thomasrj
Active Member
I hope this is the right spot; I figured the science-minded folks would know how to answer this best. Thanks in advance for your help.
The question:
Is there a (relatively) easy way to determine alcohol content, either %mass or %vol, without using hydrometer or refractometer readings? Related: Can a hydrometer get out of whack and just give erroneous readings?
Here's why:
I recently brewed a milk stout and I don't trust the ABV calculation based on the hydrometer readings. OG was 1.100 and FG was 1.024. By my calculation, this should indicate a touch over 10% by volume. I've had a lot of ten percent beers, and this is not one.
I'm looking for a way to verify this. I'm a grad student so I have access to standard lab equipment/supplies if necessary.
I did a hydrometer calibration check with cool tap water and had a reading of 1.001, which I think is reasonably accurate for a municipal supply of treated surface water.
The question:
Is there a (relatively) easy way to determine alcohol content, either %mass or %vol, without using hydrometer or refractometer readings? Related: Can a hydrometer get out of whack and just give erroneous readings?
Here's why:
I recently brewed a milk stout and I don't trust the ABV calculation based on the hydrometer readings. OG was 1.100 and FG was 1.024. By my calculation, this should indicate a touch over 10% by volume. I've had a lot of ten percent beers, and this is not one.
I'm looking for a way to verify this. I'm a grad student so I have access to standard lab equipment/supplies if necessary.
I did a hydrometer calibration check with cool tap water and had a reading of 1.001, which I think is reasonably accurate for a municipal supply of treated surface water.