higher alcohol beers

[Pat_buttercups]

hey guys,l dose anybody have experience with brewing high alcohol beers? i attempted this weekend a scot ale I made up http://brewgr.com/recipe/4830/scotch-ale-experiment-strong-scotch-ale-recipe , from what it seems it ought to have ended up at 1.096 but actual OG was 1.066
I used a fly sparge method and im hoping some of our more experienced brewers would be able to tell me what i did wrong?
other note its fermenting furiously and looks like its still going to be very nice i just don't quite get how to get that extra bit of sugar in it naturally

[nigel_c]

The efficiency of the posted recipe is 75%. If your actual efficiency is lower it will throw your results a lot.

[Pat_buttercups]

ah very interesting any idea how i can bolster my efficiency?

[nigel_c]

Its a matter of getting use to your own brewing way and tweaking it. I was suffering for poor efficiency (don't laugh) a while back. I slowed down my drain of mash. I split my batch sparge into 2 equal infusions. Boosted my efficiency a few points.

[beerfly]

Two of the biggest factors

• precrushed or did you crush your own grain?
• how long did the sparge take?

were you taking any gravity mesurements during the sparge?

[LordEoin]

did you make it to 5 US gallons (19l) or 5 imperial gallons (23l)
You'd have about a 20 point drop automatically if it was made to 5 imperial gallons
with 65% efficiency you'd end up at about your mark then
23l, 65%=1.069 (based on 17lb maris otter)

[Pat_buttercups]

hmm interesting i took a reading part way through the sparge and got about 073 i didnt really take note of time i spent on it but i estimate about 20-30 min. The final volume was 20 - 20 1/2 L so slightly higher than the 19 but not quite 23
the grain was pre crushed, dose that make a big difference?

[Bubbles]

Might seem obvious, but did you record the temperature of your grain bed when the fly sparge was in progress? That can make a huge difference to your efficiency.

[Bubbles]

Also, what was your post-boil volume? If the volume after chilling was much more than intended, your OG will obviously be lower.

And at what point did you take your OG reading? What temp was the wort at?

[nigel_c]

Also, your gravity sample. make sure it is at the temp its supposed to be. Its it higher or lower it will affect the final reading. You could be spot on and just got a bad reading due to false hydrometer reading.

[Pat_buttercups]

i didnt recoded the temperature when it was in progress, i did before and was about 64-65deg then i sparged with 80 deg water. are those temperatures off?
do anby of you have a link to some solid information on getting better efficency and doing it right the internet is a mix if different oppinion and info

[Qs]

This is handy tool http://www.brewersfriend.com/hydrometer-temp/ I use on brew day to get an estimated gravity pre-boil.

What temperature was it when you took your post boil reading?

[Covey]

Something in the same vein, will my 10% DIPA condition in the bottle, will safus-05 cope up this high whats my options.
Thanks guys

[Taf]

Something in the same vein, will my 10% DIPA condition in the bottle, will safus-05 cope up this high whats my options.
Thanks guys

In a similar position here, as recently bottled a 10% DIPA made with US05. I just add sugar to the bottle to prime, and used one clear glass bottle, and the sugar in this bottle, seems to be replaced by yeasty matter at the bottom, so I would be hopeful.

[nigel_c]

I found O5 will struggle to prime past 10%
Notty will finish lower and handle the higher abv. I've primed up to about 12% with Notty.