I have a keg of IPA and Helles that I need to pull 3 bottles each from for a comp. Any words of wisdom on how to do this? I will be using the bottle wand and stopper for my "gun". I have heard that it is best to up the CO2 a few notches, put sanitized bottles into freezer, cap on foam. Anything else? How much time on higher CO2 (immedieately, minutes, hours, days)? How long in freezer? Thanks for the help.
The higher CO2 refers to carbonating to a slightly higher level than normal, so that the CO2 you lose during transfer doesn't result in an undercabonated bottle. Personally I don't bother with this, but I do tend to carbonated my kegs toward the high end for a given style. But it's really not critical IMO. I put my sanitized bottles in the fridge (not freezer) for about an hour before filling. Random tips... - Purge each bottle with CO2 before and after filling. (After filling, you're just purging the headspace.) - Fill the bottles slowly. I push with about about 4 PSI. Edit: Almost forgot... bottle as close to the competition date as possible.
My technique is just what Vikeman does. Additionally, I would recommend you cap each bottle as you fill them, not wait until you have a six-er. Don't work in a panic, but capping sooner is better than later to keep the bubbles. If you have a helper the assembly line can go pretty fast. If you have any delays, I would boost the keg pressure back up to the 10-12 range, even if just for a few minutes. Remember, the beer starts off-gassing (slightly) as soon as you drop the pressure, and the off-gassing increases as each bottle is waiting to be capped.
Your beer should be slightly over carbed. Note that you want your serving pressure to be 2-5 PSI when you go to bottle. Burp your keg before you start and pour a pint to let things settle. You'll need a drink when you finished dealing with this shit. It takes about 30 seconds to fill a bottle. You really want to take your time with it. I'd bump the PSI up a few days prior so that you notice a slightly higher carb level when you're pouring pints. I'd freeze the bottles for 30 minutes. Nice and frosty so they help hold the CO2 in.
What every body said plus bottle a few more than you need. I like to pop one open just before submitting the samples to ensure they are carbed properly. And then save at least one for when you get the results back to sample while reading the results.
