beginner mistake, need help

[drays14]

Hey guys, so yesterday I brewed an ipa that somehow was much lower than anticipated. This is the first beer that I really missed my mark in about 6 ask grain batches. After having as couple beers and thinking about it I remembered that some people add corn sugar to bump the fermentables. So I added a quarter pound to the primary. Problem is I now read it should be boiled ahead of time. Now I have a bunch of sugar clumps floating around. The yeast seen active and happy but I don't know what to expect now. Anybody have any experience with this?

 

[flars]

Adding dissolved DME would have worked better, but the corn sugar will eventually dissolve into solution. Adding pure sugar will bump the ABV, but give a thinner mouth feel and drier finish. Add some extra time to your fermentation schedule just to make sure the yeast works on the sugar and the other more complex fermentables.

 

[JimRausch]

Not much in the way of bacteria grows in dry sugar(lack of water for growth) so you're probably safe on lack of contamination. In fact sugar has been sprinkled on wounds as a disinfectant for over a hundred years.
If it was a 5G batch, then adding 1/4 lb sugar will only give you about an additional 2 gravity points. Maybe not quite what you were hoping for.
Good Luck!
This is a good reason for checking a preboil SG and doing the math to see if your OG will be in the ballpark. If it's low you can add DME or sugar late boil.

 

[drays14]

Good idea, so if I check it pre boil is there a site that will calculate what the end result will be?

 

[flars]

You could use this Brewers Friend calculator and some simple math to figure what a DME or LME addition will add to your wort.
Simple math works also. DME adds 44 Points Per Gallon. LME adds 37 PPG. Sugar adds 44 PPG.

Here is the link
http://www.brewersfriend.com/extract-ogfg/

 

[eadavis80]

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/increase-alcohol-in-beer.html

 

[schokie]

Good idea, so if I check it pre boil is there a site that will calculate what the end result will be?

You can make a nominal assumption of 12% boil off for a one hour boil. That will flucuate depending on equipment and environmentals.

For example, I experience a boil off of .5-.75 gals for a starting vol of 6.5 gals with my pot and burner. Less on humid days, more on dryer, colder days. I take a pre-boil gravity reading, then use Beersmith's boil off tool to calculate what my post-boil gravity will be. That's my chance to make corrections.

Just guess for the next time and pay attention to what you get. Don't stress getting it exact. A quarter gal isn't going to make a significant difference in your gravity. It'll be a couple points at most.

 

[schokie]

Sorry, I should have read your question more closely. I answered what I thought you were asking, which wasn't what you really wanted. I told you how to calculate post boil volume and others told you how to calculate extract/sugar additions, but no one told you how to calculate your post boil gravity.

As I said, BeerSmith has a great tool for solving this problem. It's a great program for brewing in general, so check it out.

But if you'd prefer a free solution, here's a website calculator that does the same thing:

http://www.brewersfriend.com/dilution-and-boiloff-gravity-calculator/

 

[madscientist451]

I usually pull a 1 cup sample about 5-10 min from the end of the boil and chill in an ice bath and then get a gravity reading. If I'm low, I can add DME or continue the boil. But I do a pre boil check too so I'm usually pretty close.

 

[jahdub]

You can just check your pre-boil gravity and extrapolate that to what your post-boil gravity will be.

For instance, if you have 6.5 gallons of 1.040 wort and 5 gallons post boil

(40 pts * 6.5 gallons) / 5 gallons = 52 pts

You'll have 1.052 post-boil.

This way you don't have to take a sample from 200+ degree wort