OG problem. Maybe.

I just brewed my second batch ever. It was a True Brew Irish Stout. The instructions (which were horrible) said the OG was to be 1.042 - 1.048. Mine ended up 1.072! Is that really bad? If so where did I go wrong?

There are a lot of variables that could affect the OG including full vs partial boil and whether water was added, the temp of the wort when the reading was taken (although not that dramatic) and other variables. I recommend not worrying about it, take a final reading, bottle/keg it and enjoy it. I would not spend any time worrying about it. Let us know the outcome. Thanks

If it came with instructions it was a kit, correct? The OG would have been on target. It must not have been stirred up well. The predicted OG on kits are never far off. I never checked kits myself.

If you did a partial boil and added top-off water at the end, you probably didn't mix thoroughly enough to get an even distribution of sugar in all the liquid in your fermenter (you actually have to mix far longer and much more thoroughly than you'd imagine to do that). So the sample you took probably had a particularly high concentration of sugar. Don't worry, though; the fermentation process will mix everything up fine. If you used mostly extract, it's really difficult to miss your OG.

My guess? It'll turn out great.

It's a pretty common issue for ANYONE using extract and then topping off with water (and that includes partial mashes) to have an error in reading the OG...In fact, it is actually nearly impossible to mix the wort and the top off water in a way to get an accurate OG reading...

Brewers get a low reading if they get more of the top off water than the wort, conversely they get a higher number if they grabbed more of the extract than the top off water in their sample.

When I am doing an extract with grain recipe I make sure to stir for a minimum of 5 minutes (whipping up a froth to aerate as well) before I draw a grav sample and pitch my yeast....It really is an effort to integrate the wort with the top off water...This is a fairly common new brewer issue we get on here...unless you under or over topped off or the final volume for the kit was 5 gallons and you topped off to 5.5, then the issue, sorry to say, is "operator error"

it doesn't matter what your reading was.....the "real reading" in an extract batch is what it said it would be in the recipe or beersmith....Whether or not you mixed it up enough before you took the reading it mixed itself up fine during fermentation.

So unless you had a final volume a gallon or so higher than 5 gallons....you recipe will be fine and at the OG it was supposed to be,

I bet your OG is EXACTLY what it is supposed to be.

And during fermentation the wort and water will mix up just fine on it's own.

Anyone have any tips on how to stir it up once the wort has been put in the carboy and then topped with water? Is there any kind of special spoon or maybe even a low speed drill attachment? I would like to try and measure OG but like everyone else, have trouble with the sample not being properly mixed.

I have to wonder if it would be more accurate to pull a sample from the brew pot before mixing with water, and then top off that sample in approximately the same way. The smaller sample would be easier to work with and could just be tossed afterwards...

I'm pretty new but I have had good luck with using a large 8oz ladle. I churn the wort in the fermentor with a fast up and down like plungering a toilet rather than around and around (which I worry would scratch the plastic bucket) It gets the wort pretty frothy and my gravity readings have always been near what they should be.

skidaddytn said:

Anyone have any tips on how to stir it up once the wort has been put in the carboy and then topped with water? Is there any kind of special spoon or maybe even a low speed drill attachment? I would like to try and measure OG but like everyone else, have trouble with the sample not being properly mixed.

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You could try pouring it between two fermenters.

But from what I've gathered with extract beer it is nearly impossible to miss the target OG since all the gravity points come from extract which doesn't allow for much error. There is no mashing which if done incorrectly give you less fermentables. So if you stick with all extract batches you could probably safely stop measuring the OG and let the yeast activity stir up the beer on its own.

skidaddytn said:

Anyone have any tips on how to stir it up once the wort has been put in the carboy and then topped with water? Is there any kind of special spoon or maybe even a low speed drill attachment? I would like to try and measure OG but like everyone else, have trouble with the sample not being properly mixed.

I have to wonder if it would be more accurate to pull a sample from the brew pot before mixing with water, and then top off that sample in approximately the same way. The smaller sample would be easier to work with and could just be tossed afterwards...

Click to expand...

I use a kitchen whisk, sanitized of course, and haven't had any issues.

Your best bet is to not take the sample to measure the gravity until after you have mixed it with the top off water simply becuase the water will give you a lower, and more accurate reading than before adding the water. The goal is to be as accurate as possible for your own records.

In all practicality, you don't need to take any measurements as all, temp, gravity, etc...., (before anyone hangs me)but it will greatlly effect your beer. People have been making it for centuries without overthinking it with hydrometers and temperatures but there are also reasons for some of the ways people do things the way they do, which make it much mo better. Don't try to reienvent the wheel just yet. It will come with time.