Low Alcohol Brewing

[ChairmanDrew]

8 hours ago, Aussiekraut said:

The recipe looks simple enough and straight to the point. But I'm a little worried it'll be rather thin. The problem with using less fermentable sugars in a beer to drop ABV is, that it inevitably leads to watery tasting beer. To overcome this, you can either remove alcohol after the beer is fermented out or you dig deep into the box of tricks to get body into the beer. That is easier when you're brewing all grain but you should still be able to get something decent with kits. I wouldn't use dextrose in this recipe but DME for starters. It's not much but every little bit helps Maybe even replace it with some very hot steeped crystal malt (70-72C), which should not hurt the ABV bill too much. A hotter steep is a little like a hotter mash, where longer chained sugars are made, which the yeast can't eat. Maybe some maltodextrin will also help. 

I probably never will make that TBH Although I do have a can of Coopers Mexican Cerveza to use that maybe I could try making something lower ABV with.

[Triple B Brewing]

On 1/8/2024 at 8:49 AM, ChairmanDrew said:

Well, it's got no alcohol in it

I like to drink my beers in longer sessions and get a buzz, but without getting trashed. Unfortunately there isn't much on the market in that mid range (below 4% but above 2%). Here in NZ, Steinlager used to do a nice lite beer at 2.5%, but I must have been the only one drinking it because it has been discontinued. I've also noticed zero beers becoming a big thing lately.

I've thought about trying to make a lite beer, but am skeptical that it will come out tasting nicely balanced. I've asked before on these forums about this one, but I don't think anyone has ever actually bothered making it   https://www.diybeer.com/au/recipe/zephyr-light.html

Hey @ChairmanDrew, I too enjoy havin' multiple cold ones without gettin' trashed everyday. I'm currently a 23 litre "Kit n Bits" brewer, packaging in kegs and I'm really enjoying trying each of the Coopers Recipes in this space and the outcomes they have produced so far, but I am also interested in following my doctors advice in trying to brew a low ABV beer which lead me to plan to brew the Nelsons Light recipe, but I too had reservations about it possible turning out a little thin. 

Then I found @Pale Man thread on Partial Mashing and thought maybe I could use this process to have a crack at "reeving up" the Nelsons Light recipe a tad with the addition of using the Partial Mashing process. 

This then lead me to trying to get my head around a new process and if I have the right equipment already on hand to do a Partial Mash, which lead me to create and post the following. 

 

My recipe for the "Reeved Up" version will be as posted here 

NELSON'S LIGHT - With A Partial Mash - Beer Recipe - Brewer's Friend.pdf

I'm a really structured sortta guy, so I haven't got this leap into partial mashing scheduled until Sept of this year, but I'm lookin' forward to seein' how it goes and sharing  my outcomes here.

Happy brewin' 

[Aussiekraut]

On 1/12/2024 at 3:23 PM, Triple B Brewing said:

Hey @ChairmanDrew, I too enjoy havin' multiple cold ones without gettin' trashed everyday. I'm currently a 23 litre "Kit n Bits" brewer, packaging in kegs and I'm really enjoying trying each of the Coopers Recipes in this space and the outcomes they have produced so far, but I am also interested in following my doctors advice in trying to brew a low ABV beer which lead me to plan to brew the Nelsons Light recipe, but I too had reservations about it possible turning out a little thin. 

Then I found @Pale Man thread on Partial Mashing and thought maybe I could use this process to have a crack at "reeving up" the Nelsons Light recipe a tad with the addition of using the Partial Mashing process. 

This then lead me to trying to get my head around a new process and if I have the right equipment already on hand to do a Partial Mash, which lead me to create and post the following. 

 

My recipe for the "Reeved Up" version will be as posted here 

NELSON'S LIGHT - With A Partial Mash - Beer Recipe - Brewer's Friend.pdf 293.25 kB · 4 downloads

I'm a really structured sortta guy, so I haven't got this leap into partial mashing scheduled until Sept of this year, but I'm lookin' forward to seein' how it goes and sharing  my outcomes here.

