Strange OG from pre hopped LME

[Bradsa]

Hello all!

Glad to be on the forum after weeks of browsing with interest (and admiration).

Let me get right to it:
We bought Copper Tun startup kit with all the goodies (the bare minimum you would need to brew) which included a Mangrove Jacks "Munich Lager" pre hopped LME. We decided to go for a seperately bought Mangrove Jacks Pilsner (LME) first and everything has gone to plan except:

I can't find an answer as to why the OG could possibly have been 1.085? We spun the hydrometer as recommended, but surely 1.085 as opposed to what it should have been cannot be due to CO2 bubbles and it did not get stuck on the side of the test tube, plus had a friend with who had brewed for months and couldn't explain this reading.

Everything else has gone according to plan, the gravity is now at around 1.012 after 5 days, after 2 days it was at 1.026.

Process:
After Sanitizing:
Add 2l boiling water to fermentor
Mix in 1 Kg dry "Beer Enhancer" (Used in place of plain Dextrose: Dextrose, Malt extract, maltodextrin, hops, gluten derived from barley).

Mix in pre-heated can of LME.

Add cold water to fill fermentor to 23l. Stir. Pitch Yeast.(At Pitching temperature was 20C and has been around there since)

Chillax.

Just interested to know what could have caused this strange OG?

Hope my first post wasn't too long and boring, but thought that reading was wierd.

Cheers (and no apologies for metric, it's what we use here in Africa)

 

[ong]

How did you take your hydrometer sample? I'd guess the sugar and LME weren't mixed completely with the water (not a big problem, but can throw off your readings). Maybe you used a turkey baster and got a sample from near the bottom?

 

[boydster]

Did you pull the sample from the bottom of the fermenter by any chance? If you are using extract, and you hit the correct volume for your batch, there really isn't any way to NOT hit your gravity. However, LME is notoriously hard to mix thoroughly and that generally leads to false readings - low OG if you pull your sample from the top (where the less-dense liquid sits) and high OG if you pull the sample from the bottom (where the most dense liquid rests).

Again, with extract - both dry and liquid - as long as you use the right amount of extract and the right amount of water, you will necessarily hit your target OG. You can't help it.

 

[k_mcarthur]

What point of the process did you take your OG reading? What temperature was the sample? As stated above mixing well before taking the sample is very important. An OG of 1.085 is not unheard of with a tall beer with lots of extract, what was the expected OG?

 

[Trail]

Boyd is right: either you didn't put enough water in, or the LME didn't mix. I wouldn't worry about it.

You'll either get the pilsner you planned, or a double imperial pilsner. I'd be okay with either!

 

[Bradsa]

Wow, thanks for the instant responses. I did take the sample out of the tap (so from the bottom). Did hit the volume for the recipe so I would assume that I did not mix thoroughly enough, leading to a higher density at the bottom and the off reading? My other two readings are looking pretty much as predicted out of the tap.

 

[boydster]

I did take the sample out of the tap (so from the bottom).

There is your answer. Yep, the higher density liquid sat at the bottom and gave you a false reading. If the expected OG is written in the kit instructions, you can rest assured your hit it right on the nose. Congrats on your first brew!

 

[Bradsa]

What point of the process did you take your OG reading? What temperature was the sample? As stated above mixing well before taking the sample is very important. An OG of 1.085 is not unheard of with a tall beer with lots of extract, what was the expected OG?

Took the reading right before pitching at 20C. Expected OG should have been around 1.045

 

[Bradsa]

Cheers, thanks guys. Had an inkling that that was the case (not problem). This forum is awesome.

 

[Trail]

No kidding. They've put up with my idiot newbie problems for two years without complaint. :fro: