Batch Priming – How long can I leave the primed beer?

[arturobandini]

Ok, well finances and circumstances have conspired against me and I am moving home this week. Notwithstanding the heartbreak of moving 175 full 500ml bottles and a 20 litre polypin of beer to the new flat; I also have 23 litres of Black IPA almost ready for bottling. I need to be out by Thursday morning and my plan for the Black IPA is thus:

Siphon from the FV into my bottling bucket and batch prime as normal on Wednesday morning. Move all my other stuff during the day and come back in the evening (approx 12 hours after batch priming) and bottle this up.

My brewing head says this will be absolutely fine and 12 hours is probably not even enough time for the beer to get cracking on the priming sugars but I thought I’d run it past the group as it is something I have never done before.

For speed I am also sanitising all the bottles tonight and capping with those reusable plastic caps so when it comes to bottling I just need to fill them, cap them, bag them and get the hell out.

The reason I am not bottling the Black IPA in advance of Wednesday is I have only just slung a shedload of dry hops into it and want to give them at least three days in the beer.

[Normski]

I would only prime it just before bottling.

Norm

[jonnymorris]

Me too. You can still rack it to your bottling bucket in the AM and then stir in your sugar solution prior to actually bottling.

[Swiller]

+1

[TC2642]

Same here.

[arturobandini]

Ok fair enough.

I usually siphon the beer into a pan and heat this with priming sugars and add to the main batch. I was basically trying to save myself having to keep a pan back but I guess this is no great hardship and I'll just keep one behind.

I will transfer the beer into the bottling bucket first though so I will just be left with bottling bucket, bottles, bench capper and pan to move on the bus. I've got 176 bottles staring at me in the bedroom now and I cry a little each time I think about the move to come.

[Swiller]

Hope all goes well with the move mate.