Barrel'd beer suddenly gone flat? help needed.

shinnster

Hi again

I am six weeks into my second brew of Mexican Cerveza but it seems to have gone completely flat.
I put it in my pressure barrel, added the required amount of sugar, left it at room temperature for a few days then moved it out to the shed which is a fair bit colder.

I tested my first pint last week and it was fine, it came out the tap with a fair amount of pressure, the beer was carbonated and tasted ok. So I left it again as this was going to be my christmas brew.

Now i poured another pint last night and thats when i noticed the issue. the beer was slow coming out the tap and then suddenly came to a stop, even with the tap fully open nothing came out. I tried turning the tap off and on several times but nothing was happening.
Today i undone the barrel lid to check if there was any pressure / hissing and there was none at all.
why would this be? what has gone wrong and what can I do to fix it? just reprime the beer and wait again?
(my barrel doesnt have the cap to fit C02 bulbs)

Am kind of fed up now as theres only 5 weeks till xmas and this brew may not be ready

HBO_Staff

It's a good sign that the barrel initially had pressure, this would be a good sign it was not leaking CO2 but just be sure the lid is nice and tight once re-sealed. In this instance we recommend re-priming with say 50g of sugar to be sure, then move it somewhere warm for a week to help the sugar dissolve and secondary ferment. It is this which will create the CO2 and the pressure to dispense. It can be that the brew only creates CO2 slowly especially when it is cold, the brew may still be a little cloudy which is also a sign it wasn't quite ready. The re-priming and ensuring it is well sealed and airtight with the time in a warm place should solve the problem, but let us know how you get on

shinnster

thanks for the info,
i have re primed now, and re sealed the lid tight putting some petoleum jelly round the threads to stop any air escaping, and moved it back inside to warmer temperatues. guess i'll check again in a few weeks to see how its progressing.

what would make it suddenly go flat though? my last batch stayed carbonated until the end

HBO_Staff

One of two things usually, either the pressure escaped (usually from around a seal on the lid), or there was only enough pressure created to begin with to dispense the first amount of beer you tried, and there was not much other pressure built up, check these things on the barrel for peace of mind as they are the suspect points to let gas out;

http://homebrewonline.vanillaforums.com/discussion/209/barrel-problems-co2-injector-cap-leaking-tap#latest

shinnster

surely after being in the barrel for 6 weeks it should have created enough pressure to pour more than 2 pints though

i have checked the seal was in place on the lid, and am hopeful this time it will be good!
if not i'll just buy a new lid with the valve and try to carbonate it using the C02 bulbs.
would be a waste not to drink it as it tastes fine, just flat 

HBO_Staff

Usually yes it would have enough pressure, you could try moving it somewhere warm if it is a bit cold as this will help as cold temperatures can really slow down secondary fermentation, the CO2 cartridges are more for adding pressure to the barrel and wont make a big difference to the carbonation of the brew itself. The priming sugar is what makes most of the fizz, if needed re-prime and seal up and leave somewhere warm, this will usually solve the problem

shinnster

it has been moved back inside now to a warmer temp, but would it be worth me putting a heater back on the barrel to help the secondary stage? or just leave it at room temp and let it do its stuff.

HBO_Staff

A bit of extra heat may not be a bad thing, try the brew belt to help get it up to the mid-20 degrees or so for a few days, and should speed it up for you