I'm making a Belgian Golden strong that calls for a pound of turbinado. Do I add at the beginning of the boil or the end? Do I take my preboil gravity reading before adding the sugar? If I dont reach my target preboil gravity I want to recirculate some of the wort to get there and I assume the reading is taken before the sugar addition in the boil.
When do I add the sugar in the boil?
- Thread starter rrayriver
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thatjonguy
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I am sure someone else will come along and disagree but there is more than one way to skin a cat (or brew a beer).
Take your pre-boil reading before adding anything to the wort. Recirculate has needed to reach your intended pre-boil gravity.
I would add the sugar in the last 10 minutes if it is a golden to minimize any caramelization (can not remember the technical term, I know it). Unless you want some caramel flavors from the sugars.
The best part about homebrewing is trial and error; sweet, sweet, delicious trial and error.
Take your pre-boil reading before adding anything to the wort. Recirculate has needed to reach your intended pre-boil gravity.
I would add the sugar in the last 10 minutes if it is a golden to minimize any caramelization (can not remember the technical term, I know it). Unless you want some caramel flavors from the sugars.
The best part about homebrewing is trial and error; sweet, sweet, delicious trial and error.
beergolf
Well-Known Member
Adding it late will help keep the color light.
I can offer even another option that is used by many that brew Belgians. Add the sugar after the beer has been fermenting for a few days.Just boil it up with enough water to make a syrup, cool, and add to the fermenter when fermentation slows. The theory behind this is that the yeast can eat the more complex sugars first, and then when the sugar is added they go for the simple sugars. I have done this many times with good results. It is like telling a child that they have to eat their dinner before they can have desert.
Make sure you properly account for the actual gravity in the bittering calculations. As implied above, the bittering extraction will be improved if you delay the sugar addition. But that could be a bad thing if you dont' adjust your hopping to account for that. Adding the sugar near the early part of the boil would make the bittering calculation easier.
In my opinion, a fully dissolved sugar addition is not likely to carmelize and darken significantly during the boil. In addition, the Golden Strong subcategory has enough latitude to accomodate the color. If color is a serious concern, Turbinado should not be used. Go with plain white sugar instead. Be sure to turn off the flame or add the sugar slowly to avoid burning or carmelizing it on the pot bottom.
In my opinion, a fully dissolved sugar addition is not likely to carmelize and darken significantly during the boil. In addition, the Golden Strong subcategory has enough latitude to accomodate the color. If color is a serious concern, Turbinado should not be used. Go with plain white sugar instead. Be sure to turn off the flame or add the sugar slowly to avoid burning or carmelizing it on the pot bottom.
TopherM
Well-Known Member
I typically shy away from sugar additions, but when the recipe HAS to have it, I add sugar at flameout, stirring like a madman to dissolve completely.
CTownBrewer
Well-Known Member
I usually add sugar based on quantity in a 5.5 gallon batch...
- Anything over 1 lb simple sugar in 5.5 gallons, make a syrup & add when fermentation slows, probably around day 3
- Anything under 1 lb simple sugar in 5.5 gallons, add with 15 minutes left in boil
Adding to what beergolf said...if you use too much simple sugar in the boil, the yeast will eat those sugars first during fermentation. Then, it's possible they'll "get full" on those, slow down, & drop out before they consume the complex sugars from the mash/grain leaving you with a sweeter beer than you anticipated. For large quantities of simple sugar, making the syrup & adding when fermentation slows will help dry out the beer & ensure the complex sugars from the mash/grain are consumed first.
- Anything over 1 lb simple sugar in 5.5 gallons, make a syrup & add when fermentation slows, probably around day 3
- Anything under 1 lb simple sugar in 5.5 gallons, add with 15 minutes left in boil
Adding to what beergolf said...if you use too much simple sugar in the boil, the yeast will eat those sugars first during fermentation. Then, it's possible they'll "get full" on those, slow down, & drop out before they consume the complex sugars from the mash/grain leaving you with a sweeter beer than you anticipated. For large quantities of simple sugar, making the syrup & adding when fermentation slows will help dry out the beer & ensure the complex sugars from the mash/grain are consumed first.
william_shakes_beer
Well-Known Member
Could that same process be used when adding honey if I want to retain the flavor? I know, I also add honey malt, but it just isn't giving me the flavor I'm looking for.
honey doesnt need to be boiled so you can just add it during active fermentation. if its several lbs, you may want to split it up
CTownBrewer
Well-Known Member
The problem with honey if you're going for flavor is that once you heat it, even if it's not to boiling temp, it loses a ton of it's flavor and basically only serves as a simple sugar to dry out the beer.
When I added honey to my Christmas Ale, I added it as I was chilling once the temp hit 100 F. I actually ended up retaining more honey flavor than I expected & the beer came out too sweet for my taste. I also used a little honey malt in that recipe though, so I'm not sure if one or the other was totally to blame.
When I added honey to my Christmas Ale, I added it as I was chilling once the temp hit 100 F. I actually ended up retaining more honey flavor than I expected & the beer came out too sweet for my taste. I also used a little honey malt in that recipe though, so I'm not sure if one or the other was totally to blame.
william_shakes_beer
Well-Known Member
I've added both a lb honey malt and honey at flameout, with little flavor retained. I will try adding it during cooling and see what happens.
