What to do with other Mr. Beer HME?

Hi Folks-

My wife bought me a Mr. Beer premium kit for Christmas, and I brewed my first batch of Witty Monk using the two cans of HME and bottle priming with regular table sugar. The wort fermented in the 'keg' for 2 weeks, then bottle fermented for 2 weeks, and is now conditioning in my closet for 2 weeks. Except for one bottle, which I opened with a friend after 2 days in the fridge. It was okay, but I found it a bit gassy and perhaps a bit thin.

Beer is expensive here (Jerusalem), so I went half-hog and ordered a more comprehensive kit from Midwest, a 10-gal kettle, and Midwest's 80-shilling Scottish Export kit. I don't yet have a wort cooler, since I'm not sure if the threading for faucets and garden hoses are the same as in the states. Ultimately, I have 'most' of the equipment I need to do some more advanced extract brewing, and I've seen the light and I'm prepared to abandon Mr. Beer.

So in all of this I still have two cans of Mr. B's American Devil IPA HME. Should I just go ahead and brew it as is, although this time rehydrate the yeast first, or save it for experimentation later on? Or is it just kind of 'eh', and perhaps it'd be better to give it to a friend to get him started as well?

Standing by for your thoughts...

I had a similar situation...I started extract brewing a bit more seriously after doing Mr. Beer a few times, and had some leftover MR. Beer HME.

I basically just threw a can of Mr. Beer Blonde into a brew recently in place of some other LME, and I cut back on the hops in the boil. It's still fermenting...I have NO idea what the outcome will be, sorta just threw this one together

So, in short...I have no advice because I haven't tasted it yet, but in theory you can still use it with your other ingredients...just be careful I guess. Don't overhop because it's already seasoned with hops. Giving it to a friend to get started if you have one interested is a good idea too, I wish I had a friend or two interested in brewing.

I bought a variety pack in an after christmas sale several years back because it was 1/2 off and had a coupon. I brewed a single batch of it and the rest I used to make yeast starters. But if I only had the one I'd probably go ahead and brew it up for fun.

You can calculate the IBU's that the HME will impart if you use a good brewing calculator. Just adjust your hops accordingly.

Hey Folks-

So I decided to branch out with this American Devil IPA (ADIPA) HME and make something unique. My much more advanced kit arrived last week from Midwestern Supplies, including the kit for the Scottish Ale Export. My wort chiller is in the mail, and I'm headed to Belgium for work (and some, ahem, research) for a few weeks, so I decided to use some of the ingredients from the scottish ale kit as a way to both improve the Mr. Beer ADIPA and also to work on my cleaning/sanitizing procedures, as this is my second brew. I did a bit of research, and this is what I ended up with, using QBrew:

Extract recipe: American IPA (OG: 1.062 / FG: 1.016) [No name so far...], 2.1 Gallons

"Grain" bill:
1 lb. Briess DME Sparkling Amber
2.425 lb ADIPA HME (2 cans)

Hop Schedule (pellets):
.5 oz Challenger (AA 7.2%)- 45 min
.5 oz Challenger (AA 7.2%)- 30 min
1.0 oz Fuggles (AA 4.3%) - 10 min

Yeast: Safale S-04 Dry Ale Yeast

Notes:
I started with a quart of water in the pot, and a gallon in my (clean/sanitized) bucket. I dissolved the DME in the cool water, and added the ADIPA cans afterwards, having heated them up first to help with pouring. Once the wort was boiling, I began adding the hops on the above schedule using a nylon hop bag. I don't yet have a scale, so I eyeballed 'halving' the Challenger hops. I can't say for sure if I observed a hot break...it was very bubbly, but it wasn't light brown foam on top, it was mostly dark caramel colored bubbles. No evidence of scorching. At flame out, I tried to squeeze the hop bag against the side of the pot with my stirring spoon, to get as much of the wort goodness out of the hop muck.

Midway through, I rehydraded the dry yeas using Palmer's method.

I stood over my fermenting bucket and realized that it was going to be difficult to transfer the wort to the bucket without splashing. There wasn't much I could do about that, but tried to transfer it as smoothly as possible. I then topped up to about 2.1 gallons with additional cool water, and stirred slowly but what I thought was thoroughtly. I took my hydrometer and ended up with an OG reading of 1.052, but there was a bit of foam at the top so it was hard to see the meniscus. The temperature was about 74 F at that time, so adding 0.0017 brings me to about 1.054, a good deal off the recipe OG of 1.062. I'm guessing that there are a few reasons for this - one, using the hop bag instead of just adding the hops to the wort and straining later (I thought my wife had packed our strainer when we moved, apparently she hadn't), which may not have led to the best hop utilization as well as the wort left behind in the hop mush. Two, perhaps starting with just 1 quart of water didn't allow the hops to move around enough, particularly considering the amout of evaporation over the 45 minutes of boiling.

