Two questions: Increasing ABV and air

Fozzydog3

Hey lads,

I just ordered my first kit there a 30l yoke from homebrewwest and I opted for the mangrove jacks pale ale, only problem is its a puny 4.7% much too weak for the manly beast that I am(sarcasm) I'd like to get it up to around 7% just to get the mostbang for my buck, judging by what I've read ill need some Lme but does anyone know how much ? The pouch I saw said it makes 23 litres.

Also if I'm making 23l in a 30l bucket why doesn't that 7l of air defeat the purpose of an airlock ?

BeerNut

Fozzydog3 wrote: »

why doesn't that 7l of air defeat the purpose of an airlock ?

The airlock doesn't really have a purpose. The beer will be protected by its own blanket of CO2, regardless of whether the fermenter is sealed with an airlock or not.

Knifey Spoony

Fozzydog3 wrote: »

Hey lads,
I just ordered my first kit there a 30l yoke from homebrewwest and I opted for the mangrove jacks pale ale, only problem is its a puny 4.7% much too weak for the manly beast that I am(sarcasm) I'd like to get it up to around 7% just to get the mostbang for my buck, judging by what I've read ill need some Lme but does anyone know how much ? The pouch I saw said it makes 23 litres.

The thing with "kit and kilo" brewing is that the kit is produced to have a certain taste and be balanced for the style. So, while you can add more LME (or DME) you are going to radically alter the taste of the beer and it won't really taste like a pale ale at all. When upping the ABV, you would want to add more hops to keep things balanced.

Additionally, going up to abut 7% you will want to add more yeast. This is because you will have a lot more sugar to eat up and pitching the correct amount of yeast for your given OG is one of the most important hings you can do to avoid off flavors produced by the yeast during fermentation. Pitching too small a population of yeast will lead to stressed yeast and then to off flavors.

I'm guessing that the kit you got comes with a 5g pack of yeast. For a 7% beer you will want to use yeast that comes in 11.5g packets and use 2 of them.

So, there is a lot to think about if you want to produce something that will resemble a 7% pale ale. But, at 7% you are in IPA territory, which is a big hoppy style, whch this kit will not give you. I think for your first brew it might be worth making the beer as is, get a feel for the process and then try messing about with the next batch.

Fozzydog3 wrote: »

Also if I'm making 23l in a 30l bucket why doesn't that 7l of air defeat the purpose of an airlock ?

I'm not sure what you think an airlock is used for, but it is use to let CO2 out of the fermenter during fermentation and stop anything from outside the fermenter (dirt, wild yeast, etc...) getting in and spoiling the beer. So, it is always recommended that you use an airlock.

Fozzydog3

Cheers dudes yeah ill play it safe for my first one and make it as is.

I knew about the airlock I was eh just testing you XD

Carawaystick

Fozzydog3 wrote: »

Also if I'm making 23l in a 30l bucket why doesn't that 7l of air defeat the purpose of an airlock ?

The 7 spare litres, and then some, will be filled with krausen if you use enough yeast in a big beer, if you're unlucky

sharingan

Fozzydog3 wrote: »

Cheers dudes yeah ill play it safe for my first one and make it as is.

You can ruin good beer by spiking it with sugar (or even malt extract) to boost strength.
Follow the recipe as is, and make *good* beer.

If you need strong hooch, put 3kg of sugar in 20L of water and add some kind of yeast. Wait until the foam subsides. Ideally add loads of cordial to make it tolerable to put in your gob.

Its cheap, its strong, and your friends will hate you afterwards. But they wont scalp bottles of your well made pale ale either.

loyatemu

sharingan wrote: »

If you need strong hooch, put 3kg of sugar in 20L of water and add some kind of yeast. Wait until the foam subsides. Ideally add loads of cordial to make it tolerable to put in your gob.

I expect to see "Location: Mountjoy" beside your username :pac:

Hingo

sharingan wrote: »

You can ruin good beer by spiking it with sugar (or even malt extract) to boost strength.
Follow the recipe as is, and make *good* beer.

If you need strong hooch, put 3kg of sugar in 20L of water and add some kind of yeast. Wait until the foam subsides. Ideally add loads of cordial to make it tolerable to put in your gob.

Its cheap, its strong, and your friends will hate you afterwards. But they wont scalp bottles of your well made pale ale either.

Now he tells us, and here's me messing around with this mashing lark...

sharingan

loyatemu wrote: »

I expect to see "Location: Mountjoy" beside your username :pac:

Its odd, but thats where I got the recipe ...

loyatemu

sharingan wrote: »

Its odd, but thats where I got the recipe ...

I was reminded of this internet classic

(I heartily recommend reading the whole "Steve, don't eat it!" series).