I started brewing back in November with the small batch brew kit. I decided to start small so I didn’t end up a lot of undrinkable beer, if something were to go wrong… which did turn out to be a smart move lol.
My first brew was the White House Honey Ale. Let it ferment for a week or so and carbonate for two weeks. It turned out pretty good except it only yielded six bottles and it was hardly carbonated. I was thinking of added two sugar tablets next time. Anyone have any suggestions on how to get more carbonation?
Before my first batch of beer was ready I went ahead an ordered another gallon jug, the Caribou Slobber and the Dead Ringer IPA. Turns out I should have done some research on the Slobber cause it was too warm and the top blew overnight… Back to being glad I went with the small kit first lol. The IPA seems to be doing just fine.
Just today I went ahead and ordered another kit of Caribou Slobber and two stick-on thermometers for the jugs. …This time I will be making a ‘Swamp Cooler’. From what I read online that seems to be a good, cheap way to keep the temperatures down.
Anyway. Just wanted to introduce myself… My name is Matt and I hope maybe some of you can give me some tips. This is turning into a pretty interesting hobby!
[quote=“vegetablegod”]
My first brew was the White House Honey Ale. Let it ferment for a week or so and carbonate for two weeks. It turned out pretty good except it only yielded six bottles and it was hardly carbonated. I was thinking of added two sugar tablets next time. Anyone have any suggestions on how to get more carbonation?[/quote]
Welcome to the forum!! When you bottled your small batch, you did add some type of sugar for the initial carbonation, correct? My SOP for bottling is 3 weeks in the primary fermenter and 2-3 weeks bottled to allow time for carbonation. Make sure you keep the carbonating bottles at room temp or they will carb more slowly. As for the sugar tablets, I’ll assume you mean the carb drops (Coopers I believe). You only need one for a 12 oz bottle and I still think that’s too much carbonation but YMMV.
[quote=“airlocksniffer”][quote=“vegetablegod”]
My first brew was the White House Honey Ale. Let it ferment for a week or so and carbonate for two weeks. It turned out pretty good except it only yielded six bottles and it was hardly carbonated. I was thinking of added two sugar tablets next time. Anyone have any suggestions on how to get more carbonation?[/quote]
Welcome to the forum!! When you bottled your small batch, you did add some type of sugar for the initial carbonation, correct? My SOP for bottling is 3 weeks in the primary fermenter and 2-3 weeks bottled to allow time for carbonation. Make sure you keep the carbonating bottles at room temp or they will carb more slowly. As for the sugar tablets, I’ll assume you mean the carb drops (Coopers I believe). You only need one for a 12 oz bottle and I still think that’s too much carbonation but YMMV.[/quote]
Thanks!
yes, I added the included NB Fizz Drops that came with the kit for carbonation. They sit in a bottom cabinet in between my oven and refrigerator. I was concerned with placement, but the temperature doesn’t change much, if at all, when the oven is on.
I still have two bottles left of my first batch that has been sitting 3+ weeks. I’ll give one of those a try and see if they’re any better.
I went all grain my first batch , that was 25 batches ago. after my first batch did not carb up when I started out it was disappointing , but with a few more try’s and some patients I got the hang of it.
yeast are some moody creatures. they seam to have a mind of there own, but all it takes is a few trail and error experiments . I suggest that you use the same yeast for a few times and get it right with one yeast before getting fancy. not that your getting fancy now, but I made the mistake of buying better yeast thinking that it would solve the carb thing, it did not.
you do need to mash up at least 2 gal batches to get around 15 beers. if your doing extract, what you boil is what you get. I would not brew for 6 beers . when I do 2 gal batches I get an 18 pack+ or - and only use 1/3 pack of yeast. witch saves me money , and I get to experiment with the rest.
one other thing with bottle conditioning is that it will take at least one week if not 3, so wait it out.
and if you get the hang of it, let them sit for 6 weeks and you well taste the difference , I did and its true , they get better with some age.
happy brewing to all!
[quote=“Loopie Beer”]1 gal kit in 1 gal fermenter = blow off.
Do yourself a favor and buy a 2 gal plastic fermenter. With tose kits you lose way too much beer due to blow off.[/quote]
A larger fermenter is a good idea, but I like watching the beer and that one isn’t see-through. They do offer a three gallons glass carboy that should work.
