Priming sugar vs brewing sugar
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I've never heard of "brewing sugar", sounds like a Mr. Beer gimmick of some sort. Is it pure white, or does it have a tan hue? If pure white, it is probably corn sugar which is 100% fermentable and perfect for priming. If tan, it is probably malt extract which is only about 70% fermentable, and not very good for priming.
Lefou
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...and then there's Candi sugar, something altogether different.
Priming sugar can be as simple as using processed white sugar (sucrose) that comes in loose form or as cubes.
In the US, I use cubes of sucrose to individually prime my bottles. Each one is approximately 3.5 grams and that amount will sufficiently carbonate 12 fluid ounces of beer.
Young's Brewing sugar is dextrose monohydrate (glucose with a water molecule attached) and is processed more quickly by yeast. It might be more expensive than sucrose ... but then again, sucrose will work, but you may need more patience. When using sucrose for bottle carbing the yeast can produce acetaldehyde compounds. It will eventually be metabolized by the yeast but can take a bit of extra time before the beer's ready to drink.
Priming sugar can be as simple as using processed white sugar (sucrose) that comes in loose form or as cubes.
In the US, I use cubes of sucrose to individually prime my bottles. Each one is approximately 3.5 grams and that amount will sufficiently carbonate 12 fluid ounces of beer.
Young's Brewing sugar is dextrose monohydrate (glucose with a water molecule attached) and is processed more quickly by yeast. It might be more expensive than sucrose ... but then again, sucrose will work, but you may need more patience. When using sucrose for bottle carbing the yeast can produce acetaldehyde compounds. It will eventually be metabolized by the yeast but can take a bit of extra time before the beer's ready to drink.
I have never seen this idea mentioned before. I primed many batches with sucrose (table sugar) before switching to kegging and actually still do prime kegs with sucrose when I have more beer to carbonate than I can manage to force carb. I also use sucrose in DIPA and many high ABV belgian recipes. Never noticed such an issue. I use sucrose because it is easier to keep on hand than corn sugar (it's always there in my kitchen) and every source I could find indicated they were interchangeable for brewing purposes so long as you properly adjust for the moisture content of corn sugar.
Not saying it isn't a real issue...actually curious and spent a few minutes googling but was not able to find a source. Any help with a source would be appreciated.
I have used sucrose for almost 20 years and never noticed an acetaldehyde issue. Old Papazian tale that needs to die.
Young's Brewing Sugar is made for priming.
Reference: https://www.youngsgroup.co.uk/catalogue/ingredients/sugars/brewing-winemaking-sugar-1kg-874-detail
Reference: https://www.youngsgroup.co.uk/catalogue/ingredients/sugars/brewing-winemaking-sugar-1kg-874-detail
Lefou
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The source was a Young's Brewing Sugar advertisement!
https://www.youngsgroup.co.uk/catalogue/ingredients/sugars/brewing-winemaking-sugar-1kg-874-detail
haha ok got it. I believe if there is any truth to that old idea it came from the kit and a kilo brewing days where the sugar addition was nearly half the fermentable sugar in the recipe. I really don't think it applies to the typical additions used in strong beers (I like 5-10% in DIPA and 10-15% in beligan triples) or the tiny portion used in bottling.
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