Back sweetening an IPA that finished too dry

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TopGear

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Hello everybody. I have a question that I haven't been able to find a good answer to.

I read the wiki article on back sweetening: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/wiki/index.php/Back_sweetening

But the advice wasn't specific enough.

I have a 5 gallon batch of double ipa just fnishing primary right now. The yeast really went to town, and I've ended up with a FG of 1.013. It's too bitter for my taste with all the hops I put in. I was expecting it to finish a few points higher.

Would lactose be a good choice for back sweetening this beer, or should I use something else? I've seen maltodextrin mentioned. How much back sweetener should I use to bump my beer back up to about 1.016?

Or will this taste weird, and I should just leave it be?

Thanks for the help!
 
Lactose isn't really sweet... it will just give your beer more body. And jumping from 1.013 to 1.016 won't make that huge of a difference.

I'd say just leave it as is... you said it's just out of primary so it probably needs time anyway. Plus hops mellow with time.
 
That's true. I bet it will mellow out a bit.

I'm thinking about bottling half of it as is, and then bottling the rest with some added sugar so I could compare and improve my recipe next time around. Is there anything I could add that would taste sweet? If not, I'm not too unhappy the way it is. It'd definitely good, just not quite perfect.
 
TopGear said:
That's true. I bet it will mellow out a bit.

I'm thinking about bottling half of it as is, and then bottling the rest with some added sugar so I could compare and improve my recipe next time around. Is there anything I could add that would taste sweet? If not, I'm not too unhappy the way it is. It'd definitely good, just not quite perfect.
Click to expand...

You absolutely do NOT want to bottle with more sugar than intended. You're looking at over-carbonation or worse: bottle bombs.
 
That's definitely a concern. That's why I'm seeking out a sugar that tastes sweet, but isn't fermentable. From what I've read, hard cider is pretty frequently back sweetened like this, but I don't know what exactly I should use for my beer, or how much.
 
Dudue....just bottle that sh*t the right way and wait it out. i bet it will be the best beer you ever brewed...20 years from now you will say " I remember when......"

I'm a :tank: so take this as you may....but i have never met a bitter beer i did not like :cross:
 
If you want to add a sweetener that won't be fermented, you'll need a sugar alcohol. You could try Xylitol which should be available at most health stores, or any other sugar alcohol. You could also go with Splenda, or Stevia, both are non fermentable.
 
ASuarez said:
If you want to add a sweetener that won't be fermented, you'll need a sugar alcohol. You could try Xylitol which should be available at most health stores, or any other sugar alcohol. You could also go with Splenda, or Stevia, both are non fermentable.
Click to expand...

Sugar alcohol could work but I feel like that would completely change the profile of the beer.

And if you're going to go with an artificial sweetener, I'd most definitely go with Truvia. It's natural (i.e. made from plants) so you won't get any odd chemicals in your brew.
 
if the beer finished too dry then wouldn't you want to add dextrin? it will add body to your beer.
 
TopGear said:
I'm not too unhappy the way it is. It'd definitely good, just not quite perfect.
Click to expand...

Don't mess with it. Just bottle it. Anything you do has the potential to ruin it.

Learn from it and adjust your recipe next time. Add some additional crystal or other sweet malt next time.

Personally I prefer it drier. I recently did a 1.070 IPA, wanting it to finish around 1.008; it actually finished at 1.002, and I think it tastes great, and has a surprising amount of sweetness in the flavor. I even checked my hydrometer in some water to make sure it was reading right.
 
TopGear said:
Hello everybody. I have a question that I haven't been able to find a good answer to.

I read the wiki article on back sweetening: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/wiki/index.php/Back_sweetening

But the advice wasn't specific enough.

I have a 5 gallon batch of double ipa just fnishing primary right now. The yeast really went to town, and I've ended up with a FG of 1.013. It's too bitter for my taste with all the hops I put in. I was expecting it to finish a few points higher.

Would lactose be a good choice for back sweetening this beer, or should I use something else? I've seen maltodextrin mentioned. How much back sweetener should I use to bump my beer back up to about 1.016?

Or will this taste weird, and I should just leave it be?

Thanks for the help!
Click to expand...

You are confusing sweetness and maltiness. Adding a sweetener to this beer is not the answer. Take the advice already given and just leave the beer alone.
 
Calder said:
Don't mess with it. Just bottle it. Anything you do has the potential to ruin it.

Learn from it and adjust your recipe next time. Add some additional crystal or other sweet malt next time.

Personally I prefer it drier. I recently did a 1.070 IPA, wanting it to finish around 1.008; it actually finished at 1.002, and I think it tastes great, and has a surprising amount of sweetness in the flavor. I even checked my hydrometer in some water to make sure it was reading right.
Click to expand...
What malt did you choose? Im on my last brew with caramel malts for awhile if I cant control the sweetness even with a decent FG. I dont man, that **** is sweet as sugar! I used 4oz in my 16lb grain bill. Its fermenting so we will see. If its too sweet from the caramel ill try something else
 
TopGear said:
Thanks for the advice everybody. I'll just leave it be, and tweak the recipe next time around.
Click to expand...

That sounds like the best approach. I have learned over the years to put very little stock into how a beer tastes warm and flat out of the fermenter. I mean I still panic as I take samples out of the keg over the first two weeks, but often a beer is MUCH better at 1 month than it was on day 1. Even an IPA requires time for yeast and hop astringency to settle out.
 

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