Abv

[rvegas]

I'm a new brewer. Just put my first batch into 2nd fermentation yesterday. I plan on using basic extract kits for my first few batches but I like stronger beers and would like to know if there is a simple way to kick the abv up a bit in any recipe. Thanks for your feedback, Cheers!

 

[cheezydemon3]

More grain (or extract) less water.

 

[jungatheart]

Adding cane or corn sugar will bring up the ABV without changing the taste much.
It will tend to dry it out some.

You can also add more malt extract than the recipe calls for but that will make your beer maltier tasting. Some like it that way.

 

[kh54s10]

The best way to get higher ABV is to select a kit that is designed for a higher ABV.

 

[cheezydemon3]

Well! Now that we settled that....this has to be one of the better ANNOUNCEMENTS I have read

 

[rvegas]

Thanks!

 

[danmaddux]

Ive been lazy lately and been doing extracts only. Been using dme instead of lme. The recipes typically say to add 2.2 lbs of dme and the bags of dme come in 3lbs. So ive been adding all of it. Seems to start my og at 1055ish and ending at 1011 or 1010 which is plenty good for me. Puts me in the mid 6% range after adding primer before bottling. If you want to keep it from tasting dry you can use brown sugar. 2lbs does great. Im no expert just stating what ive been learning by experimenting lately.

 

[KepowOb]

Ive been lazy lately and been doing extracts only. Been using dme instead of lme. The recipes typically say to add 2.2 lbs of dme and the bags of dme come in 3lbs. So ive been adding all of it. Seems to start my og at 1055ish and ending at 1011 or 1010 which is plenty good for me. Puts me in the mid 6% range after adding primer before bottling. If you want to keep it from tasting dry you can use brown sugar. 2lbs does great. Im no expert just stating what ive been learning by experimenting lately.

What size batches are you doing?

 

[danmaddux]

I guess that would have helped to post, huh? Lol. 5 gallons.
Tonight I did a batch of canadian blonde ale, added 3 lbs of dme to the prehopped kit with 2 lbs of light brown sugar (ingredients= brown sugar and molasses) with half oz of dried lime peel I bought in a packet to cut the sweetness of the brown sugar. The og is at 1065 and I am praying I can get it down to 1010 to 1012. Thats foing to guve me between 7.25 and 8 depending on the priming sugar and how long I leave it in the bottle. I get excited and crack my beer 1 week after being bottled. The longer you wait the more carbonated it gets and the higher the [unmeasurable] abv will be. Typically 2 to 3 weeks after adding 5oz pf priming and bottling will add .5% abv per bottle to a 5 gal batch. Just my experience and opinion. Some of the long time brewers might disagree but I can only go by my og and ending gravity readings. And my beer tastes dang good. Still my own opinion. Lok

 

[satyrbassist]

I like bigger beers too. And while I haven't ventured into the barley wines I have been reading up on it. Watch adding too much sugar as it will dry out your beer and possibly make your yeast commit suicide. Lol again just what I have read. Not sure what the limits are but something to check out.

 

[unionrdr]

Each yeast does have the max amount of alcohol it'll tolerate before going dormant. so you have to use a yeast designed for bigger beers to get high ABV.

 

[rvegas]

This is all great info, thanks! I'm about to do a 5 gallon batch of a smashed pumpkin ale and hoping to give it a kick

 

[BigFloyd]

If you're a new brewer, first focus on seeing if you can actually produce any good-tasting beer that's in the 4.5-5% ABV range. Get your procedures down. Figure out how to control fermentation temps (extremely important). Learn about various malts, hops and yeast.

Once you can actually brew consistently and begin to gain an understanding of how different ingredients and techniques interact to influence the final outcome, start looking into brewing "bigger beers". Then you will do it right and not end up with something you can be pleased with vs. a brew that taste horrible, but has a kick.

 

[chickypad]

The best way to get higher ABV is to select a kit that is designed for a higher ABV.

I'd say this is a lot better advice than just throwing sugar/grain/extract at a recipe that is not designed to be a high ABV brew. If you're a new brewer you're better off starting with a proven recipe that is designed to be balanced at that higher gravity.

 

[Yooper]

I guess that would have helped to post, huh? Lol. 5 gallons.
Tonight I did a batch of canadian blonde ale, added 3 lbs of dme to the prehopped kit with 2 lbs of light brown sugar (ingredients= brown sugar and molasses) with half oz of dried lime peel I bought in a packet to cut the sweetness of the brown sugar. The og is at 1065 and I am praying I can get it down to 1010 to 1012. Thats foing to guve me between 7.25 and 8 depending on the priming sugar and how long I leave it in the bottle. I get excited and crack my beer 1 week after being bottled. The longer you wait the more carbonated it gets and the higher the [unmeasurable] abv will be. Typically 2 to 3 weeks after adding 5oz pf priming and bottling will add .5% abv per bottle to a 5 gal batch. Just my experience and opinion. Some of the long time brewers might disagree but I can only go by my og and ending gravity readings. And my beer tastes dang good. Still my own opinion. Lok

I'm glad that works for you, but it may not work well for others. I, for example, do not like the taste of fermented brown sugar at all and would find the taste objectionable. Adding 2 pounds of simple sugar to a beer changes the flavor, mouthfeel, body, and changes the balance of the beer. Sugar is highly fermentable, and will not leave residual sweetness behind- it will create a thin, dry, less malty beer, with more alcohol flavor in it.

The key to any good beer is balance- the balance of malt and hops (bitterness).

Just like when you make spaghetti sauce, if you want to serve 10 more people, you add more tomato sauce and garlic and so on. If you just added the spices (but not the tomato sauce) or just the tomato sauce (but not the spices), it's not the same spaghetti sauce at all.

The same is true with beer. If you just dump in more sugar or extract, and haven't increased the bittering hops or the flavor hops (the "spices") it totally changes the balance and flavor and finish of the beer.