Abv

[jrakich87]

what factors affect the total alcohol content, and is there a way it can be raised without many negative consequences?

 

[BigKahuna]

I'm a big fan of the Brew Vint 1% Alcohol boost.

Total sugar that is fermented is what determines the abv.

 

[Yooper]

The amount of alcohol produced is basically due to a couple of factors- the main one being the amount of fermentables. In sort, the more sugars the yeast have to eat, the more alcohol they produce as a by-product. So, a beer with more fermentables will have a final higher ABV. Other factors are the type of yeast used- some yeast strains can produce more alcohol, as well as tolerate higher ABVs, and some ingredients in beer are less (or even not) fermentable typing on what you're making.

Some people have used sugar (honey, corn sugar, table sugar, etc) to boost ABV. I think this produces a thinner, drier beer in the end, and too much can also cause some off-flavors.

Some beers are "bigger" than others, and if you're making a higher ABV beer, generally you add more hops to acheive a good balance of malt, alcohol, and hops flavor.

 

[jrakich87]

so does that mean more malt extract equates to higher abv in general? I want to make a "bigger" beer for my 2nd batch... bigger alcohol, bigger malt, and especially bigger hop flavor. will using more extract give me the first two?

 

[eddie]

The short answer is yes, it will provide you with more alcohol and malt character. However, it could also leave your beer out of balance with one flavor overpowering the others. This can lead to your beer being perceived as hot (overly alcoholic) as the alcohol character tends to over power the malt in stronger brews.

 

[Yooper]

so does that mean more malt extract equates to higher abv in general? I want to make a "bigger" beer for my 2nd batch... bigger alcohol, bigger malt, and especially bigger hop flavor. will using more extract give me the first two?

Yes, that is exactly the way to do it. Some "lighter" beers like cream ales use adjuncts like rice and corn to give fermentables without body, but "bigger" beers usuallyl get their boost by malt.

Again, you're on the right track by planning more hops, too, because the key to a good beer is balance.

Do you have a style or recipe in mind? We can look it over for you and critique it.

 

[jrakich87]

so, i need more malt to get more alcohol, but the extra alcohol will probably overpower the extra malt? is that right? what can be done to prevent this? i've had some great beers that were >7% ABV (several Stones come to mind)... other than balancing with hop bitterness/flavour/aroma can anything be done?

 

[ohiobrewtus]

The short answer is yes, it will provide you with more alcohol and malt character. However, it could also leave your beer out of balance with one flavor overpowering the others. This can lead to your beer being perceived as hot (overly alcoholic) as the alcohol character tends to over power the malt in stronger brews.

Great point, eddie. This is the key to it all. Some beers lean towards malty, some lean towards hoppy. Either way, *most* (certainly not all) beers are at least somewhat balanced.

If you want to go bigger on the alcohol, you're on the right track by adding LME/DME rather than just adding a bunch of simple sugars. You're much more likely to keep your beer fairly well balanced and cut down on the acohol hotness.

 

[eddie]

Indeed. Simply adding more sugar would increase the alcohol content of the beer but can also add a cidery character that clashes with the malt in a bad way as well as making the beer thin (dry) and contribute to an unpleasant alcohol bite in the final product.

 

[Fusorfodder]

One thing that hasn't been mentioned yet is aging. The bigger a beer is, the longer it should sit conditioning. This will go a long way to mellow the harshness of higher ABV.

 

[eddie]

That's true, but if the the beer doesn't have the malt body and hops to support it, it will never be in balance no matter how long it is aged.