Bottle Priming

[phildo79]

Couple of questions here:

I bottled a Brewferm Abbey beer on Saturday afternoon (15.03.14) and then as I was about to leave the house this morning, I suddenly had a horrible feeling that I didn’t prime the batch before I bottled. This batch can take 6 months to mature properly so I really don’t want them to turn out flat. So I popped one open. It was a swing top bottle and it did make a good popping sound, like it was carbonated. So what is on my mind is:

Would it have made that sound anyway due to the fact it was less than 3 days after bottling?

The batch was in the fermenting bucket for 14 days but I used 500 grams of the recommended candied sugar. So does the candied sugar make a difference?
Would there be any residual candied sugar in the bottles to give it a little carbonation?

I always find swing top bottles to make the most sound like they seem to retain more carbonation. I’ll open a normal one tonight and see what happens but if it turns out I haven’t primed this batch, is it salvageable?

Any help or thoughts are appreciated.
Thanks

 

[LeithR]

Did you check your SG before you bottled? If the SG hadn't been steady for 3 days then it may not have finished. This might not be a bad thing in that it will self prime by continuing to work in the bottle. After all thats what you are doing by priming i.e. adding a small amount of sugar into a brew which has suspended yeast in it.

 

[phildo79]

Didn't check the SG. Instructions said 10 days should be plenty at a around the 20 degrees mark. It would have been something similar to that heat and for an extra 4 days. it's possible it didn't ferment down to the required 1010 but I doubt it.

 

[whiter shade of ale]

It would be a complete PITA but you could pop all the bottles, prime individually and re cap. But obviously if you did prime already then you risk over priming them. You really can't remember?? If so the sensible thing would be to leave them in the warm a couple of weeks and check again. If you've got decent carbonation then great. If not, do the above-mentioned.

 

[joe 90]

pour a bottle of it into a plastic bottle that way you can feel if its carbonating if the bottle goes hard in the next week in the heat you will be ok, I do this with every batch I make I always fill one in a plastic bottle saves you wondering wither its carbonating or not as you can feel the progress :

 

[phildo79]

It would be a complete PITA but you could pop all the bottles, prime individually and re cap. But obviously if you did prime already then you risk over priming them. You really can't remember?? If so the sensible thing would be to leave them in the warm a couple of weeks and check again. If you've got decent carbonation then great. If not, do the above-mentioned.

I really can't remember. This is due to having a few of my homebrew ginger beer before bottling. After 2 pints I could feel I was getting ******. I've never forgotten to prime before but I just don't remember getting the scales out, measuring out the sugar etc. A lesson learned for the future.

 

[phildo79]

pour a bottle of it into a plastic bottle that way you can feel if its carbonating if the bottle goes hard in the next week in the heat you will be ok, I do this with every batch I make I always fill one in a plastic bottle saves you wondering wither its carbonating or not as you can feel the progress :

Good idea. I think I'll try that. Thanks.

 

[cask is best]

pour a bottle of it into a plastic bottle that way you can feel if its carbonating if the bottle goes hard in the next week in the heat you will be ok, I do this with every batch I make I always fill one in a plastic bottle saves you wondering wither its carbonating or not as you can feel the progress :

That's exactly what I do with every brew too :