Brue Brutey. Posted January 4, 2016 Share Posted January 4, 2016 Hi all lplate brewer here. I have just made my 3rd batch I am using a new Coopers brew kit purchased from big W all ingredients have good dates I am brewing in the low to mid 20s, I have been meticulous with my cleaning and sterilisation the beer tastes fruity and I love the taste. My problem is the beer appears flat and doesn't have any head, if i pour it from a height I can get some head on it but is dissapears within seconds of being poured, there are no bubbles at all in the glass. thanks in anticipation any ideas would be greatly appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waylon Posted January 4, 2016 Share Posted January 4, 2016 Yeh that's a shame mate, Sounds like you may be using BE1 by sounds If you use 1kg or 1.5 kg of malt extract you should solve the problem, I personly don't like dextrose in my brews Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brue Brutey. Posted January 4, 2016 Author Share Posted January 4, 2016 yep spot on using brew enhancer 1 do you suggest I use malt extract instead of be1 and what about when bottling ?? as I use dextrose drops there to?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antiphile Posted January 4, 2016 Share Posted January 4, 2016 Hi Large Platter If you are getting no bubbles in the glass, it's unlikely to be a problem with the BE1. It sounds as though it's carbonation problems or perhaps even some contribution from the beer glass itself. There is a lot more info in here about how to treat beer glassware than I can provide, but a couple of quick tips are: (a) don't wash them in a dishwasher, and (b) only ever use hot water without detergent to clean them. A man here with a huuuuge amount of expertise (via his job) is Headmaster and hopefully he can chime in. For carbonation, our German friend, Otto, has written a nice list of causes and do's and don'ts in a post -- so he may be able to help you better or you can do a forum search. Certainly head creation and retention is a different problem to lack of carbonation, but I'd be looking at solving the carbonation problem first. Perhaps you can give more detailed info on how the bottles were primed, stored etc. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Ruddager Posted January 4, 2016 Share Posted January 4, 2016 If it's a carbonation problem ... what temperature are you storing the beer at and how long do you give it before opening? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brue Brutey. Posted January 4, 2016 Author Share Posted January 4, 2016 thanks for your reply I believe and hope the glasses for drinking from are spotlessly clean as I had heard of this problem previously. The bottles were primed with 2 Coopers carbonation drops per 740 ml plastic bottle. thanks again this forum WOW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waylon Posted January 4, 2016 Share Posted January 4, 2016 I don't want to argu my point but hell yeh why not! Its the BE1 I personly even hate BE2... no comparison to pure malt extract! Its like fizzy soda water beer that kills my brew... Ide only use either cane sugar or dextrose in less than 20% of my brews.... Try 1kg of just dry malt extract and compare buddy...don't be fooled Carb drops are fine... Age at least 4 weeks to cast judgment then chill in fridge... Give em chance to soak up the carb drops and settle... You can carb with cane sugar its easyer more controlled I always under prime my brews... and normally always have great throphies! recommended... Over carbonation is bad too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brue Brutey. Posted January 4, 2016 Author Share Posted January 4, 2016 hey ruddager thanks again storing for 2 weeks 20 celcius plus, covered without any daylight entering Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted January 4, 2016 Share Posted January 4, 2016 While I agree that BE1 won't produce as nice a beer as malt extract, it won't cause the resulting beer to be flat either. Does the beer actually taste flat or simply look flat? Given your storage temp is fine, it'd either be no yeast (unlikely), no priming sugar or the bottle caps not tightened enough. I'd be guessing the latter myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waylon Posted January 4, 2016 Share Posted January 4, 2016 Yeh excactly kelsy, Ann make sure you do your gravity readings, I do mine two days apart to be safe when I can be bothered, And always keep your beer from daylight when ever possible...at any stage! If your yeast never worked well dude... rehydrate your kit yeast and possibly double pitch it tooo... I like kit yeast it works fine but I always stock up on saf05 and Nottingham there great and never fail Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brue Brutey. Posted January 4, 2016 Author Share Posted January 4, 2016 otto thanks again for this response the beer actually tastes fine although it is flat and i feel that it could be improved in appearance, by that i mean having and containing head ?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quicksandquigs Posted January 4, 2016 Share Posted January 4, 2016 I've been over priming and getting a better carb result but I did notice my last brew tasted sugary. Based on other's feedback here I will be checking that my lids are on tight next batch and will only over prime a few bottles to compare. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted January 4, 2016 Share Posted January 4, 2016 If it's flat, i.e. not fizzy, then it suggests the lids aren't tight enough given everything else seems fine. Probably worth keeping them in the fridge for a day or two before opening them too when they're ready to drink, or longer if you can. Ditching the BE1 for malt extract will probably help with the head formation and retention, as well as keeping your glass free of detergents, oils etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Ruddager Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 Do they make any kind of "psst" sound when you open them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beeblebrox Posted January 5, 2016 Share Posted January 5, 2016 I agree with all of the above, but would add this: unless you're more advanced in your brewing & have moved onto forced carbonation & kegging, you won't generally get the same carbonation level in home brew as you do with commercial beer. At least that's my experience, unless I've been doing something drastically wrong for 3 years! I think most home brewers would agree that quite a few mass produced commercial beers - aka megaswill- substitute carbonation & fancy marketing & packaging for decent flavour. I also find that your pouring method can make a difference in head development & retention too. Pour gently into the glass at an angle first, then lift the bottle & straighten the glass, adjusting the angle of the bottle until you can see a head forming, then lower it down & reduce the angle. So far as glass cleaning & head retention, I've found soaking your glasses in laundry soaker rather than washing with dish washing liquid removes oils & leaves less residue, resulting in better head retention. Other than that I usually rinse my glasses out in hot water after each use, & avoid using a cloth to dry, simply leave the glass on the dish rack to air dry. I do sometimes succumb & use dish washing liquid, but when I do, I make sure I give it a thorough rinse with hot water to reduce any oil or residue, then usually wipe with a paper towel & rinse again. This seems to be a good enough fix if pressed for time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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