is this a true formula abv=(1.05x(og-fg) /fg ) /0.79 my og was1.038 fg1.016 if so my abv is only 3% not much? I bought a kolsch extract kit with 4lbs german pilsner and 2lbs dme pitched wyeast 2565 one liquid pack. does the abv sound about right? instructions says og should be 1.042-44 first time reading hydrometer might have read wrong og? How do you choose a kit that will produce higher abv? thanks for you help. I am so confused.
formula for %of alcohol
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Ralelen
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(og-fg)*1.31=%ABV. 1.038-1.016=0.022 * 1.31=0.02882 or %2.82ABV. The ABV is a bit low for the style. Off the top of my head it should be %4-5. How long did it ferment out? What was the temperature of the liquid when you took the hydrometer sample? Too high or too low of a wort temperature can skew a reading.
og temp about 70degrees fg temp 63 degrees firminting 2 weeks still have a little bit of bubbling in in air lock. if wort was not aerated enough could that lower abv ? After poring wort to carboy I shook it about one minute hope that was long enough to aerate it.
Subdivisions
Well-Known Member
1.016 seems a bit high for such a low OG beer. I'd leave it go in the fermenter longer and get it somewhere warmer to finish up. Give it another week and see where it is.
You should always make a starter with liquid yeast even on a low gravity beer.
I don't think aeration is a problem here. It's most likely under-pitching the yeast.
You should always make a starter with liquid yeast even on a low gravity beer.
I don't think aeration is a problem here. It's most likely under-pitching the yeast.
Brew_G
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Did you top off with water in the fermenter? If so, your OG reading could be off because the wort and water don't mix thoroughly and you can get a bad reading from that. 5-gallon batch size?
Assume your kit instructions are correct on OG and only concern yourself with FG since that's how you ink your fermentation is complete. What did the kit say the FG should be? I'd imagine 1.014 or so.
As for a starter, it's a best practice, but not absolutely necessary. Assuming the yeast isn't old, fermentation should be OK, but you'd probably get better results by doing a starter. I didn't know to use one on my first batch (California Common LME kit) and it produced perfectly good beer. Now I like to geek out and make starters/harvest yeast all the time!
Assume your kit instructions are correct on OG and only concern yourself with FG since that's how you ink your fermentation is complete. What did the kit say the FG should be? I'd imagine 1.014 or so.
As for a starter, it's a best practice, but not absolutely necessary. Assuming the yeast isn't old, fermentation should be OK, but you'd probably get better results by doing a starter. I didn't know to use one on my first batch (California Common LME kit) and it produced perfectly good beer. Now I like to geek out and make starters/harvest yeast all the time!
I am going to search the forum to learn about a starter I do have john palmers book and will read up onit. In general what is a starter and why do you use it?Would I use it in place of the yeast that I would buy with the kit? Thanks for your help.
Correct.
What were the ingredients and the volume? Since you can't get more (or less) sugar from the extract, it's easy to figure the actual OG.
If you want more alcohol in a beer, the way to do that is to start with more fermentable sugars in the beginning. A beer with an OG of 1.038 will never be a high alcohol beer due to the amount of sugars in it.
Was the 4lb of pilsner grain or was it syrup?
chickypad
lupulin shift victim
That's what I was wondering. I'm guessing LME as that would match the kit OG. As mentioned OP with extract you are better off calculating the OG from the ingredients and volume as it will often be more accurate than trying to take a reading after topping off. Did you measure your finising volume accurately?
I strain the chilled wort into the fermenter. That also aerates the wort nicely. Then pour in cold spring water at a height to aerate it further. Besides the fact the cold water has more o2 in it than boiled water or wort. Then stir roughly as much as 5 minutes to mix wort & top off well before taking the hydrometer sample.
jimbobbillyray
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How about adding 8-16 oz of light corn syrup(for example Karo) after flame out for a 5 gallon batch???
Just make sure the Karo doesn't have preservatives in it. That'd be bad for the yeast. Maltose can be used as well, but I'd be careful about using too much. A pound or so at most imo.
jimbobbillyray
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Thanks the total ingredients on the Karo I have on hand listed are corn syrup, real vanilla and salt
I don't "Think" there would be enough salt to kill the yeast but I have about a quart of yeast slurry from my last batch of homebrew think I'll dissolve some Karo - pitch a bit of slurry into that and see what takes place - a fun experiment and who knows I may learn something LOL
I don't "Think" there would be enough salt to kill the yeast but I have about a quart of yeast slurry from my last batch of homebrew think I'll dissolve some Karo - pitch a bit of slurry into that and see what takes place - a fun experiment and who knows I may learn something LOL
I wouldn't. The karo is not something that will make a pleasant flavor, and it's not needed.
If you really want to boost the alcohol level, you could use some dry or liquid malt extract, but I would just accept this batch (maybe it'll taste great) and get a different recipe or kit for next time.
Adding poor ingredients into a sub-par kit won't make a great beer, but if it tastes good as-is, I wouldn't mess with it. Even 16 ounces of corn syrup in a 18 L batch would only increase the alcohol by less than 1%. It wouldn't be worth it to me.
jimbobbillyray
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OIC stupid Idea, I would have "guessed" it would raise the ABV more than that even adding 8 ounces.... Oh well, still going to do the experiment out of morbid curiosity LOL
jimbobbillyray
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It seems this advice was "spot on" , while it fermented great (and I'd assume I way overpitched for this "beersperiment") and I'm not about to taste it (LOL) I did notice a "cider like aroma" which seemed to me to be quite strong for such a small amount (and pretty quickly as well)
Mexibilly
Mexibilly
A starter is a small volume, 1, 2, 3 or more liter wort you pitch liquid yeast to. The yeast eat the fermentables and propogate by a predictable amount.
There are several pitch rate/starter calculators available online that will tell you approximately how many viable yeast you have in the original package, how many will be required given your recipe's specifics, give you specific ratios of dme and water and if multiple steps up are required.
http://www.brewersfriend.com/yeast-pitch-rate-and-starter-calculator/
There are a couple of methods used to aerate and keep the yeast in suspension, shaking the vessel regularly after pitching and a stir plate are the ones I've used. I've had success with both, but after building a stir plate, the ease of making a starter, the peace of mind from knowing I'm pitching at the correct rate, the resulting crazy intense initial fermentation and consistently lower FG convinced me to make a starter for pretty much every beer.
Mexibilly
Mexibilly
Another simple aeration method is to pour the wort from your primary to another (sanitized of course) several times before pitching. In my experience this method creates a huge amount of air throughout the wort
