First batch - Questions on original gravity

max384 said:

I took a specific gravity and found it to be only 1.036. This seems to be pretty low. It doesn't seem like the beer will have much alcohol content when finished. What do you guys think?

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max384 said:

What is a typical original gravity? I know this is an impossible question to answer because it depends on the style of the beer, etc. But, what is a typical range? Does anyone know what a typical SG is for an Amber Boch? Thanks!

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Revvy said:

It's a pretty common issue for ANYONE topping off with water in the fermenter (and that includes partial mashes, extract or all grain revcipes) 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"

More than likely your true OG is really what it's supposed to be. And it will mix itself fine during fermentation.

Now it should say in the kit what the OG should be. If it doesn't, if you tell us the recipe we can determine it. It is based on the pounds of grain or extract in a recipe.

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merc1 said:

What temperature was the wort when you took the reading? Also, did you use a hydrometer to take the reading?



Like you said, it all depends on the style (and Amber Boch isn't a style), but it should probably be in the 1.045-1.060 SG range if I had to guess. Unless the water volume was completely off, it is pretty hard to screw up the gravity when using extracts.

With that said and this being you first brew, I would not worry too much about SG readings - certainly take readings and note them, but don't focus on them.

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ajf said:

Like Revvy said, if you topped off with water, it is very difficult to get an accurate gravity reading. I checked the ingredients, and the OG should be about 1.048.
If you left a bit in the bottom of the kettle you will lower the gravity a bit, but unless you have a very wide kettle, you shouldn't lose more than 2 - 3 points; so your true gravity should be between 1.045 and 1.048 (assuming you diluted to 5 gallons).

-a.

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