What defies a low carb beer?

[hooper80]

Hi guys, just wondering what is used or substituted in a low carb beer?

 

[fdsaasdf]

What defies a low carb beer?

If by 'what' you mean 'who' then I, for one, defy low carb beer. It's pointless and tasteless IMO.

For some general information on low carb beer and the relative benefits (if any) of drinking it, I suggest reading https://www.vichealth.vic.gov.au/media-and-resources/media-releases/australians-fooled-by-low-carb-beer-myths---report

As for how to do it, basically you need to select a recipe and mash process that results in minimal residual un-converted starches making it into your finished beer.

Google searching 'how to make low carb beer' yields a lot of results.

 

[Lionman]

Hi guys, just wondering what is used or substituted in a low carb beer?

Low carb from what I understand means low FG.

The closer you get to a FG of 1.000, then the less sugars (carbs) remain.

Of course this means no malt flavours, no body and poor mouthfeel too.

The easiest way to get low FG is to add amylase enzymes to your fermenting wort. These enzymes convert the more complex sugars that yeast struggle with into simple sugars that can be easily converted into alcohol.

 

[Danscraftbeer]

I giggled at the title too. What defies a low carb beer is to make a high carb beer hehe...

But. I am fermenting one at the moment for the experiment to see if its better than the shelf product like Ultra Dry. No body and mouthfeel, very dry. Honestly they defy what beer really is but had to see if home brew turns out better than the shelf soda beer rubbish.
Lower the carb, calories means lowering everything including Opening gravity
Eg.1: (mine is 1.036). Will finish at FG 1.000. = 4.7% ABV
Using dry enzyme to get that low FG. Calories = 319.3 kcal/l.

Eg.2: was an Amber Ale I made that had a OG of 1.049 then didn't ferment out properly (stopped at 1.020) so I added enzyme to finish it lower but it also bottomed out at 1.000. = 6.4% ABV. To that higher gravity/abv beer It did not lose all of its body and mouthfeel which was interesting but the carb/cals are still up higher as being a higher gravity beer to start with.
Calories = 442.4 kcal/l.

Eg 3: I have done it without enzyme too just a single infusion mash at 62c.
OG = 1.040. FG = 1.002. = 5% ABV. Calories = 360 kcal/l.
So basically lower everything including the grain bill to start with. Lowest carb beer would be the ultra dry light beer that's lower alcohol than my first example.

Hope that helps...

 

[Jack of all biers]

Defy low carb beer? Drinking water would probably defy it and be better for you...

Seriously though, the low carb fad is just about as ******** as the "no added sugar to our beer" fad that is even more recent. Low carb? Either that means, more water, or more alcohol, which means the calorie content is about the same, so what the F**k does it mean anyway.... :huh:

EDIT -
hooper80, on 10 May 2017 - 4:29 PM, said:
Hi guys, just wondering what is used or substituted in a low carb beer?

To really answer your question though. Commercially they use lower mash temps and likely an enzyme (as intimated by Danscraftbeer above) to ensure that most complex sugars are converted to simpler sugars that can be consumed by the yeast and converted to alcohol and if it goes over the level they want they will water it down with de-oxygenated water (hence my sarcastic comments about more alcohol or more water).

 

[Danscraftbeer]

yeah kinda but if you drink more higher final gravity beers, higher body beers that have a lot more unfermented residual sugars then it will more favour the growth of the beer belly gut thing.
Which is why I usually mash at temps 62 to 65c.
Also because I really don't like sweet higher bodied beer, or cider etc. Or sweet anything like soft drinks, cordial etc. Sugar is bad for you that is a fact no doubt.
Hence the challenge to make low carb beer that tastes good.
Anyway the mass public drink that ***** like low carb by the billions...
It was served up at the small few Christmas parties I went to. That **** was the choice etc.

 

[Black Devil Dog]

 

[Jack of all biers]

yeah kinda but if you drink more higher final gravity beers, higher body beers that have a lot more unfermented residual sugars then it will more favour the growth of the beer belly gut thing.
Which is why I usually mash at temps 62 to 65c.
Also because I really don't like sweet higher bodied beer, or cider etc. Or sweet anything like soft drinks, cordial etc. Sugar is bad for you that is a fact no doubt.

Umm... Not quite. Go to http://www.calorieking.com.au/calories-in-beer.html and see which has more calories and where those calories come from. Alcohol contributes to calories, not just sugar, or carbohydrates. Low carb is a con and you get fat from all the s*8t you eat along with the 10 beers you drink, not just because it's high gravity or low gravity OG or FG. calories are calories, whether from proteins, carbs, fats or alcohol.

Sugar is not necessarily bad for you, though the most recent scientific theories are that Fructose is probably not great in the amounts the typical Westerner consumes it in (Sucrose contains one molecule Fructose and one molecule glucose so alot of confusion exists out there).

 

[labels]

To really answer your question though. Commercially they use lower mash temps and likely an enzyme (as intimated by Danscraftbeer above) to ensure that most complex sugars are converted to simpler sugars that can be consumed by the yeast and converted to alcohol and if it goes over the level they want they will water it down with de-oxygenated water (hence my sarcastic comments about more alcohol or more water).

