Bottling it

It's another title that has two meanings! Okay, it's not as subtle as I would have liked. Sure enough, it's another post about brewing and the adventures therein. Come in if you'd like to see the beer gut made wordy.

Would you like to know more?



The purpose of buying a barrel was to avoid my impatience and worry about putting volatile liquids into bottles, especially given the horror stories I have heard about beer popping bottles and leaving damage and the like. However, there is the small matter of transportation. I'll freely admit that I was impatient with my first escapade and then my second, taking across to friends/family in Rothwell, was marred slightly by the fact that the beer was so flat as to be awful. After a successful sharing on a weekend meal with my father, who made nice noises about it and not just because he was being polite, this was slightly disappointing. Maybe the beer had gone off?

I decided to try bottling again tonight and, this time, use the attachment for the tap that was part of the original present. I would simply leave it going after the initial attempt had taken so long. So, I stacked the bottle carefully near the tap, attached attachment and turned the tap open. Then I prepared tea. It was barely started so I got on, cooked tea, ate tea, read Private Eye, ate more food, sorted tomorrow's lunch, read more Private Eye and, well, you get the idea. It was now an hour since I started.

I gave up and took out the attachment and filled the last half of the bottle with froth. I shall no doubt have less flat but still actually flat beer in the bottle. I am attempting to keep it in a warmer place in the hopes that the tiny amounts of sediment will allow for further conditioning and possible carbonation as has the barrel. However, a quick three-quarters of a pint tells me that the taste hasn't got worse - it's a tad fruitier than it was - and that the overall consistency is better than it was way back when, a bit improved on two weeks ago too. Don't know how long this can last but it bodes well for now. If only I can find a way to transport the stuff without it going flat and rubbish...