Consistently low alcohol content

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rkzink

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So I just bottled my third batch of beer (all three batches were Brewer's Best kits). I have been consistently getting alcohol contents that are on the low end of the range listed on the kit (and sometimes lower). My OG and FG readings have been within their ranges (and I've made sure to stir appropriately and make temperature corrections).

So I realize that if you're on the low end of the spectrum for the OG and the high end for the FG, then you're going to end up with a low alcohol content. My question is, what am I doing to consistently have this happen? Or what can I do to fix this? I don't want to have to add ingredients to my kits to "make it right," but would rather fix my brewing process (since this has consistently happened over three different kits/recipes).

Questions? Suggestions? :confused::confused::confused:

Thanks!
Rebecca
 
what were the recipes? gravity readings? brewing processes? fermentation processes?

there are multiple different factors that can affect gravity. Without knowing the specifics of your process, we can only make a wild guess.
 
What types of beers were these? I'm assuming a dry yeast that came with the kit too?

But by the way, dropping a pound or so of corn sugar (dextrose) into your boil will bump up the ABV too.
 
If you're in the recommended range, it's not THAT much of a difference. The recommended ranges are that wide.

Don't go dumping sugar or anything in it just to get more alcohol. Good beer is more important than alcohol. If alcohol is more important than taste, then go buy some Steel Reserve or something. :D
 
Ditto ChshreCat, If you want more Al Cohol than change you could switch up recipes too, and keep an eye on those temps.
 
How far on the high end of the spectrum are you getting on the F.G. ? Post your measurements and we can give you some better advice.

Like Cheshire said though, I wouldn't be concerned with the lower alcohol. However if your beer is under-attenuating and ending up sweet... and that's what you want to fix it's a different story.
 
As mentioned, use less water/longer, more vigorous boil. Part of homebrewing is learning your specific brewing conditions. It's possible, for example, that you don't experience as much boil off as the kit assumes. Add, say, a half gallon less than you've been adding or boil for an extra 15-30 minutes. This will increase your OG. However, if you're using extract, I'd recommend just adding a little less water, instead of boiling longer.

For decreasing FG, make a starter. Under attenuated beer is almost always caused by too little yeast. Also, make sure you are aerating properly. Good aeration and the correct amount of yeast will ensure a proper FG.
 
rkzink said:
So I just bottled my third batch of beer (all three batches were Brewer's Best kits). I have been consistently getting alcohol contents that are on the low end of the range listed on the kit (and sometimes lower). My OG and FG readings have been within their ranges (and I've made sure to stir appropriately and make temperature corrections).
Thanks!
Rebecca
Click to expand...

How are you getting the alcohol reading? The percent alcohol depends on the difference between OG and FG. Specifically, ABV=131*(OG-FG). I hope you're not reading the alcohol percent straight off the hydrometer when your beer is done.
 
Ok, for example. The last batch I did was the Scottish Ale from Brewer's Best. I followed the directions for brewing (I even set a timer so that I know I am steeping/boiling for the proper length of time).

The OG that I came up with was 1.035 and the kit specified that the OG should be 1.034 to 1.038.

The FG that I had was 1.014, and the kit specified that it should be 1.010 to 1.014.

The kit said the final alcohol content should be between 3.25% and 3.5%. My calculations put it at 2.75%.

I don't mind having a beer with low alcohol content, but I just wish it was more in the range of what the recipe says. I get that if you're on the low end of the OG and the high end of the FG, then you won't get the expected alcohol content, but since this keeps happening, I want to know what I can do to bump the content up slightly.

I like the suggestions of boiling longer/adding less water. Would I increase the boiling time after adding LME/DME then?

Thanks!
 
Well, that is a low ABV kit to begin with. A nice "session" beer!

I'd suggest that getting a different kit, that better suits your needs. The reason is that bumping up the ABV really isn't as simple as just adding more fermentables. You'd also need to add more hops, to keep the balance the same, so you'd be reworking the recipe. It's not uncommon for extract batches to finish on the high end of the anticipated FG. If you want more attenuation, you could try a different yeast strain but that might only give you a couple more points of FG anyway.

In other words, ditch the Brewer's Best kits (which are OK but not great) and get a nice kit from Austinhomebrew.com or northernbrewer.com. They have hundreds of great kits that will be much better than the Brewer's Best kits that come with canned LME.
 
rkzink said:
Ok, for example. The last batch I did was the Scottish Ale from Brewer's Best. I followed the directions for brewing (I even set a timer so that I know I am steeping/boiling for the proper length of time).

The OG that I came up with was 1.035 and the kit specified that the OG should be 1.034 to 1.038.

The FG that I had was 1.014, and the kit specified that it should be 1.010 to 1.014.

The kit said the final alcohol content should be between 3.25% and 3.5%. My calculations put it at 2.75%.

I don't mind having a beer with low alcohol content, but I just wish it was more in the range of what the recipe says. I get that if you're on the low end of the OG and the high end of the FG, then you won't get the expected alcohol content, but since this keeps happening, I want to know what I can do to bump the content up slightly.

I like the suggestions of boiling longer/adding less water. Would I increase the boiling time after adding LME/DME then?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

The recipe is just wrong when it comes to ABV then. From my calcs, the ABV could be anywhere between 2.6 and 3.6 from the OG/FG ranges they provided.
 
Yooper said:
Well, that is a low ABV kit to begin with. A nice "session" beer!

I'd suggest that getting a different kit, that better suits your needs. The reason is that bumping up the ABV really isn't as simple as just adding more fermentables. You'd also need to add more hops, to keep the balance the same, so you'd be reworking the recipe. It's not uncommon for extract batches to finish on the high end of the anticipated FG. If you want more attenuation, you could try a different yeast strain but that might only give you a couple more points of FG anyway.

In other words, ditch the Brewer's Best kits (which are OK but not great) and get a nice kit from Austinhomebrew.com or northernbrewer.com. They have hundreds of great kits that will be much better than the Brewer's Best kits that come with canned LME.
Click to expand...

See, I'm not talking about just this particular batch. I did a Holiday Ale from Brewer's best that was supposed to be 7-8%, and I think mine ended up to be something like 6.3%. It was a fine beer, but if I'm given a range for alcohol content, I want to be sure my processes are hitting that range, and I definitely don't want to have to modify the recipe to do that.

I think you're onto something with changing to a different kit. My homebrew shop does their own kits, so I'll give one of those a try for the next batch.

Thanks!
 

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