Adding sugar during/after primary fermentation- easy questions

[triat00]

Hello,

Just want to add sugar (DME/Sugar/honney/...) after primary start up (24-72 hrs).

1- Can I just add the gravity points to my OG? (if you take in account the water that will be added. Let say that the recipe calls for 5gallons, you put 5gallons minus 2 cup because you will disolve you sugar in 2 cup of water)

2- When is the best moment to do it (high krausen, after krausen fall,...)

3- Can I do that a lot of time (until yeast dies because of the high ABV?)

4- Will the flavor be different then adding it before primary fertation take of?

Thanks for all your help

 

[uxo]

Well, I just boiled about 2 cups of cane sugar with about 4 cups of water. I am going to add this simple syrup to my red ale which has been in primary for about 2 days. I'll let you know what happens because its hard to find information about this subject.

This is my first brew and I would have added sugar to the boil but I forgot. Just want to kick up the ABV.

They add sugar to primary in Belgian beers so why wont it work for my ale.

 

[triat00]

I read that to about belgians. It seems to help the yeast to survive with big beer abv.

I read on "extreme brewing" recipes that you can do it but the recipes calls for 1/2 pound (500g) maximum,... an I want to do it with more dans 2 lbs

I also read a lot in here that people are doing it to achive high ABV without stressing the yeast but I cant find the answer to my question above.

From what I know, youll be ok to disolve 2 cup of dextrose with 1 cup of boiling water,... it is approximatly what they do in "extreme brewing"

 

[Reno]

When I add sugar to the primary I will sanitize a bowl, wisk and a wine thief. Add the sugar to the bowl then go to the primary and remove some beer. Add this to the bowl of sugar and stir it in with the wisk. Probably not all the sugar will dissolve but close.

I am not worried about oxygen, if the yeast are active the little bit of O2 in the little bit of beer I am adding back will be metabolized quickly.

I usually add it just after the peak of fermentation. How many additions and sugar will have to be a judgement call. Use gravity reading before the next addition to make sure the last one has been consumed. Obviously if it has not been comsumed the ferment may be about done.

 

[triat00]

Thanks Reno, Ill try this next time

What Ive done is to add 4,3lbs(approx 2kg) of DME in 0,5 gallon of boiling water (1,8L), then cool it and transfer to my Barley Wine (that was still in "high krausen"). I would have fallow Reno lead or do like Uxo but I wanted to try it... Anyone else have done similar?

For the OG question, I bough a brewingsoftware and it seems that you just add the gravity point less the water used. The impact seems to be more on the bitterness side (like when youre doing late addition).

The only question is,... how does it affect flavor. Im used to do late addition but I never add sugar during/after fermentation. Im also not an expert regarding what appens when you boil all your stuf together vs separately.

 

[uxo]

All i keeping reading about adding sugars to primary is that it might dry out your beer. I don't know...
I added my sugar after the krausen fell and within 20 mins i got some airlock activity that lasted a good few hours.

 

[feinbera]

Sugars dry out the beer because they're 100% fermentable, and add to the alcohol without adding any sweetness (after the yeasties are done) or body to the finished beer -- if it's DME you're adding, you won't have this effect.

Regarding gravity, you can calculate it as follows:

effective OG = ( (gravity points of original wort x gallons of original wort) + (gravity points of added syrup x gallons of added syrup) ) / total volume after adding syrup

So, let's say your DME solution is 3/4 gallon at 1.150, and you're adding it to five gallons of 1.060 wort.... effective OG = ( (60 * 5) + (150 * 0.75) ) / 5.75 = ~71.74 gravity points, or 1.072 (rounding to the nearest whole gravity point).

(just to be clear, I pulled those volumes and SG figures out of thin air; you'll have to re-run the calculation with your own numbers to get the actual effective OG of your beer)

 

[triat00]

What Ive done is to add 4,3lbs(approx 2kg) of DME in 0,5 gallon of boiling water (1,8L), then cool it and transfer to my Barley Wine (that was still in "high krausen").

With that addition, my OG climbed to 1,096 and after 10 days it was at 1,020 and still going down.

All my hop addition were the same then if I had add the DME to the boil so I think that it wont affect the flavor compare to a recipe all mixed in the boil.

Let you know what it taste in 1 1/2 week,... Ill transfer to secondary

 

[uxo]

Here is a photo of the red ale i added the sugar to after krausen fell.
2 weeks bottle conditioning and taste pretty good. Im going to place a few more in the fridge for the weekend.
I dont like my beers heavy carbonated so i cut back priming sugar. I also pour to minimize head. (Thats just me.)
Nice session brew.

 

[triat00]

Tasted the beer and its perfect. Think that doing it that way helped the yeast.

Will do it again with big béer.

 

[triat00]

So after few experiment, here's what ive learned.
You CAN do a smaler starter then add sugar (dme, lme, dextrose, table sugar,...) to your brew.
Youre better to add it at high krausen but if you dont, just rock a little your fermenter.
The maximum "sugar" you add goes with yeast you use.
Like reevy says use as little water as you can( just enough to disolve the "sugar")
Read about late extract addition.
If you plan your recipe Well, your addition wont have effect on flavor.