Help! Stout won't ferment!??

[Magnew]

On September 19th I bottled a batch of oatmeal stout. Used 3/4 cup of corn sugar disolved in water to prime in the bottling bucket. Opened the first bottles on Oct. 19th. Flat. It had gotten colder in the time between bottling and drinking so the temp was around 62 to 68 degrees. Reading some other posts, I figured it was just too cold. I brought it upstairs to my office where the temp has been around 68 to 70 degrees. Shook the bottles a bit and let them sit another 3 weeks. Opened one tonight (Nov 8). Flat. Tastes good, but not fizz. Any ideas out there?

[sallad]

i had a batch where about 2/3 or more didn't carbonate... i had a few theories on why, though none can be confirmed cuz, flat or not, they're gone now! i thought maybe i forgot to stir in the primer (careful not to aerate!), so only some had any sugar in them at all. maybe it sat in secondary too long and all the yeast settled out so none got in the bottles. or maybe the siphon hose, bottling bucket, bottling hose, and/or the bottles weren't completely rinsed of sanatizer, thus killing the yeast during the bottling process.

anyway, the ones that carbonated were good. the ones that weren't, i mixed with another batch that was a little over carbonated.

[b3s]

it could be that the priming sugar didn't get consistent throughout the beer, as sallad mentioned, but that would indicate some of the bottles having some fizz. i always add the priming sugar to the bucket first, then the beer, then gently swirl. possibly not enough priming sugar could be at fault (although i tend to go with 3/4C corn syrup, too). another suspect is too much residual sanitizer killing the yeast.

[paul84043]

I had the same thing happen to a Kolsch. I have absolutely no idea what went wrong. They simply did not carbonate.
That sucks that it's an oatmeal stout. I wonder if it would be okay to pop them open and drop in a primetab? I would try to save the batch somehow.

Just remember, the time that it has sat will only help it age, so it's not wasted.

[Magnew]

Thanks everyone. I am going to leave it another week. I had some temperature variation from night to day (it's cold here in MN) and I am taking steps to regulate that a bit. If that doesn't work, I guess I'll just pop them all and add a bit of sugar and yeast.
The only thing I can think is that the bottles were too hot when I bottled. I use the dishwasher to sanitize them. I don't use it for anything else, so there isn't any soap in it. I don't think they were too hot. I let them cool. But I can't think of anything else.

[Jeff]

For my first batch I didn't remember to add the corn sugar solution until I had filled my bottling bucket half way. I ended up with approximatley 5 bottles over carbonated and the rest flat. I still drank it, but nobody else would.

[paul84043]

I've used the bottles right out of the dishwasher with no problem, so I doubt that heat is an issue.

Even if you add the priming sugar solution very last, as long as you mix it well, it shouldn't be a problem..

[Magnew]

I added the sugar water to the bottling bucket prior to racking. It got swished around pretty good. Also, none of the bottles I've tried so far from either case has had carbonation. I use One Step to sanitize which says you don't have to rinse. I usually do anyway. Except for the cold (which I moved it to deal with) or possibly the hot bottles (which I really don't think was it) I'm at a loss.

[GunNut76]

Where in MN are you from Magnew? I live in Burnsville.

[paul84043]

Sounds like my mystery batch.
I would move it to a place that's constantly 75 to 80F (utility closet? By furnace and water heater?) or heat it through other means. Agitate the bottles slightly. Wait a week or so and see what happens.
If that doesn't work, I'd try possibly popping a couple of them open and adding a primetab and wait again.
One other definite possibility is that something like your sanitizer killed off your yeast.
I wonder how feasible it would be to make a diluted starter and add a small measured amount of that to each bottle?

I'm really grasping here, but I would hate to see a batch of Stout go to waste.

[Magnew]

Minneapolis.

It won't go to waste. Not if I can help it. If keeping it warmer doesn't work, here's my plan. I still have almost all of the 5 gallons that I brewed, as i have only tried 5 or 6 bottles. I will mix up a batch of corn sugar water, let it cool, add some dried yeast, then eyedropper a little into each bottle. Then just see what happens.

[paul84043]

If you get to that point, I would actually let the yeast get started, or foaming pretty good before adding it, just to give it that little extra bit of help...

[Magnew]

Okay! I tried another one today. The added heat and temperature control seems to be doing the trick. I'm going to leave it another week, but definitely more tang on the tongue than there has been to date. At least it will be well aged!

Lesson learned? Temperature control, temperature control, temperature control.

[GunNut76]

Magnew- If you are not married you should do so before brewing anymore...a wife ALWAYS keeps the house at around 75! :D

[paul84043]

Oh how true that is!!!!

I always tease my wife and tell her that I'm going to invent the Fem-O-Stat. It would be a thermostat with a readout on the front and buttons to turn it up and down (the readout, not the actual temp), but the real controls would be hidden in a panel behind the front. That way she wouold think that she turned it up and she'd be happy...I think that half of thier need to crank up the temp is solely psychological...

[Jeff]

Paul,

Those thermostats exist already, not really for residential use. I have used them several times, especially in schools. Teachers think they turn up the heat, feel warmer and don't complain and all the while they really did nothing.

[Magnew]

Actually, I'm the one who is always threatening to turn the heat up. Does that make me a girlyman?:)

[paul84043]

Dang, I thought I was on to something!!

Magnew....Yes....you're a girlie man. :eek:

[Magnew]

I shall try to redeem myself. In the mean time, I'll drown my sorrows in beer.

[axis714]

I live with a wife and 3 girls{hence the beer hobby}:cool:
I firmly believe that a woman would be "cold" no matter what the temp. Inside and out theyre just plain cold..lol

[Jeff]

Off the subject, but my wife and I took a honeymoon trip to Las Vegas a year and half ago in June. She was the only person in the entire city that had a sweatshirt tied around here waste at all times. It was 110*F outside but when we got in the casions she would put on the sweatshirt.

[Magnew]

Just to let everyone know how this stout saga ended... Temperature wasn't the problem. It was a yeast problem. The friendly folks at Midwest Homebrewing suggested that sometimes (although rarely) the yeast wears itself out in fermentation. I uncapped and added a bit of dried yeast to each bottle. After a couple of weeks...wonderful suds.

[toneyc]

Most excellent!!! A stout is a terrible thing to waste.

:)
Toney.

[axis714]

I just experienced a similar setback but it was just a huge lagtime almost 48hrs......and i used whitelabs 1084 irish ale and made a starter....still cant figure out why the lag? but oh well......stout is bubbling away now....ToneyC said it best "a stout is a terrible thing to waste"