Shot Beer - Xtra Strong, Anyone Had Success?

[Boozy the clown]

Yes yes, i did a search, some threads but no word on any results...

I'd like to make a mega strong beer, belgian style, but I think it's the sort of stuff you'd only bottle in stubbies and have shots with groups of mates. Too strong for longnecks!

Aerate very heavily, 4 times as much as with a normal gravity beer. Less oxygen dissolves into solution at high gravity.
Pitch 3-4 times as much yeast as normal.
Consider aerating intermittently during the first 5 days of fermentation. This will help yeast cells during a very difficult fermentation. Aerate with oxygen for 30 seconds or air for 5-10 minutes.
Higher nutrient levels can allow yeast to tolerate higher alcohol levels. Use 2 times the normal nutrient level. This is especially important when using WLP099 to make wine and mead, which have almost no nutrient level to begin with.
Do not start with the entire wort sugar at once. Begin fermentation with a wort that would produce a 6-8% beer, and add wort (it can be concentrated) each day during the first 5 days. This can be done together with aeration. This is mandatory if the reported 25% ABV is to be achieved.

This is from whitelabs, using the 'WLP099 Super High Gravity Yeast'

Has anyone here actually gone through this process and had a decent result?
There a few threads posing the question but no-one has seemed to come through with a result.

Whitelabs state that

The higher the gravity, the more winey the result. Beers over 16% ABV begin to taste less like beer, and more like fortified wines. With low gravity beers, this yeast produces a nice, subtle English ale-like ester profile.As the gravity increases, some phenolic character is evident, followed by the winey-ness of beers over 16% ABV.

I've heard of a few very high % beers, I guess they manage to avoid the 'winey' taste.

Havent got the composistion yet, lots of malt and candi yes, but quantity???

I'd love to have a crack at pushing a yeast as far as it will go. Would make a nice add on (stubby of) to a case swap. (well i think so anyway...)


Any advice on how much of what? (K&K bloke)


I had moderate success with the 'sugar monster' but want more booze for the clown in me. :beerbang:

 

[Boozy the clown]

Oh yes, if another yeast is more suited please suggest it...

 

[Samwise Gamgee]

Hey Boozy,

I've used the WLP099 before. Probably didn't need to since the final abv is approx 12% ish or so (don't think my OG reading is accurate).

I did a partial mash along the lines of 6KG of Light LME, a couple of kilo's of ale malt, a little torrified wheat and a little chocolate and crystal.

Hopped with Super Alpha (bittering) EK Goldings (flavour) and Amarillo @ Flameout.

Turned out quite drinkable!

I think the recipe is on here somewhere. I'll have a look and attach link.

Link to my Strong Ale Recipe

 

[berapnopod]

Consider aerating intermittently during the first 5 days of fermentation.

DON'T Consider aerating for the first 5 days! Thats a really good way to ruin your beer. I have heard that you can aerate up to about 24 hours after you pitch yeast, but after 5 days you'll have significant alcohol in the beer and that will quite happily oxidise with excess oxygen.

Aerate with oxygen for 30 seconds or air for 5-10 minutes.

This sounds more like standard aeration techniques. At least 30 sec to 1 minute of pure oxygen is.
Too much oxygen in solution can be toxic to yeast. Thats why 1 minute is the upper limit. But you can really only over-aerate a wort if you use pure oxygen. Its no gonna happen by aerating with air.

Higher nutrient levels can allow yeast to tolerate higher alcohol levels. Use 2 times the normal nutrient level. This is especially important when using WLP099 to make wine and mead, which have almost no nutrient level to begin with.
Do not start with the entire wort sugar at once. Begin fermentation with a wort that would produce a 6-8% beer, and add wort (it can be concentrated) each day during the first 5 days. This can be done together with aeration. This is mandatory if the reported 25% ABV is to be achieved.

Good advice there on extra yeast nutrient.

If you want to make a really strong one, I can tell you how Sam Adams does it with their "Utopias", which is the strongest beer in the world. BTW, it tastes like calvados, and while its a really nice drop, its not worth the price tag in my opinion.

Anyway, their method is:

Start making out a wort of gravity 1.060 (similar to above). When kraeusen starts to fall back (ie. fermentation is more than 50% done, but still going well), add fresh concentrated wort, fresh nutrient AND fresh yeast. The fresh yeast part was left out of the above advice, but is essential.

Repeat this for as much as possible, until the yeast finally gives up.

Berp.

 

[pint of lager]

Start searching using "barley wine" in the engine.

These beers are a challenge to brewers to make.

There is a lot of residual sweetness left that needs to be balanced by the right amount of hops bitterness.

The high alcohol knocks carbonation and head retention around.

When using lots of yeast, watch your ferment temperatures, they will climb quickly. Also watch your krausen, you may need a blowoff tube.

Berapnopod and Sam's advice is great.

 

[Guest Lurker]

Boozy I think you are a bottler? The other problem with pushing the yeast until it has had enough is trying to get carbonation in the bottle. You could add more fresh yeast at bottling but even that would be dodgy I think.

 

[Linz]

GL,

No probs getting carbonation.

The beer will 'seem' to karck it around the FG1.020-25 mark.

Mine did.(OG 1.108)AG

Bottled without any fermentables, and now its overcarbonated 2 years later...

 

[Guest Lurker]

GL,

No probs getting carbonation.

The beer will 'seem' to karck it around the FG1.020-25 mark.

Mine did.(OG 1.108)AG

Bottled without any fermentables, and now its overcarbonated 2 years later...

[post="115796"][/post]​

Well my ag og 1.100 barleywine is nearly 2 years old, some primed, some unprimed, half brewed with 1056, half brewed with 1728, all flat! Well, pretty close to.

 

[Linz]

Gees, and I used 1728 too????

none primed???

its a miracle!!

got me beat......