Tombstone0
Well-Known Member
I think I read somewhere that you should use corn sugar for priming in the bottles, instead of "table sugar" as the Mr. Beer kit suggests. Is there any truth to this, and if so, why?
Also, good to know about the booster kits. I guess I need more malt extract instead.
I've seen it posted a few times that people should use corn sugar instead of table sugar, but unless you're boiling the sugar I can't imagine that there would be any difference. The quantity of priming sugar is so low that it should have no effect on the flavor. I've been using table sugar to prime my bottles for 5 years now and I've never had a problem with cidery flavors for either Mr. Beer kits or for the all-grain batches that I've been making recently.
Also, if you use corn sugar instead of table sugar you have to adjust the amount because the fermentability of each is different.
For the booster you should be able to minimize or eliminate any cidery flavors by fermenting at a lower temperature (65-70) and allowing it to age for at least 3 weeks in the bottle. The other problem with booster is that by using it you will get a lighter more watery beer. Of course depending on who's drinking it, that might actually be a good thing. For instance, a lot of my relatives really like Englishman's Nut Brown Ale, so I make that every once in a while for them.