Can you modify your homebrew after fermentation?

Hello, this problem occurred a few times for me. I am using an extract blend.
I am experimenting. I used a pound of crushed crystal 15 and half a pound of carapils. This was approximately 7.5 gallons of homebrew. I think I messed up on the amount of malt extract. It was labeled ultra-pure-light extract from Morebeer.com. I think it is too light, I am getting a foul smell from it.
...Is it possible to add more extract? What can I do to fix this?

Thanks,

James

Are you getting a foul smell while it's fermenting, or after it's done? If it's done, take a sample and taste it. It could have been infected.

As for adding anything to it, I'd brew another batch with a darker extract, let it ferment, and then blend the two together.

jabezbrewing said:

I used a pound of crushed crystal 15 and half a pound of carapils. This was approximately 7.5 gallons of homebrew.

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Is that all of the fermentables/sugars you used??? Give us a complete overview of your recipe and we can help you better. The smell could be from a lot of things, not necessarily bad.

jabezbrewing said:

I think I messed up on the amount of malt extract. It was labeled ultra-pure-light extract from Morebeer.com.

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heyvail said:

Is that all of the fermentables/sugars you used??? Give us a complete overview of your recipe and we can help you better. The smell could be from a lot of things, not necessarily bad.

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I'm not sure how much extract he used, but there is more than the the grains. It sounds like he's doing a partial mash.

Its a foul smell alright during fermentation. Its about the 3rd day in.

The recipe was 9lbs of light malt extract. 1 lb of Crushed Crystal 15. 1/2 a pound of carapils. 7.5 gallons of water. Williamette hops 1 oz brewing and 1 oz finishing.

I don't believe I was doing a partial mash. Thats how much of a rookie I am. No, but seriously, I only did one boil. Wouldn't a partial mash involve more than one boil and the use of an all grain recipe?

Amazon.com: homebrewing

thats not an insult
i own 3 of the 4 top books listed and have many others. a good brew books is indispencable , there is a glossy and charts and explantions
you clearly dont know what you are doing,, the smart thing, is to learn the process before you start exspermenting ,,
there is no need to do it the wrong way ,, we have millenia of brewing history and heratage to show us how its done and what works ,, learn the ropes then get creative using the fundamentals of brewing you will learn.

You are trying to change your beer because of a smell during fermentation? If that is the case, you will be changing every beer you make. I've yet to have two beers smell or look the same during fermentation and some of those smells are pretty bad. It has absolutely no bearing on how the beer will turn out after it's finished and aged. If you doubt this, do a search on rhino farts.

The light extract won't give you a foul smell. It has only been 3 days so my guess is that you are getting some fermentation odors. Ride it out and see how it finishes up. Check it after 10 days and then you will know if something is wrong.

Based on what you have in it it should turn out fine.

Resist the urge to mess with beers before they are finished... it's like shooting from the hip. More often than not you will totally miss the target and there'll be hell to pay when you accidentally shoot the neighbor's horse.

Yeast have complex metabolisms. They produce a LOT of intermediate products during fermentation, most of which taste nasty, smell awful, etc. You really won't have a clue how the beer will turn out until after the yeast have attenuated since they will take up all those nasty compounds after they have digested the easily fermented products.

We don't get to make the beer, the yeast do. We just make wort. Let them do their job.