Ready to step up from kit brewing

[youreds91]

Hi all, first post on what is an excellent site.
I resumed kit brewing about 3 years ago after a long break & was impressed at how the kits had improved since the Boot's days. I've been mainly doing the Woodforde's kits from the local homebrew shop in Bulwell (Nottingham). These have given perfectly drinkable results.

I've just won this fella on ebay & am ready to take my brewing to the next level.

I'll be going a step at a time & do an extract recipe before I try going AG.

Can anyone suggest a simple recipe for my first bash at this? The homebrew shop is just down the road from me so no problem in getting the ingredients.

Cheers

CD

[youreds91]

Hi there,

Congratulations on making the move to extract and for deciding to move on to all grain.

If you fancy it, this could be an ideal time to compare the results of the two methods by using the same recipe for the two different methods.

Extract

3100kg Pale malt extract
60g EKG (goldings) 60 mins boil
15g EKG (goldings) 15 mins
15g EKG (goldings) steep

(optional steep 250g crystal malt for a more copper coloured beer)

Thanks for that, will give it a go & report back. Now, excuse the ignorance, but what order do I do it all? I'm looking at the extract brewing guide linked from this site. Correct me if I'm wrong...

1. Get the liquor up to 60°-70° C
2. 15g goldings into nylon bag & steep for 30 mins, then squeeze the bag out.
3. Add the ME (is that dry or LME in your recipe?) I presume you meant 3.1kg not 31 tonnes
4. Bring to the boil & add the 60g goldings, boil 60 mins
5. Add the 15g goldings 15 minutes from the end of the boil
6. Cool to pitching temperature

I have a plumber friend who I often do PC troubleshooting in exchange for plumbing work, I can see him making me a cooling contraption. Will there be any major problem allowing it to cool on it's own until I get this? Failing that would a hose coiled round the FV be effective?

I'm off work the rest of this week, picking up the boiler tomorrow with my brew day following therafter

CD

[macleanb]

For cooling wort after a boil, putting the coils on the outside of an FV would be futile, there is no where near enough heat transfer to make this a practical solution. It would take forever, and take a lot of water.

Several people in this forum just put a lid on and leave overnight, sometimes sat in a bath.

This will work, but it increases your risks, though I havent seen any reports of infections (though we all get an infection at some point) (if you havent had one I dont want to know)

[youreds91]

For cooling wort after a boil, putting the coils on the outside of an FV would be futile, there is no where near enough heat transfer to make this a practical solution. It would take forever, and take a lot of water.

I've had a trawl through the forum & seen a post on making the immersion cooler. Off to B&Q now for some 10mm microbore

Regarding the many recipes, are they all dry malt extract unless otherwise stated? I'm guessing so with the weights, as LME is usually a 1.8kg tin?

CD

[macleanb]

Be careful when bending (ooer) use a formaer for the return corners.

Most recipes I've seen state either DME or LME - do you have an example of one that doesnt?

I would think if its an "old" recipe then its probably LME - thats just a guess.

[johnh]

1. Get the liquor up to 60°-70° C
2. 15g goldings into nylon bag & steep for 30 mins, then squeeze the bag out.
3. Add the ME (is that dry or LME in your recipe?) I presume you meant 3.1kg not 31 tonnes
4. Bring to the boil & add the 60g goldings, boil 60 mins
5. Add the 15g goldings 15 minutes from the end of the boil
6. Cool to pitching temperature

Just a quick thing I noticed... Point 2 should be be to steep the (optional) crystal malt in a nylon bag (BTW, imo squeezing hops is generally a bad idea anyway because they release some harsher flavors you don't necessarily want). Steep the hops at the end of the boil (step 5 and a half, if you like). This is also called the aroma or 0 minute addition and will give them a chance to impart maximum flavour without it being boiled off.

After doing it a couple of times it's like falling off a log. Good luck.

[youreds91]

Yes, 3.1kg

Hopefully this covers it all

viewtopic.php?t=5289

You can let the hops settle for 30 mins and run the wort off into a sealed fermenter to cool over night but you must sanitise everything thoroughly. You may end up with a slight haze though.

Hello again, after reading this I had a go. The guy who I bought the boiler off threw in a copy of Dave Line's book, so I adapted that recipe. His called for 2kg of Edme DMS, I got the last 2 tins in the shop which were 1.5kg, so reduced the other qtys accordingly.

It went really smoothly, the hot break came just as described, & the homebrew immersion cooler I made is amazing, pitching temp in 20 minutes. SG was 1047, down to 1010 on Sunday, missus broke hydrometer shortly after, will check again when shes got me a replacment from Wilko's today. I did have a crafty taste of the sample & it's fantastic, tastes like proper beer (no homebrew twang).
I'll get it barreled tonight, can't see it lasting long when ready.

Impressed by that I did another the following day (I have 4 pressure barrels, only 1 use currently, so building up stocks) this time following daabs guide more or less to the letter using the other tin of DMS. This had an SG of 1047, down to 1030 the next day before the hydrometer incident.

Subject to sorting out space & equipment in the garage I'll be going AG next after finally getting my head round sparging. There may be another extract brew before that.

Looks like I've made my last kit beer - Muntons Gold barreled a few days ago.

Cheers

CD

[youreds91]

Impressed by that I did another the following day (I have 4 pressure barrels, only 1 use currently, so building up stocks) this time following daabs guide more or less to the letter using the other tin of DMS. This had an SG of 1047, down to 1030 the next day before the hydrometer incident.

Subject to sorting out space & equipment in the garage I'll be going AG next after finally getting my head round sparging. There may be another extract brew before that.

Update on this.. much to my shame I've still not picked up a new Hydro so left ESB #2 bubbling away until yesterday when I barrelled it. I was amazed to find it was crystal clear in the FV, something I've never had with a kit. Boiled up a bit of brew & dissolved 1/2 cup of brown sugar & threw it in the barrel & I already have a bit of pressure in there.
I had a taste & it was OK, but a little bland, no aroma to it, maybe it will improve in the barrel?

Next up is an AG Dave Lines London Pride, I'll be asking some questions in the equipment forum on that one.

CD