CAN I INCREASE ALCOHOL ONCE BEER IS MADE?

[mancer62]

Made 5 gallons Coopers Dark Ale last night with young's beer enhancer. I was rather disappointed with the OG of 1038 which I believe is around 3 1/2% is that correct? Also will it end up around 4% after the priming sugar had been added to the barrel?
I would have liked this brew to have been a bit stronger between 4% and 5%. The hydrometer reading was taken in the FV at a temp of 24 degrees I don't know after calculations this would further increase or decrease my total alcohol %?
As it's less than 24 hours since I made would it be possible or not to increase the alcohol. If so by what means or is it recommended I leave well alone. All feedback will be greatly appreciated. :

 

[artyb]

yea tip some vodka in... :rofl:

 

[simonlpearce]

Surely if you only made it last night then it cannot have finished fermenting yet and will take another couple of weeks before you can tell the alcohol content.

 

[graysalchemy]

What was the expected OG of the kit? It may well be that you didn't mix it properly at the time of taking the reading but the yeast will most likely have eaten it anyway.

Also how does it taste? if it tastes ok then why bother?

:thumb:

 

[31bb3]

Add more sugar or some dme

 

[jonnymorris]

Whiskey chaser is your best bet.

 

[Swift Pint]

Like grays said, the syrup in the kit may not have mixed evenly leading to an incorrect OG reading.
As the beer has only recently started fermenting you could up you fermentables by adding some more sugar or malt extract if you wanted to increase the final ABV %.

 

[graysalchemy]

Like grays said, the syrup in the kit may not have mixed evenly leading to an incorrect OG reading.
As the beer has only recently started fermenting you could up you fermentables by adding some more sugar or malt extract if you wanted to increase the final ABV %.

But if you do that you will mess with the balance of flavours and hop profile and mouth feel.

 

[mancer62]

Would increasing the alcohol by say 1% really interfere with the taste etc that much? I am not saying it will or wont looking for genuine opinions I don't fancy the adding whiskey/vodka suggestions although thank you for posting them. I would be more inclinded to use the sugar water option. So for 40 pints how much water granulated sugar etc should be added and what sort of temp should water be. My ale is currently sitting in cupboard fermenting at 24 degrees that's what it says on the little temp strip on bucket is this ok or should it be different? :

 

[Swift Pint]

You should try and get the beer a couple of degrees cooler. Above 21 the yeast will start producing bad flavours as a side product of fermentation.

If you are trying to boost the ABV with just sugar then it will have the effect of making the beer seem thinner and drier. That because the sugar is 100% fermentable so will all be turned into alcohol.
i'm not sure how noticable this will be in the final beer, but i'd say that increasing the ABV from 3.5% to 4.5% would probably be a fairly noticable change.

On the other hand malt extract is not 100% fermentable so will add some body as well as the extra alcohol, so will not have the same thinning effect on the mouthfeel of the beer.

Either approach will impact the balance of the hops.

 

[graysalchemy]

I would put this one down to experience unfortunately. 24c is way to warm and you are likely to have off flavours if it has fermented at that temp, and if you don't get solventy flavours you may experience hangovers.

Increasing the alcohol by 1% ABV is infact increasing it by nearly 25% so yes it will effect the flavour and balance of the beer.

Have you actually tasted it? does it taste weak?

 

[bigboots]

Important...........
2.5 ounces of sugar raises 1 gallon by 1% ( approx ) :thumb: , therefore 5 gallons needs 12.5 ounces (caster or granulated or light brown or dark brown or muscovado etc...................)
1 kilo raises 5 gallons approx. 3% :thumb:
Just reduce the heat a few degrees, add more sugar and sit back and wait.
Don't worry too much about changing the flavour profile or mouthfeel, this will be minimal and you will hardly notice ( unless you have extremely sensitive taste buds ).
By the very nature of your question I feel you are new to this and therefore making a finished beer seems like a big achievement. (I remember that feeling well!!)
Every batch you brew will bring experience and hopefully you will enjoy yourself along the way.
Good luck
:
P.S. Give it a damn good stir getting plenty of air into the wort ( potential beer mixture ), this will help the yeast multiply.

 

[rpt]

The OG on its own doesn't tell you the ABV. If you made it from a kit, rinsed out the tin, put in the correct amount of sugar and topped it up to the correct volume then you ought to get the right ABV. I wouldn't worry about it. 4% sounds fine to me anyway. Why be obsessed about the alcohol as long as it tastes good.

 

[eggman]

As it's less than 24 hours since I made would it be possible or not to increase the alcohol. If so by what means or is it recommended I leave well alone. All feedback will be greatly appreciated. :

I would leave it well alone, I certainly wouldn't add more sugar it'll totally screw up the taste of your brew :sick: If you want stronger beers then either brew a stronger kit or try brewing short to 20l

 

[mancer62]

K I have decided not to risk it and not add but thank you to each and everyone of you for replying appreciated. I have moved my fermentation bucket out the cupboard and under the kitchen table where it is bubbling away nicely I hope not a lot of damage has been done fermenting for around 20 hours between 22 - 24 degrees. :

 

[willypt]

I have barely no experience in this... Hell I haven't even tasted my first brew, but unless you didn't follow the instructions on the kit thoroughly specially those regarding the amount of sugar and water you must add to the extract I wouldn't worry much about it. Yeast are avid eaters and as soon as they populate your wort they will search every cubic inch of that FV for sugars to eat.