Carbonation Question

First batch ever. I prepared the priming solution and poured it into the bottleing bucket. I added the beer from the secondary fermentor and forgot to stir before I bottled. Is this going to be a problem? I hope this does not mess up the carbonation. I would hate for my first batch to be flat. Has anyone else done this? Will it naturally carbonate if I leave it longer or am I just going to be disappointed?

You will probably be fine. When the beer flows into the bottling bucket, it stirs up and mixes the priming solution pretty well. It might be possible that you will get a bit of uneven carbonation from one bottle to another if you were exceedingly gentle with how the beer went into the bucket, but I doubt it. Don’t worry.

congrats on the first batch! Trust me, get another batch going when you have some time. Maybe buy another fermenter. If you are anything like the rest of us, you will want more beer. Soon.

+1 to cellars’ comment. Not a critical error, but try to remember to gently stir it next time to make sure it mixes thoroughly.

Thanks for the encouragement. Up to this point I have been very careful in following the directions. I would hate to loose the first batch due to this error. I guess we will know in a few weeks. I filled 3 one liter bottles with the swing tops. I wanted to use them for larger occasions. I am excited to see how all this turns out. Nut Brown Ale is nest on the list. Starting that batch tomorrow.

I didn’t stir my Caribou Slobber when I primed and most of the bottles have been under-carbed. I had one that was wayyy over carbed so far and one that was just right. The flat ones are still very tasty though :smiley: I will be sure to stir every ten minutes or so from now on.

I simply forgot to stir my last batch also. I racked on top of it so it swirled around like yours. After two weeks, I cracked a few open and each was carbed just fine, and tasty!

You guys are making me feel good. I just brewed my first batch in over 30 years and I forgot to stir the beer also before bottling. I bottled and capped about 10 before I remembered to stir and did so then. I know where in the case those first 10 are and will see if there is a difference when it comes time to crack them open.

And I was trying to be so careful!

Brewed my first batch a year ago. It is fun and always a learning experience. Congrats on getting started.
I brewed three extracts at the start and bottle conditioned as you are. Didn’t stir any of them for whatever reason. Some directions actually state that the swirling motion will do the needed mixing but I would stir in the future.One of my three batches had mixed carb results from bottle too bottle.

I now do All-Grain brew in a bag method then keg. Kegging provides more control of the carbonation and saves time. I just tried “fermenter drops” in 12 bottles as I kegged a Pale Ale. That’s a way to bottle condition a few bottles from a batch. It’s all a learning process and some great Guys here on the forum readily help when you need it. Brew On! 8)

I too just bottled my first batch (Caribou Slobber). I had filled two bottles before remembering to stir it up (there’s a lot going on in your head during your first bottling, that’s for sure). I’m hoping they will all turn out well and I’m really looking forward to trying it!

Smelled AMAZING during the bottling process! Hope yours turns out great!

Cheers!

I also just let it flow from the fermenter into the priming solution at the bottom of the bottling bucket. No problems after about a dozen batches.

I was 50-50 on even carbonation using the swirl method. The ones that weren’t evenly carbonated usually had a couple of over-carbed bottles, and the rest were ok. Still, a gentle stir seems to take care of any variation. Should be fine without, but much more consistent with.

So (just an update) I tried my first bottle last night and it was amazing! Little under carbed but that’s because I was super and impatient and popped my first one after only 5 days in bottle. That fact that the flavor is so perfect already and the carbonation is coming along nicely is very promising though. Hope yours turns out just as good!

:cheers: