penguin69

Recipes 

Can someone explain partial mash? Is this the kits that have the grains that you steep first before adding your malt or is it something different.

unionrdr

Recipes 

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Everything works if ya let it-Roady(meatloaf)

ColoHox

Recipes 

Steep specialty grains for some flavors and the fermentables come from malt extract for extract beers. Here's a short discussion about it:

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/mini-mash-partial-mash-steeping-specialty-grains-163202/

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Bacteria are the only culture some people have.

Planning: APA, Skeeter Pee
Primary: Westy Clone, Honey Kolsch, 1554 clone
Lagering: Gluten-free Light Lager, Rye Marzen
Kegged:full
Bottled: lots

CatHead

Recipes 

As Uniondr said specialty grains are with most extract kits and add flavor, color, and mouthfeel but add little in the way of fermentables. Partial mash adds 3-4 pounds of base grain that turn into fermentables.

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Primary: Pale Ale Lite
Bottled: Miller Lite Clone, Guiness Clone
Planned Next: ? Not sure, maybe something in wheat family.
Gone: Dry Irish Stout, Pale Ale

penguin69

Recipes 

So can you buy partial mash kits or do you just have buy all your ingredients separately?

Channel66

Recipes 

You can usually buy them as kits

unionrdr

Recipes 

__________________
Everything works if ya let it-Roady(meatloaf)

kscarrington

Recipes 

Partial / mini mashes are a good way to get an idea of the time and effort between an all extract brew and all grain. It'll add about an hour to your brew day, maybe even a little more, because you end up performing the mash of an hour and sparge the grain at the end. I only did one partial / mini mash kit before going all-grain BIAB. The process of the partial / mash answered many of the lingering questions I had, and it made a ran good beer!

CatHead

Recipes 

Either way. I am brewing my first partial mash this afternoon. Austinhomebrew.com I believe has every kit they offer in partial mash form. Midwest has a decent selection and most others have some.
I have brewed a couple extract kits and just read around here and the internet and was able to throw together a minimash by modifying recipes on here with knowledge of what I liked and conversion between grains and extract. I saved a little bit of money by buying hops and DME in a little larger quantities to use later and that is the advantage of buying ingredients seperate.

Check out the stickied post on partial mash at the top of the beginner forum it was a HUGE help for me.

__________________
Primary: Pale Ale Lite
Bottled: Miller Lite Clone, Guiness Clone
Planned Next: ? Not sure, maybe something in wheat family.
Gone: Dry Irish Stout, Pale Ale