Did I do it right?

[Matt Wilson]

I got a Brewferm kit to make raspberry "framboos" beer.

I think it was only enough to make 3 gallons, instead of my usual 5. But to supplement the kit, I put in another pound of dry malt extract.

The instructions in the kit were vague at best, and all the units were in Metric.

From what I understand, they didn't say to boil the extract, and to just add it to cooled-boiled water.

I just boiled everything for an hour and added it to cool water and pitched the yeast, it seems to have taken off.

Has anyone else had any experience with these Brewferm kits? They are enough to make 12L but I suppose I made about 20L. Hopefully my extra malt powder will balance it out.

[BrewDog]

Matt-

Adding the extra malt extract will help add fermentables, but I don't think there was enough, nor were there enough hops after the dilution.

Let's do some rough estimating to see what you are looking at:

Assuming it's got a 1.053 SG which is what their web site says:

3 gal at 1.050 gives 159 gravity points.
1 lb of DME at 1.044 gives an additional 44 gravity points so that brings you up to 203 pts.
203 divided by 5 gals = 40.6, so you end up with a wort SG of about 1.041.

You didn't add any extra hops, so the bitterness will be about 3/5ths the bitterness.

I think you'll end up with a very light, tart, raspberry flavored beer. It will be ok, but probably a thinner than you would have hoped. Don't toss it, but don't expect this to be the best beer in the world, either. It will still have more malt and hops than BUD.

HTH-

[Matt Wilson]

is it too late to add a little more extract? Or would that mess things up?

[BrewDog]

Not if you don't have the space to handle the extra water. You don't want to go adding extract now without boiling it.

[Matt Wilson]

So I can add more? Do I need to add more?

[Vienna Lager]

Yes, to the first question.
No, to the second question.

[Matt Wilson]

Ok, I guess to better clarify:

Will the beer be too watery? If so, can I add more extract? If I can add more extract, how much, and what kind?

Originally, the recipie said that it makes 12L (roughly 3 gallons) and I went to make 5 gallons (roughly 20L). I added one pound of light malt extract. Will that not compensate for the additional 2 gallons of water?

Thanks for the help.

[BrewDog]

It will be watery-er than it would have been if you did the recipe to the 12L size. It also will be less bitter.

It will still be "thicker" than BMC, so it will still be a decent beer, just not as much body as it would have been.

If you really want to compensate, another way is to brew up a batch that is more bitter and way heavier, then mix the two batches together before bottling.

Then, you can get 3 beers out of this - the thin one, the thick one, and the mix (or different mixes if you want to play with percentages). Lots of variables to play with.

[Matt Wilson]

Wow, that sounds too complicated for me. I just brew one batch at a time. Can I just get away with putting in another pound of dry malt?

[Vienna Lager]

Brewdog isn't complicated he is just thorough and consistently so.

[BrewDog]

Originally posted by Matt Wilson
Wow, that sounds too complicated for me. I just brew one batch at a time. Can I just get away with putting in another pound of dry malt?

Not unless you boil it to sterilize or else you will introduce bacteria and ruin what you have.

Oh, and Thanks, Vienna- <blush>

[Vienna Lager]

You are welcome BrewDog

[Matt Wilson]

Ok so, I went back to the brew store and they said that I should just leave it alone, but I decided to add a couple more pounds of dry malt. I boiled it for 30 minutes and slowly added it without splashing, we'll see how it goes.....

[larin1477]

Ok so Brewdog and your guy at the brew store told you to leave it alone and you still added more extract...LMAO...you sound like ME!...welcome to the site!

W

GO SOX!

[larin1477]

BTW though...when the Dog speaks we all listen!...(well I think I did once!) :D

[Matt Wilson]

Ha ha, that store is a little questionable in my opinion. They seem to have a differnent person working there every time I walk in there. When I asked the guy if that was enough for 5 gallons he gave me a wrong answer, and a 25 dollar batch of beer turned into a 40 dollar batch.

I added the 2 additional pounds of extract to 2 quarts of water and sterilized---then to the beer. It is fermenting happily still, and smells like 'rasbrerries'.

Well, I have learned my lesson (even after reading 3 homebrewing books and surfing the internet) that as a rule of thumb for a 5 gallon batch I should use atleast 6 pounds of extract.

All part of the experience I suppose.

[Matt Wilson]

Okay, now I need a little help.

This batch should be just about done, but I am having trouble calculating an expected OG which I then can calculate the ABV.

Water = 5.5 gallons (20.82 L)
Raspberry Beer Kit = enough to make 12 L have an OG of 1.053 (I think 3 lb)
Dry malt extract = 3 lb spraymalt powder (barley)

The current density reading is 1.020, and has been fermenting about 12 days (I plan to bottle tomorrow or Saturday).

Is it safe to bottle? If so, what is my ABV.

Sorry, I couldn't take a primary OG reading.

[BrewDog]

3.17 gal (12 liters) at 1.053 gives 168 gravity points.
3 lb of DME at 1.044 gives an additional 3*44 = 132 gravity points so that brings you up to 300 pts.

300 divided by 5.5 gals = 54.545454 , so you started with a wort SG of about 1.055.


1.020 is a high FG for a 1.054 extract beer (with fruit). (only 62% apparent attenuation.) You didn't say what yeast this is, but the raspberry kit tells me to expect that this batch should be thinner bodied than 1.020, more like a 75-80% attenuation, giving a range of 1.014 (75%) down to about 1.011 (80%).

No matter what, wait about 3 more days. Take another gravity reading then. If the gravity is at 1.014 or below, wait 1 day and verify that it's stopped changing. If it is above 1.014 on this first reading, wait more 3 days before testing it again. Repeat this process until the gravity is no longer changing between readings. Then, fermentation will be complete, and it will be safe to bottle.

Patience, Grasshopper-

HTH-

[Matt Wilson]

I apprecitate the help.

Either way, I think it has stopped fermenting, or has gotten stuck rather.

I think I will pitch some danstar nottingham to get it going again tonight, just to be sure, if it is done, then the yeast will mostly just sink, and I may have a few off flavors, but off flavors are better than exploded bottles.

[BrewDog]

No, don't. Just test it again on Sunday.
The yeast work on their own schedule, not yours.

[Mill Rat]

A little swirl to rouse the yeast won't hurt if you think that will ease your nerves. Just don't splash it around.

[larin1477]

He probably already pitched...lol...

Hey Matt...1 word ...RELAX...

and then at least try to listen to the dog if your gonna ask the questions...lmao

W

GO SOX!!

[Matt Wilson]

Well, after swirling and racking and waiting, over the past couple of days there have still been no bubbles from the airlock for about 4 days now.

Should I still pitch some yeast?

gravity is at 1.019 right now ( at 60F)