[steallo]

Hello all,

I have made 30lts of elderflower champagne, its all bottled in plastic water bottles and a few swing top bottles. It was all going nicely with the bottles bulging so much so that I let the pressure out every day for the last week and a half. I tasted a bottle last night and surprisingly it was rather flat???

Is there anything I can do to get the fizz back into the bottles - maybe some sugar into bottles close to when they are going to be drunk?

Each time I let the pressure out the liquid would have a decent rush of bubbles rise up, so I know it was rather fizzy, as I also had a wee sip whilst de-pressurising the bottles.

Does anyone have an equation for working out the alcohol volume of the brew - I read somewhere taht you weigh 1 ltr of water and then 1 ltr of the brew. I cant for the life of me find the topic again and I cant remeber what to do with the figures after you weigh them. 1ltr of water = 1kg 1ltr of my brew = 908g.

Any tips/advice much appreciated.

Steve

[steallo]

Hi all,

Has anyone got any experience/advice at all, in relation to the above? If not personally then can anyone suggest a website that may have such information?

Thanks in advance

Steve

[jimbeekeeper]

I think you may have been just a bit over cautious with the degassing.

But to get htings going again I would add about 4 tea spoons per 2lts or 1 tea spoon per std type beer bottle.

[steallo]

Cheers Jim,

Thanks for your suggestion and I will certainly give it a go. Do you think that it may have something to do with the fact that I have used standard bread yeast as oposed to brewers yeast??? It was going great but has now settled down to a just over recognisable gas/bubbles.

Steve

[jimbeekeeper]

Arh yes, that might not be helping! Bread for bread, brewing for brewing!

But realy if it fermented it gas will have been produced, which you where degassing, but as I said may be degassing to much.

[Maccbean]

Steve, sorry to muscle in on your disappointment but can I ask how much degassing you've done?  I bottled mine just yesterday, and I was planning to do it 3 times a day (I'm using a mix of plastic and glass and am terrified of the explosions!).   I'm conscious of the fact though that I might overdo it and make it flat. 

[steallo]

Maccbean,

When first bottled I was degassing twice a day - the bottles were bulging as if ready to explode
The down to once a day................................I am now also pleased to report that the gas seems to be still there - just not overly so. I now degass very 2 days. I think next time I make a batch I will use fizzy drinks plasctic bottles as they are designed to keep the pressure more than the water bottles I am using at present.

Best of luck with your lot. I would have made some more if I could find any elderflower trees still in flower - I am way down south(Jersey) and cant find any trees still in bloom.

[Maccbean]

Thanks Steallo.