Question about Alcohol Boost and FG

I recently brewed a Breakfast Stout (extract) from Austin Homebrew. I chose to add an optional alcohol boost and some yeast fuel as well to help the yeast digest the additional sugar. I measured my OG at 1.064 (I think it is 1.067 since my hyrometer says to add .003 at ~77 degrees which was the temp I measured at). Recipe says should be at 1.058 but read that 1% ABV increase will lead to roughly .009 increase in OG so I figure I'm on the right track. Then I pitched some liquid yeast- California Ale 001 I believe, although I didn't use a yeast starter. Fermentation still started within 12 - 24 hours and was actively bubbling for a good week- looks like my first batch's off to a great start!

Two weeks later, I measured my FG to ensure fermentation is done. I got 1.020 on both days. Recipe says my FG should be at 1.014, but I figure that my number is a bit higher since I used an alcohol boost, and I did not use a yeast starter to increase the yeast count so not all the sugars were consumed.

I did a quick taste and the beer tastes pretty good. It does taste a bit thin and a little dry, which I was not expecting from a breakfast stout. Could the thinness/dryness be from the alcohol boost? Will it improve after it's been carbed and bottled? What should I expect from bottle conditioning?

Couple Things:

If it is an extract kit, it's not unusual for those to finish a little high. They call it the 1.020 curse. Of course a starter would have helped finish it up maybe as well.

The alcohol boost will dry out the beer and make the mouth feel a little thinner in all likelihood. It ferments out.

For the future of the batch though, carbonation will help significantly with mouth feel. If its a little thin now I bet it will be great after a month of carbonation.

The only way you will get "thickness" is if you have a nitrogen tap like the Irish pubs that serve Guiness do. Buit over time, the carbonation will give you a little more of what you're expecting.

What temp are you fermenting at? Fermenter temps have a big impact on finished product.

Gary

GASoline71 said:

The only way you will get "thickness" is if you have a nitrogen tap like the Irish pubs that serve Guiness do. Buit over time, the carbonation will give you a little more of what you're expecting.

What temp are you fermenting at? Fermenter temps have a big impact on finished product.

Gary

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To be honest, I don't know what temp my fermentation was. I kept the apartment between 65-68 so I figure fermentation was around 70 degrees or so. It was bugging me that I didn't know the temp so I ordered a thermometer sticker you put on the bucket, will use that to track the temp of my next brew.

I think the concept of boosting alcohol only yields frustration, especially to newer brewers. A good recipe doesn't need more alcohol, and there are always good recipes for stronger beers. Option B is take a shot of everclear after each beer.