First brew day tomorrow . . . conflicting info

So I'm going with an extract tomorrow, a Muntons export pilsner, and have an additional 3 lb bag of extra light DME to bring it up to 6 lbs of fermentables.

Muntons' directions don't even call for a full boil with all the fermentables, but I was told in another thread about it that a full boil is best.

But then I was looking at yet another thread here about carmelized wort that it's good to only boil about half the DME, and then add the rest of the DME and LME and vigorously stir them in at flame out, then cover and steep for 15 minutes, which is still plenty warm to pasteurize the wort.

I know there are many, many ways to skin a cat, but which is best here? Can I get some feedback before I start brewing tomorrow? I have a 6-gallon turkey deep-fry pot I'll be using for the boil, so I won't need to be adding any water.

Using the Brewers Best 2-bucket fermenting/bottling kit, if that matters. And I'm going to be at great pains to sanitize every durn thing that touches the beer after the boil.

Thanks in advance, folks.

I wouldn't plan on trying to do a full boil in a 6 gallon pot. But It wouldn't hurt to add the last half or so of extract in the last 10-15 minutes of the boil. I would probably start your boil with 4 gallons in that pot and then add water into the fermentor after you cool your wort to bring it up to 5 1/2 gallons.

One of the reasons why home brewers do a full boil is to get the but hop utilization for adding pellet or whole leaf hops. If you are using a prehopped extract (like in many basic kits) then the full boil may not be as important. If you are adding the hops in on your own then do the largest boil you can (like the one mentioned of 4 gallons) and add the remaining DME the last 10- 15 minutes of the boil. You want to make sure you have at least 1-2 gallons of extra room in your kettle so that when you add the DME and/or hops that you do not get a boil over. Keep stirring the wort once you have added these to help prevent any boil over problems.

For your first batch, just follow the directions on the kit. I read everything about brewing I can get my hands on, so I understand that there's plenty of conflicting information out there. Follow the directions for this batch, water volumes and all, take copious notes (including noting what you think you may change next time), and worry about customizing and tweaking for your next batch.

If you're worried about the DME settling, then make sure you stir it in off the heat, and pay attention to the pot as you bring it back up to a boil.

I know there's a lot of info out there, but start simple. Don't make it more difficult than it has to be, especially for tomorrow. Read the directions. Read them again. Make this one by the book, and let me know how it goes.

Welcome to the obsessio...hobby!

Cheers!

folly said:

For your first batch, just follow the directions on the kit. I read everything about brewing I can get my hands on, so I understand that there's plenty of conflicting information out there. Follow the directions for this batch, water volumes and all, take copious notes (including noting what you think you may change next time), and worry about customizing and tweaking for your next batch.

If you're worried about the DME settling, then make sure you stir it in off the heat, and pay attention to the pot as you bring it back up to a boil.

I know there's a lot of info out there, but start simple. Don't make it more difficult than it has to be, especially for tomorrow. Read the directions. Read them again. Make this one by the book, and let me know how it goes.

Welcome to the obsessio...hobby!



Cheers!

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I second this. Learn to ride the bike before trying any stunts. If it doesn't turn out right you won't know what went wrong to try to correct it on the next batch.

Thanks again, all.

I have 5 gallons of water in the turkey deep-fry pot and still have 8 inches of clearance. Just doing a test boil. And folly, thanks for that advice. Can't imagine Muntons would instruct its customers in such a way that the beer will be bad.

I'll just do what the directions tell me, which doesn't call for boiling anything but a portion of the water, putting the LME in the fermentation bucket, adding the boiling water and stirring, adding the DME and topping off with cold water. Adding yeast once the wort reaches 65-70.

That's gotta be about as simple as it gets, right? I've also got a Muntons nut brown ale I'll do next.

After that, I'll move up to kits that include hops/pellets and grains instead of extracts, and will start doing boils.

Further question. The Muntons kits make 6 gallons of beer. That would put it just about up to the top of my fermentation bucket, which is designed for 5 gallons with some space on top. Should I go ahead and do the 6 gallons because the airlock will allow gas off without overflowing the bucket, or should I add less water and keep it around 5 gallons?

