Final Gravity Differs from Recipe

[buddy5582]

Have a friend who used a kit. They were in target with their OG of 1.05. FG was supposed to be 1.10. Their reading for FG is 1.005. I am a beginner myself so I'm wondering if this is normal and what may cause the FG to be below the stated FG and also that close to 1.0?

Thanks!

 

[WoodlandBrew]

Good question. There are a whole slew of factors that effect final gravity.

1. Yeast strain (ability to ferment maltose and or maltotriose)
2. Fermentable sugar content which is driven by mash temperature or the type of extract used.
3. Oxygenation of the wort prior to pitch.
4. Yeast health.
5. Yeast viability and cell count.

To a lesser degree:
6. fermentation temperature
7. Shape of the fermentor

... and I'm sure I missed some.

These are also all intertwined. For example, you might be able to make up for unhealthy yeast with over aeration.

 

[KeystoneHomebrew]

I'm going to go out on a limb and assume given the low expected FG, that this was a Belgian beer. If so, I would also assume it came with a Saison yeast, which would finish in between the range you indicated.

All that said, that's a low FG (nothing wrong with that), so any details on the beer itself would help a lot. Ingredients, style, yeast, etc.

 

[buddy5582]

Great info, thanks so much WoodlandBrew.

Keystone, you're exactly right it is a Belgian Saison! Were you able to determine that just based on the expected FG being that low?

Here is the ingredient list:

FERMENTABLES
4 lb. Light DME
1 lb. Candi Syrup
SPECIALTY GRAINS
1 lb. Vienna
12 oz. Flaked Wheat
4 oz. Caramel 30L
Spice Pack
HOPS
1 oz. GR Tettnang
2 Packs of .5 oz. GR Hersbrucker
YEAST
1 Sache

Thanks!

 

[KeystoneHomebrew]

The low FG meant that it was one of only a few styles of beer. Most of them wouldn't have hit that FG so soon, so I went with my beer gut.

Looks like your beer is ready to go. I also hope this is a 3 gallon or so batch. A little light in the fermentables for a 5 gallon. But it all looks good, enjoy the brew!

 

[buddy5582]

Hmmmm it's actually a 5 gal recipe: http://www.brewersbestkits.com/pdf/1039 2013 Belgian Saison Recipe.pdf

Like I said, I'm a beginner also, should the fermentables be somewhere around 9lbs total for 5gal recipes?

 

[KeystoneHomebrew]

Whew, thanks for posting that recipe. You're doing fine. When I think Saison, I think 7-8% ABV minimum. This reminds me of a beer I do in the summer, La Petite Saison (my own recipe). It's around 4% and you can just keep throwing them back on a hot day.

Yours is going to have some good depth though from the grains. Session Saison anyone?