Priming Question

Brewer #224226

New Member
Trial Member
Joined
Mar 25, 2019
Messages
12
Reaction score
2
Points
3
I was checking out the Priming calculator on this website. I put in 3 gallons as my batch and received the below results:

Table Sugar: 1.8 oz.
Corn Sugar: 2.0 oz.
DME: 2.7 oz

Question - does it matter which of the 3 I go with? Is table sugar just as good as corn sugar or dme? Is there a difference in taste? level of carbs?.
 
Table sugar is the cheapest option so I go with that. I dont think there's a real noticeable taste with that little amount or other real perceivable differences
 
Be sure to enter the actual amount of beer you'll be priming if different from the batch size.
 
Yes, that^^^ and also, don't get tripped up on the temperature variable. Use the highest temperature that your beer attained after fermentation, not the current temperature at bottling. A good rule of thumb is 1oz of table sugar per gallon of beer. If you're not getting close to that, check your calculator inputs.
 
Last edited:
Yes, that^^^ and also, don't get tripped up on the temperature variable. Use the highest temperature that your beer attained after fermentation, not the current temperature at bottling. A good rule of thumb is 1oz of table sugar per ounce of beer. If you're not getting close to that, check your calculator inputs.

Think you have a typo there ^ J A.
 
Fixed it... would have been a pretty crazy batch :D :D :D :D
 
No doubt, a cloying explosion :)
 
  • Like
Reactions: J A
Thanks! Very helpful info. I have 2 batches fermenting. The first should be ready to bottle in another week and the 2nd - a week after that. Question - I seem to have a lot of them!!!
1. Do you all do secondary fermentation? I have read that some people swear by it and others say it is not necessary. For my first batch - I am only doing the primary fermentation to keep things simpler but curious about your experiences.
2. I only used tap water (live in suburbs of Philly). The water quality seems ok but would you recommend that I boil the water (for adding to the partial boil) and cool it the next time. Or does it really impact the beer that much?
3. I have tried to use the beer recipes on this site and click on the "purchase supplies" button - nothing comes up as far as the supplies - anyone have similar issues?
 
One thing to learn about brewing: Only do a thing if you have a reason to do it. Secondary is an example. It doesn't help clear the beer, it's not a "fermentation", just a clarifying stage and it risks exposing your beer to oxygen. But it can free up a fermentor or be worthwhile if you're going to age the beer a long time before packaging. As to boiling and cooling your water, no risk there, but why? Do you have a water analysis that shows your water is high in carbonates? If not, boiling and cooling is a waste of time and energy. As to the "purchase supplies" button, I'll have to punt on that one - no knowledge. Bottom line, there's a lot of information, most of it misinformation, out there in the Interwebs. Only do a thing to your beer if you know why you're doing it.
 
I found secondary fermentation to be a waste of time unless it's a beer I want to bulk age. In addition to unnecessarily exposing your beer to unwanted oxygen, it exposes it to possible contaminants/infections.

When brewing with malt extracts, it's generally best to use distilled or RO water. The flavor profile was set in the mash part of the extract production and you usually don't want to alter it. Like many other recommendations for brewing, this isn't a hard and fast rule.

Like most of us, you'll likely start drinking your first batch earlier than you should. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but be sure to make note of changes in it as it ages for a few weeks. If you find an undesirable flavor and/or aroma that lingers as the beer ages, you might try RO or distilled water.


Not sure, but guessing that the "purchase supplies" might be something only available to premium members.
 
and throwing my 2c in on the secondary...
i used to do it. since i couldn't cold crash, my thought was to get it off as much trub as possible before i go to bottle it. less stuff in the secondary to stir up.
but now that i have a fridge, i just chill it down for a few days and it compacts the trub well enough for when i go to move it around to transfer
totally anecdotal, but i don't recall any oxidation or infections, but maybe i drank it too quickly to notice
 
and throwing my 2c in on the secondary...
i used to do it. since i couldn't cold crash, my thought was to get it off as much trub as possible before i go to bottle it. less stuff in the secondary to stir up.
but now that i have a fridge, i just chill it down for a few days and it compacts the trub well enough for when i go to move it around to transfer
totally anecdotal, but i don't recall any oxidation or infections, but maybe i drank it too quickly to notice

I never had any problems when using secondary either, but like to point out that it leaves the door open.
 
I never use tap water. The chlorine or chloramine in tap water will cause polyphenols to form in the beer. You can boil the water or use Camden tablets to remove it before you brew with tap water though.
 
When I transfer, I flush the receiving vessel with CO2, every time. Not strictly necessary if you don't have a CO2 tank and regulator but advisable due to O2 uptake.
 

Back
Top