Adding additional sugar in increments

[katrinat]

I thought I read somewhere someone indicating that they added additional sugar in the fermentation process in increments after initial fermentation died down to increase abv... any thoughts on that?

 

[frazier]

Yes. My first thought is, don't.

Not that you can't - but if the recipe calls for sugar, add it late in the boil. All at once.

 

[PT Ray]

I believe is sees more use in making extreme beers. Kettle additions should work just fine for most other occasions.

 

[cyberwollf]

Some styles like Belgian golden strong i have withheld the sugar additions until yeast has chewed through most of the maltose. Not sure if this actually helps with a lower FG, but i read that somewhere lol. Supposedly yeast eat the glucose first and will be "tired" by the time they get to the maltose, maybe resulting in a higher FG.

 

[DaDzBrewery]

I thought I read somewhere someone indicating that they added additional sugar in the fermentation process in increments after initial fermentation died down to increase abv... any thoughts on that?

You could always buy ,( 3-4 bucks ), 1 more pound of the appropriate DME Dry Malt Extract, and add that to the boil, that will raise your abv up some.. anymore than a pound and you'll start having to add more hops/grains to counter the added DME... or Lower your final top off amount to about 4.75 gallons. starting as low as 4.5 and checking your SG#'s ... hope this helps

 

[AmandaK]

Some styles like Belgian golden strong i have withheld the sugar additions until yeast has chewed through most of the maltose. Not sure if this actually helps with a lower FG, but i read that somewhere lol. Supposedly yeast eat the glucose first and will be "tired" by the time they get to the maltose, maybe resulting in a higher FG.

You are correct in that Belgian styles will sometimes have sugar added after fermentation begins. We do this to aid the yeast in reaching terminal gravity. With some styles, you try and get 87% attenuation with a regular yeast, which can be hard. I wouldn't do this with a beer that does not call for it it you may end up with a beer that finishes too low and is too dry for the style.

 

[beerloaf]

I did it with the last Saison I brewed during the summer. I didn't do it to boost alcohol but to help the beer dry out more. The yeast strain I used was notorious for getting stuck and not letting it dry out to what its supposed to. I added 1 lb of sterile sugar around 4 days into fermentation when things were showing signs of slowing down. It worked and lowered FG to 1.004. Ended up with a beer around 6.5 % ABV and tastes perfect.

beerloaf