How to sweeten a beer

[Dan38520]

Hi can anyone help?

I've added too many bittering hops to my beer and want to sweeten it before i bottle or keg it. I have already started the fermentation and was hoping there is a way to rectify this before i bottle.

Is it possible to add sugar or something to the beer after fermentation?

Thanks any help appreciated

 

[Beer_Pirate]

You can use lactose or maltodextrin to backsweeten beer. Depending on the style though, just letting it age should mellow out the bitterness. Is it too hoppy based on the recipe, or based on your tasting of the wort?

EDIT: Maltodextrine isn't sweet. I just typed the nonfermentable sugars that came to mind first. It will NOT sweeten beer. Good catch Nosy.

 

[Nosybear]

Hi can anyone help?

I've added too many bittering hops to my beer and want to sweeten it before i bottle or keg it. I have already started the fermentation and was hoping there is a way to rectify this before i bottle.

Is it possible to add sugar or something to the beer after fermentation?

Thanks any help appreciated

You could use any sugar you want as long as you don't have to rely on natural (bottle) conditioning. Just add your sugar, some metabisulfite and potassium sorbate, same as with an off-dry wine. But the best bet is lactose. It's not as sweet as sucrose or fructose but it's non-fermentable. Maltodextrine adds body but not sweetness. Add the lactose to taste when bottling.

 

[Dan38520]

You can use lactose or maltodextrin to backsweeten beer. Depending on the style though, just letting it age should mellow out the bitterness. Is it too hoppy based on the recipe, or based on your tasting of the wort?

Thanks for your help, I have some lactose so might try that. Just don't want to add too much body to the beer with the lactose

 

[HighVoltageMan!]

This may sound counter intuitive, but adding an acid and dropping the pH will soften and sometimes even reduce bitterness. To see if it will work, pour a small amount of the beer in a glass add a drop of acid (phosphoric or lactic) and then 2, see if the bitterness is reduced. If it works add 1/2 teaspoon of either 88% lactic acid or +80% phosphoric acid to the keg. You can add up to 1 teaspoon without much risk, and it won't have any sour notes. More than that you need to watch the pH of the beer. A beer with a high pH can give the perception of being overly bitter, each style has a target pH in the finish beer. I like to keep pale ales and IPA's at 4.3 to 4.5 for a pH.

Sweeten the beer seems risk and in my experience doesn't very well.

 

[Mark D Pirate]

Do you have another beer to blend with it before bottling ?
It's kind of cheating but I've even corrected a keg using commercial beer

 

[Nosybear]

This may sound counter intuitive, but adding an acid and dropping the pH will soften and sometimes even reduce bitterness. To see if it will work, pour a small amount of the beer in a glass add a drop of acid (phosphoric or lactic) and then 2, see if the bitterness is reduced. If it works add 1/2 teaspoon of either 88% lactic acid or +80% phosphoric acid to the keg. You can add up to 1 teaspoon without much risk, and it won't have any sour notes. More than that you need to watch the pH of the beer. A beer with a high pH can give the perception of being overly bitter, each style has a target pH in the finish beer. I like to keep pale ales and IPA's at 4.3 to 4.5 for a pH.

Sweeten the beer seems risk and in my experience doesn't very well.

Agreed.

 

[Hawkbox]

Witchcraft!