Carbonation Question

You're bottling after 8 days? I doubt its had time to finish up completely. Use a priming
calculator to calculate how much corn sugar you should add. If you're looking for an average carbonation for an IPA (2.5 volumes of CO2) then you should use around 1 oz corn sugar for your gallon. If you calculate right, it wont get overcarbed. Should take at least 2 weeks for a noticeable carbonation, and up to a month to fully carb.
http://www.brewersfriend.com/beer-priming-calculator/

1 gallon batches sound like too much work to get so little in return to me...I'm curious why you went with the 1 gallon batches instead of just starting out with a relatively normal 5 gallon batch? I've seen a lot of new home brewers doing 1 gallon batches, just curious why that is trending lately...but around 6 weeks for not even 6 22 oz bottles is definitely not for me!

 

You can use corn sugar if you want but plain old table sugar will work just as well.

Use a priming calculator to determine how much sugar to use.

Cheers!

 

I would wait at least another week before bottling. I would also make sure you end up with a gallon in the bottling bucket before calculating how much sugar to add.

It won't become "overly carbonated" if you don't add too much sugar, use a calculator like the one above or this one http://www.northernbrewer.com/priming-sugar-calculator/

Once you have bottled, leave the bottles at room temperature for a couple of weeks before you chill them.

Have you read "How to Brew"? Or the beginning chapters of "Brewing Classic Styles"?

 

-brew more frequently and therefore be able to tweak recipes or brew more styles
-i dont need 2 cases of any single beer, especially when im trying to dial in a recipe
-i brew almost every weekend, so 5 gallons Id have way too much beer and itd be too expensive
-allows for all grain with smaller equipment
-starter rarely needed for proper pitch rates

I agree 1 is a little small, I prefer 1.5-2.5. Having said all that, to each his own, right? I love brewing its not really 'work' to me and I dont feel short changed by smaller batches.

 

Each to his own, I agree...just curious of the mindset. I brew a 5 gallon batch each week of something different (I'll adjust a recipe if I brew it again, don't care to keep making the same beer) and never use starters myself.

 

1 gal batches are probably perfect for carb drops...2 per bomber with not a lot of screwing around. As others have suggested I'd wait a little longer to bottle. Cheers

 

I also plan to stick to 2-3 gallon maximum batches after my first here this weekend (which will come in around 4 gallon). 5 is just excessive for me and how much I drink, and I usually don't want that much of a single beer.

 

I understand your mindset...I've just always brewed 5 gallons at a time and have only done a handful of 3 gallon batches of beer I knew it would take a long time to finish. On top of that, I dont really buy hardly any bottles or growler fills out, unless its at a favorite brewery, so I always need the pipeline going to always have a couple of brews on tap for the Mrs and me.

I guess with 5 kegs, plenty of room to cellar bottles and a constant thirst, I dont worry too much about having excessive amounts of beer around the house. I really enjoy sharing beer with my good friends too, so I can always find a friend to help me drink down a keg if I've got a batch ready to be kegged.

Seems I'm more of the outlier nowadays, than the norm.

 

Youre really not. Every time small batches are brought up on this forum there is always someone who busts out with the '5 gallons is the same amount of work' line.

 

If you're still doing a 60-90 minute boil, it seems like the same amount of work to me. You still have to mash for 60 to reach proper efficiency, right? How is it less work? Not being a troll, being serious.

Like I said, the smallest batch I've done since using the Mr Beer kit in 1995 is 3 gallons, but it was the exact same amount of work as doing a 5 gallon batch IMO.

 

It isnt, aside from maybe a shorter time to boil. Im just saying youre not an outlier. I listed some of the main reasons I do it.

 

I gotcha...seriously not trying to be a troll, just trying to make sense of the smaller batches for myself. Thanks!

 

I generally use corn sugar but if you have a priming calculator you can probably save a few bucks by using table sugar and get the same result. I tend to go on the high end of carbonation recommendations because I really don't like flat beer. This can occasionally result in carbonation getting too high if you don't drink them soon enough (doubt that will be an issue with a one-gallon batch).

I have brewed anywhere from 2 - 7 gallon batches, so I have no particular opinion on whether one size is better than the other. We brew batches of a particular size for whatever particular reasons we have. If you use good basic techniques it won't matter what size batch it is, you'll still get good beer in your glass.

 

I will oblige:
If that's all you've ever done, you don't drink a lot, and you have limited space I can understand diminuative batches. If and when you start kegging and making consistantly delicious beer, you'll see what I mean...or not...cheers.

Small kegs are getting cheaper...I just bought a 2 1/4 gal keg for soda... so forget the part about kegging : )

 

I have a 3 and 5 gallon keg thanks..I dont appreciate the implication that I dont make good beer. Is it really that hard for you to understand why it works for some people? I already listed my reasons.

 

I completely support your right to make whatever size batch you want and acknowledge it's possible to make good or even great beer regardless of batch size. I will never try to convince you to make a larger batch.

That said, the 5 gallon brewers need to step up their game and make 10 gallon batches because it basically takes the same amount of time.

 

Tou, freakin, che!!! Love your logic, but I'll site @Mag00n and his reasons as my own

 

I think you are misunderstanding me...I'm just saying we are all pigs...if it's good we crave more...that is all ...cheers