sugar brewer hate

[Jonathanquist]

Why is it so bad to brew with corn sugar. I've been adding a pound to almost all the brews to bump up the alcohol. I use as much grain as I can in my mash tun 13# and I just always want my brews bigger and it seems like corn sugar is much more cost effective than malt extract.

 

[jigidyjim]

Why is it so bad to brew with corn sugar. I've been adding a pound to almost all the brews to bump up the alcohol. I use as much grain as I can in my mash tun 13# and I just always want my brews bigger and it seems like corn sugar is much more cost effective than malt extract.

It is not necessarily bad. In Brew Like A Monk the author talks about how sugar is a key to making Belgian beers dry and food friendly.

It really depends on the % of sugar you are using. In your case, less than 10%, you probably get a good balance of alcohol vs malt. If it were 50%... yuck.

 

[homebrewdad]

A pound or two is fine. Pretty much all Belgian brews use at least some plain old sugar.

Just be aware that you aren't only raising the ABV - you are thinning the body a bit. Very high percentages will lead to thin, boozy beer with possible cidery tastes.

A pound in a 13 pound grain bill? Psh, you're fine.

 

[Captain Damage]

It's only "bad" in that it's only purpose is to boost the alcohol level of the beer. If I said I always add 6oz of vodka to every batch of beer, I think most HBTers would admonish me to add something with some flavor instead, though the result would be similar to adding a pound or two of sugar. The point of homebrewing is to make beer you like. So if adding sugar helps you make beer you like then more power to you!

Note: I don't add vodka to every batch of beer. That was a hypothetical example.

 

[gmcastil]

Pliny the Elder from Russian River is made with some type of sugar, probably corn sugar.

 

[Bobby_M]

Simple sugars are used in bigger beers to dry them out. If you do it for alcohol and enjoy your results, whatever. Don't worry about it.

 

[david_42]

Sugar is also useful to dry out sorghum-based beers. Sorghum extracts have fairly high unfermentables.

I think part of the bad rap is from "can and kilo" kits where sugar is almost a third of the mix. The result is a dry, thin-bodied beer.

 

[Ramitt]

If you like it brew it, drink it and don't worry about what others think about.