AntDoctor
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- Sep 11, 2020
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Hello! I'm brewing up a 1 gallon porter using mesquite bean pods that I harvested and rye berries that a friend donated. Unlike my previous porter/stout attempts, I wanted this bad boi to have a high final gravity: I desire sweetness and a thick 'n creamy mouthfeel.
Whelp, my monkey's-paw-type wish came true: it seems to be finished fermenting with a FG of ~1.040... It's thicker'na pile of Paul Bunyan's flapjacks, that's for sure! The taste right now is pretty good; I'm pleasantly surprised with how porter/stout-like it tastes. Since the SG was ~1.069, it only has an ABV of ~3.5%, which is pretty low. So how can I thin this beer out a bit and increase the ABV? Perhaps I should add some table sugar? If adding sugar is the way, how do I calculate how much I should add?
Possible reasons for the insanely high SG and FG:
FERMENTABLES:
Whelp, my monkey's-paw-type wish came true: it seems to be finished fermenting with a FG of ~1.040... It's thicker'na pile of Paul Bunyan's flapjacks, that's for sure! The taste right now is pretty good; I'm pleasantly surprised with how porter/stout-like it tastes. Since the SG was ~1.069, it only has an ABV of ~3.5%, which is pretty low. So how can I thin this beer out a bit and increase the ABV? Perhaps I should add some table sugar? If adding sugar is the way, how do I calculate how much I should add?
Possible reasons for the insanely high SG and FG:
- I used Danstar London ESB, a low attenuating yeast that can't process maltotriose.
- I forgot to add the brewing salts to my distilled water until AFTER fermentation got going (so maybe the mash pH was off and starches didn't become sugars).
- I added a crap ton of (unmalted?) rye, oats, wheat, and literal mesquite bean pods.
- I did forget to add yeast nutrient this time. But it's only 1 gallon and I added a whole packet of ESB. Plus, mesquite pods are supposed to have tons of protein and other nutrients, I think.
FERMENTABLES:
- 0.4 lb - Rye (15.2%)
- 1 lb - Pale 2-Row (38%)
- 0.6 lb - Munich (22.8%)
- 2 oz - White Wheat (4.8%)
- 1 oz - Blackprinz (2.4%)
- 3 oz - Caramel / Crystal 60L (7.1%)
- 1 oz - Chocolate (2.4%)
- 2 oz - Rolled Oats (4.8%)
- 1tbsp - Smoked Malt (0.1%)
- Some undefined amount of sugar from 0.5lb of soaked mesquite bean pods