i think i brewed a batch of NA beer !

[yeasty]

my brewers best english pale ale is quit pale indeed. i was foolish and did not take an OG reading. it was supposed to be 1.044-1.048. i did take a FG reading and hit the target with 1.012 (predicted was 1.012-1.015). before i transferred to the secondary. today when i bottled i took one more reading and it was at 1.010.....why did it drop ? the hydrometer says that is a potential alcohol of 1% ! am i reading something wrong ? it smelled and tasted great but i guess it will not have much bang.

 

[Yuri_Rage]

The alcohol potential scale isn't very helpful to a beer brewer (IIRC, it assumes an FG of 1.000). Assuming you added all of the extract and the proper amount of water, and averaging the predicted OG, your beer is:

ABV = (OG - FG) x 131
ABV = (1.046 - 1.010) x 131
ABV = 4.72%

 

[double_e5]

You are indeed reading it wrong. That potential alcohol % is from where you are reading to 1.000. If you went from 1.045 to 1.010 you would have ~ 4.5% ABV.

There could be many reasons why it dropped from 1.012 to 1.010. Maybe it wasn't done fermenting just yet and you got better attenuation than what was expected. Or you read the hydrometer a little wrong. Either way it is fine.

 

[Rhymenoceros]

The potential alcohol scale won't tell you ABV with just a terminal reading. You need both a original and an final. if you subtract your final reading from your original you will have you ABV (assuming you are using the potential alcohol scale). As for the drop after you transferred, maybe it wasn't done fermenting when you transferred, or maybe you woke some yeast. Let if sit for a few days and take another reading if it is unchanged then you should be good to bottle.

I suggest you talk in terms of specific gravity, that is what most beer brewers use.

 

[nibiyabi]

The "potential alcohol" reading is only accurate when you're measuring OG, not FG.

1.046 - 1.010 = 0.036

0.036 * 130 = 4.68% ABV

Cheers.

EDIT: Jeez, you guys are fast.

 

[slomo]

I dont understand your brew should be around 4 %

 

[yeasty]

nice ! feeling much better about the hard work put in brewing this "light beer" for the wife. i did follow the instructions as close as possible and added all the required ingredients. am i right in thinking such a pale brew will expose my bad brewing skills more readily than a darker batch ? i guess i need to brush up on my hydrometer skills too...