Also, I'm guessing the cold water I top off with in the fermentation bucket should first be boiled and then allowed to cool down so I'm not adding unsanitized water to the wort. Or is it OK to just add cold unboiled water?

I don't know how you are going to fit 6 gallons in a 5 gallon bucket??

You will want a minimum of 2 inches above the liquid. And in any case start your fermentation with a blow off tube installed. It will eventually save you from a tedious clean up.

After the active fermentation has slowed, then, install the airlock. Or leave the blow off tube installed the entire time.

kh54s10 said:

I don't know how you are going to fit 6 gallons in a 5 gallon bucket??

You will want a minimum of 2 inches above the liquid. And in any case start your fermentation with a blow off tube installed. It will eventually save you from a tedious clean up.

After the active fermentation has slowed, then, install the airlock. Or leave the blow off tube installed the entire time.

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The bucket holds 6.5 gallons. A blow-off tube doesn't come with my Brewer's Best kit. Instead, I have an airlock, and the directions tell me to use that for fermentation.

Exactly. Those instructions are designed to make good beer with the ingredients provided. Just be familiar with the instructions before you start so you're not wandering around trying to figure out what's next. Be organized. Ask me how I know this... I still write my own procedure the night before every brew, planning my brew day step by step.

When I did extract I bought "drinking" water or spring water (not RO/distilled) from wally world. It's cheap and UV sanitized. Worked just fine and made good beer. If you're not going to buy the water, boil and cool it first. Keep it covered and sealed after boiling to keep it clean.

As for your Brewer's Best kit, they should be 6.5gal buckets, so it should be ok. If beer bubbles up into the airlock, take off the airlock, clean and sanitize it, and reinstall. CO2 will still pushing out through the grommet so you'll be alright for the short time without it.

folly said:

Exactly. Those instructions are designed to make good beer with the ingredients provided. Just be familiar with the instructions before you start so you're not wandering around trying to figure out what's next. Be organized. Ask me how I know this... I still write my own procedure the night before every brew, planning my brew day step by step.

When I did extract I bought "drinking" water or spring water (not RO/distilled) from wally world. It's cheap and UV sanitized. Worked just fine and made good beer. If you're not going to buy the water, boil and cool it first. Keep it covered and sealed after boiling to keep it clean.

As for your Brewer's Best kit, they should be 6.5gal buckets, so it should be ok. If beer bubbles up into the airlock, take off the airlock, clean and sanitize it, and reinstall. CO2 will still pushing out through the grommet so you'll be alright for the short time without it.

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Cool. I'll go the 6 gallons of wort, then. That'll leave about 2 inches of space in the bucket above the wort.

Also, I'm brewing with really clear, cold clean and soft lake water from my favorite Canadian Shield lake up here in NE Minnesota. I'm a fishing guide on that lake (lake trout, primarily), and plan to share home brews with fishing clients after a day in the boat. So that's one reason I wanted to make sure I needed to boil and then cool the add water. Don't want any bacteria getting in there.

It's the same water we get in our taps here in Ely, though of course it's treated. I'll be pulling 10 gallons of it out this afternoon for tomorrow's brewing.

Burntside Lake is the name. So sooner or later I'll develop labels for Burntside Laker Lager or Burntside Lake Trout Stout, Burntside Amberosia Ale, etc.

I've been looking over the instructions and the gear and have got an initial procedure figured out. I've also got 75 Grolsch and Fischer pint and 24-oz bottles (mostly brown) waiting to be sanitized after the fermentation. It's going to be VERY hard to wait as long after bottling as I know I should before drinking, but I'll just have to console myself in the meantime with all the great craft brews out there for sale. Not to mention we have a local brewpub that's outstanding

Oh no! You're making up beer names already? Wow, you're hooked and you haven't even done your first brew yet.

