Double Pilsner - glucoamylase?

[fury_tea]

Anyone used glucoamylase?

I am considering a double pilsner, basically a pilsner malt smash, 7-8% and a good amount of Saaz.

I don't want it to be heavy and will probably do a step mash, but I think I will end up with a pretty high FG whatever I do, so was considering using some glucoamylase to dry it out.

I've read that people get finishing gravities of 1.000 which is not quite what I'm aiming for either.

Anyone got any experience of using it?

 

[dmtaylor]

I won't touch the stuff. An overnight mash (like 8-12 hours) beginning no higher than 64-66 C will accomplish similar results without stupid fad chemical additions. Start your mash before bed, get up the next morning, bring to the boil, etc.

 

[fury_tea]

I won't touch the stuff. An overnight mash (like 8-12 hours) beginning no higher than 64-66 C will accomplish similar results without stupid fad chemical additions. Start your mash before bed, get up the next morning, bring to the boil, etc.

Fair enough, but I wouldn't really call it a "stupid fad chemical addition" any more than using a powdered single yeast strain. It's all microbiology. It's an fungal enzyme, and is by no means new, it's been used for many years for many applications, including in a number of commercial beers.

Each to their own though, but I'm happy to use any tool that makes my life easier and gets me to my goal.

 

[An Ankoù]

Anyone used glucoamylase?

I am considering a double pilsner, basically a pilsner malt smash, 7-8% and a good amount of Saaz.

I don't want it to be heavy and will probably do a step mash, but I think I will end up with a pretty high FG whatever I do, so was considering using some glucoamylase to dry it out.

I've read that people get finishing gravities of 1.000 which is not quite what I'm aiming for either.

Anyone got any experience of using it?

I've used it, @fury_tea , but it's not necessary here. Mash low and long as per @dmtaylor 's advice and use a decent attenuating yeast. Any of the Saflager yeasts are ok, and there are many others. Far from being a "stupid fad chemical", glucoamylase has it's place. Our lad, above, just hasn't found it yet.

 

[fury_tea]

Ok, overnight mash it is.

I do still have my eye on it to make a "diet beer" for midweek drinking though

Out of interest what did you use it for @An Ankoù

 

[An Ankoù]

Ok, overnight mash it is.

I do still have my eye on it to make a "diet beer" for midweek drinking though

Out of interest what did you use it for @An Ankoù

I first used it just out of curiosity to see if it made a difference and, as you said, it brought the FG down to around 1003, but with no detriment to the flavour. I added it towards the end of the fermentation.
I used it in all seriousness to duplicate a couple of the Durden Park recipes, which delpended pretty much entiirely of amber and brown malts with no diastatic properties. I put the enzyme in the mash and mashed at the optimum temperature, which, I think, was 60C. That worked fine, too. You could do that with any beer with a lot of adjuncts and the degree of conversion would depend on the mash time-length. the enzyme is completely denatured in the boil.
I haven't used it since, but it's there if I want it. I think if I were making a saison or any fermentation using the diastaticus variant of beer yeast, I'd add it to the fermentation just to be sure that longer-chain sugars were not going to continue to be nibbled away in the bottle. i don't forsee my making those beers though, as they're not really my cuppa tea.
It would be perfect for making diet pils of the "Holsten Pils" persuasion.

Midweek? Diet beer contains more alcohol and less sugars than otherwise, for the same OG. But then you know that.

 

[fury_tea]

I first used it just out of curiosity to see if it made a difference and, as you said, it brought the FG down to around 1003, but with no detriment to the flavour. I added it towards the end of the fermentation.
I used it in all seriousness to duplicate a couple of the Durden Park recipes, which delpended pretty much entiirely of amber and brown malts with no diastatic properties. I put the enzyme in the mash and mashed at the optimum temperature, which, I think, was 60C. That worked fine, too. You could do that with any beer with a lot of adjuncts and the degree of conversion would depend on the mash time-length. the enzyme is completely denatured in the boil.
I haven't used it since, but it's there if I want it. I think if I were making a saison or any fermentation using the diastaticus variant of beer yeast, I'd add it to the fermentation just to be sure that longer-chain sugars were not going to continue to be nibbled away in the bottle. i don't forsee my making those beers though, as they're not really my cuppa tea.
It would be perfect for making diet pils of the "Holsten Pils" persuasion.

Midweek? Diet beer contains more alcohol and less sugars than otherwise, for the same OG. But then you know that.

I have a late start on a Thursday so have started drinking a few beers on a Wednesday night. I was thinking of brewing something around 3-4% but with an SG of something like 1.030. I can drink twice as much for the same calories

 

[The Baron]

I have used it and done overnight mashes on a regular basis. The overnight mash always give you that bit extra Efficiency and the yeast does tend to fully attenuate as well so not unusual to get 1.007. If you choose your yeast wisely as AA has said you can probably push that down a little more too.
The GlucoAmylase will take you to nearer the 1.000 mark and dry the beer out. I did it to make a Japanese style Lager with 50% rice and it did the job right down to 1.000