Changing a Stout kit from dry to sweet?

[foxhound]

I've been given an Edme Stout, dry, for a Christmas present. I've had one of these kits before an I struggled to drink it (yes true!). I prefer my stout to be sweet, so is there a way I can change the flavour please?

 

[johnnyboy1965]

Add 500g of lactose or change the yeast

 

[shearclass]

Perhaps brew as normal, and rack stout into a second fermentation bucket once a desired gravity has been reached, (say 1.016??) and possibly add a couple of camden tablets to stun yeast?

That's a bit of a guess though.

 

[johnnyboy1965]

Perhaps brew as normal, and rack stout into a second fermentation bucket once a desired gravity has been reached, (say 1.016??) and possibly add a couple of camden tablets to stun yeast?

That's a bit of a guess though.

I can see your theory, but NO...let the yeast do its job, dont try to kill it half way through

 

[Archtronics]

Lactose needs to be added but don't go crazy I think 500g would be a tad to much you only want to go up a few gravity points 200g should be more than needed.

 

[johnnyboy1965]

Lactose is a unfermentable sugar, it will not effect the F.G. it will merely add sweetness. 500g per 40pts is about right to sweeten a stout.

 

[Archtronics]

I tend to add mine before bottling so what I meant was you ferment out to say 1.010 then add lactose and measure the increase in gravity points till you get to what you want so say 1.010 to 1.020 etc.

Depends really on how sweet you like it as a sweet stout covers a wide range from dry upwards hence, tho 500gs still seems an awful lot to me.

 

[BeerEagle]

Would the addition of Lactose make it a milk stout?

I use wine sweetener, which is basically aspartame, but the Lactose would give you a fuller mouth feel.

Don't give it to anyone with dairy allergies, though.


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[johnnyboy1965]

My Opinion Only...Aspartame is the worst sweetener ever, you can actually taste it. Yes...adding lactose will make it taste like a Milk Stout (not a bad thing IMO). Thats why I posted... change the yeast.

 

[johnnyboy1965]

Ive messed around with adding lactose to differenr beers to get some sweetness in there and about 500g in a stout is about right in my opinion. I wouldnt add it to bitters or milds. Id add more Crystal Malt for that. But with a kit you are limited to what you can do.

 

[foxhound]

Many thanks guys, reading through the lactose seems what I want, with the milk stout type flavour. I'll give it a go. :

 

[SamWise72]

Lactose is a unfermentable sugar, it will not effect the F.G. it will merely add sweetness. 500g per 40pts is about right to sweeten a stout.

It *is* an unfermentable sugar, and as such, it absolutely *will* affect the FG. Final Gravity is a measure of the sugars remaining after fermentation, and the only reason it's not 1.000 is due to unfermentable sugars. Hence, the higher the FG the sweeter the brew, before you factor in the balancing bitterness.

 

[johnnyboy1965]

I agree totally with what your saying. Every brew must be fully fermented out, lets say 1.010. Then add your lactose to sweeten, after fermentation is complete. If you add the lactose before fermentation is complete, this could lead to all sorts of problems.

 

[shearclass]

If you had corny kegs, i imagine you could totally kill the yeast, wine style, with camden tablets and potassium sorbate (is that the right word...?) then force carbonate. However, i have no experience of doing this, and again, this is a guess.