[krsna7]

I have made an Oktoberfest/Marzen style lager, it has lagered in my temp controlled fridge @34F for about 3 weeks.. i have read and heard from various online sources that there could possibly be enough yeast in suspension to carbonate in the bottle.  the beer was pretty clear when i primed and bottled (without adding any extra yeast), i opened one after a week just because i was impatient and wanted to check progress, it hissed when i opened the bottle, the beer was still pretty flat without much bubbling, and no head to speak of.. could this beer still carbonate if left to sit for another 3-5 weeks?.. im in no hurry as i have more beer to drink, but i would like to nip a problem in the bud now, instead of waiting the 3-5 weeks still to have uncarbonated beer. give me your input guys, looking for someone who may have experienced this before.
thanks in advance for your responses.
happy brewing!

[erockrph]

One week is rarely enough time to carbonate a beer. It usually takes me about 3 weeks at room temp to hit my desired carb level. With a lower amount of yeast it may take a month or more. If you got a hiss at one week I would take that as a very good sign at this point.

When I bottle lagers I usually bottle and carbonate first, then lager in the bottles. I think that speeds the process up a bit.

[David Lester]

Depends on whether or not yeast is remaining in the beer. The previous post is correct: 2-3 weeks to carbonate. If there isn't enough yeast, it may take longer.

[dmtaylor]

There's plenty of yeast in there.  Give it another week or two and everything will be fine.

[reverseapachemaster]

You could re-yeast if you want but you should be fine rolling with what is in the beer as long as you are willing to wait a few weeks to ensure good carbonation. If you want the beer a little quicker then you might want to reyeast at bottling.

[wingnut]

one week--- got Pffst..?  You are doing fine. 

Let it go another two weeks and then chill it so the CO2 dissolves more into the beer.  Let it sit cold for about 1 week minimum, and things will settle out, CO2 will dissolve into the beer more... and you will have a nice head on the beer when you pour it!


Enjoy!