I can't see that as being an economical proposition for a large brewery. Malt is expensive so why go out of your way to put in place procedures to convert the malt into simple sugars - doesn't make sense. What does make sense is to use substitutes that are cheap and have little flavour and fermet out. So that means in the mash uses maize, rice etc. OR sugar is added further down the brewing process such as the boil or in the fermentation tank. I'm suggesting sugar is the driver behind 'dry' beers

 

[Jack of all biers]

You are absolutely correct Labels. Sugar (sucrose) is added to thin out that nasty malt wort that the customer doesn't want. Well Hahn Super dry at least definitely is. The others are likely to do the same.

EDIT - Asahi at least use maize and rice to thin theirs, like the American beers..... h34r:

 

[Danscraftbeer]

Umm... Not quite. Go to http://www.calorieking.com.au/calories-in-beer.html and see which has more calories and where those calories come from. Alcohol contributes to calories, not just sugar, or carbohydrates. Low carb is a con and you get fat from all the s*8t you eat along with the 10 beers you drink, not just because it's high gravity or low gravity OG or FG. calories are calories, whether from proteins, carbs, fats or alcohol.

Sugar is not necessarily bad for you, though the most recent scientific theories are that Fructose is probably not great in the amounts the typical Westerner consumes it in (Sucrose contains one molecule Fructose and one molecule glucose so alot of confusion exists out there).

Well that's looking pretty good then for my low carb beer experiment. I only have Beersmith for analysis though. With my knowledge of the ingredients. All Grain I say all the way. No adjunct/sugars.

 

[captain crumpet]

Well that's looking pretty good then for my low carb beer experiment. I only have Beersmith for analysis though. With my knowledge of the ingredients. All Grain I say all the way. No adjunct/sugars.

So you don't use wheat or rye either?

 

[klangers]

I can't see that as being an economical proposition for a large brewery. Malt is expensive so why go out of your way to put in place procedures to convert the malt into simple sugars - doesn't make sense. What does make sense is to use substitutes that are cheap and have little flavour and fermet out. So that means in the mash uses maize, rice etc. OR sugar is added further down the brewing process such as the boil or in the fermentation tank. I'm suggesting sugar is the driver behind 'dry' beers

That's right. Liquid sugar is common is aussie lagers, rice in asian lagers, corn in american lagers.

 

[Bribie G]

Bud uses rice, from Louisiana grown crops.. y'all.

 

[Bribie G]

"Bronzed Brews" discusses the use of sugar in Australian beers. A couple of reasons that this became the common style:

With not much of a manufacturing base, modern brewing equipment had to be nearly all imported and was eye poppingly expensive, so using sugar enabled bigger brew lengths to be obtained from limited plant. I'd guess that over gravity brewing helped as well.

Also a quote here from a brewer called MacCartie in the 1880s sums up the other main reason:

It may be asked "why use any kind of sugar? Why not use cheaper material - malt alone ?". The answer is not far to seek. Colonial malts all contain large quantities of albuminous matter, therefore we use sugar in brewing to reduce the percentage of albuminous matter [nitrogen] in wort, and thus obtain a more stable resulting beer than if we used malt alone.

In the earlier part of the 20th Century when lagers started to take over from ales and malts had improved, the public were pretty well accustomed to "sugar beers" and attempts to introduce all malt German style beers generally didn't work out too well. Still happens today, for example when Bluetongue (CUB) introduced an all malt lager on tap Bruers-Brite or something like that, it flopped famously. Tried a few at the Caboolture railway station pub. Tasted like shyte anyway so why waste good malt on it while the cane fields wave enticingly in the breeze.

 

[good4whatAlesU]

Sucrose is widely used but un-pc nowadays due to the war on fructose (a part of sucrose molecule).

Maltose is two glucose stuck together so not so bad for you (apparently)... Anyway, that's a good excuse for all grain - I.e. stick with maltose.

 

[fdsaasdf]

A number of years ago I took a tour of the XXXX brewery ($10 thanks to a Virgin Airlines promotion), and as there was cricket on that afternoon I figured that at the least I'd get 4 pots of something while we towelled up the visiting poms.

It was actually a pretty decent tour from the perspective that you get to really appreciate the enormous magnitude of the operation they run. From a process engineering perspective it is something to admire, despite my thoughts on the end product.

Anyways back to on topic, when we got to the brewhouse itself I couldn't help but let out a groan when the tour guide asked the small group 'who here knows the FIVE ingredients in beer'?

 

[Bribie G]

Love that maltose:



edit: if you check the labels of a lot of cheap Dutch and other non reinheitsgebot Euroswills from the likes of Dans or BWS you'll find maltose listed, they use tonnes of the stuff.

 

[good4whatAlesU]

Nice one.

I wonder if CUB and Lion are doing the same or whether they are dropping in refined cane sugar?

 

[Lionman]

Nice one.

I wonder if CUB and Lion are doing the same or whether they are dropping in refined cane sugar?

I thought CUB beer was "made from beer"?

Probably after it has passed through a human?