Higher ABV

[Skrilla]

Hey all,

I am brewing my second batch here tomorrow and i want to raise the alchol content a little in my beer. I'm makeing a pumpkin ale and am wanting to add brown sugar to raise the abv. Would i add this to the boil? and how much do you think i would need to raise a 5-6 abv to a 7-9 abv?

Thanks for your responses in advanced.

 

[Skaggz]

5-6% up to 7-9% is quite a big jump. In order to raise it up that much you'll have to reformulate your recipe. If you were just to add a ton of sugar, you'll most likely end up with a pretty light bodied and sweet beer. When adding that much more fermentables to the boil, you need to tweak the hop schedule to offset the sweetness/maltyness. Post your recipe and maybe some folks can chime in.

 

[snowveil]

I'd worry about just making the beer taste good first. Adding extra fermentables would be the way to boost your alcohol, but personally I'd rather have a great tasting 5% beer than a mediocre 7% beer any day of the week. Since this is only your second batch, don't mess around with the recipe too much and focus on your fermentation temperatures and sanitation before anything else.

It's hard to hear "stick to the recipe" when you're so excited to create something....but you'll just get discouraged if your beers start turning out poorly because you wanted to experiment too much early on.

 

[MVKTR2]

The advice above is good advice, focus on your process now. Focus on creativity later. I'd suggest taking this advice for 3 or 4 brews at least and go from there.

The proper way to add more fermentables is to add more malt be it grain or extract. However too many homebrewers have an undue aversion to simple sugars in their bier because of the horror stories of the kit + kilo days. The facts are the overwhelming majority of Real Ale winners in the British version of GABF (CAMRA) have either or both treacle & simple sugar in them. Also a ton of Belgian biers, and big time ones at that which we all applaud as awesome brews have 10-20% invert or simple sugar in them. Of course this very much depends on the style being brewed also... don't try it on a Scottish or Irish ale for example!

So if you're going to go this route here's the way to do it. Generally adding 10% simple sugar to your brew isn't going to greatly impact it. I say go for 10-15% max, again depending on the brew you're brewing. For example if you're using 6 lbs of LME, add 15% of that weight (ignoring the specialty grains) in sugar at 10 minutes before flame out. 6 x .12 (%) = .72 lbs sugar.

Schlante & Good Luck,
Phillip

 

[ajf]

The only way to increase the alcohol content is to add more fermentables.
You could do this by adding some simple sugars (and brown sugars are simple sugars), but they are virtually 100% fermentable, and are likely to result in a very thin tasting beer.
Adding some DME is probably a better idea, as this increases the fermentables, but also the body, resulting in a better balance.
I occasionally add some simple sugars to some of my brews to prevent them being too malty, but I never add more than about 5%

-a.

 

[Skrilla]

i am already planning on adding 8oz of maltodextrine to boost the body a bit.

The Recipe is as follows:

.5lb briess Caramel 40

3.15lbs amber malt syrup(60)
1.0lb pilsen dried malt extract(60)
3.15lb amber malt syrup(15min)
1oz cluster (60)
1tsp Pumpkin pie spice(0min)

Let me know what you all think of adding brown sugar to that\how much for results id like. And also it the maltodextrine would help boost the body.

Thanks to everyone for all the advice thus far

 

[lumpher]

you shouldn't boost a pumpkin ale up that high. the alcohol will override the flavor, and what's the point in the first place? you could always add vodka to the beer if you just want it stronger

 

[jfr1111]

Lightening the body can be a good thing in some styles. In a pumpkin ale, I don't think so. When I think pumpkin ale, I think low carbonnation, spices and served lukewarm in a big mug. I think of creamy mouthfeel, not spritzy, dry or thin. Be aware though that sugar HAS its place in brewing and that you don't want to look at it in a black and white perspective. If you already have a sufficient malt backbone, adding sugar can be a good way to lighten the body and add a bit more ABV: there's no way, for example, to brew a trippel without adding sugar, and sometimes in vast quantities. The brew would end up sickly sweet due to the low hops and high FG, since the sugar serves to boost OG while serving as a drying agent.

If you use 100% fermentable sugar, you don't end up with a sweet beer unless you don't reach your attenuation. Quite to the contrary, the more fermentables you have that are easily convertible, the drier the beer (this is why beers without any sugar, that have low ABV can still be sweet if they use crystals/specilaity grains).

 

[MVKTR2]

So if you're going to go this route here's the way to do it. Generally adding 10% simple sugar to your brew isn't going to greatly impact it. I say go for 10-15% max, again depending on the brew you're brewing. For example if you're using 6 lbs of LME, add 15% of that weight (ignoring the specialty grains) in sugar at 10 minutes before flame out. 6 x .12 (%) = .72 lbs sugar.

Using ^^^ my earlier formula...

The Recipe is as follows:

.5lb briess Caramel 40

3.15lbs amber malt syrup(60)
1.0lb pilsen dried malt extract(60)
3.15lb amber malt syrup(15min)
1oz cluster (60)
1tsp Pumpkin pie spice(0min)

& using ^^^ your recipe the formula is...

7.3 lbs Fermentables x .10% = adding .73 lbs table sugar or
7.3 lbs Fermentables x .15% = adding 1.1 lbs table sugar

Thus you'll be fairly safe adding .75-1 lb sugar to your kit. I'd do it at 10 or 5 minutes left in the boil.

*** My stone cold if you're going to do this advice is to add molasses or cane syrup as it'll ferment out like plain sugar but will match VERY nicely with a pumpkin ale!

good luck

 

[Redpiper]

You also might want to download Qbrew - it's free. You can see the effect of what you're adding in terms of ABV.

Still, I'd stick to the advice of the experienced and focus on getting a recipe right vs. just trying for more ABV.