Munton's old ale kit- can I change recipe and outcome

[Terryr]

Hello there fellow kit brewers.
I am new boy to the forum. I have been brewing dodgy beer kits for the last 30 years.
I had a scan through the forums before deciding to join in, it looks great.
I can see I still have a lot to learn. Can someone direct me to a thread that will explain the basics e.g what is LME ?
Anyway, now I am here. Can I give you experts a wee problem.
I bought the above kit only to find out it only makes 12 pints of strong beer.
I would very much prefer to make 40 pints of lower strength beer, hopefully with lots of taste.
It contains 1.5Kg of contents, mainly hopped malted extract(HME by any chance)and hops etc.
Can anyone advise me what I could add to it?
Thanks in advance

Terry

[Reg]

Muntons old ale (from the Munton's website) is...

"Old Ale - Rich and warming with an unmistakable "aged" flavour - this beer should ideally be served in nips. OG 1060° to 1064°. Typical analyses when canned:-

Colour (EBC Units) 27 - 33
Bitterness (EBU's) 45 - 55
Solids (by refractometer) 80% - 82%
Acidity (as lactic) 1% max
pH 5 - 6
Free Amino Nitrogen 0.15%"

The simplest way to reduce the strength is to dilute it until your hydrometer (wikipedia link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrometer) reads the OG you require. About 1040-1045 might be sensible, but in doing this you will reduce the hoppiness and mouth feel of the beer. However, if the label description is to be believed, you should still get a serviceable pint out of it. However if you want 40 pints, you'll need to be adding more malt to achieve that, which can easily be done, but for a first crack at kit tinkering, probably best to see where dilution leads you and check if you like the result.

[Invalid Stout]

Did you buy the kit by mistake, not like strong beer and don't want to waste it?

What about making it up as intended and mixing it with weaker beer when you drink it? It might liven up a lacklustre lighter beer even if you think it's too strong to drink on its own.

[Terryr]

Hi chaps

Thanks for all of this. I have been unable to get in touch for couple of weeks. I have bought some Muntons kit enhancer and i am going to have a go a brewing 40 pints with it and the Old Ale kit.

Terryr

[Terryr]

Hi everybody

Someone may be interested. My Old Ale kit ,made up to 40 pints using Munton's beer enhancer, is one of the best homemade pints I've tasted. What is the reason? Does the beerkit enhancer make that much of a difference?

Thanks again for the advice.
Terry