Question about adding DME after bad efficiency.

[kurds_2408]

I just brewed and came out .010 low. According to the math I got 50% efficiency when I normally get around 75%. I tried a new sparge method for one and also I let my LHBS mill my grains which I normally don’t do but was in a hurry. I noticed him messing with his mill before hand and adjusting things by hand without measuring. I don’t know what I was thinking letting him do it but had some things going on. As I was dumping it in I thought it didn’t looked very cracked.

Anyway that’s not why I’m here. I only had half the amount of DME on hand that is needed to fix this and can’t get more for a couple days. I read some stuff about adding DME to secondary. Is this something I should do or just have the beer as is. I do plan to dry hop this beer, if I am going to add DME do I wait to dry hop? Also I was going to try dry hopping in the keg instead of moving to a carboy for the first time. Didn’t plan to have an airlock for that. Can I add DME to the primary in a couple weeks when it finishes then move to keg to dry hop? How long after adding DME do I wait to dry hop?
Thanks for any help.

 

[Grizwold1]

If you are going to add DME it would be better to add it while fermentation is going on to minimize oxidation. However, that carries its own set of problems--fermenter volume/space, etc. would necessitate pulling some of the fermenting wort to dissolve the DME in so you don't overload the fermenter. All in all, I would suggest letting it finish, calling it good and chalking it up to experience. it's still going to be beer and if it's the buzz from alcohol you are looking for, just drink two. Or three

 

[DBhomebrew]

If you are adding DME to beer with CO2 in suspension, make a slurry first. Otherwise you'll have a volcano as all those nucleation sites hit the carbonated beer.

I'd let it ride. It'll be beer and you likely won't notice it as you drink it.

 

[GoodTruble]

I would very much suggest the simplest option and just leave it as a lower abv beer than expected.

That being said, I have in the past boiled and chilled extra DME and added it to the fermenter during fermentation. As said above, it changes your volume and adds potential complications (-I think I was actually trying to increase the volume). But yes, you can do it, just probably not worth the hassle.

 

[kurds_2408]

I guess I’ll just let it ride then. At around 4% I’ll just get to drink more. The funny thing is I have a more expensive clone kit I need to brew, but since I was trying a new sparge method, a new chiller, and a new dry hop method I had decided to brew just a cheapo recipe of mine that is in the regular rotation in case one of my new things screwed me. I didn’t really need more beer. Bummer it turned out to probably be the shops mill. Note to self, you own a Monster Mill, so use it.

 

[GoodTruble]

Sometime my lighter/lower abv beers wind up being surprisingly enjoyable. Especially during hotter months.

 

[BrewerofBeers]

I do like the lower ABV beers when you want to fill extra glasses. Although sometimes unintentional, it's a unique homebrewing niche to have a nicely crafted 4% beer. I won't use the term "lighter" because they can still have impressive body and flavor. I'd say the variety of such beers on the market is slim. Maybe you will want to brew it again!

 

[z-bob]

I've done that before when my refractometer said I had extremely bad efficiency, and it turned out to be a refractometer error. My efficiency was just fine and I'm guessing there was a bit of grain under the coverslip and that threw off the reading. So when I added a pound of DME the beer was too strong (not necessarily a bad thing) and way off-balance because there wasn't nearly enough hops for all that malt.

Next time, I'll just ferment whatever I have and it might be a "light" beer or a "session" beer. I also need to trust my initial calculations and my process.

 

[z-bob]

Although sometimes unintentional, it's a unique homebrewing niche to have a nicely crafted 4% beer.

That's the holy grail for me, and I'll never get there. My beers suck if they aren't at least 5% ABV. I usually shoot for about 5.6% unless I'm brewing a style that needs to be stronger. I brew very good moderately-strong beers.