Maltodextrin?

So someone else mentioned Maltodextrin and I did a little research. I've read it will increase sweetness and improve mouth feel but with not ferment and will not increase ABV. I've only seen it's use in beer. What's the feeling and experience of you'all with adding Maltodextrin either before or after primary fermentation?

As you said, adds sweetness and mouth feel.
We, ( our brew club), brewed a Milk Stout on Nov. 1st. for "Teach a Friend to Brew Day", and at the end of the boil, added maltodextrin.

It did what it says, and we halved the amount called for in the recipe, but it's still a touch too sweet for my liking.

It's been carbing for almost a week now, so I'll check this weekend and see if it has diminished any.


Edit: I see we are in the cider forum.

The maltodextrin I used had no flavor and certainly no sweetness. It only added body. We added to finished beer.

From Wikipedia:

Maltodextrin is a polysaccharide that is used as a food additive. It is produced from starch by partial hydrolysis and is usually found as a white hygroscopic spray-dried powder.[1] Maltodextrin is easily digestible, being absorbed as rapidly as glucose, and might be either moderately sweet or almost flavorless. It is commonly used for the production of sodas and candy. It can also be found as an ingredient in a variety of other processed foods.

Is the maltodextrin that you are speaking of here in this thread the same as "tapioca maltodextrin" which is used in molecular cuisine??? I have access to a brand of tapioca maltodextrin called n-zorbit...Perhaps, we shall give this a try on a test batch...

+1 to Mike. It does not add any sweetness, but does add body. I used it in a bitter that attenuated too far, made it much more enjoyable. I would start with adding 4 oz at bottling, and taste from there.

Can cause issues with "beer farts" as it is not broken down by yeast, but will be broken down in your gut.

Maltodextrin will add body and sweetness, but sweetness is a personal perception thing... A small amount of m/dex to one above poster, said 1/2 of recipe volume was too much, and another poster said there is no added sweetness. There are many ways to add mouth feel to cider: m/dex, tannins, acid blends, and non-fermentable sweetners such as lactose. Take a measured amount into a glass, and add in very small increments, the above ingredient or two and see if you want to doctor a full batch or not.