1st time missing OG..can I fix

Yakima 728
Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
speeddemon190

speeddemon190

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2013
Messages
166
Reaction score
19
Location
monroe
So i just brewed up a batch of summer shandy yesterday for the fiance and my mom. after I topped it off and took my OG reading i realized that it topped it off with too much spring water and my reading was 1.040 at 70* which means a reading of 1.041 (per brewers friend app). the goal was a starting gravity of 1.055. its only been in the fermenter for 1 day. is there an easy way to boost my gravity back up to what it needs to be? maybe boil some water with a measured amount of sugar let cool and add to the fermentor? or should I just let it ride and be more careful next time?
 
Straight sugar, in the amount you'd need to get an extra 14 points in your 1.040 beer, will probably leave you with a very thin, dry and maybe slightly boozy beer.

You could whip up a half-gallon of very syrupy "wort" from extract, maybe even throw some hops in, since you'll be under-hopped after adding extra water and extra fermentables.
 
speeddemon190 said:
So i just brewed up a batch of summer shandy yesterday for the fiance and my mom. after I topped it off and took my OG reading i realized that it topped it off with too much spring water and my reading was 1.040 at 70* which means a reading of 1.041 (per brewers friend app). the goal was a starting gravity of 1.055. its only been in the fermenter for 1 day. is there an easy way to boost my gravity back up to what it needs to be? maybe boil some water with a measured amount of sugar let cool and add to the fermentor? or should I just let it ride and be more careful next time?
Click to expand...

I'd say let it ride. Next time, you can use DME or LME prior to fermentation to correct your OG. Just chalk this one up as a learning experience for your next brew. It'll have less alcohol then intended, but who knows, it may be better than what you originally had planned. Keep us posted.
 
It would take 1.5 lbs of sugar in 5 gallons to get 14 points. That isn't an excessive amount of sugar.

However, I think your gravity measurement was wrong. If it wasn't an all-grain or full boil (which it wasn't), it was likely not mixed well enough. You would have had to dilute a 5 gallon batch of 1.055 to 7 gallons to get 1.040.

Just let it ride
 
dgr said:
It would take 1.5 lbs of sugar in 5 gallons to get 14 points. That isn't an excessive amount of sugar.

However, I think your gravity measurement was wrong. If it wasn't an all-grain or full boil (which it wasn't), it was likely not mixed well enough. You would have had to dilute a 5 gallon batch of 1.055 to 7 gallons to get 1.040.

Just let it ride
Click to expand...

The only issue with that amount of sugar in a 1.040 OG beer is that you run the risk of having a very thin body with a cidery flavor.

Good advice on mixing the batch. I totally forgot about. It's been a while since my extract days!
 
yeah i forgot to mix well, so im going to let it ride and see what happens....oh well beer is beer...im sure it will turn out... if the fiance doesnt like it I have 2 cases of american light 2 cases of wheat 2 cases of pumpkin spice that will be ready before the summer shandy...thanks for all the advice
 
speeddemon190 said:
yeah i forgot to mix well, so im going to let it ride and see what happens....oh well beer is beer...im sure it will turn out... if the fiance doesnt like it I have 2 cases of american light 2 cases of wheat 2 cases of pumpkin spice that will be ready before the summer shandy...thanks for all the advice
Click to expand...

If you forgot to mix, then you probably have an OG closer to what you're expecting. An unmixed wort with extract will just give you a false reading on the hydrometer which could be the cause here so everything might be alright after all.
 
BuckSwope said:
The only issue with that amount of sugar in a 1.040 OG beer is that you run the risk of having a very thin body with a cidery flavor.

Good advice on mixing the batch. I totally forgot about. It's been a while since my extract days!
Click to expand...
Good point. I was thinking an .055 beer.
 

Similar threads

B
1st graf brew and need advice
Replies
2
Views
506
Brewsterguy
B
B
Massive boil over, loss of 1/4 of wort. What do I do now?
Replies
13
Views
664
Clint Yeastwood
Clint Yeastwood
H
First Lager - Slow Start
Replies
5
Views
760
VikeMan
VikeMan
nyoksol
Stuck fermentation-- how can I rescue it?
Replies
11
Views
976
dmtaylor
dmtaylor
bolepa
Way too high OG - 1.500. Any way I can fix it?
Replies
30
Views
2K
bolepa
bolepa
Brewer's Friend 300

Latest posts

Back
Top