So I'm new to home brewing and just finished up bottling after 1 1/2 weeks of primary fermenting, didn't read my instructions real well and only filled up the bottles to the neck of the 12oz bottle. Only after finishing the bottling and reading the directions "Leave one inch of headspace per bottle" so are these gonna taste like ass? can I crack them and add a little more to each? I'd say each bottle has like 3 to 4 inches of headspace This is caribou slobber brown ale from NB, Thanks any advice is much appreciated
I'd just let it ride at this point and get started on your next batch. There isn't that much room in the neck anyway. The beer will be fine. I did read once that partial filled bottles can actually become more carbonated - co2 reaching equilibrium vs. suface area and what not. I don't have any experience with that, but I don't really think it will be a problem so long as used the correct amount of priming sugar. On a side note, and maybe I'm assuming too much, but you should get into the habit of taking gravity readings rather than just saying its done after x amount of days. In addition, a lot of us around here will advocate leaving it in the fermentor for a full two weeks or even three to give the yeast plenty of clean up time.
I wouldn't open them. And where would you get the beer to add to each? You don't want to be pouring from bottle to bottle and oxidizing the beer. Actually, the beer in partially filled bottles will be less carbonated, because some of the CO2 that should be in the beer is now in the headspace. It'll probably give a nice satisfying pop when opened, but that CO2 wasn't in the beer at equilibrium.
Leave it. They will carbonate, albeit a slight bit less than they would have had you filled them properly. Pop the first 12 oz test bottle in 2 weeks, min. Next time fill till they just barely overflow, then when you remove the bottling wand, they will have the perfect amount of headspace. Also, any excess foam from the starsan will just barely overflow past the top, and you'll have all beer in a well sanitized bottle. Works like a champ for me.
You can help with getting the carbonation into the beer a bit more by chilling the beers thoroughly, but only do this after the beers have carbonated in the bottle. Let it sit at least 2 weeks and take a sacrifice, opening one to verify that carbonation is done. Then chill what you want to drink a day or more in advance in the fridge. More of the CO2 in the headspace will dissolve into the beer that way. Also worthy of mention, if you used a standard pre-packaged amount of priming sugar for bottling, you might find that the carbonation is spot on as-is. That 5 oz of corn sugar in a bag is almost always more than you need for many beer styles. The additional headspace in the bottles might drop the actual carbonation level of the beer to "just right".
Thanks for all the advice, hope it is somewhat drinkable, will see in two weeks I'll let you all know how it turns out.
Don't worry about it. For a first brew, this is the last thing that can possibly affect your beer. In the future, what they said about filling just to the top, then pulling the wand will get just the amount you need. Also, I would recommend leaving the beer in the fermenter for longer, at least 2 weeks, preferably 3. I know most starter kits say to ferment for a week, secondary for a week and carbonate for a week, but I've gotten far better results letting it sit for longer. I used to give it 2 weeks, but I found that 3 just results in a better brew, for me and my rig and so on. The 2 most important things you need to worry about is sanitation and temperature control. Sanitation is pretty self-explanatory - anything that touches the beer post boil needs to be clean and sanitary. Temp control - during the fermentation most especially the first few days is critical. At max you want it to be at 65 degrees. The beer inside will be warmer, so that will get you right where you need to be.
In two weeks your beer will be 3½ weeks old. Somewhere on your NB recipe it says it will be ready in 6 weeks and there is a reason for that; patience makes homebrew taste better. I've had Slobber continue to improve for up to 9 months in the bottle . . . you have any patience?
Yes patience I have, I should have said it better in my 1st post, my beer was fermenting shy one day of 2 weeks, not 1 1/2 weeks. I didn't say this either and not sure if it makes a difference but this is the miny brew kit 1 gallon carboy, not sure if fermenting time is same as a 5 gallon setup.
Ah but I would guess that they just gave him a 5oz bag of corn sugar to carbonate (which is far too much) so they might actually turn out with a good Co2 level in the beer
they gave me the.....I forget the name, but they look like a white Halls cough drop, put one drop in each bottle.
That's different. Now we're looking at hard math with several variables to figure out whether the beer itself would be undercarbonated or overcarbonated. But it will likely be fine.
I think your beer will carbonate OK. My only concern is that with that amount of headspace there will be more air (oxygen) present that would be present in a properly filled bottle. Whether you will notice this ‘extra’ oxygen (accelerated oxidation?) in your beers is something to be considered. In all likelihood if you consume this beer quickly (i.e., do not drink them over a period of many months) you won’t notice any oxidation effects. Cheers!
It doesn't hurt to get oxygen absorbing caps for your beer. I've found them the same price as regular caps (stock up, with colors when that happens).
