them in the house which was a good 10 degrees warmer and the yeasties came back to life and they were fine after a few more weeks. In fact had one of the finest beads I've seen!

Oh and ditto on the scoop. Big W or your HBS will have them.


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## Nizmoose (11/5/15)

Mikeyr said:


> If your storage area is anything like mine then it's been somewhat chilly over the past few weeks.
> 
> *Your beers may need a cuddle or a blanky! *
> 
> ...


I'm going to cuddle all my beers from now on until they're carbed


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## panzerd18 (11/5/15)

After the ferment, I put my bottles in my fermentation fridge and set the temp at 22 degrees. Carbs up very nicely as soon as 1 week.


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## Matplat (13/5/15)

GoatHerder Pseudo Bulk Priming...... do it.


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