Is My Batch Ruined

[brendon rose]

well ive made my first ever home brew (munich lager) now bottled. Gotta admit i couldnt wait two weeks for my first taste. So after 1 week in the bottle i opened and poured into a glass, very clear, good colour, with age i think it will be bloody brilliant
..ONE BIG ISSUE it seemed flat??? i put the carbonation drops in each bottle ???
Does it build up with age??

 

[waggastew]

1 week is a bit quick but temptation is great! Where do you live and where did you store the bottles? If you live south of Sydney you will probably need to keep them someplace warm/inside for a few weeks to carb up.

 

[manticle]

Carbonation is a process. It takes time which you haven't given it. Was there any carbonation at all? All things being equal and presuming they are not cold, this should increasse over a few weeks. Leave them another week and see if it's different. The mininum two week period is there for a reason - one of those is time to carbonate.

No it's not ruined.

 

[brendon rose]

im in perth there was a small head/little carbonation?? bottles are PET all done by the book.Im storing the bottles in the dark at temps around 20.C since bottling.then moving to a cooler spot. But they were nice and clear.....TAD EXCITED SAVED SO MUCH MONEY.Im sold good hobby so much to learn

 

[kelbygreen]

under 20c it will take at least 2-3 weeks to carb up. any beer shouldnt be drunk till 4 weeks unless its ment to. I have got beer here thats about 4 days off 4 weeks and its still little under carbed but they will get there, Its hard but beer flavour seems to peak at 4-8 weeks of bottling and I know when you start you want to drink it ASAP but leave a few to age for 6 weeks and try it and you will see what I mean. Although this is best I found with extract I have had beers at 2 weeks I wanted to throw away at 6 weeks its been my best brew the flavours mellow and everything seems to work

 

[manticle]

all done by the book.

Which book? Some are great some are rubbish. If the 'book' is the kit instructional booklet, then I can suggest a few other things worth looking at for the next brew.

 

[brendon rose]

yeah was the instuctional phamlet..gotta start somewhere i guess

its not where you start its where you finish :huh:

 

[ncar0842]

I've had batches that took around 4-5 weeks to carbonate. In the meantime I also thought that they were dudd batches. Ultimately how fast it carbs will depend on a few thing like how much yeast is in suspension in each bottle, how active the yeast is, and the ambient temperature.

It is very tempting to drink them early, but remember that patience will be rewarded. Nobody likes drinking flat beer. The longer you leave it in the bottle will also help the yeast settle out in the bottle resulting in a clearer beer.

As you progress I highly reccomend purchasing a second container/fermenter and racking into this secondary fermenter after about a week and leaving for another week or two. I found this was probably the single biggest improvement I made to my homebrews.

Enjoy!

 

[JunkzOr]

My first homebrew was the Munich Larger kit that came with my brewery kit. Like you I followed the instructions using the provided ingredients. My first batch sat in the fermenter for 3 weeks though as I got sick. I then bottled and decided to try it after 2 weeks. Carbonation was low and had a real yeasty smell to it.

After 4 weeks in the bottles carbonation was complete and just right, the beer is nice and clear and has a reasonable head but most importantly, most of the 'kit twang' or yeast smells is all but gone, and while totally nothing special being my first ever batch it is now (5 weeks on) quite drinkable.

Be patient and the rewards will be far greater.

In the meantime grab an ale kit, some more bottles and make another brew! Theres tooooonnnes of suggestions here on how to easily improve a simple kit & kilo recipe.

I'll be putting my 3rd down this weekend.

 

[fasty73]

Stop using cabonation drops and start using dextrose. Buy a scoop from BigW that has half scoop for stubbies and full scoop for tallies. I have had my beer after only 1 week in the bottle because I am the same as you and want to start tasting ASAP. My beer is ALWAYS well carbed up even after only 1 week at 20 degrees. I don't believe it goes "off after 6 weeks as SO many people say to leave it a few months, PLUS I have NEVER seen beer with an expiry date, also depends on the beer you brew, some say to leave in bottle for 6 months for best taste!!!!I have only been brewing for 1 month. So take what I say with a grain of salt. I do have the proof that I am drinking my 4th batch and I HAVEN'T had a flat beer yet!!! Some have tasted a bit "green" but NEVER flat. Do buy a 2cnd fermenter but DON'T go into racking, oxygen sends beer off, just brew 2 brews at a time a week apart.

