Brewing Additives – sugar, flavourings, finings and water treatment
Additives are everything you put in a brew besides malt, hops, yeast and water: sugar for carbonation, spices and fruit for flavour, finings, salts for water treatment and enzymes. Here you will find more than 100 additives for homebrewing beer, cider, wine and hard seltzer, grouped into seven sub-categories by what they do in the brew.
How to choose the right additive
Stage of the process: Water salts go into the mash water, Protafloc into the boil, enzymes and fruit purée into the fermenter, and fruit essences into the beer after fermentation.
Fermentable or not: Dextrose, candi syrup and fruit purée ferment out and add alcohol. Lactose, maltodextrin and sweeteners such as acesulfame K do not ferment, so the sweetness or body they add stays in the beer.
Beer, cider or wine: Many additives work for all three. Sorbistat and Campden stabilise wine and cider, while Clarity Ferm and Brewzyme-D are made for beer.
Additive categories
Sugar and flavourings – dextrose, carbonation drops, candi syrup, lactose, spices and oak chips.
Fruit purées – pasteurised fruit purée in 1 kg pouches from Fruits Rouges & Co.
Fruit essences – NaturalSensation essences added after fermentation.
Finings – Protafloc, gelatine, bentonite, kieselsol and Super-Kleer.
Water treatment – calcium chloride, gypsum, lactic acid and pH meters.
Enzymes and more – enzymes, acids, tannins, antifoam and preservatives.
Eat Me Glitter – edible glitter for beer, cider and drinks.
The most used additives
Most brewers need something for carbonation and clarity. Mangrove Jack's carbonation drops go straight into the bottle, while 500 g of dextrose suits a priming solution for the whole batch. Protafloc is a carrageenan tablet added to the wort in the kettle, and Clarity Ferm is added with the yeast to prevent chill haze. For water treatment, calcium chloride and gypsum are the most common salts.
Frequently asked questions about brewing additives
What is the difference between fruit purée and fruit essence?
Fruit purée is real fruit that goes into the fermenter and ferments further, adding flavour, colour and a little alcohol. Fruit essence is a concentrate added after fermentation. One 20 ml NaturalSensation pouch is intended for about 20 litres of beer.
Which sugar should I use to carbonate beer?
Dextrose (corn sugar) is the most common choice, as it ferments out completely without adding flavour. Dissolve it in water and mix it into the whole batch, or use carbonation drops placed directly in each bottle.
How do I get clearer beer?
Add a carrageenan-based fining such as Protafloc at the end of the boil, and chill the beer after fermentation. Gelatine can be added after fermentation if the beer is still hazy.
How do I stop fermentation in cider or wine before back-sweetening?
Use Sorbistat (potassium sorbate) together with Campden (sulphite). The combination prevents renewed fermentation, so you can add sugar without it fermenting further in the bottle.
