Some BIG stout questions

[geoffclifton]

Gooday Guys.

I haven't been on for a while but that's just because I stopped experimenting once I got good beer. Not one for some of you discerning folk I'm but I'm making our daily quaffer with Coopers Draught on just half a Kg of raw sugar, temp controlled for 7 days at 18* and primed on 150g white sugar. There is NO backyard HB taste. It's crisp, carbonated and drinks very well.

Any'ow .. back on topic.

I'm brewing my fourth batch of 'extra stout'. This beast came into being during experimentation days and whilst not what I would drink, my Dad, Uncle and a mate would go to war for it. It's a loaded K&K being a Coopers Stout can, 1.5Kg can of dark roasted liquid malt, a Kg of honey and a Kg of brown sugar. 25 litres and 2 packs of Coopers yeast. 18* ferment and bottled at 14 days on 150g white sugar. Brewers calc puts it at 9.1% ABV.

J Palmers brew bible (had it from the library 3 years ago) told me there comes a point in fermentation when the yeast literally dies in it's own alcohol and fermentation stops. As I'm a bit heavier then on the previous brews I have some nagging doubts though I must point out that the previous brews fermented out and then carbonated perfectly.

IF the yeast dies and I bottle then there are no little friends to eat the priming sugar and carbonate the beer.

Or, if there are just a few of the hardier little friends left along with unfermented sugars' plus the priming sugars, might it over carbonate over many weeks and .... POP

Right now, three days in, the wort is going off like a flatulent elephant. I've got a 10mm blow off hose in a bucket of water, forget air locks or jam jars.

Who else has successfully brewed out 3.5Kg of added fermentables on a K&K

Cheers, Geoff.

[drsmurto]

My brewers calc (beersmith) puts that beer at 6.3% (OG 1.065, FG 1.017)

I doubt a single pack of coopers yeast would have any trouble with that let alone 2.

A flatulent elephant..... interesting analogy!

[geoffclifton]

Gooday Doc. The garden swap still waits

OK the ABV calc at http://www.brewcraft.com.au/wa.asp?idWe ... etails=172 doesn't have a box for the 1Kg of honey which I had included as glucose. Adding the honey as equivalent to other ingredients gives-

Glucose 9.1% Liq Malt 8.3% Corn Syrup 7.1%

Your beersmith 6.3%

Can you help a bit more please mate.

Cheers, Geoff.

[drsmurto]

I'd trust beersmith before a HBS calculator. I have noticed that the calculator you linked to is one i used in the past and seems to vastly overestimate. Beersmith is a standalone piece of software developed by a brewer. The online calculator is an ad hoc add-on to a HBS.

I added all your ingredients to beersmith adding honey as honey, brown sugar as brown sugar (beersmith even distinguishes light and dark brown sugar) and for a batch size of 25L it came out with OG 1.065, FG 1.017 giving an ABV of 6.3%.

[geoffclifton]

Thanks Doc.
I feel much more comfortable about the stout fermenting out fully with your calcs.

Please would you run my quaffer through you beersmith. The online calc gives 4.2% ABV

Coopers Draught 1.7Kg.
500g raw sugar (light)
22.5 litres 18*C
Bulk prime 150g white sugar

Cheers, Geoff.

[drsmurto]

Thanks Doc.
I feel much more comfortable about the stout fermenting out fully with your calcs.

Please would you run my quaffer through you beersmith. The online calc gives 4.2% ABV

Coopers Draught 1.7Kg.
500g raw sugar (light)
22.5 litres 18*C
Bulk prime 150g white sugar

Cheers, Geoff.

OG 1.031, FG 1.008. 3.0% abv (plus ~0.2-0.3 % extra with bottle carbonation).