adding dextrose to IPA to boost abv?

I'm Brewing a belgian IPA today and have a bunch of extra dextrose. would adding a pound or so late in the boil boost the abv?

Yep, it sure would. Maybe 1/2% or so per pound, depending on your batch size (ballparking for a 5g batch size).

It may also dry out the final product a bit.

Uh oh, look out for revvy

unionrdr said:

That's the thing to watch out for. You don't want to dry out a beer that already has some of those qualities from all the hops used. Hops lend a certain astringency,which originally was intended as a preservative.
So one can play against the other.

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huh? astringency adds no preservative qualities. its a mouthfeel thing. did you mean antiseptic?

also, its an ipa, you most certainly want to dry it out, even moreso in a belgian one. id definitely add 1lb or so

dcp27 said:

huh? astringency adds no preservative qualities. its a mouthfeel thing. did you mean antiseptic?

also, its an ipa, you most certainly want to dry it out, even moreso in a belgian one. id definitely add 1lb or so

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I knew what I meant when I came in here,man. But yeah,in medieval times,it kept the beer from spoiling as fast what with all the time it took to get from point A to B. Read it on germenbeerinstitute.com.
But I thought Belgians had bigger malt profiles?...

unionrdr said:

I knew what I meant when I came in here,man. But yeah,in medieval times,it kept the beer from spoiling as fast what with all the time it took to get from point A to B. Read it on germenbeerinstitute.com.
But I thought Belgians had bigger malt profiles?...

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oh they definitely were used as a preservative, and still are today. its where IPAs came from.

belgians do have big malt profiles, but sugar is a key component (10-20%) in almost every belgian style.

I'm actually not sure that adding sugar will "dry out" a beer, if you aren't affecting the grain-bill otherwise.

Sugar is sometimes said to "dry out" a beer because the sugar won't add sweetness, but it will contribute to ABV. Thus, you can "dry out" a recipe you think is too sweet by substituting some of the grains with sugar: you'll be removing the sweetness in the beer without affecting the ABV, resulting in a dryer finished product.

Adding sugar, on the other hand, will boost the ABV without decreasing the sweetness. If anything, adding sugar can have the effect of inhibiting the fermentation of maltose, resulting in an even SWEETER beer. (This happens when there is A LOT of sugar added at the beginning of the ferment: yeast lose the ability to consume maltose in the presence of simple sugars after just a few generations.)

So, long-story short: I think adding your dextrose is a fine idea, don't worry about it.

I find that when adding say 1kg or 2lb to a extract brew, it makes the end result sweeter. I use more malts and little dextrose.

I find that when adding say 1kg or 2lb to a extract brew, it makes the end result sweeter.

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Andyy, try waiting until just before fermentation ends, then add a simple syrup of dextrose. That way, the yeast will chew through all the maltose before they get to the dextrose, and they won't have the opportunity to adapt. In my experience, you'll end up with a dryer beer that way.

(Unless you WANT a sweeter beer, in which case, your technique, whatever it is, is obviously working!)