Basic question about simple sugar in the recipe

I do not use either sugar in the boil or fermenters, but have used both in bottleing.

I have found no or not much diffrence there. could be otherwise.

 

Corn sugar and cane sugar are different chemically. Corn sugar is glucose, aka dextrose, and is a monosaccharide. Cane sugar is sucrose, which is a disaccharide, made up of one glucose and one fructose ("fruit sugar"). To use cane sugar, yeast has to do work to first break it down into its two monosaccharides. Then it can metabolize the products.

Does this really matter in beer? I haven't done side by side comparisons. But I will say that if I want to baby the yeast, for example in a big beer, I use corn sugar. It just seems like the safer approach.

 

Corn sugar is made from, well, corn. Cane sugar is made from... sugar cane.
Both are simple sugars. Corn sugar is dextrose. Cane sugar, table sugar, the granular white stuff is Sucrose.

For brewers the differences are slight and perhaps not at all distinguishable.
Cheers

 

“Are corn sugar and cane sugar pretty much interchangeable in terms of flavor?”

I am unaware that if these sugars are added to the boil (or even after the boil) that they provide flavors to the resulting beer. My thinking is they would be interchangeable here.

Cheers!

 

I've read that glucose enhances the production of isoamyl acetate (banana flavor), but I can't remember where. [Edited to add: I assume this is only true with a yeast that already produces noticeable amounts of isoamyl acetate, e.g. hefeweizen yeast.]

 

Jamil has said this. So, I think, did a woman (don't remember her name) who does lab stuff (a biochemist maybe?) at Wyeast.

ETA: I tested this several years ago with some 1 gallon batches and can't honestly say that the added glucose/less maltose (mashed wort) increased banana for me.

 

I've also heard that too much sucrose can result in a cider-y ester. I don't think I've experienced this.

 

I’ve used both multiple times in my IPAs and to be honest, I really don’t know if I’ve ever noticed any difference . I would probably have to do side by side comparisons from a split batch and blah blah blah. I use bakers cane sugar now if I want to add a little abv boost to a beer. It’s just super fine cane sugar. I use it as a precaution so I don’t wind up scorching my kettle. Very similar to corn sugar in texture and the way it dissolves. Just cheaper. So, third option if you’re interested.

 

@VikeMan @mindbender

A Zymurgy article 3-4 years ago discussed maximizing banana in Hefeweizen by mashing in a way that favored glucose in the mash. The article was written by someone with German brewing credentials, li want to say a professor, but don’t recall the details. It struck me as a little odd because I do not believe high banana is considered desirable in hefes, although I confess to sometimes liking it.

 

I suspect that was Michael Eder, who studied at Doemens and Weihenstephan. I hear they make some sort of wheat beer at the latter.

 

Hmmm....distillers wash?

 

A lot of body could help cover up the perception of dryness, but it's hard to imagine where that body would come from in a beer with a high percentage of simple sugar in the wort.