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G/day all,
My first time brew seems to be going ok, it is still doing a little bubbling but today (day 9) i let some out into a clear glass it's cloudy but i suppose that is mostly sediment as i did not take much out, it smells great and i just had a little touch taste and it tasted reasonable, still the use by me of Carb soda to clean etc is a worry.
I am getting close to bottling this brew and so i am after some tips as to the best way to do it, at this stage i do not have any testing instruments yet.
I suppose i need to know, is it best to use sugar in the bottle or is there a better alternative
how do i minimise getting too much sediment in the bottle

Anything else i should know

Thanks in advance

Merry Christmas to you and Yours
God Bless you all
George

Hi George,

Not sure what temp you've been brewing at but I suspect it's above 18C so after nine days fermentation should be finished. The occasional bubbling is just the dissolved carbon dioxide coming out of solution and is expected.

If you've got a hydrometer (which it doesn't sound like you do?) do two readings over subsequent days and if it's the same then it's finished and you're right to bottle.

Bottling is pretty easy, but not the most enjoyable job ever.

Some argue that you need to just rinse the bottles while others say you need to sanitise as well. Up to you.

Put the correct amount of sugar in each bottle (using the measure that would have come with the kit) and fill them using the little bottler (the tube with valve on the end).

Cap and leave for at least a week for secondary fermentation to carbonate the beer. They'll still be tasting a bit "green" at that stage and another week or two at least should make all the difference before you drink them.

Alternatives to sugar are "carbonation drops", which are just a sugar "lolly" that you put in each bottle. You can also bulk prime, but look into that for subsequent brews.

You can't eliminate sediment in bottle-conditioned beers, but leaving the beer to clear for a few days after fermentation has finished will help reduce it. Also make sure that if you need to move the fermenter to the bottling location you do it gently so as not to disturb too much of the yeast cake on the bottom of the fermenter.

I'm sure others will have some further thoughts.

Cheers,

Oliver

+1 on leaving after fermentation. I leave all my ales for 3 weeks from brewing to bottle. Fermentation doesn't take this long but the extra time lets lots of the yeast fall to the bottom. Its fine to do this as long as you can keep the temps around 20C.

Also the first sample will contain a lot of sediment. I usually run a bit into a container to clear the tap and discard. Do this before you attach the bottling thingo or it can block the little valve in it.

Also - Sanitise and clean the tap outlet before bottling.
I just use a small bit of cloth dipped in sanitiser to clean the inside of the tap outlet where the bottling tube pushes in, then spray with sanitiser.

If you spend the extra few bucks initially and use Startsan as a sanitiser, it is cheap in the long term, and simple to use.

I use it at a rate of 1.5 mls Per Litre of water.

You can also get one of those small pump up spray bottles from Bunnings etc, and have some sanitiser ready for these sort of things.

Olivers tip on bulk priming is good advice too, it can help prevent bottle bombs due to putting too much sugar in a bottle, and is simple to do.

heaps to learn mate, but you're at the right forum to start with

cheers,
Grog

Oliver wrote:Hi George,

Put the correct amount of sugar in each bottle (using the measure that would have come with the kit) and fill them using the little bottler (the tube with valve on the end).

Cheers,

Oliver

From memory he didn't buy a kit, he got a fermenter at a garage sale.

George
The Bottle filler (little Bottler) is a handy/all but nescessary bit of kit, it consists of a plastic tube which attaches to the outlet tap on your fermenter, it has a valve on the end which is normally closed, when you push it into / onto the bottom of the bottle, the beer flows, when you pull the bottle away, it stops, leaving just the right amount of air space in the bottle when you draw the bottle off of it.
Get one from your HBS, they are cheap & nescessary!

Having said that, I did without one years ago until I learned that they existed. (way back when Jesus played full back for Jeruselm)
If you have to do without one, trickle the beer down the glass on the inside of the bottle gently so you do not aerate it! (like you would to pour a schooner)

Mick.

You can also get bottling attachments and sugar scoops at big w if there's one handy.

If you can't get a bottling attachment a small length of tubing pushed onto the tap can assist in filling bottles and avoiding aeration as described by Mick above.

Thanks so much to all of you your help is very much appreciated and yes i did get my gear from a garage sale ( which wasn't much) so i will buy more gear as i can afford it, just one more thing how much do yo fill the bottles.

Thanks again
George

As much as your bottling wand will let you. Keep the headspace as low as you can.

If you don't have a bottle filler....about 2 inches from the top.

Mick.