Brewing saga

[JessH]

G'day everyone,

 

I've just tasted my 6th brew (yet to start 7th brew), this being a Coopers Lager (kit)...one that came with a mates brewing kit that he'd decided I should have.

 

I left the coopers brew in the fermenter for 26 days, from fear that previous coopers brews were bottled too quickly (long continuing story read here), due to mistakingly thinking it required further fermentation as the fermenter would bubble (once in an hour or so). I realise now I should have just relied on the hydrometer reading being stable over 2 days.

 

So seems the whole two slabs for brew 6 (coopers lager) are flat and today I have put carbonation drops in several bottles and re-capped, placing into an eski (no ice) to contain any 'potential' disaster....what should I expect?

 

OG was 1040

The FG wasn't recorded at bottling, rookie error. But I poured some beer into a tube an hour ago and just took the hydrometer reading, which was 1016.

 

I have two fermenter tubs which one had the coops lager, while the other had a grolsch that was in the fermenter for 29 days and tastes fine, with good carbonation (at least in the standard sized - Peroni & stella artois bottles, as I also used the 450ml pop top Groslch bottles that were mostly under carbed i.e. I use carb drops).

 

This coopers lager (flat) brew is only very mildly carbonated, pretty much you need to pour from 10cm above pint to get a head, otherwise no head. You can really taste the malt, as if it didn't completely finished primary fermentation. There is some sedimentation, though it tastes like (malty) lager and not infected.

 

Can you get tasteless infections?

 

 

So more importantly am I creating a hand grenade by re-carbonating? Is there some way to quantitavely test/measure the level of carbonation?

[Guest]

Hi Jess... welcome to the forum. Yes, you may well have now over primed the bottles. Best to leave them in an eski as you have and put a towel over the ones that don't fit in there, just in case.

If you brewed this one to the recipe, FG of 1016 is definitely too high.

 

leaving in the FV for nearly 4 weeks wouldn't normally hurt your brew and I am inclined to agree to some of the comments posted at AHB.

 

I believe you will certainly taste any infection so you would certainly know if this is the case. imo I reckon it just hasn't fermented right out and maybe the yeast stalled or something similar. If you pitched the kit yeast then under pitching is ruled out as this should have been enough for 1040 wort.

 

When you ran off some into a tube to test FG, did you spin the hydrometer and tap it a few times?... if not, then this would explain a higher gravity because you need to get the bubbles off the hydrometer for a correct reading or they cling to the hydrometer and elevate it higher than it should be. Therefore giving you a higher reading than is the actual.

 

I don't know if there is a way to test how much carbonation but I don't think there is without having to go into scientific testing.

 

If it is a bit sweet you might have been able to blend it but it sounds like it's now bottled so I guess this can't be done now.

Maybe when you open them you could blend them in a glass?

[PB2]

Hey Jess,

you mention,in the AHB thread, that the code on the yeast was 22808 - packaged on the 228th day of 2008.

 

This leads to the assumption that the Lager can was probably packaged around September 2008, so it would be well beyond the Best Before date - we put two years on them.

 

Your description of "fruity" is one of characterisics of aged Liquid Malt Extract - treacle, toffee and molasses are other terms used - see FAQ.

 

Some people find this character to be pleasant while others can't tolerate it - I'm on the nay side and it sounds like you are too!

 

You won't be able to resurrect this beer by increasing the carb level - it will still have the aged aroma and flavour. [pinched]

 

I suggest you pour it away and chalk this one up to experience.

 

See THE BEER TRIANGLE in my signature block [biggrin]