 

[manticle]

I have only been brewing for 1 month. So take what I say with a grain of salt.

Good advice.

 

[fasty73]

Thanks manticle!!!! I have enjoyed ALL 4 of my batches so far though, so me thinks me is doing a good job. NO bottle bombs and no feral beer yet.

 

[bignath]

DON'T go into racking, oxygen sends beer off, just brew 2 brews at a time a week apart.

Not quite fasty...

Racking "can" cause stale beer through exposure to oxygen, but if done carefully, will not cause an issue whatsoever.

Aeration in fermenter pre-fermentation - good thing.
Aeration post fermentation - bad thing.

I rack probably 60% of my brews for many reasons and have never had an issue. Just don't splash and you'll be golden.

If you are indicating not to venture into racking due to there being lots of other areas new brewers should focus on first, then i would completely agree with ya..

brendan001, welcome to brewing beer mate!

 

[fasty73]

Yes, racking seems to be something done once you have mastered the initial brewing process.

 

[manticle]

Thanks manticle!!!! I have enjoyed ALL 4 of my batches so far though, so me thinks me is doing a good job. NO bottle bombs and no feral beer yet.

I was actually only referring to the last couple of quoted sentences. Not meaning to be rude but it's easy to be eager to dispense advice when you have learnt a little. As you said - you've only been brewing for a month so maybe not in a position to offer advice on procedures like racking.

I know you're trying to help but trying to offer the best advice possible is preferable (despite the fact that good intentions still sometimes mean bad advice) to just offering advice because you're excited.

Glad you're enjoying your own product and the making of it. That's what the hobby is about.

 

[fasty73]

OH YES!!!! I'm excited!!!! And a little bit drunk too!!! Just trying to help, thats all. Wish I had more help and less ridicule when I frist started asking questions, even if they are simple like my answers and advice.

 

[manticle]

I tried to help and reduce ridicule as it's the best way for new brewers to learn. Even sent you a PM. I worked as a chef for a while and experienced people who tried to teach by being patient and explaining and other people who tried to teach by being patronising and putting others down. One works well. One doesn't.

I'm not trying to dampen your enthusiam or spirit of helping - they are both good things. Just suggesting you make an effort to make sure advice you offer is correct (or at least has a good basis somewhere else) and is clearly explained.

 

[fasty73]

Thats cool manticle. I wasn't upset or offended by what you said. I do understand where you are coming from and I do agree with you. All is cool, crack another beer and enjoy, thats what I'm doing anyways. I'm just trying to help a little bit. I am sure I am in for some shit beers, with all the experimenting I have done in the last week. I do stand by getting rid of the carb drops and going with dextrose.

 

[jakub76]

Fasty, your advice seems very definitive and it's mostly based on speculation not experience. I think it's great that you're learning about brewing, it is exciting and there's so much info out there. There are lots of different reasons where different techniques like racking to secondary or using carb drops would be beneficial and vice versa like fruit beer and controlling carbonation levels in different sized bottles. As an ingredient carb drops vs dextrose will make little to no difference, if you're talking bulk priming then there's a bunch of reasons that technique is beneficial though flavour is not one of them.

 

[fasty73]

After MUCH consideration I don't think manticle or bum are shitting on people. MCT, I do appreciate you standing up for me (if that's what you're doing). They do sometimes think they are superior, but I think we all do that in some aspect of our lives. MCT, thanks again for standing up for the little guy, as I thought I offered good advice. IT IS JUST BEER and we are all on here because we love the stuff!!! Some people like to do things one way, others like thier way. Lets all agree to disagree and just get along. Time for another stubbie!!!! I suggest we all get another beer and chill!!! Thanks again MCT. (I'll pay you later )