Too little sugar in keg

[slaneybob]

This is my first time brewing and i have a small problem.

We got a porter kit from the local brewing shop and followed the instructions carefully. After leaving it for a couple of weeks to ferment we transferred the wort into the keg, added 3 ounces of sugar then left it again.

We decided to try the beer after 2 weeks but at tasted a little watery an definitely not very alcoholic. We then left it another week and it tasted a little better but still not very alcoholic.

We thought that we maybe did not put enough sugar into the keg at first and if there is a way to increase the alcoholic content. Be it by adding more sugar to the keg, or bottling and adding sugar or if there is any other way to improve the situation.

Your help is greatly appreciated..

Thanks in advanced

Robert

 

[Orfy]

I'm not sure what you did. Do you have the recipe/instructions?
If you are adding Sugar to increase the ABV then you generally do this before adding the yeast.
It sounds like you may of added the priming sugar. This is not designed to up ABV but to get the yeast to produce more CO2.
It sound like you need a hydrometer so you can stop guessing about the ABV.

 

[Cpt_Kirks]

At this point, your best bet to up the ABV is vodka, or (even better) everclear.

IIRC, Porter is supposed to have a fairly low ABV.

 

[Orfy]

The above is very bad advice. I presume it was meant in jest.

 

[Cpt_Kirks]

The above is very bad advice. I presume it was meant in jest.

Beer is kegged. He implies he wants more alcohol. Adding more is about the only way to get more at this stage.

I have added measured amounts of Everclear to raise the ABV in a batch and that keg was drained in record time.

You do want to do the math, and add it a little at a time. Remember, you can always add more, but you can't take it back out.

 

[IowaHarry]

What sort of keg are we talking about? And if using a corny type keg or a sankey type, why would you need sugar. Kegs carbonate with bottled CO2. Are we talking about a Mr. Beer?

 

[Orfy]

Beer is kegged. He implies he wants more alcohol. Adding more is about the only way to get more at this stage.

I have added measured amounts of Everclear to raise the ABV in a batch and that keg was drained in record time.

You do want to do the math, and add it a little at a time. Remember, you can always add more, but you can't take it back out.

Okay, if that's what he wants then I'm not the one to give advice for a multitude of reasons.

 

[Gmrpr7]

What sort of keg are we talking about? And if using a corny type keg or a sankey type, why would you need sugar. Kegs carbonate with bottled CO2. Are we talking about a Mr. Beer?

You can still prime a keg and dispense with one of those $20 keg chargers. Cheaper in the short term.

 

[Joos]

Add liquor to beer?Thats just not right.If you want a high ABV beer then brew one.If you just want to get hammered then make some hooch.Or Apflewein

 

[beerthirty]

To start, natural carbonation takes longer than 2 weeks and in a larger vessel(keg vs bottle) takes even longer due to extra head space. Figure 4-5 weeks without opening. Also are you sure the keg isn't leaking CO2? Most people that naturally carb in a keg force seat the seals with a bit of CO2 just to make a good seal.
As for alcohol content I agree with Orfy. We need more info such as recipe and OG/FG. Don't be discouraged but before you brew your next batch BUY A HYDROMETER. Easily the most important brewing tool you can own. Brewing may seem like magic but its really science, and a very easy science to learn.

 

[Cpt_Kirks]

I just don't see the justification for the hand waving on this issue.

Alcohol is a component of beer. If you wind up with too little alcohol, why the problem with adding some? Everclear is as pure an alcohol as you can buy. The beer is missing a certain amount of alcohol. Do the math, figure out how much is missing, then add it to the keg.

Think of it as "REALLY dry hopping".

 

[Yooper]

I just don't see the justification for the hand waving on this issue.

Alcohol is a component of beer. If you wind up with too little alcohol, why the problem with adding some? Everclear is as pure an alcohol as you can buy. The beer is missing a certain amount of alcohol. Do the math, figure out how much is missing, then add it to the keg.

Think of it as "REALLY dry hopping".

Well, ok. then you'd have a high octane brew. Might not taste very good, but you can get wasted. I guess I'm a bit more discriminating.

But, wouldn't it still be flat if you didn't carbonate? Flat, high alcohol "beer" doesn't sound very good to me. But, what do I know?

Anyway, the OP hasn't come back. So, I guess it really doesn't matter what we think.

 

[Cpt_Kirks]

No, the point I was trying to make is this:

Say you were aiming for a 5% ABV. Due to some issue, you wind up with 4.5% ABV brew. I don't see a problem with adding a little PGA to make up for the missing alcohol.

 

[JoeMama]

Because homebrewing isnt necessarily about higher octane beer, its about BETTER beer. You want more alcohol, then learn to make moonshine.

I brew beer cause I like how it tastes, not how fast I can get tanked off of it.
(But thats just me)
-Me

 

[slaneybob]

Hi everyone,

Thanks for all your replies and i am very sorry i haven't been able to receive any of your replies as i have been away from the computer.

I do not want to start adding more alcohol as that seems to me a cheat. I am new to this so am not entirely sure of the whole process but i am certainly learning.

We tasted the beer again and it is very good. We are going to start bottling now.

Thanks again for all your advice.

Robert