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They're more expensive for bittering, but not bad for it. Some people like using nothing but noble hops in certain recipes, despite their usually being low AA. I don't know Polaris. There are some high AA hops that work for aroma and possibly flavor. You can definitely do this. The shorter...

This is hard to answer because bakeries aren't all using the same product. It's very specialized. The stuff they use for bread or pizza dough is typically diastatic (enzymes help the dough and with browning), but nondiastatic is often just used as sweetener, and that's more like what we use...

Their website says "Once again the Muntons Premium range is made entirely from 100% hopped malt extract with no inferior or cheap adjuncts such as barley syrup." I suspect this refers to unmalted barley syrup, which can be used to cut malted barley extract (corn syrup does the same thing). This...

Anchor has been around forever, but Fritz Maytag's purchase of it was a landmark of the craft brewing movement.

I suspect the reason it calls for Alexander is that it is the only brand sold in 4 lb. cans.

I usually buy for styles I don't brew. This could be something experimental or something seasonal. I'll buy one or two bottles of Pumpkin beers every fall. That's about as much of it I want to drink.

Were cold-brewed coffee beers mentioned above? Not stouts or porters, but lagers and IPAs. I've seen several of those. Maybe it's an old trend by now, I can't keep up. ADD: re-reading, I see the OP mentioned them.

The "Mad Scientist" bit worries me a little, but if you just want to play around within the ranges of established styles, then you can probably start now. You can take your kit recipe and change hops, yeast and/or grains. But if you want to do something crazy or start adding a bunch of foods to...

"Overbalanced?" Anyway, if you don't want bitterness, you can find IPAs that are more balanced by malts. Hop flavor/aroma is different from bitterness.

Butternuts Snapperhead IPA. Butternuts is a brewery west of Cooperstown, NY. I give them credit for canning their beer long before most other craft breweries did so. But, meh. I think they have quality control issues.

For the most part, yes, just divide them up. Use simple conversion. I wouldn't use 1/5th the yeast; I might go a little higher because pitching a bit too much is no big deal. What can alter things is the relative amount of water you use. E.g., if the original kit assumed partial boil + top-off...

Reporting back: the Saison is great! Still young yet (3 weeks to bottle plus 3 weeks since), but it is really good. Recommended. I re-used the yeast (Belle Saison dry) for a cider. We'll see. Edit: this kit is now on sale for $29. Not as much of a bargain, but still a good price.

I haven't noticed many "efficiency is irrelevant to me" comments here. If they exist, I wonder if the poster is just saying he's not killing himself to create a system that hits 85% or whatever. If he has to pay a little extra for grain, so be it. So I kind of see it as the opposite of the OP...

You can take care of the yeast, rehydrate before using, thoroughly aerate the wort before pitching, keep temperatures steady. If the yeast isn't fresh, add a second packet. Or you can add a little less water. Make it to 4.5 gallons rather than 5 gallons.

I've seen some beginner recipes (John Palmer's maybe) that say to buy two packets of yeast in case one is a dud, or perhaps is ruined by the user. I often don't have a backup, but can easily run out to my local homebrew shop. And I can't remember the last time I needed a backup. But if I were a...

Wait, is that Brewer's Gold for bittering? That's what the link says (now). To fix: maybe add an ounce of ~5-6% AA hops at start of boil. Doesn't actually have to be Hallertau, although something similar would be nice.

Austin Homebrew has a Saaz Pale Ale kit. I haven't tried it, but if you don't want to lager, then pale ale is an option. Wheat beers would work. Rogue's Hefeweizen used to (still does?) use Saaz hops, but a neutral yeast might be a safer bet. You'd use more of them in an American Wheat.

Don't worry about bubbles! Trust your hydrometer. You can also taste the sample, or just look inside the pail. Does it look messy?* Wait a day or two and take another reading. It may go down even more. Or just wait regardless (most of us give it a couple weeks). *This won't tell you if it is...

From Fermentis: "Opened sachets must be flushed sealed and stored at 4°C (39°F) and used within 7 days of opening." http://www.fermentis.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/SafAle-US-053.pdf EDIT: what budonze said.

It sounds like Murree Malt79 is very similar Malta Goya. As you say, heavier, darker and sweeter than beer because the malt sugars haven't fermented. Fermenting it would be a lot different than just adding vodka. But I don't know if it as additives or anything that would interfere.