Well I have just finished washing close to 100 bottles for next weekend to bottle two batches. I am saving hard now to make the move to kegging.
My question now is my third batch in my pipeline is a Belgian tripel which won’t be done conditioning for another month. Is there any reason this tripel cannot go into the standard 12 oz capped bottles? I thought I read someone talking about needing a more robust bottle. I could buy some Belgian style bottles if that is best, but since I am hoping to do more kegging on future batches, I hate to have another 50 bottles hanging around.
Carbonating to style for a Tripel is often around 3.4 volumes of CO2. I’ve found that this level of carbonation can lead to a carbonic acid bite which detracts from the flavor of the beer. I carbonate to around 2.7 to 2.8 for my Tripels. I will use a standard 12 or 22 ounce bottle.
I’ll check a bottle for carbonation level after four weeks of warm conditioning and three days in the refrigerator.
Keep a bucket of PBW solution on hand. Soak these bottles for a few days and then a good rinse should have them sparkling. A bottle brush on a battery powered drill will clean them faster with less soak time.
People who enjoy your beer but won’t help with the cleaning could be cut from the list of recipients for free beer tasting.
I am glad I asked about the carb time, I would have cracked one at two weeks and thought something was wrong. I guess the higher ABV makes for a longer time to carb. Man I should have started this batch months ago…
Thank you again, and great tip on the bottle cleaning, I was trying to get them clean in a quick soak and bottle brushing. Next time I will soak them for a few days first.
Even with kegging you need bottles. I have about 6 cases empty and 3 cases full along with 10 kegs. Once your all in you need something to put it all in. I bottle off the keg and then give it away. No way I could drink it all myself.
It’s not a bad idea to have a few PET plastic bottles on hand. It’s easy to track the carbonation because you can just squeeze the bottle and feel how hard it’s getting from the pressure. You can buy ones made for home brew or just use unflavored seltzer bottles. Keep the clear ones out of the light of course.
You might try a Bottle Blaster. It makes quick work of bottles and carboys. I’ve also been know to tell people “If you return clean empty bottles, you will have a better chance of getting more free homebrew”.
Thanks Steve, I may try that. I am sure once I get more experienced and have a good process, it won’t seem so painful. I think next time I will get a big plastic container that I can stand up 48 bottles in, fill it with water and cleaner and let it soak for a few days as flars suggested. Then maybe the bottle blaster will take care of the rest.
I brewed that same recipe a few weeks back and bottled it last weekend. I’m looking forward to the first taste, I did drink the dribble left over from bottling, and it tasted great.
Sounds like you got it into the bottle pretty quick. The recipe I used called for a 2 month secondary. I brewed it back on March 8… I did notice the gravity dropped a few more points after the secondary. Been waiting a long time for this one. Hopefully it’s good. With the alcohol content I prob could never drink more than 2 at a sitting.
Just opened my first bottle of the tripel last night, it has only been bottle conditioning for two weeks but we were dying to try it ( as we brewed this batch about 3 months ago…). It tasted fantastic, and was carbed pretty well. I will still give it another week before chilling.
The taste is great but at about 9% ABV it will make for a short evening for me.
Should a beer like this sit in the fridge for a few days before drinking? We just chilled it for a few hours and poured it. Maybe it would be clearer if we chill it for longer.
Thanks Flars, I will have to exercise a little more patience. I still have room in my freezer/ temp chamber so I can stash them there. With my son around it seems every time I stick a few in the upstairs fridge they are gone by the next day.
So curious, hows the liver… er I mean Belgium triple? We are having a hard time finding Duvel up here… Time to brew and do a stash soon… Thats my fav! I enjoy to pull one out as a night cap when all the riff raft has gone and I can sit quietly and savor the bouquet! Sneezles61
I think it came out great! The general consensus here also agrees.
It’s tough because it tastes sooooo good, but it’s sooooo strong that after I have two I am pretty much done. I calculated about 8.3% ABV.
My partner in crime here ( my son) rapidly wiped out the “lite” Irish red ale batch we had ( I helped as much as I could ) so all that is left is the Belgian. Even he ( only 23 years of age) has to pace himself on those.
But this Saturday we will transfer our first all grain batch, the dead ringer IPA to our first ever keg. So hopefully we can start drinking that a week later. Then we need to do another good summer brew.
I definitely like the Belgian tripel, but as you say, it’s not one you drink multiple of out on the warm summer days.