I've been fishing the lake for 10 years, guiding it for 5 and drinking beer for 38. I've had a long time to think about all this.

unionrdr said:

Sounds like you read some of my replies about half the 3lb bag of plain DME in the boil,etc. It works well every time. Once again I must remind folks that pasteurization happens well below the boiling point. You really do not need to boil the snot out of it to sanitize it.
Pasteurization happens at about 162F,boiling point is basically 212F. Easy enough to understand. By the time the remaining 1.5lb of DME & all the LME are added at flameout,it's still 180F+ by my measurements/observations.
So it is indeed completely safe to add remaining extract at flame out,working quickly. Then cover & steep 15 minutes & it's all good everytime,given that proper sanitation procedures have been followed.
Spring water works real well with extract beers from my experiences. And the BB ale pails are 6.5 gallons. I have a Cooper's micro brew FV that can hold some 7 gallons or so. So I do the 23L (6.072USG) in that one so as to have plenty of head space. I did do a 6G batch in the ale pail once,but def had to use a blow off to catch all the krausen. Boy did that blow off tube need some cleaning aftarwards. I keep a total of 3-4 airlocks cleaned & ready for use just in case...

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Yes, it was indeed your post I was referencing, and did not mean to imply it wasn't good info. Just wanted some additional clarification. So thanks for all that added detail, and the airlock advice. Looks like you've got a strong extract brewing system down, and if I don't go with the full-blown steeping grains and hops after these two Muntons kits are brewed, but stay with extracts awhile longer, I'll try out your method. Quite simple, really.

I had half a dozen airlocks in my hand at the brew store a few days ago but put them back 'cause I figured one would be enough for now. They're so cheap, though, and I'll grab up a bunch of them next time.

If you don't own a wort chiller and are planning an ice bath for cool down,
I would not boil more than 3.5 gallons.

Rideandbrew said:

If you don't own a wort chiller and are planning an ice bath for cool down,
I would not boil more than 3.5 gallons.

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I don't have a wort chiller.

But the recipe directions call for boiling about 1.5 gallons and then dumping in 4.5 gallons of cold (but formerly boiled) water after the fermentables have been introduced.

Take up no more space than 3.5 gallons.
I have had a delicious beer with a 2.5 gallon boil.
Beersmith will also help you with what levels are reasonable.

ElyIrishBrew said:

Yes, it was indeed your post I was referencing, and did not mean to imply it wasn't good info. Just wanted some additional clarification. So thanks for all that added detail, and the airlock advice. Looks like you've got a strong extract brewing system down, and if I don't go with the full-blown steeping grains and hops after these two Muntons kits are brewed, but stay with extracts awhile longer, I'll try out your method. Quite simple, really.

I had half a dozen airlocks in my hand at the brew store a few days ago but put them back 'cause I figured one would be enough for now. They're so cheap, though, and I'll grab up a bunch of them next time.

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No harm,no foul. I just recognized my process being mentioned. Glad someone's paying attention . My system does indeed work well with 2.5-3 gallon boils. Adding steeping grains to that is easy. Just steep the grains in the same amount of water at 150-165F for 30 minutes. Drain & proceed. That's it. Or you can steep in,say,2 gallons of water & sparge with 1 gallon. Either way works.
I use half a 3lb bag of plain DME in that amount of water for hop additions. Adding the remaining extracts as noted above. It's simple for even a beginner to learn about hop additions,etc with my recipes. Follow good sanitation & my procees,& you'll get good ales. my 2c anyway. & it's always good to have a few clean airlocks around. I saved the box from my vinator to store ziplock bags of Airlocks,grommets,hop/grain sacks,etc. Don't loose'em that way.

unionrdr said:

No harm,no foul. I just recognized my process being mentioned. Glad someone's paying attention . My system does indeed work well with 2.5-3 gallon boils. Adding steeping grains to that is easy. Just steep the grains in the same amount of water at 150-165F for 30 minutes. Drain & proceed. That's it. Or you can steep in,say,2 gallons of water & sparge with 1 gallon. Either way works.
I use half a 3lb bag of plain DME in that amount of water for hop additions. Adding the remaining extracts as noted above. It's simple for even a beginner to learn about hop additions,etc with my recipes. Follow good sanitation & my procees,& you'll get good ales. my 2c anyway. & it's always good to have a few clean airlocks around. I saved the box from my vinator to store ziplock bags of Airlocks,grommets,hop/grain sacks,etc. Don't loose'em that way.

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Thanks again. I'll be digging this thread back up when I get into grains and hops instead of extracts.

