Secondary Fermentations

Howdy,

I've already had success with topping my batches with boiled water and small amounts (.5-1 cup) of sugar to bump my volume and maintain my anticipated alcohol perception (it's all a guestimate right?) from trub losses in the primary (I'm lazy and new).

Does anyone else do this? The goal I've set is to have the maximum volume in my 5 gallon carboy, minimize headspace, maintain the approximate alcohol level and have a little extra CO2 to purge the small headspace. I also lightly agitate once the airlock has been going a day or so to get CO2 out of solution and keep everything from settling until I'm ready to bottle.

Now if it's a 1.045 low hop basic brew I don't mess with it much but I've found myself usually 1.06-1.08 because I'm pretty impulsive at brew time. Not a bad batch yet and I'm doing #10 today since October 18th when I got all my equipment.

I also made me a conditioning closet (unrelated).

Cheers!

Steve

I don't. I have a few questions to better understand what you are trying to accomplish, if you don't mind.

Are you fermenting in a 5 gallon carboy? If so, you could ferment in either a 6/6.5 gallon carboy or a bucket and avoid the extra step, if volume is your concern. You could better maintain the characteristics of your recipe (malt composition, mouthfeel, hopping) that will change with a table sugar addition.

How much water + sugar, half a gallon? A quarter? Your way actually sounds like more work to me, with the transfer to secondary and the creation and addition of a sugar solution!

What do you mean by being usually 1.006-1.008? Is that your typical FG or you are missing your targeted OG by that amount? Is that before or after the sugar solution ferments out? If the former, that is pretty dry for a number of styles and the sugar addition will only add to that dryness. If it is the latter, adding some DME late in the boil could be an alternative.

Nice job on the conditioning closet!

1. Priamry in 6 Gallon, Secondary in 5. Usually a .5-1 cup of a sugar source (honey, maple, table, etc.) depending on what I'd like to possibly shine through in the end to about a quart of water to take the surface of the beer closer to the neck.

2. That would be 1.06-1.08 SG. Most of these finish at about 1.01-1.018 before racking (adding sugar) and when transferring to bottle. I was taking 2 gravities just to make sure the additional sugar fermented out some.

-Example: I did a 1.078 Stout with the 90 minute IPA hop additions. It finished at 1.018 and I racked it and added a bottle of pure grade B maple. at bottling it was still 1.018. Has a wonderful stout flavor with a hint of maple. Seems pretty strong too, a dizzy maker.

3. I like a bit of residual sweetness in all of my beers (it makes the IPAs palatable to the wife and other non-IPA friends) and it's been pretty successful this far.

Lastly, I'm a geek and I like hanging out with the process so I don't mind the time yet and I deploy regularly.

Thanks for the reply!

Steve:fro:



How much water + sugar, half a gallon? A quarter? Your way actually sounds like more work to me, with the transfer to secondary and the creation and addition of a sugar solution!

What do you mean by being usually 1.006-1.008? Is that your typical FG or you are missing your targeted OG by that amount? Is that before or after the sugar solution ferments out? If the former, that is pretty dry for a number of styles and the sugar addition will only add to that dryness. If it is the latter, adding some DME late in the boil could be an alternative.

Why are you trying to degas the beer?

I don't do anything that you are describing. Just curious as to your rationale for upping the ABV and thinning out all your beers with a sugar addition.

There is of course a much easier way to avoid the excessive headspace in secondary. But I guess that is moot.

Sugar additions and their effects on the gravity and ABV are easy enough to calculate. Not much guesstimation involved.

Loss of alcohol perception? I'm lost there. No idea what that is.

Ok. That makes a lot more sense then. I was a decimal place off. Reading comprehension issues strike again.

I took your original post as you were using sugar + water exclusively to boost volume. Adding a sugar source to primary or secondary (or even as the priming sugar in a bottling bucket) is pretty common to get more of the source sugar character into the beer. You would be fine adding it to the primary as well and saving yourself a transfer and an extra carboy to clean.

I use honey and molasses in a Kottbusser that I brew as my house beer (long thread on this forum on the style). I typically add it at flameout, but have added it to the primary a couple of times when I have forgotten it on brew day.