finding out ABV after the fact

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by paddyfrankie, May 29, 2015.

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  1. paddyfrankie

    paddyfrankie Initiate (0) Jan 14, 2015 New York

    So I am guessing I could have found a thread on this but figured that I would just ask. I broke my hydrometer before I could get a reading on brew day and pitched anyway. We should've saved a sample to test but did not. Is there any way to test a beer after the fact to get an estimated ABV? This was a new grain bill/yeast strain entirely, so comparing to a previous brew with the same recipe is impossible. Any help would be awesome. Cheers.
     
    #1 paddyfrankie, May 29, 2015
  2. CurtFromHershey

    CurtFromHershey Initiate (0) Oct 4, 2012 Minnesota

    Was it extract or all grain? Sounds like AG in which case an educated guess is all we'd be able to do.
     
    #2 CurtFromHershey, May 29, 2015
  3. paddyfrankie

    paddyfrankie Initiate (0) Jan 14, 2015 New York

    All grain. 20 lbs american pale, 1 lb munich, 1 lb victory, 1 lb dme, 1/2 lb maltadextrin. Whitelabs American ale yeast in a starter double pitch as it was a 10 gallon batch. 60 minute boil. Hopped beyond hell. Any guesses?
     
    #3 paddyfrankie, May 29, 2015
  4. paddyfrankie

    paddyfrankie Initiate (0) Jan 14, 2015 New York

    I messed up a bit there. Pound of maltadextrin.
     
    #4 paddyfrankie, May 29, 2015
  5. VikeMan

    VikeMan Grand Pooh-Bah (3,067) Jul 12, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    Have you brewed a beer with about the same amount of malt before? If so, what was your mash efficiency?
     
    #5 VikeMan, May 29, 2015
  6. paddyfrankie

    paddyfrankie Initiate (0) Jan 14, 2015 New York

    Have not brewed a double batch before. If I cut it in half, I have done the grain bill at least very close to it. Just no DME or Maltadextrin. Was trying to pump up the ABV.
     
    #6 paddyfrankie, May 29, 2015
  7. paddyfrankie

    paddyfrankie Initiate (0) Jan 14, 2015 New York

    Oh and about 85%
     
    #7 paddyfrankie, May 29, 2015
  8. VikeMan

    VikeMan Grand Pooh-Bah (3,067) Jul 12, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    Okay, so you've done a proportionally similar batch in terms of pounds of grain to batch size. So ignoring a few unknown details (various non-scaling losses), you can roughly assume somewhat similar mash efficiency.

    I'd say your OG, including the DME and Maltodextrin, should have been around 1.075.
    So, get an FG reading when the beer is done. (If you already bottled, degas a sample.) Then use that FG and the estimated OG in an ABV calculator.

    FWIW, Maltodextrin won't raise your ABV. The DME will though.
     
    #8 VikeMan, May 29, 2015
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  9. paddyfrankie

    paddyfrankie Initiate (0) Jan 14, 2015 New York

    Really? I was under the impression that that is why you used it.
     
    #9 paddyfrankie, May 29, 2015
  10. jlordi12

    jlordi12 Pooh-Bah (1,856) Jun 8, 2011 Massachusetts
    Pooh-Bah

    Drink a couple and recite the alphabet backwards
     
    #10 jlordi12, May 29, 2015
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  11. paddyfrankie

    paddyfrankie Initiate (0) Jan 14, 2015 New York



    Thank you very much btw!
     
    #11 paddyfrankie, May 29, 2015
  12. VikeMan

    VikeMan Grand Pooh-Bah (3,067) Jul 12, 2009 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah

    Matodextrin is not fermented by ale/lager yeast strains. So it's used to increase the final gravity (and mouthfeel).
     
    #12 VikeMan, May 29, 2015
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  13. paddyfrankie

    paddyfrankie Initiate (0) Jan 14, 2015 New York

    Very good to know.
     
    #13 paddyfrankie, May 29, 2015
  14. bevoduz

    bevoduz Initiate (0) Oct 29, 2007 Illinois

    http://www.whitelabs.com/other-products/ls6646-alcohol-volume-weight
     
    #14 bevoduz, May 30, 2015
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