Argggghhh!!!!!!!
I got bit by this again yesterday. Brewed a Belgian Golden Strong with 1.5 lbs of table sugar. I brew all my beers using 2 step batch sparge, 3.9 gallons from runnings from each batch. I know exactly what gravity my first and second runnings should have to meet my brew day targets. I know exactly what percentage of extract I should get from each batch-sparge.
That is one of the beauties of the way I do things. I can tell if my extract is low or high before it ever leaves the mash-tun. So, if I'm low I can make an on the fly adjustment. If I'm high I can stop the runnings (early) when I hit my desired extract
So, back to the brewday, I'm low. I'm way low...like 60 points low when I measure my SG of the mash-tun. I'm expecting and SG of 1.069, and I measure 1.048 (I really work in brix, but same thing). I extend my mash time, I decoct some mash, all to improve my extraction. I did ok. I get it up from 12 brix, to 14.5 brix. I'm still 30 points low for total extract.
I refill the mashtun, and repeat the decoction a second time to get some more extract. These runnings came out right on my expected gravity of 6.5 brix (1.027). Now I've got 7.8 gallons of 1.049 wort....should be 1.053. Could be worse..but, I'm not used to missing by that much, and I'm frustrated by the extra 90 minutes....and I know the fermentability of the wort is going to be much higher because of the extended mash and decoctions. It tastes ok, so no tannins seem to have been extracted.
Anyway, I start the boil and flip over to that part of my brew sheet. I have a list of all boil ingredients, and all preboil targets, and post-boil targets. At the start of the boil and every 15 minutes I measure my current SG, and volume, and then calculate my actual boil-down-to volume. So, I do this for the wort in my kettle, and figure I'm going to have to boil for an extra 30 minutes, and I will be short by 1/2 gallon of final wort.
This is a golden strong with a target SRM of 5.5, so the extra 30 minutes is going to darken the beer a little and develope the melanoidins a little more. Meh...ok, and I can deal with 4.5 gallons of beer. I usually have a little extra anyway, so I might not end up short when I fill the keg.
Then I check the boil ingredients to see what's first. THAT is when I realize my mistake. I see the sugar, and IMMEDIATELY remember this bug. ARRRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!
Please don't take offense to what I said about you Brad. I didn't mean it.
Anyway, off to get the sugar, dump it in take more measurements, recalculate my mash numbers after removing the sugar....and guess what. My original numbers before futzing around with decoctions and extended mashing...were just perfect.
Sigh...
Brad, please fix this soon...for the sake of my belgian beers. This year is the year of the belgian brews at my house.