General Opinion On Bottling

[crookedeyeboy]

I have a usual regime that I want to change, just because I havent tried another method really, it goes something like this:

Ferment usually with NAY 11g for 4-5 days
Rack to bottling bucket with finings adjunct and allkleer a (not at the same time)
Leave for 24 hours
Bottle

This gives me a lovely bit of condition and a very fine layer in the bottom of the bottles, after say 1 -2 weeks.

HOWEVER.

I now have a beer that I have fermented in primary for 10 days (due to other stuff going on), I racked it last night into my bottling bucket with 50g of Nelson to give it some umph.

What are peoples suggestions on bottling it.....?

Do i sieve the hops out and prime with sugar then bottle
Do I leave the hops in and just bottle with no sugar

Ive never bottled beer that looks 'flat' and 'clear' and am worried about lifeless beer in the bottle, similarly I am worried about having too much fizz in the beer.

Any suggestions welcomed!!

Thanks

[critch]

id just prime it....

also if a bit of the ns goes in, a bit goes in

[trucker5774]

I would bulk prime in the bucket an add some sort of filter to your outlet when you bottle, just to keep the seeds etc out

[crookedeyeboy]

Something like 100g of sugar dissolved and mixed in? Nice one just what I was thinking.

[scuppeteer]

+1 on trucker, but if you're only on a 23l length 100g may be a bit much.
I often bottle after dry hopping, don't think I've ever got any hops or seed in my bottles and I only use a bottling stick type thing.

[danbrew]

Seem to think 55g of sugar is about right but i don't know where i got that myself as i only ever prime in bottles... sure someone will pop along to correct me anyway...

[trucker5774]

Most commonly used here on Jim's is about 80g for ale and 150g for lager and cider (23l brew).................or to your taste!

[Roberts7]

Isn't it better to condition the beer in cask/barrel before transferring to bottles? I read somewhere that it's bad practice to go straight to bottle out of fermentation. I could be wrong; I'm no expert or anything.

[RichardG]

Graham would suggest so; his view is that the process of secondary conditioning produces volatile gases which can't escape from the seal environment of a bottle. Personally, I prime and condition for a couple of weeks in a keg, then bottle from there. Provided the keg is sealed sufficiently well I retain enough carbonation with the added benefit of almost bright beer (it'll still through down some slight sediment as it further conditions in the bottle). That works fine for me with ales, but I'm not so sure you'd have enough carbonation for lagers, wheat beers etc.

[Roberts7]

That's cool. When you bottle after two weeks in cask do you prime the bottles again or just leave as it comes out of the barrel?

[trucker5774]

I often bottle/barrel between 3 and 5 days from pitching the yeast in the primary FV

[crookedeyeboy]

I often bottle/barrel between 3 and 5 days from pitching the yeast in the primary FV

Yeah thats what I normally do but looks like ill be adding 55g of sugar this time. Nothinng like trying a new method. Its far too easy in this hobby not to try new things!

[RichardG]

That's cool. When you bottle after two weeks in cask do you prime the bottles again or just leave as it comes out of the barrel?

No, I bottle as is. I've found sufficient carbonation for my preference (yours may be different!) as I prefer a lower level of carbonation in ales. Indeed I only prime with 2g of DME per liter, so that generally means some 40g-50g in total. I should add at this point that I don't pour direct from the bottle to the glass. I decant the beer very gently from the bottle into a separate jug to ensure I leave any sediment behind (as well as the minimum beer necessary), and then pour this from height into the glass. This gives me a nice head on top of a still pint (note, not flat!). Some may see this as a faff, but it works for me. Feel free to ask any further questions about this as you wish.

[darkonnis]

I've experimented lots with this and have used different ferm cycles for almost all my beers. I have however switched to one which works for me in spectacular fashion. I have tried it with S-04, US-05, NAY with good results all round, NAY giving the best. For me, if the beer aint clear I aint happy as I feel there is room for improvement.
I put it in the FV and typically it's done after 5 days at most, I leave it an extra 2 to help clear it
I rack to a secondary (bottling bucket) and allow it to sit for another 7 days, this allows the yeast to tidy up and finish up anything left. At this point I inspect the beer, if yeast is still pottering about I cold condition it for a day or 2.
I then add 90 - 115g sugar in a liquid solution, stir then leave 30 mins to sit. This should ensure even spreading. Then straight into the bottle where it is conditioned for a further week to carbonate.
Temperature throughout is 20c.

S-04 doesn't seem to drop out of solution as well as the other 2 and as such, it isn't on my list of yeasts to be used again if i can help it. NAY... love it, nice thick cake at the bottom of the first FV, baby cake in the second and still enough yeast to carbonate over a week or so. US-05 gives really good results too and only a bottle or two had bits in them. I have used finnings in the past and have found this method doesn't need it but if you are going to add them, add to bottling bucket 24 - 48 hours before you want to prime and bottle. Though be aware it will take just over a week to carbonate not <7 days.

Hope this helps
Cooky

[fisherman]

I have a bottling routine I use. I ferment for 5 to 6 days with Whitelabs WLP 002 then syphon into secondary with a 15mm pipe and copper u bend into a plastic 6 gallon wine fermenter( tube kept under the beer) with an airlock and primed with 1 tbs of golden syrup to produce co2 quickly. I leave for 4 days then add a sachet of gelatine dissolved in 200ml of hot water and add gently to the beer.After 3 days I bottle gin clear beer and prime with just the tip of a tiny spoon for a little conditioning. After 4 to 8 weeks the bottle is opened just a slight hiss poured looking quite flat, I then pick up a 50ml syringe up suck up the beer from the glass and inject the beer at pressure into the glass 3 times. You end up with a great pint gin clear no gas in the beer, and a great head that grips the glass just as draught beer does . I mash at 68oc to get enough dextrins for the beer to condition in time without much sugar I hate gas in beer.
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