Bottling it! (with pictures)

[pokerswazi]

quality... i want a tree now. i need to get some sort of cellar stock going so that i can leave the beer to mature properly and with only one barrel, bottles seem like the way. will also do for summer stock.
i really like the labels too, time to put the silly names in my brew book onto some bottles...

[Pav]

I consider myself a Novice still so will post my observations from tonights bottling experience.

First I have bottled several times before when I started out years ago. Then I moved to pressure Barrels. Bottles just seem hard work, but today I returned thanks to this post.

1st of all as soon as I started buying the kit I regreted it as it started to add up money wise and I have a pressure barrel that I could have used that just needs a service.

So 1 Bottle Tree, 1 Bottle stick and a new bucket and Youngs Lever capper I am about £38 down!! Mmmm could have got another barrel for that!!

Anyway I was not looking forward too tonight. The kit makes this all a lot more bearable! The bottle stick and 2nd bucket is a must.... as is the bottle tree if you are working in a small space. I did find some bottles cap better than others!! I had no spares so was carefull. The few bottles that were more awkward to cap were ok with my old capper and hammer setup! I would definately recomend the old style capper and hammer for stuborn bottles!

I ended up with just 2 bottles that I couldn't cap as the caps did not go on square. Thankfully I had an old Lucozade bottle that holds exactly 2 pints so this was quickly cleaned and used.

In conclusion I would ;

Have a few caps spare!
Have an old style Capper and hammer ready for stuborn bottles!
Find what bottles are easy to cap and stick with them (Sheperds Neame bottles seemed to work very well).
Have a spare plastic bottle ready for emergency.
Before you buy any bottling kit way up the cost V pressure Barrel.

I guesse I am now in a position that I am not limited too 3 brews so I can store a few different brews as I feel like it as bottles are easy enough to get from mates who drink Ales. I can also transport the brew. and I can try a Larger!!

Just the views from a Novice!

[CrownCap]

Glad it all went pretty well for you Pav. The extra kit might come at a price, but as you say it makes the whole bottling experience much more pleasurable. Out of all the kit, if I only had one piece it would have to be the bottling stick - cheap but an absolute godsend!

[chairmanmaw]

[quote="CrownCap"]Thanks for your comment everyone.

Just to answer some of the questions...

Using a separate bucket for bottling allows the priming sugar to be more evenly distributed and is less messy IMHO (have tried adding to the bottle and it was more hassle, bit a pippette would help if you want to go down that route).[quote]

I used your advice on this but have since found my brew has gone flat!

Do you have any good tips for adding a bit of life back to it?

Ive bottled the brew and its sitting somewhere a little warmer for 2nd fermentation after priming. I hope I havent ruined it!

Cheers!

Maw

[CrownCap]

To be honest, you are probably more likely to ruin it by tinkering now than to just enjoying a slightly less carbonated brew (assuming it tastes ok). After all, get a 'proper' pint down the pub and it won't be fizzy - but that doesn't stop you drinking it

If you do want to try and add a bit of fizz back in, then have a look in the FAQ here: Why is My Bottled Beer Flat ?

[craigmtc]

Cracking post Crowncap. I bottled for the first time on Saturday and this really helped. A couple of questions if that's Ok, as follows :-

- I used Ritchies to steralise some bottles and blech for others,rinsed 4-5 times, then butthe bottles in the dishwasher onthe longest cycle, without adding any cleaning solution, the bottles were really hot when finished. Is this OK?

- I have the bottles upstairs in a warm bedroom, near but not right next to a radiator. I have no idea how to tell when they should be moved in to the cold for conditioning, any suggestions?

- I double racked, and after the second racking hardly any sediments was left behineand the brew was very clear, will this mean there is not yeast left for secondary fementation?

Thanks in advance.

Cheers

Craig

[CrownCap]

Thanks Craig,

- I used Ritchies to steralise some bottles and blech for others,rinsed 4-5 times, then butthe bottles in the dishwasher onthe longest cycle, without adding any cleaning solution, the bottles were really hot when finished. Is this OK?