I poured the beer back and forth between the pot and my fermenting bucket four times to aerate, and then pitched my yeast. It is sitting in a temperature controlled cabinet to keep it in the low 60s, as that's what it says on the yeast packet.

So this American IPA-ish concotion will sit at home for two+ weeks, and I'm hoping it'll be ready to bottle once I get home. I plan on using the corn sugar from the Midwest Supplies kit instead of table sugar and bottling in 'real' bottles instead of the Mr. Beer plastic junk. I'll re-order the supplies I used today in order to have them ready to go for the Scottish Export brewing when I get back.

I don't know anyone else around here (Jerusalem) who brews, so I'm relying on your thoughts (and my taste test after conditioning). Will this make a 'good' brew? Is it really an American IPA, or more something else? I don't expect I'll make it again as it was a way to use the ADIPA cans and to experiment a bit, but I hope to learn as much as possible about what may have reduced hop utilization, or perhaps the wort/water wasn't mixed well enough when I took my sample. Would it have been better to aerate it first, then take a sample?

Cheers!

Ken

I like to give my brews 3-4 weeks to ferment, as well as 3-4 weeks or more to condition.

Good call finding a way to make use of the HME. There is no use letting anything go to waste when you can find a place for it in another brew.

I'm willing to bet that your OG number was off because you didn't mix the wort well enough before you took the gravity sample. It's a really common thing with new partial-boil extract brewers.

I wouldn't sweat the difference, and no matter what "style" it is, it will be beer, and probably good beer to boot.

For future improvements, I'd suggest you look at your yeast pitch rates. The little packages that come with cooper's and muntons just don't have enough cells to properly ferment 5 gallons of wort.

muthafuggle said:

I'm willing to bet that your OG number was off because you didn't mix the wort well enough before you took the gravity sample. It's a really common thing with new partial-boil extract brewers.

I wouldn't sweat the difference, and no matter what "style" it is, it will be beer, and probably good beer to boot.

For future improvements, I'd suggest you look at your yeast pitch rates. The little packages that come with cooper's and muntons just don't have enough cells to properly ferment 5 gallons of wort.

Click to expand...

Oh, and I should have said "welcome to the obsession!!!". It sounds like you've got a great start. And enjoy your "research" in Belgium. I'm jealous!

muthafuggle said:

For future improvements, I'd suggest you look at your yeast pitch rates. The little packages that come with cooper's and muntons just don't have enough cells to properly ferment 5 gallons of wort.

Click to expand...

Yeah, I ditched the Mr. B 'under the cap' yeast after my first brew ended up a little...meh. I 'borrowed' the Safale S-04 dry yeast from my scottish export kit, and used the whole pack for a 2.1 gallon finished brew. I figured that over-doing it was better than under-doing it! I'll do more research next time to figure out a proper pitching rate. So much to learn!

Thanks

Welcome to the obsession! I also started with a mr. beer kit from my wife at chirstmas. First brew was a standard recipe(west coast pale ale), second started with the irish stout kit with some additions, and third started with the weizen kit from mr. beer, with some specialty grains. the wheat was bottled today

Regardless if the beer you brewed is to an official BJCP style, I'm sure it will be good and it will be beer, which is the whole point

Cheers!

She's bubbling away nicely in the cupboard. Whatever it is, it seems like it's on its way to being beer.

I should be able to hold out an extra week or two before bottling, too. It's kind of funny - with the first Mr. Beer 'Witty Monk', I fermented for two, bottled for two, and then tasted one after a few days. It wasn't all that hot, but I didn't really care. The rest of the batch is sitting in my cold-ish closet, and will have nearly a month of cold conditioning before I give it a go again. I suspect they'll be better...but I'm not excited about them like I am about this one!

Aaaand, I just had to look up what BJCP is. Good to know!

Cheers

One of the things I've learned is the last beer usually turns out to be the best of the batch, thus reinforcing the 'patience is a virtue' mantra.

With the month of conditioning time recommend that before you drink the next one from the batch you allow it to chill in the refrigerator for a week minimum. The month of conditioning time plus a week more to mellow in the fridge should get you one tasty beer. :rockin:

BTW, if you haven't already, I highly recommend checking out the [URL="https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/mr-beer-read-all-about-ask-questions-46360/" Mr Beer - Read all about it and ask questions[/URL] sticky, which for quick reference is located at the top of the beginners forum here. There are tons of tips and discussions in that thread regarding the use of Mr. Beer kits and fermenters.

Folks-

Just back from Belgium, and I can attest to the quality. Even had time for a side trip to St. Sixtus of Westvleteren, and returned home with a pair of their 'In Der Vedre' packs (4 x blonde, 2 x 8s, 2 x 12s). Phenomenal.

Tomorrow will be 3 weeks in the primary for this beer, so I decided to pull out my fermtech thief and take a sample, but it's possible I blew it. I got a sample and didn't think I got enough to float my hydrometer but tried it anyways since it's only a 2 gallon-ish batch. Well, it wasn't enough...so I tried to get a little more. That certainly didn't work, since half the beer went back into the primary, and I had only sanitized the outside of the thief. So I stopped, sanitized a measuring cup, and then used it do dip and then fill the thief. I ended up with a FG of about 1.017, which is just about on target for my recipe's FG according to QBrew. I downed the sample, and it tasted pretty good!

Assuming the FG is the same tomorrow, should it be good to go for bottling? I know I could give it another week, but as per SOP I'm a bit impatient. I suppose there's a chance I infected the wort with my botched first sample, but I'm going to RDWHAMB and wait a month to see if that monster rears its head.

Thanks for any advice.

I'm planning on doing a similar thing this weekend. I have a can of whispering wheat left over. I am combining it with some wheat DME, caravienne, and carapils. I got some sterling and palisade hops and some Safale 05 yeast. Hopefully going for an American wheat type thing. Not sure about that mr beer yeast. It might just be trash.

I always pitch my Mr Beer yeast into the boil as yeast food for the good yeast I get from the LHBS. I really like the Whispering Wheat with a pound of wheat DME and Danstar Munich yeast, but I am sure what you have planned will be super tasty!

A little update:

I bottled today, my first botting experience using my 'regular' equipment rather than the Mr. Beer keg.

I used a 6.5 gal bucket primary, and my starting volume was about 2.1 gallons of beer. I cleaned and sanitized everything, including my bottles and bottling bucket, before starting. I used the TastyBrew calculator to figure out how much corn sugar to use, and ended up with 1.9 oz (for American Pale Ale style, with 2.52 Volumes of CO2). I boiled it in a cup of water, and after it cooled, put it in the bottom of my bottling bucket.

This was my first use of my Fermtech autosiphon, which was hit and miss. I had a bit of a challenge getting it started, so there was a bit of air coming through the siphon at different times of siphoning. I tried my best to siphon 'quietly', and for it to siphon in a whirlpool effect to completely mix the corn sugar solution with the beer. I didn't stir it Eventually I got most of the beer off of the yeast cake, and set the primary aside. I didn't try to stir the beer/corn sugar solution any more than had been done with my whirlpool siphoning...should I have?

Next was hooking up my Fermtech bottle filler. This, too led to a bit of air coming through the tube, but the biggest problem was that there was a lot of beer left in the bottom of the bucket below the nozzle. I placed wedges underneath the bucket to get as much of it out as I could, but ultimately this led to some air getting into the hose (and therefore into the beer) at different periods of filling.

Ultimately, I ended up with just over 1.75 gallons of bottled beer from the starting volume of 2.1 gallons. Is that a normal yield? I have one bottle that is not filled to 1 inch of the top of the bottle, and is instead only to the beginning of the taper of the neck. Will that just end up being a kind of crappy bottle, since there may be too much headspace?

These bottles will be in my cupboard at 68/69 degrees for 3-4 weeks, followed by at least a week of conditioning in the fridge.

Based on this, any suggestions for next time?

Thanks

It's been a week since bottling, and I chilled a test bottle last night to see how it's been going. I just sampled it, and it's pretty decent, actually. Very hoppy, good aroma, perhaps a bitter aftertaste, and good body. Head retention was a little weak, but carbonation was just about right on. It is certainly far superior to my first attempt when I bottle-primed a Mr. B 'Witty Monk' with table sugar - those bottles still taste very fizzy, even after 5 weeks of conditioning.

Overall, I'm happy with the results and I'm looking forward to next week's test. I'm definitely glad that a) I added hops to the Mr. B HME, and b) there does not appear to be any infection, despite errors and mistakes along the way.

Cheers!

Final follow up on this thread:

Following the advice of others, I sampled a beer at each week of the conditioning process. After both the first and second weeks, carbonation was alright, but there was a distinct dirty or musty aftertaste to the beer. Some searching indicated that this was probably due to the Fuggles I used.

I just sampled the another bottle, which conditioned for 3 weeks at 70-ish and was refrigerated for almost a week. Lo and behold, great carb and decent head retention, and the dirty/musty aftertaste has mellowed into a very drinkable and good-tasting beer. Even my wife, who doesn't particularly like beer, was happy with the results.

My take away: time heals all wounds - bottle condition those babies. I have a few more in the closet to test in another month, and perhaps they'll taste even better. If you've picked up a Mr. Beer kit, don't hesitate to experiment with the HME and add hops to create your own brew and learn how the process really works (I suggest you use QBrew or better yet Beersmith to figure out what kind of frankenstien beer monster you'll make with the Mr. B HME). I know that the techniques I used from this batch significantly improved my procedure for my most recent scottish ale, and I think it's a great way to expand your extract brewing.

Cheers!