Do the steeping grains have any effect on alcohol content?

If I steep my grains for 1/2 hour could some of the starch turn into fermentable sugars?

I think it depends on what grains you are steeping. Some, like crystal malt, mainly add color and don't contribute any fermentable sugars. That is my understanding, anyway. Roasted grains are said to be the same. The grains selected for steeping are usually picked because of other attributes than fermentable sugars, like flavor and color.

But, I will defer to the more knowledgeble on this question. I seem to remember another recent question like this, but I can't find it.

Generally the answer is no or very low, but here is a table found at Palmer's site: http://www.howtobrew.com/section2/chapter12-4-1.html

you could always hock a big ole loogie into it... saliva contains amylase, which converts complex carbs to disaccharides

MattD said:

you could always hock a big ole loogie into it... saliva contains amylase, which converts complex carbs to disaccharides

Click to expand...

Alright...I posted some pretty strange stuff today, but this one is getting on the sick side here

oh i'll try that! I'll squirt a little urine into the brewpot while I'm at it!

Normally the grains used to steep will not convert because they have already been modified in the malting/ kilning process. Most people steep with grains like crystal, Chocolate, and dextrin malts which only add color and flavor to beers.
Partial mash brewers use malts like 2 row and Munich along with their specialty grains and do a rest at about 150- 155 degrees for an hour to convert the starches. The grains are then sparged to extract the sugars.
If you are interested in this process take a look at this thread. It really isn't that much harder to do.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=8805