Using Dextrose

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Pommie
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Location: Leichhardt Sydney

Using Dextrose

Post by Pommie »

Hi All

Just a quick question to confirm what i have found on the forum.
I'm not an AGer but happy to play around with my kits and have found some of them are probably on the low side alcohol wise (3.5-4%). Appreciate I should be brewing for taste more than content and I agree with that but I do like beers between 4.5-5.5%.
I'm now a kegger so by force-carbonating I lose the 0.5% alcohol by priming.

The question is can I add 250g of dextrose to my brew to lift the alcohol without affecting the taste and body etc. Also, is this the most that you would add.

Any other suggestions for raising the alcohol content would be great

Thanks in advance

Rob
Pubs serve beer in schooners because the heat warms the beer. Cant we have the beer in pints and drink faster?
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Chris
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Post by Chris »

Adding dextrose is a good way of easily raising the alcohol. The only problem being, the more you add, the less body your beer will have. Using malt also increases the alcohol, but also increases the body. Find a happy medium, and you're right. I personally err on the side of adding malt only (as I'm sure many people know) :)

As for how much to add, if you only want to replace the priming sugar, 180g is plenty. Too raise the alco more, find a brewing calculator online, or I'm sure someone on this site will do it for you.
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chris.
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Re: Using Dextrose

Post by chris. »

Pommie wrote: The question is can I add 250g of dextrose to my brew to lift the alcohol without affecting the taste and body etc. Also, is this the most that you would add.
Yes. You can either add Dex or DME.
Last edited by chris. on Friday Oct 12, 2007 6:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Tipsy
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Post by Tipsy »

Chris wrote:Adding dextrose is a good way of easily raising the alcohol. The only problem being, the more you add, the less body your beer will have. .
It shouldn't affect the body because his other fermentables are staying the same.
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chris.
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Post by chris. »

Tipsy wrote:
Chris wrote:Adding dextrose is a good way of easily raising the alcohol. The only problem being, the more you add, the less body your beer will have. .
It shouldn't affect the body because his other fermentables are staying the same.
:wink: exactly.
Last edited by chris. on Friday Oct 12, 2007 6:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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KEG
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Post by KEG »

technically, it will affect the body. it ferments out completely, leaving a higher concentration of alcohol in the brew than if it wasn't added. alcohol has a lower SG than 1.000 - so it's possible that by adding dextrose, you could lower the FG.

well, that's by my reasoning anyway.
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bobbioli
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Location: Charlottetown P.E.I. Canada

Post by bobbioli »

Hey Pommie try kit, 1kg malt ex dry or liquid and 200-300g dex, should be between 5-5.5 percent
I like beer oh yes I do. doo daa doo daa. I like beer oh yes I do. oh daa doo daa day
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Pommie
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Location: Leichhardt Sydney

Post by Pommie »

thanks guys, will give it a whirl
Pubs serve beer in schooners because the heat warms the beer. Cant we have the beer in pints and drink faster?
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