Adding sugar to the ferment

[imperial]

I'm researching doing a DFH 120 Minute IPA clone. I found this recipe:

http://www.homebrewchef.com/120minuteIPArecipe.html

It calls for 33# grain (10gal batch). A lot of the gravity comes from corn sugar added during the ferment (20# for 10gal batch).

I've never added sugar to a ferment before (or any other fermentable for that matter). It seems to me that the addition of this amount of sugar would create a beer with high alcohol content, but not much else in the way of body or character. But the DFH 120 Minute has a huge sweet body.

What are your experiences adding sugar to the ferment? Does it dry out your beer? Does it add body?

Thanks!

 

[TipsyDragon]

adding that amount of sugar will definitely raise your ABV and dry out your beer. I'm not exactly sure how much alcohol that amount of sugar will produce in a 10 gallon batch. its not imposable that it may hit the yeast's alcohol tolerances. if that is the case it will be sweet and will need to be force carbed because all the yeast will be dead or in pretty bad shape. also with that amount of sugar added i would give some serious thought to adding yeast nutrient to the mix. yeast can't live on sugar alone.

 

[imperial]

Thanks for the response. I'm still trying to figure out how the recipe works. The 20# of sugar (in a 10gal batch) just seems like a lot. I'm not interested in brewing high grav beers just to get a high ABV, I like the big body and general characteristics one can get with a big beer. Maybe this recipe/technique is not for me.

But I love the DFH 120 Min IPA, and the person who brewed this said it turned out much like the commercial variety... I just don't see how that could be with the grain bill and amount of sugar.

 

[Clonefarmer]

Thanks for the response. I'm still trying to figure out how the recipe works. The 20# of sugar (in a 10gal batch) just seems like a lot. I'm not interested in brewing high grav beers just to get a high ABV, I like the big body and general characteristics one can get with a big beer. Maybe this recipe/technique is not for me.

But I love the DFH 120 Min IPA, and the person who brewed this said it turned out much like the commercial variety... I just don't see how that could be with the grain bill and amount of sugar.

That amount of sugar does seem excessive and out of place for the style. You could probably use DME/LME instead.

 

[JayInJersey]

Well the recipe calls for two yeasts with one being WLP099 which can definitely hold its own.

It sounds like an awful lot...but with the hops and the second yeast it might work.

But I've never had DFH 120.

Though the idea of constant hopping and second yeasting as well as delayed additions of sugar make this look like a fun recipe to try.

I'll add it to my brew list for one of my Winter Brews...which is good cause I needed a new Winter Warmer and I may be a complete hophead now =D


I added a 5G scaling to BMW