How Strong Do You Brew?

[buttersd70]

I wasn't responding directly to yourself, goo. Its a general thing thats been really, really bugging me for a while, that there is a general misconception (even on this forum, and sadly even by experienced brewers that I have a great amount of respect for) in relation to lower alcohol beers. (And beers with low hop flavour or aroma, for that matter). I'm not even talking experimental ultra low under 2% stuff, but anything under say 4-5%....to me, 4.5% is full strength, and anything over that is over strength........285mL of 4.4% is one 'standard drink' by Australian Standards .....

I'll have my mild in the swap, with samplers as well....just pitched it, so depending on attenuation, looking at 3.1-3.4%, plus bottle carb, about 0.3%. So under 4% regardless. Not cos its cheaper, not cos it's easier....cos it's not, not by a long chalk. 4 hours to prepare the grain, 3 stage mash, 2 or 3 stage fermentation......numbers that drive you insane because of the lower threshold of error due to the narrower margins of error allowed. But it's worth it, because it's balanced.

(sods law states that now I've ranted, something will go wrong, and the batch will be stuffed. )

I see Milds like....rump steak. Everyone used to like rump. Its tasty. Yum. But all of a sudden, fillet steak is the way to go....its more tender, its lower in fat, its more trendy, its marvelous....It's also lower in flavour, and a ******* to cook right without drying out. I'd rather have rump, thanks very much.

And on a side note, a 3.5% can get you just as drunk as a 5% if you drink enough.

 

[Tony]

Kegged Quaffers are usually between 1.045 and 1.050. I like Aussie ales, pilsners, pale lagers, english bitters ect

Bottled beer usually around the 1.055 to 1.060 mark with the odd one up around the 1.070+. These usually include beers brewed to the upper edge of the guidelines...... The odd American style.... still dont know why i do it..... Porters, stouts, ESB, IPA, and what ever concoction i can think up that will never fit any guideline

Strongest beer to date was a 1.106 doppelbock

cheers

 

[Goofinder]

So, with about 50 responses in, it's looking a fair bit like a normal distribution centred on around 5%. That's pretty much what I expected, based on my assumption that most of us would have beer brought up on ~5% megaswill before we got into this homebrewing caper.

I have to admit that for some reason I still think that ~5% is a full strength beer, even though my eyes are being opened to different styles that each have their own 'ideal' ABV%. I appreciate the guys (and girls) that are looking into different styles and brewing appropriately.

For the ~5%ers, why do you brew to that?

PS. Although it might look like it, I'm not doing market research or anything like that. I'm just an Engineering geek interested in numbers... and beer! :beerbang:

 

[Tony]

I find a beer over 5.5% in the keg is a pain. I like to have a couple of beers after work and have tried filling it with 6+% beer before and end up in a poor state.

I know i could just drink less but i like to sip on my beer while i relax after work and 2 or 3 beers getting me buzzed is not what im after.

Also when i have friends/family over they like to have a couple of beers and still be able to drive........ if they are too strong they cant sample the brews.

Thats why i stick to the 4.5 to 5% for the keg and bottle specialtity beers over 6% for drinking when i feel like it.

cheers

 

[Goofinder]

Also when i have friends/family over they like to have a couple of beers and still be able to drive........ if they are too strong they cant sample the brews.

Thats why i stick to the 4.5 to 5% for the keg and bottle specialtity beers over 6% for drinking when i feel like it.

Cheers Tony.

I guess my real question is why is it about 4.5-5%? Is it because we're conditioned to that being somewhat 'normal' and thus easier to judge how drunk one is, or because there's something about ~5% that is optimal with respect to feeling the effects but not going overboard?

 

[Dave86]

I find a beer over 5.5% in the keg is a pain. I like to have a couple of beers after work and have tried filling it with 6+% beer before and end up in a poor state.

I know i could just drink less but i like to sip on my beer while i relax after work and 2 or 3 beers getting me buzzed is not what im after.

Also when i have friends/family over they like to have a couple of beers and still be able to drive........ if they are too strong they cant sample the brews.

Thats why i stick to the 4.5 to 5% for the keg and bottle specialtity beers over 6% for drinking when i feel like it.

cheers

I reckon this is the way to go. I've got two taps and enough room for another keg in the fridge, I've put on a beer at 6.2% and a cider at 7.3% and they sit in the fridge too long for me. At the other end of the scale, the NZ light I brewed lasted six days (that was helped by the fact that my mates could all come and have 2-3 pints and still drive home!) From now on, I'm going to try and stick to strictly quaffers on tap, nothing over the 5% mark (as a rule of thumb) and nothing too experimental or challenging.

