Priming Sugar on VERY low FG beer

[TetersMillBrewing]

Precursor: This is my first beer (ever) so I am still sorting out the terms to use.

So, for my first beer is a Strawberry Blonde that my wife wanted. All grain recipe with an expected OG of 1.059 and FG of 1.010, My OG going into the fermentor was 1.057 which I thought was pretty good. After I transferred the wort to the fermentor I added AG300 (turns everything to fermentable sugars for those unfamiliar). This was obviously a HUGE error on my part. I just moved it over to a secondary fermentor and checked the gravity and it was 1.002 (after 7 days). So, beyond the fact that I will probably end up with a dry beer with very little mouthfeel I need to tackle my next concern, bottling.

So, I understand the idea of using priming sugar for carbonation. My question is this, since I created a much larger amount of sugar for the yeast and my gravity is already way too low, will there be enough yeast left for the priming sugar to create the carbonation I need to bottle the beer?

Thanks for the help

 

[4Bentley]

It should be fine. Bottling doesn't require a lot of residual yeast. Did you pitch an adequate number of cells for the original batch? I regularly make a Brut IPA and the FG is lower than what you have. I also add extra sugar to make it real bubbly.

Unless you starved the batch to begin with I wouldn't worry about the low FG.

 

[TetersMillBrewing]

It should be fine. Bottling doesn't require a lot of residual yeast. Did you pitch an adequate number of cells for the original batch? I regularly make a Brut IPA and the FG is lower than what you have. I also add extra sugar to make it real bubbly.

Unless you starved the batch to begin with I wouldn't worry about the low FG.

Well, since the AG300 created more sugar than expected I doubt that I starved the yeast. As far as pitching the adequate number of cells, haven't gotten that far into reading to understand/answer. The recipe called for a single package which is what I used, I did read the packet and i was in the specifications for it. Thanks for the help, will give it a week on the strawberries then move it to the bottles and see what happens.

 

[Blackmuse]

You should have plenty of yeast for priming. I believe that what Bentley is getting at about starving yeast is more in terms of oxygen and other nutrients it needs to do its business properly.

Again, you should be fine. I assume you plan to use corn sugar for priming?

Why did you use AG300 in the first place? Just curious. I've never done anything like that or heard of others doing it unless they got a "stuck" fermentation.

 

[thunderwagn]

You should still have plenty of yeast which I think is pretty evident in your fg. The enzyme you used makes more 'fermentable' wort and your yeast tore right through it. You manipulated your sugars, not your yeast. They seem plenty happy. Shouldn't be a problem at all. You'll be adding a measured amount of sugar, just enough to get a little bit more out of your yeast. Haven't seen your recipe so there may be some things there that might help with the mouthfeel, but with summer coming on, a nice dry, fruity beer isn't necessarily a bad thing. Best part about homebrewing is you can do it differently next time.

 

[TetersMillBrewing]

I assume you plan to use corn sugar for priming?

Yes, using corn sugar for priming was my plan.

Why did you use AG300 in the first place? Just curious. I've never done anything like that or heard of others doing it unless they got a "stuck" fermentation.

It was more out of habit than anything else. I have always used it in the past when trying to get all the sugars out of corn, wheat, rye, and barley for use in spirits.

Thanks for the help, looking forward to enjoying my new hobby.

 

[TetersMillBrewing]

Haven't seen your recipe so there may be some things there that might help with the mouthfeel.

This is the recipe I used: https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/view/989495/strawberry-blonde-ale

Obviously not mine, my wife found it and I put in into the system to keep track of things. The next two things I have to read up on is the cold crash it calls for and obviously priming sugar which was on my mind when I checked the gravity.

Thanks

 

[thunderwagn]

It was more out of habit than anything else. I have always used it in the past when trying to get all the sugars out of corn, wheat, rye, and barley for use in spirits.

Correct. Ag300 is great for that so you can get a really low fg. Below 1.0000. .995ish.
You'll have a dry brew and not having that sweetness to help with the bitterness of the strawberries might be a little different than what you and yout wife were going for, but again, it's a hobby, and brewing is the fun part. You've got a baseline now.

 

[TetersMillBrewing]

Correct. Ag300 is great for that so you can get a really low fg. Below 1.0000. .995ish.

Yes, in the past I have always pushed to get a fg of 0.98 and never thought about leaving sugar in for flavor. Obviously I jumped into beer making before really reading / understanding everything I should have. In the middle of "How To Brew: Everything You Need to Know to Brew Great Beer Every Time" By John Palmer.

Next up are "Brew Better Beer: Learn (and Break) the Rules for Making IPAs, Sours, Pilsners, Stouts, and More" by Emma Christensen and "Brewing Classic Styles: 80 Winning Recipes Anyone Can Brew" by by Jamil Zainasheff and John Palmer (Author).

Thanks

 

[Blackmuse]

Next up are "Brew Better Beer: Learn (and Break) the Rules for Making IPAs, Sours, Pilsners, Stouts, and More" by Emma Christensen and "Brewing Classic Styles: 80 Winning Recipes Anyone Can Brew" by by Jamil Zainasheff and John Palmer (Author).

Aha! I recommend HomeBrew Beyond the basics by Mike Karnowski. Killer book with great how to pics and homebrew recipes!

I just snagged Brew Better Beer on Amazon Kindle (as I have never heard of it and love reading! (I usually never read things on Kindle as I prefer page in hand reading! But.. I couldn't resist the - read it now for 5 bucks!)

Mike's book is on Kindle too if you happen to use that format.

 

[TetersMillBrewing]

Quick update on my beer. I just pulled it off the strawberries to a clean carboy to finish fermenting (if there is anything left to ferment). The original gravity was 1.057, the gravity when it when into the secondary was 1.002, the gravity tonight was 0.996. It has great color but taste VERY dry, it taste almost like a wine. The recipe calls for another week of fermenting so I will leave it to next weekend and bottle it. Hoping it has enough flavor to make it bearable to drink.