Happy brewin' 

I just had a look at the recipe and it should work. What I would suggest is try to do the mash at a higher temperature like 70 or even 72. That will add body but reduce alcohol. You could even add more grain to the mash and still get the more body, even if ABV stays as it is. The biggest issue you face making low ABV beer is, that it can easily become thin or watery. So you have to apply some trickery. Just have a little play with higher mash temps and grain/malt amounts. You can also use a yeast like verdant, which is not just a beast, it also brings a lot of flavours to the party, which help overcome shortcomings in terms of taste. 
 

Oh yeah, one more thing. Doing a partial mash and having to boil your concoction, why not go all out AG? You are spending the time anyway and you have to do a mash and a boil, so what’s stopping you? Get a grain bag, a 20-25l stock pot and a thermometer and you’re off. Maybe brew a “concentrate” and top up the FV with the appropriate amount of water. 

[Triple B Brewing]

14 hours ago, Aussiekraut said:

I just had a look at the recipe and it should work. What I would suggest is try to do the mash at a higher temperature like 70 or even 72. That will add body but reduce alcohol. You could even add more grain to the mash and still get the more body, even if ABV stays as it is. The biggest issue you face making low ABV beer is, that it can easily become thin or watery. So you have to apply some trickery. Just have a little play with higher mash temps and grain/malt amounts. You can also use a yeast like verdant, which is not just a beast, it also brings a lot of flavours to the party, which help overcome shortcomings in terms of taste. 
 

Oh yeah, one more thing. Doing a partial mash and having to boil your concoction, why not go all out AG? You are spending the time anyway and you have to do a mash and a boil, so what’s stopping you? Get a grain bag, a 20-25l stock pot and a thermometer and you’re off. Maybe brew a “concentrate” and top up the FV with the appropriate amount of water. 

Thanks @Aussiekraut I really appreciate receiving your feedback - most grateful for that

Yep I can give the higher mash temp and use of different yeasts (Verdant) a go, but I think I’ll be a little limited in the first instance Re the amount of grain by the equipment I currently have (which is why I created my partial mash spreadsheet - to work out what my capacity was with the appointment I had at hand). 
Anywho, all goin well, who knows I might have made the unknown leap straight into AG Brewing after my first attempt

Thanks again for your advice 

[Greenyinthewestofsydney]

Sampled my next batch which I made Tuesday. OG was 1.012 and it's at 1.008 now with a pH of 4.1. The smack of bitterness is gone. There is a really nice level of bitterness and a touch of flavour from the hops BUT the background flavours which the other one had are gone too. It tastes a little meh. I ended up using about half to two thirds the slurry as there wasn't much slurry to begin with anyway. Maybe too much yeast on this one for the saisony taste to come through. 

Anyway will let it clean up for the next 3 or 4 days then see where it is at. I think its better than the others but still pretty average TBH.

[Triple B Brewing]

2 hours ago, Greenyinthewestofsydney said:

Sampled my next batch which I made Tuesday. OG was 1.012 and it's at 1.008 now with a pH of 4.1. The smack of bitterness is gone. There is a really nice level of bitterness and a touch of flavour from the hops BUT the background flavours which the other one had are gone too. It tastes a little meh. I ended up using about half to two thirds the slurry as there wasn't much slurry to begin with anyway. Maybe too much yeast on this one for the saisony taste to come through. 

Anyway will let it clean up for the next 3 or 4 days then see where it is at. I think it’s better than the others but still pretty average TBH.

Well fingers crossed it gains a little over the next 4 days of conditioning Greeny.
As the ‘ol sayin’ goes, ya gotta break a few eggs when makin’ an omelette.

Havin’ said that, not sure what makin’ low ABV beer has to makin’ omelettes anywaz keep at it cobber, hopin’ you’ll break the code soon eh

[Greenyinthewestofsydney]

First taste test of Low Alcohol Saison #1. Much better than i expected. The hit of bitterness is still there but it is much much less than the uncarbonated sample and the bitterness doesnt linger either. Some saisony flavour there. Head dissipates fairly quickly. It was gone with two thirds of the beer still left. 

