low OG

[xbabyboy4021x]

im brewing a Brewers Best Weizenbier kit that im going to add cherry flavoring to at bottling time to produce a cherry wheat beer. the kit came with 2 cans (6.6lbs) of plain wheat malt extract(liquid) 1oz mt hood bittering hops and 1/2oz mt hood finishing hops. i did a late addition boil by boiling 2 gal water(thats all the bigger my brew kettle is) and once it was boiling added the first can of LME and the bittering hops and in the last 15 min added the 2nd can of LME and the finishing hops. the recipe calls for an OG of 1.048-1.052. i took an OG reading at about 70* F and at this temp my hydrometer instructions says there is no change to gravity based on temp and i only came up with 1.042...does this have something to do with my late addition? i topped it off with distilled water to the 5gal mark on my fermentor and gave it a very good stir for about 5 min THEN took my reading. does anybody know why my OG was so low? o and i have checked my hydrometer it DOES read 1.000 in plain water at room temp like it says it should

 

[Nurmey]

Did the kit's instruction say to add sugar? I put the 6.6 lbs of wheat malt into Beer Smith and it says the gravity should be 1.043. I wonder if the recipe's OG was based on any additional sugar.

 

[KayaBrew]

Don't sweat such a small variation. The beer will be just fine. RDWHAHB as we like to say.

 

[Pharmguy]

I had the same problem with brewers best holiday ale. OG was suposed to be 1.07 and it ended up being 1.062. Time will tell.

 

[xbabyboy4021x]

i wasnt TOO worried about it, and no the recipe does not call for any additional sugar untill the priming sugar is added in the bottling bucket...it started out at 1.042 when it was supposed to be 1.048-1.052 and the FG calls for 1.010-1.014 and its at like 1.008 so im pretty sure its done i will bottle it on jan 2 since thats the next day i have off(and because the LHBS wont have the cherry flavoring in stock till the 1st)

 

[ArcaneXor]

I would taste it once you reach your final gravity. If it tastes watered down, you can always add some more ingredients at that point to give the beer a boost.

For instance, I over-diluted a Koelsch-style kit recently which caused it to turn out very watery. To add some more body and maltiness I simply did some calculations in Strangebrew Java and made a highly concentrated wort out of some amber DME with some additional hops that I added to the fermenter. After three days of additional fermentation and a couple of weeks of lagering, the beer was close to perfect in body, color, aroma and flavor. I will withhold my final judgment until the bottles are carbonated, but it certainly is possible to salvage a beer after the initial fermentation if it isn't quite spot-on.

 

[Snyder]

I don't know if it'll make you feel better, but I'm brewing the exact kit as yours. My OG came up at 1.040. Being my first batch, I'm not too worried.

EDIT: After doing some more searching I think I Found the answer. Pouring water on top of the LME in the primary fermenter was what caused a different reading. The wort is denser than water and doesn't mix well. That was why the reading was a bit off.