Gravity Question - Always high gravity

[Micmacman]

Hello , i did my 9 batch of all grain beer last weekend and i have a question. Normally efficiency question are almost all of the time about low efficiency. For me, its all the opposite. I always end up having a higher gravity then expected and higher alcool percentage.

For the last 2 batch i made, i started adjusting my pre-boil gravity using a refractometer and it worked well dilluating my pre-boil wort with water hitting my gravity. Is this okay to adjust my gravity this way every time i brew or is there something "wrong i guess" in my system i could change to hit my OG without having to adjust it everytime.

And it's not like if i had some luck with efficiency this brew. I mean every time i end up having higher efficiency with my system. i always end up having 6.5% beer instead of 5-5.5% and im unable to make lawnmower style beer.

Blonde Ale - ended up 1.049 instead of 1.039
Wheat beer - ended up 1.046 instead of 1.041
Amber - ended up 1.049 instead of 1.040

Thank you

David Meighen-Ménard

 

[billl]

Most recipes are built around an assumption of 75% efficiency. If you are getting higher then that, just plug your efficiency into whatever software you are using and scale back the base malt until it shows your intended OG.

 

[Micmacman]

Great thanks , but i guess there's no downside adjusting it post-boil with water right ?

 

[billl]

There are some minor downsides, depending on how big of adjustment you are making.

1) You are paying for more grain then you need for each batch.
2) You might be slightly off in the predicted color.

 

[Micmacman]

Wow thanks man , and another question would be, base on lets says that

Blonde Ale - ended up 1.049 instead of 1.039 how can i accuratly calculate the real efficiency i got so i can scale my base malt using beersmith

 

[Hopper5000]

are these beers turning out really well? grain crush can matter with efficiency as well as how much you are sparging. if you crush too fine and over sparge you will get better efficiency but you may be extracting tannins.

also, are you measuring the post boil volume of your beers in the fermenter? You may be more concentrated then you think.

It is also quite likely that you are just getting really good efficiency and are doing everything right.

As for calculating efficiency I don't use beer smith I use brewersfriend.com. I measure my post poil gravity and adjust my efficiency until it matches that (there is a box I can enter it in). I measure my post boil gravity as my efficiency which I know other may not do. I usually am lower when I measure in the fermenter because of hop absorption and other factors.

If there's an efficiency box where you type a percentage in for your recipe's then just adjust until it matches. I would do that and then find an average as you have somewhat of a range of difference.

Generally, the more grain you use the more your efficiency goes down because your strike water to grain ration goes down and you sparge amount goes down too.

 

[billl]

The efficiency is the just the points of sugar you have compared to the total sugar possible in the recipe. If you have beersmith, the easiest way to do is just tweak the efficiency number until the program displays the OG you actually got. eg try 78%, 80%, 82% etc until you hit 1.049

If you want to do it by hand, your actual points of sugar is your OG x volume = 49*5 = 245.

Your possible points are 45*(dry malt basis of your grain - usually 80% for base grains)*lbs of that grain. eg 45*.80*8.5lbs = 306 points

245/306= 80%

In the case of that blonde though, I think you might need to look at your volumes and settings. If 1.039 is 75%, then 1.049 would be 49/(39/.75) = 94%. I suspect there is something off with one of your settings eg having a 5.5 gallon batch vs 5.0 etc. 94% efficiency is possible, but unlikely.

 

[Micmacman]

Thank you very much guys. Just to recapitulate, how would you do for a new recipe lets says :

Do the recipe as it say for the first time.
Use my refractometer pre-boil and adjust with water.
Get my actual OG
And the next time i do this batch i scale my base malt using beersmith?

What i'm trying to understand is that , actually, you have no choice then doing the recipe at least once to adjust it after? If i understood well.
it's impossible to adjust a recipe that i never did i guess. Weird question but anyway.

 

[billl]

No, pretty much all of your batches should have about the same efficiency as long as your process is consistent. Really big beers usually see an efficiency drop, but all your "normal" beers should be right around your average efficiency. Once you dial that in, you should be golden.

 

[Micmacman]

Great stuff i learned tonight . In beersmith , theres a space where i can enter my "Measured OG" let say 1.046 for the wheat beer and it gives my the actual measured efficiency : 85.8%
What i would have to do then is just got to "Scale Recipe" and put in 85.8% Efficiency and then it will scale my grain bill with my efficiency i guess ? Reducing my base malt a bit , like by one pound