Brewing an Irish Red Ale – Bottling Day

After two weeks in the fermenter, it was time to bottle the Irish Red Ale. My checklist is below.

Bottling Workflow:

Wash the following with standard detergent
Bottling bucket
Siphon tube
Filling tube
Bottlecaps
Spigot
Paddle
Thermometer
500ml bottles (31)

Wash the following using VWP
Filling tube
Siphon tube
Bottlecaps
Spigot
Paddle
Trial jar (tall pint glass in this case)
Hydrometer
Thermometer
Bottling bucket
500ml bottles (31)

Assemble bottling bucket
Attach tubing to fermenter spigot
Have waste bucket to hand to catch waste from tap

[Brewer’s Friend brewing calculator states that 19L of beer at 20 degrees requires 105.5g of Table Sugar to bring dissolved CO2 to 2.25
volumes.]
Measure 105g of Table Sugar and boil in 400ml of water
Add to bottling bucket and allow to cool

Remove airlock from fermenter
Draw off beer sample for hydrometer reading into sanitised trial jar
Measure temperature of sample [16 degrees C]
Take hydrometer reading [1.012]
Add sample to bottling bucket to avoid waste

Add remainder of beer from fermenter via siphon – avoid agitation
Seal bottling bucket and attach filling stick to spigot

Rinse all bottles with water to remove VWP

For each bottle:
Fill to top using filling stick
Cap using capper
Label cap
Place in crate

Store crates for priming for two weeks

Clean up

A refreshing drink after a hard morning’s work. Tastes really good even before bottle-priming! It ought to be ready by December, so just in time for any Christmas parties.