White Sugar addition (or lack thereof)

[Bluejaye]

I guess I was to busy yesterday trying to brew up 3 LBK batches, and more interested in my pumpkin ale, that while doing this recipe:

http://www.mrbeer.com/product-exec/prod ... or_profile

I forget to add the cup of white sugar. Now, I was under the impression that adding white sugar was just a cheap way to boost the alcohol, which honestly I don't care about. But is there any *other* reason a recipe, especially a new one, would add it?

[jpsherman]

possibly to dry out the beer a bit. Add crispness.

[Crazy Climber]

What jpsherman said -- sugar ferments out completely, so you'll get a lower FG, which means higher ABV, thinner body (comparatively speaking, for other brews w/ a similar ABV), and a "dryer" finish.

One other thought: often times, it's actually a good idea to add simple sugar AFTER fermentation has progressed for a few days. That way, the yeast consume the complex sugars from the malt first. Add the sugar after that, and they'll move on to their "dessert" (the simple sugars found in table sugar), rather than the other way around. You don't want your yeast filling up on dessert, as they won't want to tackle the more complex sugars, leading to a stuck fermentation/high FG.

So, if you just brewed this up yesterday, feel free to wait another day or two and add the sugar anyway. Dissolve the sugar in as little water as will dissolve it all, boil, cool, and add straight to the fermenter. Probably a better idea than adding it up front. See? You "forgot" it intentionally, right?!

[Bluejaye]

Oh really? I figured adding it later would be disasterous, glad to hear I can "fix" this mistake. Breaking out the Starsan...

[Crazy Climber]

I'm bottling a Double IPA tonight which I made using the "post-pitching (by several days)" sugar addition method. I always use it for my bigger beers. It has worked well for me every time I've tried it.
Good luck!

[Gymrat]

I had never heard this before. It certainly makes sense. If yeast will go to work on sugar in a bottle why wouldn't it go to work on sugar in the fermenter.

[BigPapaG]

I'm bottling a Double IPA tonight which I made using the "post-pitching (by several days)" sugar addition method. I always use it for my bigger beers. It has worked well for me every time I've tried it.
Good luck!

+1

And critical for many Belgian styles as well!

[Crazy Climber]

I listen to Jamil's podcasts on The Brewing Network fairly often - he advocates the later addition of simple sugars for bigger beers quite often. That's where I first learned of it. I also read about it in a recent edition of Brew Your Own magazine.
In short, yeast are very much like humans: given the choice of working hard or taking the easy way out, they'll take the path of least resistance. If they have lots of complex sugars (from malt) and simple sugars (table sugar, honey, and the like) available to them, they'll go for the simple sugars first. And, if they "fill up" on that, they won't necessarily bother with the complex stuff afterwards. So in a big beer, where they have lots of fermenting work to do, it's best to feed them the complex stuff first, so that they ferment the important stuff up front. Then you can add the table sugar or honey, and they'll take care of that.

In short, make 'em eat their dinner first, THEN give 'em dessert. (Or, if you're a Pink Floyd fan, "how can you have any pudding if you don't eat your meat?!")

The Double IPA I just bottled, when fermentation started, the US-05 caused an LBK overflow. After that subsided, I waited another day or two before adding boiled honey. Sure enough, the sucker overflowed again. Finished at 1.012 (OG 1.080). Should be a nice, drinkable IIPA. Can't wait to give it a try.

[mashani]

I had never heard this before. It certainly makes sense. If yeast will go to work on sugar in a bottle why wouldn't it go to work on sugar in the fermenter.

This is part of what makes Belgian strong beers what they are. It's common practice in that kind of style.

[haerbob3]

I had never heard this before. It certainly makes sense. If yeast will go to work on sugar in a bottle why wouldn't it go to work on sugar in the fermenter.

This is part of what makes Belgian strong beers what they are. It's common practice in that kind of style.

I often do this for my IPA's and Pilsners. Sometimes I will throw wine yeast in there too!