amylase enzyme

i wasn't really sure what the proper process for adding AE was to beer, so i decided to minimize transfer and add it to the primary. i put in 1 tsp for the 5 gallon batch, stirred it around a bit with a sanitized spoon and nothing much happened for 3 or 4 days. i figured either the beer had attenuated enough that the AE wouldn't make a difference or the stuff was bad... anyway, i decided to rack it to secondary just in case something started happening... after a few days in secondary, i noticed it kept bubbling every once in a while.. i figured just some gassing off... now it's actually starting to bubble a little more frequently and you can see little co2 bubbles rising to the surface like an apfelwein fermentation or something. i was expecting something more along the lines of a referment with a krausen and all... has anyone else had an experience like this? or does it normally build a second krausen, etc?

No 2nd krausen, it ferments slowly like a wine yeast. Give it two weeks to clean up.

Its common to put this in your mash tun and in the 2ndary.

The AE removes flavors from adjuncts like flaked corn. Without the AE you can taste the corn. It will make the beer very dry and crisp. This is quite important for a light beer. It makes the beer cheaper to make since you can use as little as 6lbs to make 1.030 beer with about 3.8-4.2% ABV.

See my recipe drop down for Miller Lite for more info. Tri-hopped!!! Soooo much better than any Miller Beer

thanks for the info, i am actually using this for a recipe based on your ML... i subbed rice for corn and ended up with a slightly higher OG ~ 1.040... i'll let her finish out before kegging, can't wait to try it!

I've found that adding AE to a batch will change my attenuation from 75% to ~94%. Depending on the strength going into the wort, that could be an amazing amount of alcohol being made, as well as an amazing amount of body leaving the beer (for every plus there is a minus).

Vuarra said:

I've found that adding AE to a batch will change my attenuation from 75% to ~94%. Depending on the strength going into the wort, that could be an amazing amount of alcohol being made, as well as an amazing amount of body leaving the beer (for every plus there is a minus).

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That's very true!

I think the AE is best suited where you want dryness and lower carbs. So its really good for light beers. American Pale Ales or Lagers.

The ML-Tri-hop clone I make is great for a lawnmower beer. Its also a good for bridging the gap between BMC drinkers & home brewers. The AE makes the beer dry so its not cloying in slightest bit. It essentially makes it very clean and crisp. The AE is really good at pulling out the corn flavor one gets in flaked corn, so if you want that in an American Cream Ale skip the AE.

If you are looking for a good lawnmower beer or somethin' to please BMC drinking friends try the one in my pull-down. You will be amazed on how clean the beer will be.

i just remembered reading in that ML clone thread that your secondary bubbled like crazy and you needed a blowoff, that's why i was surprised how wine-yeast-like my secondary was... it's still slowly bubbling away, i'm really looking forward to the finished beer... hopefully it will be ready for the iowa vs. iowa st. game in a few weeks... i used all saaz in mine as well, so it'll be interesting to see how it turns out... i'll be sure to post a pic and review in the recipe thread. thanks for posting it.

android said:

i just remembered reading in that ML clone thread that your secondary bubbled like crazy and you needed a blowoff, that's why i was surprised how wine-yeast-like my secondary was... it's still slowly bubbling away, i'm really looking forward to the finished beer... hopefully it will be ready for the iowa vs. iowa st. game in a few weeks... i used all saaz in mine as well, so it'll be interesting to see how it turns out... i'll be sure to post a pic and review in the recipe thread. thanks for posting it.

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I'm looking forward to that. I have a bunch of Saaz too. I may have to do that as well!

I'm bringing this thread back to see if anyone has more experience using the AE. I'm about to start making some of the 3 Crops beer for my friends and thought about using the AE ONLY in the mash pre boil so that it would break down starches further but be done and dead due to boiling temps. Has/does anyone use a teaspoon of AE added to only the mash?
thanks.

I am a gluten free brewer who frequently uses unmated grains in my mash...I always add amylase to my mash (as there is none supplied by malted barley).

You will be fine adding a bit to the mash, it will denature when you boil; so you still have some control over how dry your beer gets.

not all amylase is created equal. Different products have different pH & temperature requirements; and have different activities...some favor the production of glucose...others produce more maltose or other complex sugars.
If you want to drive a beer towards being bone dry, I would recommend AMG-300.

If I were using barley malt in my beers i would not normally need to add amylase...but if you are using allot of adjunct, or are looking for a very dry (low final gravity) beer, it might do the trick.

I'm looking at a recipe with 70% Barley, 20% corn, and 10% rice for the grain bill... I was just thinking it would get more out of the grains if added to the mash.
thanks.

With 30 pecent adjunct, I would be inclined to just do a slightly longer mash to ensure good conversion (if you are woried about it).

Adding amylase without having experience with a particular product (amylase preperations are not all the same) introduces a huge variable. It may be great, it may be bone dry and "un-beer like"... rice, corn, and barley malt are inexpensive...if you are woried about eficiency, you can spend another $2 on an extra pound of malt.

I am all for experiments designed to foster learning...if this is what you are proposing, I say go for it.
But if you realy want to add amylase just to bump up your eficiency...I would not mess with it.

BowAholic said:

I'm looking at a recipe with 70% Barley, 20% corn, and 10% rice for the grain bill... I was just thinking it would get more out of the grains if added to the mash.
thanks.

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If you can have a mix of two row and six row barley it will help. Six row is higher in enzyme. A teaspoon can't hurt either.

BowAholic said:

I'm bringing this thread back to see if anyone has more experience using the AE. I'm about to start making some of the 3 Crops beer for my friends and thought about using the AE ONLY in the mash pre boil so that it would break down starches further but be done and dead due to boiling temps. Has/does anyone use a teaspoon of AE added to only the mash?
thanks.

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I added AE to both the mash and secondary the last time I made 3 Crop.

It turned out very good. It was the first keg to kick at the beerfest where my home brew club served beer.

cool...it's a food grade AE made for beer and wine making...it's so cheap I thought it would be worth a try. I'll try it on the 3 crops next time for sure.
thanks.

Don't forget to check out my Miller light recipe. It calls out ae in the secondary.