lower than expected OG

[dave8fire]

OK, 4th batch in primary and I still consider myself in the early novice stage of my whole brewing ability. My brew is a dunkelweizen, using the "Brewers Friend" brew steps the OG for this style was to be 1.080, however it ends up at 1.050. My question then is if I shoot for an OG of 1.080 and it's lower or even higher than the estimate, what changes the final number? How important is it the be right on, or do you just deal with the outcome and enjoy. What I understand is those numbers only indicate what the final alcohol % is, right? This was an extract with steeping grains 7.5#dme/.5#honey final boil vol. 2.25g topped off to 5g

dave a

 

[Warthaug]

As a rule, the higher the OG the higher the FG. So a lower FG is likely with this brew. I'm surprised you undershot by so much using extract; are you sure you didn't mess up a calculation somewhere?

As for what those numbers (OG/FG) mean, they do let you calculate the alcohol volume, but also tell you a lot about what the beer will be like. A high FG indicates a beer that will be malty and sweet; a low FG indicates a beer that will be dry. The dry/malty balance hugely impacts how you experience other flavours in the beer - for example, maltiness tends to balance out bitterness providing a reduced sensation of bitterness at a given IBU. Perceived bitterness is also dependent on gravity - 80IBUs in a strong beer (1.080 OG, for example) is nice; in a weak beer (1.040) its nearly unpalatable.

My best advice is keep working at it - despite its lower OG, this beer should be fine (though-be-iot, more bitter than planned). You should try to figure out where your missing gravity is "going" (I suspect a volume mis-entry in your program), and try to achieve consistency in your brewing methods. Consistency is the first step to great beers!

Bryan

 

[flatlanderHQ]

Sugars change the final number. You missed your target because of low extract addition. And yes, this will lower your final ABV. Was this a kit or a recipe you made yourself? The beer will likely taste just fine, as long as you pitched enough healthy yeast, control fermentation temps, etc.
In the future, take a gravity reading during your boil. But remember, you are diluting this wort so you will have to have a gravity well above 1.080 before you dilute to your final volume. FYI, most people dilute to 5.5 gallons to account for losses to trub. This way you will actually bottle 5 g.

 

[boydster]

Was this an extract kit? If so, and if you added all the extract and the appropriate amount of water, you hit your OG. Most often, the reason you get a false low reading when taking OG for an extract batch is not mixing in the top-off water fully. It is hard to get all of the water to mix completely with the wort, and that creates a volume of low-density wort at the top of the fermenter and high-density wort at the bottom.

Edit: I just noticed the fermentables you listed. I entered that into my brewing software and come up with OG of 1.069 for 5 gallons. Since you boiled 2.25 gallons and then topped off to 5 gallons, you should be pretty confident that you are at (or really close to) 1.069 and that the water just wasn't completely mixed. Don't sweat it - the yeast will do the job of mixing everything for you while they are making your delicious beer.

 

[duboman]

If the recipe stated the OG should be 1.080 then the OG should be 1.080. The only reason you did not get this reading is because you did not get a good mix of the wort and the top off water which is a common problem. The only other issue would be if you did not properly hit the required volumes so go with the stated OG and forget what you read because it's in incorrect reading.

 

[sheldonsteen]

The moral of the story is RDWHAHB.

 

[Calder]

Most often, the reason you get a false low reading when taking OG for an extract batch is not mixing in the top-off water fully.

The only reason you did not get this reading is because you did not get a good mix of the wort and the top off water which is a common problem.

What they said.

The DME+Honey should get you about 1.070. Any steeping grains will probably increase that number by about .003 per lb of grain.