In the future when I can afford the 4-6 tap setup of my dreams, I'll probably be more inclined to put a big IPA or a BGSA on one of the taps or something a bit more out there. For the meantime however, I'll just stick to hefe, wit, bitter, APA, kolsch, porter, blonde ale, and once I get my stocks back up after I move I'll get around to having a proper crack at an AG lager. mmmmm, munich helles..... :icon_drool2:

 

[Tony]

I just like to have more than 2 or 3 beers.... I enjoy 4 or 5 a night........ Im sure some will pick at that but i dont care.

I brew them under 5% because i dont enjoy getting really drunk all the time. I enjoy a few beers but not getting pissed.

I have a few beers when i get home from work and with dinner and then pull something stronger in the bottle to enjoy while i relax late at night.

nothing more.

cheers

 

[Peaka]

Well I normally stick to 5-6% but then there are some times when I end up with 8 or 9% beers and funny things start to happen that I'm not normally aware of in the morning hahaha.
Best to stick to 1 longneck of them per drinking session lol.

 

[barfridge]

I don't brew often enough these days, so subconciously seem to go big. Strongest I've done so far is 10.6% (1.097 OG), I think my weakest ever would be about 4.6%. But I've always wanted to do a nice mild...

 

[newguy]

I used to average an OG of about 1.055 - 1.060. Now my average OG is 1.050. I still make the occasional 'heavy' beer with an OG of 1.065+, but that really isn't often. As others have said, the strong beers don't get drained very quickly. I'm now on a light beer kick (1.040 or less) because I really like the idea of having a 'guilt-free' beer on continual rotation. I stumbled upon a killer mild recipe and I'm going to try a Scottish 60/ soon.

 

[Barry]

60/- 3.2% to Wee Heavy 11.3% and everything in between (I like scotch fillet). I bottle so the strong beers hang around under the house for 6 months to 2+ years so no worries. Most are in the 5% range.

 

[warra48]

I don't particularly concern myself with the alcohol level of my brews, and don't set out to achieve any particular level.
I design my recipes to try and achieve the taste I want, as I only drink 2 or 3 stubbies a day, or a single longneck.

These are my last doz brews, the alcohol levels are pre-carbonation.

Bitter 4.04%
APA 5.74%
Brown Ale 5.34%
Hefeweizen 5.47%
Weizenbock 6.53%
Bitter 4.56%

 

[sinkas]

I general brew strong 8+ as I dont brew often and am too lazy to stop lighter beers getting infected prior to kegging/bottling.

 

[blackbock]

I brew a variety of different strength beers, but some styles just don't allow for much variation. I have made a conscious effort lately to brew below 5% for most, but factors beyond my control mean that most of them usually end up back above 5%. <_< My holy grail is to brew a Hefeweizen below 4% that doesn't taste watery... It's a difficult chore and a fine balance between mouthfeel, yeast character and bitterness. Very difficult.

Although I love many of the higher ABV beers, I find that some of them tend to sit for much longer in storage and it can become a chore to have more than one glass at a time. Yobbo mates love them though!

 

[PostModern]

My standard brew (whatever style lately) is a bucket of malt. This fills one wort pack to 1.055 which I dilute down to 1.050 for fermentation. Advantage is that my standard ales are all about the same strength, so they don't creep up on me. I do make about 1 in 5 stronger than that, just to have a big beer on tap for when I feel like something more flavoursome.

 

[danman]

my beers usually start around 1050-1060 OG because i tend to use 4.5-5kg grain per 21L batch.
alchohol percentage i dont normally get too concerned with,so long as ive had a thorough fermentation im happy
i did vote 5.5-6% though


cheers,dan

 

[KingPython]

Usually 5.5-6.0 just for the heavier feel.

 

[SJW]

I'm with Tony on this one, anything over 5% in a keg is a bit too much and ends up there for far too long. I like to keep the kegs turning over.

Steve

 

[Fourstar]

I'm with Tony on this one, anything over 5% in a keg is a bit too much and ends up there for far too long. I like to keep the kegs turning over.

Steve

The main reason why my Robust Chocolate Porter was stuck in the keg for 6 months. Would have preferred it in bottles for that amount of time but its just 'so much effort'

 

[Tony]

There are exceptions to the rule.

The 6% Oktoberfest i have on tap ATM has not lasted any longer that a 4.5% German Pils would have.

But its a fest beer and not on tap all the time.

I also find dark beers....... being something i love, dont drain as fast either. People visiting will tend to pass on a beer.

I love them but prefer a pale beer as a quaffer.

cheers