The only time I saw that was when I got a large packet of it from a commercial brewer. I believe it was well past its prime. I couldn't get it to ferment at all. But yes, it was like a brick.
When I did it, the priming solution went into the bottling bucket first. I'd then rack the beer onto the solution with an auto-siphon and hose which would start the mixing process. I'd then very gently stir the whole lot before switching to the bottle filler. I had very consistent results with...
Sometimes I have more kegs than I do faucets so I disconnect and reconnect all the time. I too, have lost CO2 to small leaks, usually in the keg hardware.
Hot alcohol taste usually comes from fusel alcohols created as a result of higher fermentation temps. At what temp did you ferment? What was the OG? Bell's Two Hearted is around 7.2% so there are definitely more fermentables in there and that with warmer temps could cause those fusels. You can't...
I would look at it this way: if you buy candi syrup it wasn't made using the same water you will brew with and that's OK. I wouldn't see any concern with you not using that same water either.
Thanks for sharing the link. I've never made candi sugar and this has inspired me to do so on my next...
You can always take a gravity reading to see but I have one FV that just stopped bubbling after a few days even though I know it's not complete. I don't think the airlock has a great seal and it's venting CO2 around it rather than through it. I usually just leave my FVs alone for 2 weeks and...
The only time I secondary is if I'm aging a big beer or if I need to do something crazy like add fruit or oak etc.
Most times now, I shove the FV (after primary is complete) into the fridge for 2 weeks to settle out and then it's straight to the keg. I don't really bother with secondary much...
That's why I always stuck with dry meads. I had a buddy who made one so sweet it was like drinking honey water. He ended up having to blend it with a dry mead just to make it drinkable.
I typically only secondary my beers if they are big beers that need some aging. If yours is ready to go, just do as you mentioned and rack it into bottles with priming sugar. I keg my beers now but when I bottled, I'd rack from the FV into a large bottling bucket with the sugar solution already...