If it works for you then fine,but I've had no problem with the simple weak bleach soak then good rinse. I've had bottles stored for up to a year with no problems.

- I have the bottles upstairs in a warm bedroom, near but not right next to a radiator. I have no idea how to tell when they should be moved in to the cold for conditioning, any suggestions?

A couple of weeks should be plenty. The only way to tell is to crack one open!

- I double racked, and after the second racking hardly any sediments was left behineand the brew was very clear, will this mean there is not yeast left for secondary fementation?

You don't need much yeast to get a good secondary fermentation in the bottle, but if very bright then you might need to pitch some more cells to help it out. Same goes for big beers where the primary yeast might be knackered. Again, like many things in brewing there a guidelines but ultimately experience is the king

[DarloDave]

The tree and stick looks like a definate buy. Ive only bottled once, using a siphon, and having to carry 6 bottles a time down the stairs the rinse them then then carry them back upstairs to bottle them was a nightmare!

[sdcspeak]

Great post,

I have found that the dishwasher door is a great spillage collector

[WishboneBrewery]

nice report there
Did you collect all the bottles or buy them?
And did you just use normal paper for the labels ?

[Mitchamitri]

I bottle and keg - I prefer keg as a) its more fun drawing a pint, b) its quicker and easier (esp sterilisation), c) not being able to transport it everywhere is a good thing - you dont end up giving all your stock away to keen visitors!

If I am bottling I fill a keg up with a strongish sterilising solution and use the tap on that to fill the bottles - so i end up with a sterilised keg and sterilised bottled from the same solution.

Where I bottle I use beer bottles (fizzy cider) and wine bottles (flat cider - which i cork regardless of whether they are screw top), in each of these cases I use labels printed on plain A4 to which I have added a horizontal narrow strip of double sided sticky tape. The roundnness of the bottles holds the labels flat (ish) but the benefit is it then becomes very easy to remove and clean the bottles up afterwards for reuse with such a small adhesive footprint left. I think its a worthwhile tardeoff between appearance and practicality.

[sdcspeak]

I use labels printed on plain A4 to which I have added a horizontal narrow strip of double sided sticky tape. The roundnness of the bottles holds the labels flat (ish) but the benefit is it then becomes very easy to remove and clean the bottles up afterwards for reuse with such a small adhesive footprint left. I think its a worthwhile tardeoff between appearance and practicality.

After reading about it on the web, I have started using milk to stick on my labels, two stripes down the sides is enough to hold the label, although the author of the article/blog covered the whole label area of the bottle. The big plus is that the milk residue can be removed in normal washing without a second thought.

[DarloDave]

Argh, absolute nightmare tonight. I bought a bottling stick thinking it would make bottling easier, however I was stupid and didnt check that I had a suitable piece of tubing to attatch it onto the FV . So now i've ended up with a load of bottles all probably oxidised to [censored]! ..I need a cornie or two!

[escapizm]

If your going for the bottle tree (which I have) go the whole hog and get the spray bottle washer by the same manufacturer. I put starsan solution in that, you invert the bottle and push the bottle down on the spout and it sprays the no rinse solution into the bottle. You then place the bottle onto the waiting bottle tree and hey presto its done! Allow to all drip dry and get on with your bottling. Could not be easier.

I read somewhere (maybe on here) it is not untoward to put bottles in dish washer at max wich is 65 deg C, is this with a wash tablet too?

Thanks

[mattwatts]

If your going for the bottle tree (which I have) go the whole hog and get the spray bottle washer by the same manufacturer. I put starsan solution in that, you invert the bottle and push the bottle down on the spout and it sprays the no rinse solution into the bottle. You then place the bottle onto the waiting bottle tree and hey presto its done! Allow to all drip dry and get on with your bottling. Could not be easier.

I read somewhere (maybe on here) it is not untoward to put bottles in dish washer at max wich is 65 deg C, is this with a wash tablet too?

Thanks

I pour some thin bleach into the bottom of the dishwasher and the soap dispenser but I wouldn't use a tablet. It must be thin as the thick bleach contains surfactants (I think).

The heat would probably do it alone but I add the bleach as an added safety measure.