Bottled Tripel not carbonating?? Help!!!

[Heisenberg of Beer]

So about 5 days ago, I bottled a belgian trippel, made with White Labs Trappist Ale yeast (WLP500), which has plenty of high-alcohol tolerance. I plan on letting it age for a month total before I drink it, but I tried a bottle today to make sure it had at least started carbonating, and it hasn't at all, and is still completely sweet from the bottling sugar (5 oz dextrose in a 5 gal batch).

Normally, when I try a beer bottled after even two or three days it is carbonated somewhat, I usually try one a few days after bottling just to make sure something is happening, but should I be worried? To give a bit of background on this batch, it was in a the primary for a week, then in the secondary for 4 weeks, then bottled, and it's been 5 days. When I bottled it, I gently swirled a bit of the yeast that had settled on the bottom of the secondary back into solution, I thought that would make sure there was enough yeast to do the job of carbonating, but I'm thinking now I was wrong. I had thought about adding a packet of yeast when I bottled but decided against it. I also thought about adding a small solution of additional yeast and sugar a few days before bottling to get everything rolling again, but decided against that too. Now I wish I had done something. According to the final gravity, my ABV% is about 10.0%.

Any thoughts or advice, anyone? If I may have screwed up, can it be saved by rebottling? It was REALLY good when I bottled it, even without carbonation, so I'd really hate to toss it. Again, it's only been 5 days, but nothing at all has happened.

Thanks in advance for any help, I really appreciate this! This is only my 6th batch, so I'm still a noob.

 

[Foster82]

Give your yeast time to work. The yeast are going to be slow to get going again with an ABV of 10%. Also store your brew at room temp to help the carb process along. If nothing has happened after 2 weeks you might have an issue, but my money is on everything working out.

RDWHAHB

 

[Heisenberg of Beer]

Thanks for the reassurance, I appreciate it! I was worried that the yeast had all settled to the bottom, or that kicking them back into solution wouldn't work because they were at a point in their life cycle where that wouldn't work or something, but I'll give it another week or so and try again. (Still gonna wait a month to drink, but I like to do quality checks every so often along the way.)

 

[LarryBrewer]

Give your yeast time to work. The yeast are going to be slow to get going again with an ABV of 10%. Also store your brew at room temp to help the carb process along. If nothing has happened after 2 weeks you might have an issue, but my money is on everything working out.

RDWHAHB

+1 RDWHAHB

 

[Krimbos]

"ITS NOT CARBONATING!" translation = "I WANT TO DRINK IT NOW!!!!!!!!!!"

...I hate conditioning phase.... :evil: :cry: :x

 

[LarryBrewer]

If someone tells you to RDWHAHB, what if all your beer is in the conditioning phase? Then you are kind of stuck drinking flat beer...

The solution - brew more often so you build up a nice stockpile of properly conditioned beer and you'll thank yourself. Never let that primary sit empty... Mine has been in continuous use for the past several months, and now nearly all my kegs and bottles are full! Then I can take a break from brewing over the summer when it gets hot.

 

[Krimbos]

Jedi brewer, he is...

 

[Heisenberg of Beer]

Well, it's been 1.5 weeks, and it still tastes like no carbonation has occurred at all.

I think I may get a packet of yeast, make a really simple starter with some DME and very little water so the yeast are concentrated, and add a few drops of yeast solution to each bottle. I spent alot of money on this brew since it was a very high grav brew, and I'd hate to let it go to waste. It tastes great, other than of course the sweetness from the bottling sugar and the lack of CO2.

Unless anyone has a suggestion?

 

[LarryBrewer]

Bottle conditioning can take over a month. The rule of thumb is 4-6 weeks. You are at 1.5 weeks? May need to give it time.

The plan of adding yeast/DME solution could help, but will expose the beer to more oxygen, which will diminish shelf life. If you do go forward with that plan, try and get oxycaps, which are oxygen absorbing. Even better, put a little CO2 in the headspace when you re-cap.

 

[Heisenberg of Beer]

My problem isn't that carbonation is slow, but that it doesn't seem to be occurring at all, like it didn't even start. I sloshed a spoon in the beer in a glass to see how many bubbles I could stir up, and it didn't seem like there were any. I'd really rather not open them up and risk contamination/oxidation if I don't have to.

How long does homebrew tend to keep after it's been bottled? If it stays good for a while, I'd have no problem waiting a month, and THEN adding a yeast/dme solution if need be.

 

[LarryBrewer]

Bottled beer that was handled correctly can be kept for well over a year. I've had bottles 18 months old that were fine. That is the longest I have ever gone.

I had one early brew that was oxidized and used cheap caps - that particular batch didn't last more than a few months! Cardboard note was bad.

 

[Nosybear]

Just had one last night I brewed last Summer. It was off-peak but still quite drinkable.

 

[TheZel66]

Perhaps next time add some fresh yeast into the mix; don't know how much; also use Belgian Ale bottle with the corks and wire caps..

 

[Nosybear]

If you're convinced it isn't carbonating, open the bottles, sprinkle a tiny amount of dry yeast into them and re-cap. There's a risk of contamination but it's better than losing the batch.