Late malt additions and low gravity

Brewing Processes
1

First things first: thanks for a great forum. This is my first post because I’ve found answers to all my other questions by searching.

My issue: In recipes that have late malt additions, I often end up 0.010 or so short of my calculated gravity. Could the hops be leeching/absorbing some of the malt/sugar? I don’t see any evidence of scorching or sedimenting that would show where else my sugars are going. (I will try removing my hop bags during late malt additions in the future.)

Any info would be appreciated. Cheers!

2

The malt extract probably just isn’t thoroughly mixed in. The heavier extract stratifies at the bottom, and you’re most likely pulling a sample off the top. The other possibility is that your volume measurement is off.

3

Thanks, Mark. Never thought of those conditions. I’ll have to keep an eye on volume, there’s not much I can do with the stratification.

And, given the styles I usually brew, I can stick to the early malt additions and not worry about this as often. Cheers!

4

before taking your gravity reading give the wort a thorough stir. it might also be advantageous to stir more when adding the late addition. even if it’s not scorching to the bottom of the kettle you could be getting unwanted coloration if the wort near the heat is higher gravity than that near the surface.

5

You can take the gravity reading before adding the top-off water, then account for the dilution.

6

I always stir my wort quicky when adding any malt. And I usually take my gravity readings after I transfer to my fermenter, so I assumed that the transfer would eliminate any stratification. But I wil take all that into account.

7

I do a full boil, so usually volumetrics are determined by boil off.

8

In that case. Stratification won’t be an issue.