Priming a Braggot with DME?

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dmomo

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I'm working on a Braggot recipe based on a Dark Wheat (Dunkel). I'm going to have some wheat DME left over.

In the braggot recipes I've seen, priming is typically done with honey, and sometimes dextrose or a blend of the two.

Is there any reason not to use the DME? I imagine that it would carb faster than the honey. How much would be good for a 5 gallon batch? Would I need more or less than I would if I were making beer?
 
Thanks. Part of me wants to try to bottle half with each so I can compare. But that's a very small part of me. I'll likely just go ahead and use the DME.
 
Be aware that different brands of DME can have a varying fermentability...Ideally you know the brand and are able to determine the percentage of fermentable maltose.

Check out this priming calculator...it calculates priming sugar additions for a couple of different major DME producers.
 
Thanks for that link! Does the type of DME matter? I have wheat DME handy, though the calculator only has manufacturers, not varoations.
 
Wheat will probably have a higher percentage of non-fermentables compared to regular DME of the same manufacture. If you're not sure, you could ask where you bought it from what brand it is, and you should be able to sort things out. Overall though, if I were to use DME for priming, I'd use regular DME. No specific reason, it just strikes me as it would be better (I suppose unless it was for a wheat beer or something...)
 
The chill in the basement had this fermenting for quite some time. I primed and bottled it on Saturday, June 2nd. There was only about 4 1/4 gallons left after sampling / siphoning / etc. I mixed in just slightly more than one cup of DME. I used wheat simply because that's what was used in the recipe and therefor what was on hand.

The Braggot is tasting pretty good. It finished just around 11.5 ABV. The sample I tried from the bottling-bucket leftovers was on the sweet side. So, I hope the priming DME was evenly distributed in the liquid. I racked from underneath. I imagine it's okay.

I will probably let this carb for a month and then move it to the basement for aging. I will report back when I crack one open.

Thanks for all the tips.
 
I've primed mine with honey and had very pleasing results, no variation between batches, but I have been working with the same bucket of honey.
 
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