Just did the brew this morning as per the directions and it all went together fine. Put the yeast in warm once-boiled water for 15 minutes, stirred it up, pitched it in the wort at 71 degrees and stirred it vigorously, capped it and put in the airlock. Getting to be close to time for some Packers football. Hopefully it'll be fermenting by halftime.

First I've read about putting vodka in the airlock. Is that specific to the recipe of yours I looked at or better in general than putting in some boiled water?

I've got some cranberry vodka on hand. Think that'll impart any cranberry flavor to the beer? Ooops, turns out my wife had some non-flavored, so I just swapped out the water and put in the vodka.

Read the directions, re read the directions and if you plan on drinking beer while brewing have a beer or two now and read the directions again. Then hace fun with it, RDWHACB. You will make beer and it WILL be great because it's yours. Welcome to the insanity!

I'm glad the brew went well ElyIrishBrew. And the Pack took care of business, too!

We gots fermentation! In honor of the Pack's victory today, I may name this Turnaround 30-20 Pilsner.

Nice! It's always great to see those first bubbles! So did you take notes and figure out what you wanted to change?

Oh, and have you read "Learn to Brew" by Palmer? I highly recommend it. It has just enough science to be really interesting and it was my bible of brewing for the first several brews.

ElyIrishBrew said:

...Burntside Lake is the name. So sooner or later I'll develop labels for Burntside Laker Lager or Burntside Lake Trout Stout, Burntside Amberosia Ale, etc.

....I've also got 75 Grolsch and Fischer pint and 24-oz bottles (mostly brown) waiting to be sanitized after the fermentation. It's going to be VERY hard to wait as long after bottling as I know I should before drinking, but I'll just have to console myself in the meantime with all the great craft brews out there for sale. Not to mention we have a local brewpub that's outstanding

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Little Long Lake Lager maybe too, ...Hegeman Heffe? We get up there usually once a year for fishing and a couple of nice dinners out.

Wife and I stopped in at The Boathouse for a beer or two one afternoon. Tried their blueberry wheat. It was good. They talked about the brewmaster having made a batch of wild rice beer. The first one was a home run. He tried it a second time and it didn't go as well. He decided to never try it again after that.

The Grolsch and Fischer bottles are great too. I have a couple cases.

Notes taken, folly! Got a journal/notebook specifically for a beer brewing log. I have not read the Palmer book, but have "Beer Craft" by William Bostwick and Jessi Rymill. It's very good. Also the short book that came with the Brewer's Best kit. And I've bookmarked a couple how-to sites online. Much as I get most of my info online these days, I'm old school enough that I like to spent an hour reading in bed each night. Course, nowadays I'm reading on a Kindle most often!

Hard to get my wort down below 72 because it's in my office, and there's a 75 gallon aquarium with discus fish in my office as well. Acts as an 86 degree radiator. However, I have the wort bubbling just under a window, and this morning I cracked that window to cool things down a bit. I don't think 72 is gonna kill anything, but would like it a few degrees cooler.

It's bubbling about three times per second into my blowoff tube right now.

Dynachrome, I was born in LaCrosse, and spent my summers growing up on the Gparents' dairy farm outside Prairie du Chien. Is your hinterland near there, or somewhere in the north? There are lots of cool lake names up here around Ely. Big Moose, Agassa, McDougal, Ed Shave, Hegman as mentioned. Hey, how about a Hegman Pictograph Pilsner? I've photographed those pictographs many times, and that would be one cool label!

The Boathouse does craft beer up great! We used to hang out there, but it's just too expensive over the long haul to drink their beer. Now we make the occasional visit when we're flush or want to meet clients for beverages/meals.

On your fermentation, you can get a large rectangular plastic container from your favorite home center, you can fill it up with cooler water and put your fermentation bucket in it. Keep the temp of the water in the cooler at 62 and the wort will be 65-67 during fermentation. Take the bucket out after 3 days of active fermentation and let it come up to room temp and it will finish out.

Now honestly, 72 ain't bad. It's a little warm for me now, but I did beer at room temp for several batches and they came out fine. You don't have to do everything on your first brew.