Low OG Reading - Info Wanted!

[natefrog255]

Today I brewed up a Porter (East River Scum) for the first time and my OG came in significantly lower than expected. I'll lay out the recipe and maybe you can offer advice, tips, etc.

East River Scum
6.6# of Pilsen LME (Briess)
0.5 oz. of Caramel 60
0.5 oz. of Chocolate
0.25 oz. of Black Malt
0.75 oz. Chinook Hops - 60 minutes
1 oz. Glacier Hops - 2 minutes


Crushed grain with rolling pins (don't have a mill) and steeped for 30 minutes in 2 gallons of water heated to 160 degrees. Once hit 160 turned off burner and steeped. After steep added just under 3 gallons of water and started boil.

Added 3.3# of LME near boil and 3.3# at the 50 minute mark.

OG wanted and expected was 1.049. After calibration ended up with only 1.041.

My personal feeling is either I'm not getting all of the LME out of the jugs and/or the grain isn't getting crushed properly but I don't know if it would have that drastic of an effect on the OG reading. Maybe my boil volume was too large. I normally shoot for 3 gallons but ended up with more.

Any info is appreciated!

 

[ColumbusAmongus]

I don't think that is significant enough to worry. I am curious, how did you obtain the desired OG? I am thinking that who or whatever that calc was from counted the specialty malts like an all grain batch where there was an assumption that some sugars were going to be converted by enzymes.

Without a malt with good diastatic power, you have no enzymatic activity to convert the starches from your specialty malts into fermentable, soluble sugars so I think your target OG wasn't correct.

6.6 lbs of Pilsen LME alone gets me 1.043 from my app. I think your measures OG is fine.

 

[ColumbusAmongus]

http://beersmith.com/blog/2010/01/04/diastatic-power-and-mashing-your-beer/

Here is a good read about the subject