Plenty to work on and im expecting #2 to be a little better if not fantastic. I can drink this though so not entirely unhappy with the result as i was expecting a lot worse.

[Triple B Brewing]

1 hour ago, Greenyinthewestofsydney said:

First taste test of Low Alcohol Saison #1. Much better than i expected. The hit of bitterness is still there but it is much much less than the uncarbonated sample and the bitterness doesnt linger either. Some saisony flavour there. Head dissipates fairly quickly. It was gone with two thirds of the beer still left. 

Plenty to work on and im expecting #2 to be a little better if not fantastic. I can drink this though so not entirely unhappy with the result as i was expecting a lot worse.

WOOHOO Good for you @Greenyinthewestofsydney

[ChairmanDrew]

Decided to have a go at the Nelson's Light recipe for my next brew, with a few variations, depending on what I have at hand;

 

1x 500g LDME

1x 1.5kg Maltexo

250g Light Crystal Malt

25g Motueka hops

20g Nelson Sauvin Hops

25g Nelson Sauvin Hops

LalBrew Verdant IPA yeast

 

The 1.5kg Maltexo replaces 1kg of LDME, so might result in slightly more alcohol(?). I'm also using Motueka hops instead of Centennial, which I think should be relatively similar. It'll be the first time I've made a beer without a pre-hopped extract can, so should be exciting

Edited January 21 by ChairmanDrew

[Greenyinthewestofsydney]

On 1/14/2024 at 9:16 PM, Greenyinthewestofsydney said:

Sampled my next batch which I made Tuesday. OG was 1.012 and it's at 1.008 now with a pH of 4.1. The smack of bitterness is gone. There is a really nice level of bitterness and a touch of flavour from the hops BUT the background flavours which the other one had are gone too. It tastes a little meh. I ended up using about half to two thirds the slurry as there wasn't much slurry to begin with anyway. Maybe too much yeast on this one for the saisony taste to come through. 

Anyway will let it clean up for the next 3 or 4 days then see where it is at. I think its better than the others but still pretty average TBH.

2nd batch first taste. Let this one clean up a bit more and cold crashed it a bit longer too. Pours nice. Head seems to linger more than the first one. The taste is well. Still a bit meh for me. Bitterness could have been somewhere in between this and the other one and would have been perfect. Saison flavours are still not there either compared to the first. Its drinkable but i cant say im not disappointed. I thought this would be much better than the 1st batch but id give the 1st one 4/10 and this one 4.5/10. 

Anyway im almost finished the first keg so in the next week or so im going do another. Changes to the hopping schedule again and im also gonna dump the hybrid saison yeast and spin up some WY3724 Dupont which i know will give me more flavour. 

[iBooz2]

On 1/21/2024 at 1:13 PM, ChairmanDrew said:

Decided to have a go at the Nelson's Light recipe for my next brew, with a few variations, depending on what I have at hand;

 

1x 500g LDME

1x 1.5kg Maltexo

250g Light Crystal Malt

25g Motueka hops

20g Nelson Sauvin Hops

25g Nelson Sauvin Hops

LalBrew Verdant IPA yeast

 

The 1.5kg Maltexo replaces 1kg of LDME, so might result in slightly more alcohol(?). I'm also using Motueka hops instead of Centennial, which I think should be relatively similar. It'll be the first time I've made a beer without a pre-hopped extract can, so should be exciting

Nothing wrong with making a beer out of un-hopped extract as a base, I have done it several times.  It just need the extra complication of a hop boil / steep to get required IBU's and aroma and then the chill down process before dumping into your FV and all is good.

Good luck with your chosen recipe.   I am sure it will be very drinkable.

[ChairmanDrew]

1 hour ago, iBooz2 said:

Nothing wrong with making a beer out of un-hopped extract as a base, I have done it several times.  It just need the extra complication of a hop boil / steep to get required IBU's and aroma and then the chill down process before dumping into your FV and all is good.

Good luck with your chosen recipe.   I am sure it will be very drinkable.

Just put it in the bottle tonight. Came in at around 3.3% (if the hydrometer is to be believed). Smells great and nice, light colour. High hopes for this one. Cheers.

