Coopers larger is flat

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JDB

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Hi
Brewed some Coopers European Larger, just opened the first bottle and it's flat. Any ideas on why. Can it be saved or do I just throw it away.
TIA
 
Unlikely to be a problem with the brew, more likely to be what you did.

Can you tell us more about your method: did you prime with sugar, how much, did you keep the bottles in the warm for 2 weeks to carb up?
 
Hi
Primed with card drops, 1 drop per 500ml bottle, room temp was above 20°C, brewed as per instructions.
TIA
 
How long has it being conditioning for, can take two to three weeks even at 20°C to fully carb.

Edit: Also for a larger 1 carb drop may be a bit low I typically use this much for a bitter, which you tend to want a fairly low carbonation level.
 
How long has it being conditioning for, can take two to three weeks even at 20°C to fully carb.

Edit: Also for a larger 1 carb drop may be a bit low I typically use this much for a bitter, which you tend to want a fairly low carbonation level.
Been standing for two weeks.
 
I might blame the caps they can be unreliable at times if not tight enough
 
First I have plenty of PET bottles with caps and have never had a problem with any of them sealing in spite of some of them being re-used several times.
Next before you start adding additional drops to your bottles you should give your beer time to carb up on the single drop you originally used. Unless you have leaks on your bottles, unlikely, flat beer to me just means the yeast has not yet done its job properly. Apart from trying another one now to see if the one you tried was an odd one out, I suggest you find a warm place somewhere and leave your bottles in it for a further week then try again, By then it should have carbed up as much as the single drop will allow. You can then decide if you need more drops, but adding another drop will mean you lose some CO2 and may also mean your bottles gush beer at the time you add the drop due to nucleation.
 
Could I add drops to each bottle?
Why not try a couple of bottles to see how it goes. Don't forget to label them so you know the difference.

Nothing ventured nothing gained, it's all trial and error we all hopefully learn as we go along.

The worst part is when you create something remarkable and you cant repeat it usually because you forgot exactly what you did (or perhaps that's just me) so don't forget to label, keep records, or mark in some way so you will know if it works.

I always intend to but I'm usually too forgetful (unfortunately comes with age) or ****** pleasantly happy to care.

Best of luck.
 
Just a thought, but have you used both your glass and plastic screw cap bottles before for a previous brew? If so, were they holding pressure, were the contents fizzy? To be honest I just use one PET bottle per brew to check carbonation has occurred, by squeezing it and if firm, its done. The rest are all glass bottled with either crown caps or swing tops. So if the PET screw cap fails for any reason, I only lose one bottle. It hasn't happened yet, though.
Also as previously mentioned I think 2 drops would be better than 1. I use 1 level teaspoon of white sugar per 500ml bottle. Cheaper than carb drops and works just as well.
 
Iv just had what I thought was a flat batch of wilkos Mexican. Two weeks later and they have been improving with every bottle and less flat.
I leave my bottles in my warm loft room under a towel. And only keep a couple chilled at a time.

I primed with brewing sagar.
 
I have brewed two of the Wilko Cerveza kits, the second of which is conditioning, but the first has really improved with age! It is now aged 9 weeks or so and is a really pleasant, crystal clear beer.
 
Glad I read this thread as I have wilko cervesa ready to brew. Excuse my ignorance gents but what is the benefit of priming with brewing sugar over granulated.
 
@Backtobrew Honestly I think it makes no difference. Brewing sugar tends to be glucose while table sugar tends to be sucrose (a two molecule sugar made up of fructose and glucose). Yeast is perfectly capable of breaking it down into its base molecules and then fermenting the lot.

Some people claim that table sugar leaves a cidery taste to beer, but Ive never being able to detect it. On the odd occasion I do one can kits I tend to use brewing sugar because I’m lazy and can get a pre measured bag shipped with the kit. When it comes to priming I use caster sugar.
 
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