Why use DME and LME

I purchased a magazine with a bunch of clone recipes on the weekend. I spent 7 years in Bath England and miss my English ales. In the mag there is a recipe for Fullers ESB which interests me.

The recipe calls for a mix of LME and DME of the same style. Is there a good reason for this? Why not go all LME or all DME? The recipe also calls for steeping grains.

On a separate note, if you have a sweet southwest English ale clone recipe to share ...I am looking for a partial extract or 3 gallon BIAB recipe!
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Can't see why you'd need to mix them...just different preparation methods of the same raw materials.

i just brewed a clone of Samuel smith nut brown Ale, its an all grain recipe but you could replace the base malt with the LME and still do a steep of the grains. i haven't tasted it yet its still in primary but it looks vary good and everything went well.

Maybe they were referring to a yeast starter? If not I can't understand why, and even the yeast starter idea is a bit of a stretch.

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Could it be to get the measurements correct? LME comes in 3.3 pound cans but DME can be more easily split to any weight. Liquid malt extract is a different product than dry. Perhaps the recipe formulator prefers the LME.

There are also different formulations of LME/DME available. Though it may exist, I haven't seen Munich DME, only LME, and I know Northern Brewer has Rye LME and 100% MO LME. So you can mix/match the "specialty" LMEs with the more consistent, easier to measure and store DME.

Just retread the directions.


1.45 lbs of Muntons Light DME added after steeping grains
4 lbs of Muntons Light LME added with 15 minutes left in boil

Seams odd

Late additions of LME will reduce the maillard reactions to help preserve the color. They also improve hop utilization. You want some malt in the boil to isomerize the alpha acids, but a crowded kettle makes it difficult for the hop resins to dissolve.

I don't see a good reason for using both. I just use DME when I need to. It has way more upsides than LME. My thoughts are that homebrew shops make and/or store both products so they want to get rid of them at the same rate. The best way to do this is to sell Extract Kits. If they didn't split it up, then there would be a significant amount of one variety left on the shelves.

I am a partial mash brewer. Sometimes I use both because I need to boost the ABV a bit but dont want to put too much LME, so I use a pound or 2 of DME, instead of 2 cans of LME. If that makes any sense, works for me.

My guess is that it's to avoid the frustration of adding 4 lbs of powdery DME to a boiling or near-boiling pot. LME syrup can be much easier to deal with: no clumping, etc.

Just be sure to stir so there's nothing sticking to the bottom and burning.

-Rich

I use both in my AE recipes. The DME doesn't caramelize as easily as LME does. And the Cooper's cans being LME,I added them at flame out as a late addition. So the DME was better in the boil for hop additions. Lighter color & cleaner flavor were had.

The only reason I've ever used both was convenience. Since LME tends to come in 3.3 or 6lb increments and it's easy to add a 3/4 lb of DME to finish up the malt requirements they tend to come in handy. Have never heard the add LME at the end to aid in Hop utilization though. That's kinda cool.

Do the Muntons LME come in 4lb containers per chance? If that's the case it'd make decent sense.

Thanks for all the feedback. I'm a bit of a noob, and also have never heard to add LME at the end to aid in Hop utilization.

I'm not sure about the size Muntons LME comes in. I ended up bastardizing the recipe because of the ingredients at my LHBS. I ended up using all LME and it was not Muntons.

Munton's LME comes in the same size cans as Cooper's. And hops like some malt,but not heavy. So a 2.5-3.5 gallon partial boil with 1.5lbs of plain DME works really well. the late extract additions are more for lighter color & cleaner flavor.

mikedibens said:

Thanks for all the feedback. I'm a bit of a noob, and also have never heard to add LME at the end to aid in Hop utilization.

I'm not sure about the size Muntons LME comes in. I ended up bastardizing the recipe because of the ingredients at my LHBS. I ended up using all LME and it was not Muntons.

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You can also use DME at the end. It doesn't have to be LME.

Brand isn't necessarily important but it can certainly change the character of the end result. There are a few base grains I avoid intentionally because I don't like the end product they produce. Nothing wrong with them necessarily but they're not to my liking. I can't imagine LME or DME either one are any different in this respect. I'd say your fine. Honestly if I'm brewing for myself if it's a little off my target it doesn't bother me terribly. I'm not entering them into any contests after all. I would definitely be careful not to get to the point it caused issue with my brew with crazy substitution but I've yet to see anyone chop anyone's head off for using what they could get their hands on. Edwort's Haus Pale has proven exceptionally friendly for people who couldn't get their hands on Cascade for example with substitutions such as Columbus.