ALL pale Extract.

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cheezydemon3

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As a brewer who has run the gambit from Mr beer to AG and back, I really feel that using the palest DME possible along with the specialty grains to complete the brew is the ultimate compromise for someone who can not or chooses not to do AG.

Specialty grains can easilly be mashed or steeped, rinsed through a stainless strainer suspended over a 2nd pot, Boil as usual.


Not saying that there is anything wrong with using dark dme or the like, but when I can mash:

1 lb chocolate malt
12 oz black patent
8 oz roasted
12 oz crystal 80L

add 6 lbs pale DME and hops

and know exactly what I will end up with, rather than

no grains

6 lbs dark DME and some hops

and end up with something dark but mysterious, and by no means tailored to my specifications.;)

Just my 2 cents.

Stovetop mashing of specialty grains is too easy not to try and requires very little equipment.
 
yeah im the same way. pale malt extract only, sometimes with a mini mash of Munich or Pilsner depending on the recipe. color and flavor seem much more consistent working off a pale/light/extra light extract.
 
joyceman said:
yeah im the same way. pale malt extract only, sometimes with a mini mash of Munich or Pilsner depending on the recipe. color and flavor seem much more consistent working off a pale/light/extra light extract.

exactly
 
Before I went all grain, I only used light DME. I recommend to anyone who is brewing extract to take this approach. It's not difficult to steep a few pounds of grain on the stove for 30 minutes, and you will get much nicer results.
 
I still need a grain mill. Grains weren't crushed for my 1st PM cascade pale ale. Cheaper by 10-15 dollars,And I can do stove top biab when all the equipment gets found. I can do it pretty well with either method,but partial mash will save money. And it's supposed to taste better. We'll see...
 
perhaps it should be said that I have an LHBS that is fantastic and crushes grain for free. I aknowledge that not everyone may have access to that
 
I've been considering this route to, just for the advantage of buying 50 lbs of dme for $150. But I was planning on going amber rather than pale.
 
ReverendBrett said:
I've been considering this route to, just for the advantage of buying 50 lbs of dme for $150. But I was planning on going amber rather than pale.

That seems like a lot! I get 50 lbs of pale 2-row malt for $32... but that's AG...
 
Brulosopher said:
That seems like a lot! I get 50 lbs of pale 2-row malt for $32... but that's AG...

AG is the difference. Extract usually runs about $4/pound, bulk is $3. At 6lbs per brew about, that's $6 bucks saved per batch.
 
ReverendBrett said:
AG is the difference. Extract usually runs about $4/pound, bulk is $3. At 6lbs per brew about, that's $6 bucks saved per batch.

Ah, very nice! Haven't brewed extract since 2002, and back then it was quite expensive.
 
Not saying that there is anything wrong with using dark dme or the like, but when I can mash:

1 lb chocolate malt
12 oz black patent
8 oz roasted
12 oz crystal 80L

Stovetop mashing of specialty grains is too easy not to try and requires very little equipment.

You can't mash those grains without a base malt. You can only steep them. They all have lots of starch, which can be converted to sugars if you do a proper mash.

I like the convenience of stove-top brewing. I mostly do partial mashes (5 to 7 lbs of grain), and think it a great compromise, allowing me to get the flavors from a variety of grains, and adjust the fermentability of the wort.


perhaps it should be said that I have an LHBS that is fantastic and crushes grain for free. I aknowledge that not everyone may have access to that

My LHBS has a mill that I can use (no cost), but I prefer to buy grains un-crushed. That way I can keep different types and create recipes without having to get the grains from the LHBS every time/week.
 
Calder said:
You can't mash those grains without a base malt. You can only steep them. They all have lots of starch, which can be converted to sugars if you do a proper mash.

Huh? Call it what you want, those malts all have little to no diastatic power.
 
Calder said:
You can't mash those grains without a base malt. You can only steep them. They all have lots of starch, which can be converted to sugars if you do a proper mash.

I like the convenience of stove-top brewing. I mostly do partial mashes (5 to 7 lbs of grain), and think it a great compromise, allowing me to get the flavors from a variety of grains, and adjust the fermentability of the wort.

My LHBS has a mill that I can use (no cost), but I prefer to buy grains un-crushed. That way I can keep different types and create recipes without having to get the grains from the LHBS every time/week.

im actually a master just tonight but I did do it with 2 pounds of Touro so I don't know thats conscious or whether you're right

**.... using the mic that was too funny to delete I apologize hope you see the humor....**

I actually mashed that recipe tonight but with 2 pounds of 2 row grains. don't know whether I knew what you were talking about or whether I just did it to use the base grains for the pH...... still use some sodium bicarbonate for the pH.
 
Huh? Call it what you want, those malts all have little to no diastatic power.

???? Not sure what you are trying to say. The OP said he mashed the grains. I said he needed a base malt to mash them. Then you respond to my post saying you can't mash them.
 
Calder said:
???? Not sure what you are trying to say. The OP said he mashed the grains. I said he needed a base malt to mash them. Then you respond to my post saying you can't mash them.

I didn't say you can't mash them, I said they have little to no diastatic power, so it doesn't really matter if you mash them. That's all. No offense intended :)
 
I actually mashed that recipe tonight but with 2 pounds of 2 row grains. don't know whether I knew what you were talking about or whether I just did it to use the base grains for the pH...... still use some sodium bicarbonate for the pH.

2-row is a base malt. I guess you mashed them. Sorry, your original post didn't say anything about using a base type malt.
 
I didn't say you can't mash them, I said they have little to no diastatic power, so it doesn't really matter if you mash them. That's all. No offense intended :)

But it does make a difference. If you just steep them, you will get only a little sugar contributing to the OG. But if you mash them, you can get a lot more. With Crystal you can double the sugars from it by mashing. With more roasted malts (choc, black, etc) you can get 3X or more sugar from it. They all contain starches that can be converted to sugars, just like any other grain.
 
Calder said:
But it does make a difference. If you just steep them, you will get only a little sugar contributing to the OG. But if you mash them, you can get a lot more. With Crystal you can double the sugars from it by mashing. With more roasted malts (choc, black, etc) you can get 3X or more sugar from it. They all contain starches that can be converted to sugars, just like any other grain.

Sugars that can be fermented? Hmm, I'll claim ignorance on this one, as I've always operated under other premises. I smell an experiment in my future!
 
Calder said:
2-row is a base malt. I guess you mashed them. Sorry, your original post didn't say anything about using a base type malt.

no need to be sorry. I failed to mention that.
 
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