Hi guys i have a question about the milk stout extract kit. I did this kit back in June. I’ve noticed over time it has increased in carbonation. I have been conditioning them at room temperature.I followed the recipe as directed.Any idea why this could be happening?
Fermentation most likely was not completely done. How did you determine this? Get those bottles into a fridge stat or they will become “bottle bombs”.
Thanks I will! Is it better to condition cool or cold than room temp.?
How much priming sugar did you use? The entire 5-oz packet?
Yes I used the recommended amount that was with the kit!
Generally speaking it’s best to carbonate bottles at room temperature but it does sound like you may have bottled before fermentation was complete or maybe used too much priming sugar. How long did the beer ferment before you bottled it?
I’d put them in a big plastic storage container with a top or get them into a cool environment as suggested above. If they overcarb too much you could end up with dangerous bottle bombs on your hands.
It really is too much sugar for just about any style, unfortunately. They’re packaging a one-size-fits-all kit, though, so I understand why that’s the standard dosage. I’m assuming you used S-04 in this kit as well?
In my experience, S-04 is slow to bottle condition, and can take upwards of 5 or 6 weeks to fully carbonate. I would suspect that you’re finally getting to the carb level that is normal for 5 oz dextrose, which is going to be overcarbonated for this style of beer. As zwiller says, chill them down as soon as possible. I don’t think you’re going to get bottle bombs, but it will certainly tame the carbonation. Just to be safe, though, I’d take the recommendation above.
Take a look at NB’s online priming sugar calculator - it’ll give you the correct amount of sugar to use that is appropriate to the style - for a milk stout, I’d go with something just under 2.0 volumes CO2. With 5 oz sugar in 5 gallons of beer, you’re probably looking at 2.8-2.9 vols, which is going to be pretty darn sparkly.
Thanks for the great advice! I fermented for 3 weeks in primary then bottled! I guess I didn’t ferment long enough and I used to much priming sugar?
Impossible to say whether fermentation was complete without hydrometer readings. At 3 weeks, I’d be 90% confident that it was done fermenting. Most likely just too much priming sugar, in my opinion. :cheers:
I"m assuming this kit has lactose. The other possibility is that you have a wild yeast infection in the bottle that is slowly fermenting the milk sugar and producing CO2. If, over the course of many months the carbonation continues to increase, and you get notable changes in the beer’s character, that’s your answer.
Thanks again! Yes it came with lactose.the carbonation seems to have increased compared to a month ago.weird if I were to pour one at room temperature it overflows out of the bottle. Thanks again for the help.
