| If you have finished making the wort and let your | | | | After you have capped all your bottles, find a place |
| brew ferment, you have completed most of the | | | | to store the beer. It has to sit for about two weeks |
| work, but your not done yet. You still have to bottle | | | | before it is ready to drink. The yeast that is still |
| your beer and wait a little longer. Bottling is an easy | | | | present in the brew will react with the sugar to |
| step but there are several key things that are | | | | create carbonation. Keep in mind what yeast you |
| important to know before you jump into it. | | | | used when deciding where to store your beer. If you |
| Before you bottle your beer, you have to find | | | | made a beer with ale yeast, you need to store your |
| bottles. You can either buy your bottles from a | | | | beer at room temperature. Do not refrigerate! |
| brewing retailer or you can just reuse old bottles. | | | | However, lager yeast should be kept at a cooler |
| Either way, you will have to sanitize them before you | | | | temperature. Your beer should be ready to drink in |
| fill them. There are several things that you should | | | | about 2 weeks and can sit for about a year. Don't let |
| think about when choosing bottles. They should be | | | | it sit for much longer than that or the seal might leak. |
| glass, preferably colored glass. Colored glass lets less | | | | Now that your done, your ready to drink your beer. I |
| light reach your brew, which protects it. Also, make | | | | recommend pouring your beer into a cup or mug |
| sure you don't use twist off bottles because the | | | | because the yeast has settled at the bottom of the |
| caps will not create a good seal around the threads. | | | | bottle. This happened when the yeast reacted with |
| You probably know that your beer is currently flat. It | | | | the sugar you added during bottling. You will find the |
| will remain flat until you add a sugar mixture to your | | | | last couple drinks of your brew to have some of this |
| brew. After you make a sugar mixture mix it evenly | | | | settlement if drinking from the bottle. Pouring it in a |
| through your beer and use a siphon to transfer the | | | | cup will solve this problem so you can enjoy your |
| beer to the bottles. Make sure you have sanitized | | | | brew from the first sip to the last. |
| the bottles before adding the beer. | | | | |