[Classic Brewing Co]

6 hours ago, ChairmanDrew said:

Just put it in the bottle tonight. Came in at around 3.3% (if the hydrometer is to be believed). Smells great and nice, light colour. High hopes for this one. Cheers.

Reading the ABV with a thermometer will only give you an estimated ABV.

To calculate the approximate ABV % of your brew, simply subtract FG (final gravity) from OG (original gravity) and multiplying by 131.25. 

ABV = (OG-FG) x 131.25 

Example ABV = (1.040-1.010) x 131.25 

• OG stands for Original Gravity – This refers to the starting gravity of the wort before fermentation begins. 
• FG stands for Final Gravity – This refers to the finishing gravity once fermentation is complete. This value also allows you to determine whether fermentation has completed.

Quick points

• Most hydrometers used by home brewers are scaled for specific gravity readings between the ranges of 1.000 (for water) to 1.100 (for high gravity barley wines).
• An average beer generally has a starting gravity between 1.040 and 1.050 and a final gravity around 1.010.
• Hydrometers placed water at 20°C should read 1.000.

[iBooz2]

8 hours ago, Classic Brewing Co said:

Reading the ABV with a thermometer will only give you an estimated ABV.

How so?  But it will give you a very good estimate of the Temperature. 

[Triple B Brewing]

On 2/6/2024 at 10:55 PM, ChairmanDrew said:

Just put it in the bottle tonight. Came in at around 3.3% (if the hydrometer is to be believed). Smells great and nice, light colour. High hopes for this one. Cheers.

Very interested in your review of this brew @ChairmanDrew I have it planned to make it later in the year but with a partial mash of 1.5kg of Pale Ale and 0.3kg of light crystal malt. I’m expecting around 3.3% ABV finished in the frosted glass

[ChairmanDrew]

On 2/11/2024 at 7:35 PM, Triple B Brewing said:

Very interested in your review of this brew @ChairmanDrew I have it planned to make it later in the year but with a partial mash of 1.5kg of Pale Ale and 0.3kg of light crystal malt. I’m expecting around 3.3% ABV finished in the frosted glass

I'm just "testing" it at only one week in the bottle. I wont post a pic til I give a few more weeks, but I think this might be a winner

[Triple B Brewing]

12 hours ago, ChairmanDrew said:

I'm just "testing" it at only one week in the bottle. I wont post a pic til I give a few more weeks, but I think this might be a winner

Oh WOOHOO @ChairmanDrew - fingers crossed it continues to improve then

Thanks for the preliminary heads up cobber

[DavidM]

Had a crack at the Nelson's Light

Didn't have the right hops so used what I had, Cascade and Eclipse

ABV came in at about the 3.2 range (give or take)

It turned out pretty good, nice body, holds a head, and tastes good as well.

I brew a mid-strength for the Wife, it's a standard, bland beer, and she likes it.

She was not as keen on this one, so will not do it again for her.

Will be interesting when she finishes this batch and moves on to the regular bland beer, who knows she may change her mind!

[Triple B Brewing]

2 hours ago, DavidM said:

Had a crack at the Nelson's Light

Didn't have the right hops so used what I had, Cascade and Eclipse

ABV came in at about the 3.2 range (give or take)

It turned out pretty good, nice body, holds a head, and tastes good as well.

I brew a mid-strength for the Wife, it's a standard, bland beer, and she likes it.

She was not as keen on this one, so will not do it again for her.

Will be interesting when she finishes this batch and moves on to the regular bland beer, who knows she may change her mind!

Wonderful - thanks for the review on this one @DavidM - I have it scheduled to brew later in the year but I will try doing a partial mash on it as well. 
I’m looking for a full bodied mid, so your review sounds promising

[ChairmanDrew]

4 minutes ago, Triple B Brewing said:

Wonderful - thanks for the review on this one @DavidM - I have it scheduled to brew later in the year but I will try doing a partial mash on it as well. 
I’m looking for a full bodied mid, so your review sounds promising

My Nelson's Light also came out pretty good. I think I will make it a basic go-to recipe, just change up the hops each time for a bit of variation.