Max alcohol possible from baking yeast?

[fahdoul]

Anyone know what the maximum alcohol wash one can make using bakers least? I've been making a 1 lb per gallon recipe, the one with tomato past, molasses and lemon, which is supposed to yield 8-9% but I have seen references elsewhere to people getting 10-12 from bakers yeast, or even more, and wouldn't mind doing so myself.

Are there any tricks to getting higher alcohol levels? Adding sugar in stages, etc?

[Swag]

Anyone know what the maximum alcohol wash one can make using bakers least? I've been making a 1 lb per gallon recipe, the one with tomato past, molasses and lemon, which is supposed to yield 8-9% but I have seen references elsewhere to people getting 10-12 from bakers yeast, or even more, and wouldn't mind doing so myself.

Are there any tricks to getting higher alcohol levels? Adding sugar in stages, etc?

I think the trick would be to use a higher alcohol tolerant yeast. Try some distillers yeast or EC1118.

[pothead]

I get between 12-14%abv consistantly with red star's active dry bakers yeast.

No special tricks, just keeping a steady temp, and leaving it alone till its done.

How long are you letting it ferment? How much yeast are you using? What is your recipe?

[fahdoul]

Been letting it ferment as long as it wants! A week or two.

I'm new at this which is why I am playing around with bakers yeast - the nearest homebrew shop is 50 miles away. And then, of course, using anything else would just about DOUBLE my cost per liter .

I'm using Bokabobs supermarket wash, which seems to be a fairly generic easy no frills mix.

Just thought it would be fun, as a frugal person, to see if there was anyway to squeeze a few more % from the bakers yeast. I've read a few posts which suggest adding the sugar mix a bit at a time, and wondered if there were an any tricks like that I ought to be trying.

[pothead]

I think possom has had good luck with adding sugar in different stages.

I have just boiled the sugar in just enough water to melt it, added 1 6oz can of tomato paste(while still boiling to make sure it disolves too), a couple squirts of lemon juice, and then top it up to 5 gallons with water cool enough to take the temp down to about 70-75 or so. Then I try to hold the temp there the WHOLE fermentation. Insulating your fermenter works great . Most of my washes like this have gotten up to 14%, and taken about 3-4 weeks.

[possum]

Having a good constant temp helps. Things are warming up around here now, but I had trouble this winter, I had to give my fermenters a warm bath. If stuff gets too cold, the yeast goes dormant...and I dont use lager yeast. I found some crosby distillers yeast for @ $6 US, and the label says 1000galons can be fermented with 1lb. That stuff is real good, 20-22% abv if I stage the sugar.

[fahdoul]

I've got to do my fermenting in the basement, which stays pretty cool. So I got my buckets up on a milk crate, with a lightbulb underneath, and covered them, and found they stay constant at about 68 with a 60W bulb and 76 with a 100W, which seems to keep the yeast really happy.

My first batch which was sugared for 10% is down to 1.010 and still bubbling along. Got to go away for a week so I'll throw another pound of sugar in before I go, just for fun.