Original Gravity

Brewer's Friend 728
Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
K

KennyS1134

Active Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2011
Messages
29
Reaction score
1
Location
Chicago
I'm still definitely a beginner, with around 10 homebrew batches, extract and all grain. I can't seem to ever get an original gravity of over 1.050. What is a good way to get my high gravity lovin' on? I just did a strawberry honey blonde ale yesterday night, and it was around 1.046. With 3 pounds of honey, and 2pounds of strawberries, I expected it to be at least a little bit higher. I just got beersmith2, and know I hit all my mash temps, and had a really good boil. I've heard of people putting sugar into the boil to increase alcohol potency, so I figured the 3lbs of honey would suffice. :( It would be nice to get a really alcohol potent ale.
 
KennyS1134 said:
I'm still definitely a beginner, with around 10 homebrew batches, extract and all grain. I can't seem to ever get an original gravity of over 1.050. What is a good way to get my high gravity lovin' on? I just did a strawberry honey blonde ale yesterday night, and it was around 1.046. With 3 pounds of honey, and 2pounds of strawberries, I expected it to be at least a little bit higher. I just got beersmith2, and know I hit all my mash temps, and had a really good boil. I've heard of people putting sugar into the boil to increase alcohol potency, so I figured the 3lbs of honey would suffice. :( It would be nice to get a really alcohol potent ale.
Click to expand...

Good ways to increase gravity:
1. Boil longer
2. Add more grain to your grain bill but keep the final volume the same
3. Same as above only with syrups or sugar instead of grain

There is a wealth of knowledge and reference materials out there for new brewers. Original gravity should be something you calculate before you ever start the brewing process. Are you familiar with how grains and sugars/syrups contribute to your OG? I would advise you to read Palmer's How to Brew for a detailed explanation. Beersmith will help you reach your targets so that's a good thing to have on hand.
 
Strawberry Honey Blonde Ale:
7lbs of Pale malt (2 row)
2.5 lbs of honey
2 lbs of white wheat
0.5 lbs of caramel 10L

1oz Williamette Hops for 60mins
1/2 oz Tettnanger for 15 mins
1/2 oz Tettnanger for 5mins

2lbs of chopped strawberries at the end of boil.

Yeast WLP001

After initial, rack onto 3 lbs of strawberries
---------------------------------------------------

I have a MLT, and the grains sat in 154 degree water for 50minutes, with a sparge of 168 degrees.

Yea, I'm guessing I should have boiled it longer. I ended up with a bit more than 5gallons, about 5.5. Doh'
 
Also, are you taking your sample after you boil?? Just wondering because in my setup, that grain bill would have gotten me a pre-boil gravity close to what you cited as your OG.
 
Yes, I stirred the sample up pretty well, and I took the reading once the wort was cooled to 72degrees. However, I tried to strain as much as I could, but even in my hydrometer, there was quite a bit of grain. I used whirlflock, a yeast nutrient, and boiled my hops in bags.
 
Did you do an iodine test, to check if the starches had finished converting to sugars?

50 mins should be long enough, but its possible I suppose that a bit longer may have given you a slightly higher gravity.
 
Another thing could be your crush. Do you crush your own grain, or do you buy it already crushed?

Maybe too coarse?
 
I have been having the same problem, cant seem to crack 1.050 lately. I hate to say it, but I think the lhbs is my problem. They are new, and I think the crush is bad. I will be asking them to tighten it up a bit next time I go there. Luckily I can go to another store to verify my concerns first.
 
KennyS1134 said:
Yes, I stirred the sample up pretty well, and I took the reading once the wort was cooled to 72degrees. However, I tried to strain as much as I could, but even in my hydrometer, there was quite a bit of grain. I used whirlflock, a yeast nutrient, and boiled my hops in bags.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure how grain made it into your hydrometer. Are you boiling your grain husks?
 
No, I didn't do the iodine test, but I will be for now on!

I'm gonna go get that Palmer book and read up a bit more. It's about time I really start learning about the cause and effect of what I'm doing.

Damn, well the up side is I learned something, got a super tasty brew and have more reason to brew again!

I appreciate all your help. There's no way I would be coming remotely close to a brew without this site. Cheers!
 

Similar threads

P
Original Gravity
Replies
6
Views
358
Tony B
Tony B
MightyMosin
Decided to try a waterless mead
Replies
17
Views
982
MightyMosin
MightyMosin
D
Extract Brewing high original specific gravity
Replies
5
Views
575
mac_1103
mac_1103
bad raccoon brewing
Big beer just got huge--am I doing this right?
Replies
7
Views
408
Hoochin'Fool
Hoochin'Fool
superpig0
Mead Recipe Concern
Replies
2
Views
493
Dan O
Dan O
SSBrew 300

Latest posts

Back
Top