what is more important? the target OG and IBU from a recipe?

Gledison

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Dear Brewfriends,
first of all my greetigs from Germany.
After i started to look in different Forums and Websites i decided to stop here. I´ve found the web based Interface amazingly friendly and i can find so far everything i Need.
Of course, i have my first question, which i couldnt find in the Forum:
I´ve got an IPA Simcoe KIT where everything is already weighted for a 10L Batch. I will do a BIAB.
After adding all the data on the brewersfriend recipe Editor, I´ve got values of OG and IBU that differs from the ones given in the Kit Information.
Shall i Keep the OG provided by the Kit and Play around with the Water amounts (mash, pre boil, etc) in order to reach that or i just have to leave with the fact that the amount provided is perhaps not accurate? The OG i have is 2° Plato bellow it should be.
I believe, the Kit caluclates the Batch size on the fermentor vessel, without considering the trub lost.
When i add the extra 1L to my trub lost i get the low value, but if i Keep the 10L on the fermentor, than is more or less ok.
Ist how is supposed to be?
thanks a lot for any insight
Gledi
 
Welcome!

From what others have said here about kits, I think they count on what goes into fermenter. Not any losses. As long as your equipment is setup correctly in your profile, I'd go with what's on the site. That way, you know what your system does and can adjust for future brews
 
Welcome!

From what others have said here about kits, I think they count on what goes into fermenter. Not any losses. As long as your equipment is setup correctly in your profile, I'd go with what's on the site. That way, you know what your system does and can adjust for future brews
Great! thanks a lot!
 
Dear Brewfriends,
first of all my greetigs from Germany.
After i started to look in different Forums and Websites i decided to stop here. I´ve found the web based Interface amazingly friendly and i can find so far everything i Need.
Of course, i have my first question, which i couldnt find in the Forum:
I´ve got an IPA Simcoe KIT where everything is already weighted for a 10L Batch. I will do a BIAB.
After adding all the data on the brewersfriend recipe Editor, I´ve got values of OG and IBU that differs from the ones given in the Kit Information.
Shall i Keep the OG provided by the Kit and Play around with the Water amounts (mash, pre boil, etc) in order to reach that or i just have to leave with the fact that the amount provided is perhaps not accurate? The OG i have is 2° Plato bellow it should be.
I believe, the Kit caluclates the Batch size on the fermentor vessel, without considering the trub lost.
When i add the extra 1L to my trub lost i get the low value, but if i Keep the 10L on the fermentor, than is more or less ok.
Ist how is supposed to be?
thanks a lot for any insight
Gledi
Erstmals, Schoene Gruesse aus Denver!

There are way too many variables at play to give you a simple answer. The first thing I'd say there is if you already have it in the fermentor and have already pitched the yeast, let it be. Any additions now could cause more harm than good. I think your assessment - that the amounts provided aren't correct - may be true, or the kit provider may use different calculation methods than Brewer's Friend. Since this is a kit brew, I'm assuming you're relatively new to brewing. So I'd go with JC's assessment: Brew it and see what you get. Your process will differ from the process used to test the kit, the ingredients may have changed over time, for example, different malts or different sourcing of hops and that will result in differences between the projected measurements and your actual results.

The projections on Brewer's Friend tend to be pretty accurate. I generally miss by at or less than 0.5° P on the OG. Because my mashing technique produces a highly fermentable wort (I can't control mash temperatures accurately enough and so get low temperatures at the edges of the tun, for those of whom a miss by 1° of SG is a totsunde), I generally undershoot my FG by 1° P. As to IBUs, unless you access to a gas chromatograph or a few hundred Euros to get your beer analyzed, you never know if the bitterness is right. That's not a problem, either - you learn from experience using your brewing method to adjust. So advice from an old brewer: Brew the beer as is. Note any deviations in results from you predicted and adjust your process. And enjoy the results!

Viel Spass beim Brauen! (and keep it that way)
 
When kit brewing, I found myself ensuring that I had the full 5 gallon kit size batch bottled. There have been times when I've added water post fermentation to reach that quantity. But then I learned my system, and what I needed to do to finish with 5 gallons of bottled product. I found that the gravity isn't that far off (if it's off at all) of what the recipe says it should be.
 
Erstmals, Schoene Gruesse aus Denver!

There are way too many variables at play to give you a simple answer. The first thing I'd say there is if you already have it in the fermentor and have already pitched the yeast, let it be. Any additions now could cause more harm than good. I think your assessment - that the amounts provided aren't correct - may be true, or the kit provider may use different calculation methods than Brewer's Friend. Since this is a kit brew, I'm assuming you're relatively new to brewing. So I'd go with JC's assessment: Brew it and see what you get. Your process will differ from the process used to test the kit, the ingredients may have changed over time, for example, different malts or different sourcing of hops and that will result in differences between the projected measurements and your actual results.

The projections on Brewer's Friend tend to be pretty accurate. I generally miss by at or less than 0.5° P on the OG. Because my mashing technique produces a highly fermentable wort (I can't control mash temperatures accurately enough and so get low temperatures at the edges of the tun, for those of whom a miss by 1° of SG is a totsunde), I generally undershoot my FG by 1° P. As to IBUs, unless you access to a gas chromatograph or a few hundred Euros to get your beer analyzed, you never know if the bitterness is right. That's not a problem, either - you learn from experience using your brewing method to adjust. So advice from an old brewer: Brew the beer as is. Note any deviations in results from you predicted and adjust your process. And enjoy the results!

Viel Spass beim Brauen! (and keep it that way)

Vielen danke für dein Antwort:)
Im new in brewing but not so new into chemistry :p, Have studied chemistry most of my life :S and im Aware of most of the things going on.
The idea of having a GC is nice, :) whish i could have one for all sorts of applications :p
Just wanted to be sure that i have to target the OG and not necessary using the ammounts provided by the KIT. After my calculations i´ve found a mistake in one of the hops bag which currently im contacting the seller to get more Information. REgardless i will brew with what i have thanks to recipe Generator :p
Wunderbar! Cheers
 
It should be a good beer. Your keys to success are first, sanitation. That often gets omitted when people talk about brewing so I bring it up again as a reminder. Your next key is controlling your fermentation temperature. Being new, I'm sure you don't have a modified refrigerator so get a very big container, put it in the cellar away from light, fill it with water and put your fermentor in that, making sure of course it doesn't float!. Hitting your OG and FG targets will become more important later. First challenge is learning to manage the fermentation.

Where in Germany are you located? I lived in the Mosel Valley and Frankfurt for about eight years.
 
It should be a good beer. Your keys to success are first, sanitation. That often gets omitted when people talk about brewing so I bring it up again as a reminder. Your next key is controlling your fermentation temperature. Being new, I'm sure you don't have a modified refrigerator so get a very big container, put it in the cellar away from light, fill it with water and put your fermentor in that, making sure of course it doesn't float!. Hitting your OG and FG targets will become more important later. First challenge is learning to manage the fermentation.

Where in Germany are you located? I lived in the Mosel Valley and Frankfurt for about eight years.
Hi. Thanks for the tipos;)
The temperatura control during fetmentation will be an issue :(. As you know appartments in Europe can be quite small :(
Im living in Mannheim, close to Heidelberg.
Cheers
 
Hi. Thanks for the tipos;)
The temperatura control during fetmentation will be an issue :(. As you know appartments in Europe can be quite small :(
Im living in Mannheim, close to Heidelberg.
Cheers
And it can get quite hot there in the summer. Have you considered brewing a Saison? Many of those yeasts like heat.
 

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