# Sugar or Corn Syrup to raise ABV?



## Fly*guy (Jun 1, 2009)

I had read somewhere that corn syrup can be used and may be better then using table sugar for raising the abv of a wine.

thoughts






the 1st few kits I made I used table sugar and since then I have been using corn syrup because it is readily available to me... free,(best kind). However, I'm having trouble getting my SG to come all the way down below or even at 1.000...... is there unfermentable sugars in corn syrup?

I can also get Sucrose and/or Dextrose easily and cheap,(free, really enjoying the fringe benefits of my job these days), if they would work better.
I thought I also read that to make certain ports they use a dextrose mixture to raise the abv after the primary is complete.... fact or fiction?

trying to get a grip on my fermentation problems in southern Pa.


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## Wade E (Jun 1, 2009)

Im not an authority on corn syrup or what it contains but know that corn sugar (dextrose is easier for yeast to eat up then table sugar.


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## Fly*guy (Jun 1, 2009)

yea Wade, I thought so as well, maybe I'll get some dextrose tomorrow and try my next wine with that instead.
I know that in my shop the corn syrups that we have are what is called 42De and 62De corn syrups, the numbers represent the amount of dextrose in the syrup, 42 &amp; 62 would be the % of Dextrose in the syrup, but I'm not sure if the remainder is glucose (???) and inert ingredients or another type of sugar.

guess I'll get with QC and see if dextrose relates pound for pound the same as table sugar. Don't need to compound my troubles with too high an ABV! I know that dextrose sure taste sweeter then table sugar, but could be cause it is in poder form rather then crystals.


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## Wade E (Jun 1, 2009)

Just dont use table sugar when making beer as it will give an off taste.


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## Fly*guy (Jun 1, 2009)

I would like to make a beer once just to say I can....

Since I make wine, do I have all the equipment to make beer? And if so, what might you recommend for me to start with?

I like the budweisers and coors light and a nice one up here is the Yuengling Lager. ( don;t know if you get those where you are).


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## pizz65 (Jun 2, 2009)

Maybe you should try to make wine first without problems..................LOL


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## Fly*guy (Jun 2, 2009)

Trouble maker!




Experiments can be our best friend!

Besides the left over sugars are residuals and that will mean less back sweetening worked really well with the other 2 batches that I made, you should try my Peach, Frank.
when you gonna come over.... and bring your Blueberry with ya?


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## mattsbrewery (Jun 2, 2009)

Fly*guy said:


> I like the budweisers and coors light and a nice one up here is the Yuengling Lager. ( don;t know if you get those where you are).



I'm not sure any of these constitute "beer" in sense of what can be made at home..





The fact of the matter is, these very clean, light-bodied beers are _very_ difficult to make at home. There is some snobbery involved against these beers, but they are what they are, and a lot of people like them.

If you like a nice full-flavored ale, however, you have most of what you need already. The only "extra" would be a bottle capper for beer bottles. Simply purchase on of the kits George has for sale, follow directions (although a yeast substitution might be appropriate), and you'll have a good, solid beer to share. 

Beer is easy to make, impossible to perfect.


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## pizz65 (Jun 3, 2009)

mattsbrewery, what kind of beer would be a nice light beer to make at home? I'm not a heavy beer drinker at all


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## dragonmaster42 (Jun 3, 2009)

You can try something along the lines of a cream ale. They're fairly light.


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## Wayne1 (Jun 3, 2009)

yes, I heard a brewmaster saying on "Modern Marvels" (my source of most information) that, scorned as they are, the "light" beers are actuallydifficult to make as there is no where to hide any mistakes


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## mattsbrewery (Jun 3, 2009)

pizz65 said:


> mattsbrewery, what kind of beer would be a nice light beer to make at home? I'm not a heavy beer drinker at all



Wheat beers are light, delicious, quick, and easy. In fact they benefit (IMO) from a little warmer fermentation. I prefer to use wyeast #3068, Weihenstephan Weizen yeast. It's ridiculously active (use a blow off tube!), and adds a very fruity character to a nice light wheat beer. 

Use wheat malt extract, shoot for around 1.050 SG with very little hops (I use only .75 oz of low-alpha hallertauer), and bottle as soon as 10 days. This is the _only_ beer I bottle this young since a big part of the character is from the yeastiness.


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## joeswine (Jun 4, 2009)

corn sugar can also leave aadded taste to the wine thats not desirable.


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## Fly*guy (Jun 4, 2009)

sorry gone for a bit (storms knocked out internet here). 
So , it sounds like most of you use table sugar, which is a glucose I believe, rather then any of the others for wine making. Ok, that makes some sense to me now. I just made a Blackberry Wine with a mix of 1/2 dextrose and 1/2 table sugar looks great so far, can't wait to see how it works out... and tastes.




sure seems to ferment faster
Dextrose has less carbons per molecule then table sugar(3 c's to 6 c's)and therefore will break down faster then table sugar, but will have to see what that does for the taste as well. 
Experimentation can only help down the road.... right?


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## pizz65 (Jun 4, 2009)

Wow pics and everything now, your getting fancy better slow down Sugar Boy


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## Wade E (Jun 4, 2009)

Fly, that looks like a scrumptious topping for a cake right there!


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## Fly*guy (Jun 4, 2009)

I could scrap it off and send it down to ya if ya really want it... be done with it in a day or so.





Never had one ferment this high before... wonder if it is from the dextrose that I used in this one



. should have an idea how this idea works in a few weeks, sure smells great right now.


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## pizz65 (Jun 4, 2009)

That's probably it Sugar Boy


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## Wade E (Jun 4, 2009)

We are baking a chocolate cake for my daughters birthday tomorrow.


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## Fly*guy (Jun 5, 2009)

So you want this shipped next day by 10......






, oops it IS ten sorry, maybe next batch


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## batonrougeguy (Sep 26, 2010)

my peach looks the same,I was getting 9 second bubbles after about an hour of pitching the yeast,by the end of the day it was 1 every 3-4 seconds.
Now its 1-2 bubbles per second.It's racing along.


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