Well after 14 days in the primary bucket and 9 days in the secondary carboy the final gravity was 1.006 and initial ABV=5.1.
I transferred to the bottling bucket after adding the priming simple syrup. At the conclusion I bottled 46 bottles. I believe the shortage was that I did not return any gravity samples and may have left some behind while racking to prevent sucking in a lot of the dredges. All in all I’m happy with the yield and color, aroma, and taste.
I boxed up all but two bottles (samples) and put them on a shelf in the garage. It’s really getting hard waiting 
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46 is about right. Never return a gravity sample!! You can lose 2- 4 beers a lot of different ways so don’t sweat that.
I hope you enjoyed the dregs in the bottling bucket… an odd, overly sweet version of what you are soon to experience at maturation (something that I save for myself as a bottling reward)
Oh yes we enjoyed the dredges! My wife and I let nothing go to waste pouring that beer nectar into our Pyrex cups to enjoy.
I had enough left to fill a bottle 3/4 and capped it. I want to open it in 3-4 days to try. Then leave the remaining bottles sitting in the dark.
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Looks like a good setup. 46 bottles is right on par. And as @squeegeethree said don’t put those samples back in.
Nice job. And do try that 3/4 bottle in a few days. It will give you a good lead on what your finished product will be like. I think you will be satisfied.
Looks like a nice set up. One thing you an do to squeeze out another bottle maybe is to put a block of wood or something under the carboy to tip it. Put your racking cane in at an angle that grabs the most wort. Like when it’s flat, stop when it starts to pick up trub.
Some of us bottle one PET plastic bottle to check the carbonation. Give them a squeeze and you can tell. Also one clear bottle. Keep it out of the light and use it to check how it is clearing.
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Nice… Sneezles61
Another idea, cleanup time saver…
The wife and I used to bottle in the kitchen over the open dishwasher door.
While you’re bottling just ignore the drips and minor spills; when you’re done, shut the door.
She filled, I capped. Easy rhythm, almost soothing.
I put the bottle bucket up high with the bottle wand attached to the spigot with a1/2" piece of tubing. I can sit in a comfortable chair and bottle like a gentleman. I bottle over a cookie sheet and don’t worry about a little overflow. I put my hydrometer directly in my fermenters
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During bottling I had the bottling bucket on the table. I had a bucket that I bottled into. Holding the bottle over the bucket while sitting in a chair, I would fill the bottle. I would then put the bottle on the table and my wife would lay a sanitized cap on each bottle immediately. After 12-18 bottles we would top off each bottle using a Pyrex cup of beer. Then we’d cap the bottles, wash them, and box ‘em up. Repeat until finished.
[quote=“olanwade, post:10, topic:27216, full:true”]After 12-18 bottles we would top off each bottle using a Pyrex cup of beer.
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You left about an inch of headspace, correct? And I wouldn’t “pour” fermented beer as it will oxidize your beer.
Well… I just had to try it. I pulled a sample yesterday and today. Yesterday’s sample had very little carbonation, but showed promise with small bubbles, good color, aroma and taste.
What a difference a day makes!! Today’s sample was great. Nicely carbonated with a small (1/4”) head and great taste! Other than a day, the first sample was near the first half of the bucket. The second sample was the second half of the bucket.
Yes. I left an inch.
Wouldn’t leaving 2 inches of head space the bottling wand leave be a bigger risk to oxidation? I poured slowly so as not to introduce any oxygen bubbles. I didn’t seal/cap immediately as to allow the CO2 to push some of the oxygen out.
It’s a learning process.
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I agree, You are going to figure things out and find what suits you best… Since you are stating a “mini” fermentation in the bottle… some O2 isn’t off the charts… alot… I would worry… Sneezles61
I would get a bottling wand and bucket. The wand displaces the right amount of beer each time so you don’t have to think about headspace as you pull it out of the bottle. Personally I don’t worry about oxidation any more. There are best practices to follow once fermentation is slowing down but there is wiggle room.
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And O2 absorbing caps? Sneezles61
Absorbtion is indeed the best safety measure against storage oxygenation… Absorbtion into my belly
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I have a oxygen absorption caps, bottling bucket and bottling wand. The bottling wand leaves approx 2” of headspace with the longneck bottles I’m using.
The process I’m using by topping off using the Pyrex cup is described in Miller’s book The Complete Handbook of Home Brewing. I realize there’s a difference between book knowledge and hands-on knowledge. I’m also learning there are a million different ways/opinions to home brewing.
I’m coming to the opinion it’s what works best for you and gives you the best results. I’m honing my processes by incorporating what I learn here, from reference books, and good old elbow grease.
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When using the bottling wand fill the bottle until the beer almost comes out of the top. This should leave about an inch of headspace when you withdraw the wand.
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Yep I did just that. Filled till the beer reached the top of the bottle with the bottling wand and stopped. The wand I use, probably the standard wand, displaces about 2” of liquid when removing from the bottle.
If you’re interested you can read Miller’s process in his handbook for home brewing. He outlines this process in chapter 3. This was my process of choice for bottling. According to his recommendations this will reduce the chances of oxidation in the bottle.
