Newbie's First non-Mr Beer Brew: Briess Final Course

Okay guys. I'm a newbie thanks to Mr.Beer!

It was too easy. So I decided to read and read and read about how to brew with more control. Let me just say, there are some serious beer nerds out there on the interwebs. And I mean that with the utmost respect. I'm an engineer myself.

But holy molly, there are some serious beer brewers out there and there is a ton of information to go with.

In saying all of that, I finally order me some ingredients from Midwest Supplies. My first attempt will be with Briess's recipe, "Final Course" (you can find it on their website):

Quantity Ingredient
6.6 lbs Briess CBW® Pilsen LME
0.75 lbs Briess Caramel Malt 40L
0.5 lbs Briess Caramel Malt 60L
0.25 lbs Briess Caramel Malt 120L
0.5 lbs Briess Chocolate Malt
1.25 oz East Kent Golding (5.0 AA) 60 minute boil time
1 vial WLP002 English Ale Yeast

Brewing Procedures:
1. Steep crushed grains at 160 – 170ºF for 30 minutes.
2. Remove grains.
3. Bring to boil.
4. Add East Kent Golding Hops.
5. Boil 60 minutes.
6. Cool and pitch WLP002 English Ale Yeast.

Fermentation:
Primary: 14 Days 65 – 68ºF
Secondary: 14 Days 35ºF

Okay, I couldn't get all of the ingredients exactly. So I did what anyone else would do, deviate from the recipe and make my own.

Here is my alteration:

6 lbs Briess Amber LME
2 lbs Briess Caramel Malt 60L
1.25 oz Kent Goldings
1 vial WL002 English Ale Yeast

The big difference is I am noy using a Pilsen LME base, but rather an Amber for the base.

I would like to hear the horror stories about using too much Amber (Carmel 60L) in a brew.

But, of course, as any stubborn human brewer, I'm gonna try it anyway and let you know what actually happened.

I plan to make 2 gallon batches since my Mr. Beer is only 2 gallons per... so I can change it up the second time. I am looking for ideas as well.

Should I try to order a lighter base, Pilsner LME, in order to bring down the sweetness?

Could I just not use the LME (or use less) and perhaps use more malt?

You are more than welcome to confuse me to no end.

Thanks for reading! I am sure I will be addicted for now on as I pretty much am tired of the beer offered in my grocery store. I need my own set of 'go to' recipes once and for all.

When you brew an extract recipe you are looking for the correct mix of fermentables and unfermentable malt sugars like you would get from Crystal malts. It really doesn't matter whether they come from liquid malt extract or dry malt extract, it just that usually the liquid is a bit cheaper since it doesn't have to be dried all the way. Lots of recipes have you mix liquid and dry malt extract as the liquid comes in a container with a specific amount and when you need just a little more it is easier to add the small amount of dry which can be packaged easier.

Looks like a winner to me, you will be making beer! I really like crystal 60, good caramel flavor, really makes a malty beer stand out. I recommend using a beer calc program to help you prototype your recipes. Hopville.com is pretty easy to use and web based. Here is your recipe. As far as choosing your ingredients goes, its all about what you are wanting to end up with. If you want to go for a certain style you can look up the guidelines and then use hopville to tweek the recipe until it fits. The great thing about this hobby is you will be making beer no matter what

I agree with tmoney645, if you're going to work up your own recipes or scale existing recipes brewing software makes this easy!!! I use Beersmith 2 and have quickly graduated from Mr Beer to Boxed recipes to putting together my own recipes. Its easy to scale from 5 gallon recpies to 2 gal or 10 gal or whatever size you want. Also you see the effect of everything you add to color, IBU, OG, etc. Have fun with it . Almost anything makes better beer than you buy at the store.

tmoney645 said:

Looks like a winner to me, you will be making beer! I really like crystal 60, good caramel flavor, really makes a malty beer stand out. I recommend using a beer calc program to help you prototype your recipes. Hopville.com is pretty easy to use and web based. Here is your recipe. As far as choosing your ingredients goes, its all about what you are wanting to end up with. If you want to go for a certain style you can look up the guidelines and then use hopville to tweek the recipe until it fits. The great thing about this hobby is you will be making beer no matter what

Click to expand...

Man, thanks a lot for that calculator AND doing it for my recipe! Much appreciated.

I figure I will do a 2.5 gallon batch (Mr. Beer) with this recipe. Then do another 2.5 with the pilsner LME. By then, I think I will have an idea of how much I will alter it with other special grains to tweak the flavor.

Question. Is there a low profile base, something that hardly has taste, that can help boost the alcohol content without ruining taste?

You can add corn sugar to boost ABV without changing flavor, but you have to make sure that your fermentables are at minimum 2/3 malt to 1/3 sugar. Too much sugar and you get start to get cider flavors. I would just use some plain light DME though, it will get you more ABV without drying out your beer.

ryno1ryno said:

Question. Is there a low profile base, something that hardly has taste, that can help boost the alcohol content without ruining taste?

Click to expand...

R1R,

I think sugar would do this, or DME ...but then again that messes with the rest of the recipe...

ryno1ryno said:

Question. Is there a low profile base, something that hardly has taste, that can help boost the alcohol content without ruining taste?

Click to expand...

That's where something like Extra Light DME/LME (Dry/Liquid Malt Extract) would come in handy. You'd still want to adjust your hop additions slightly to accommodate the malt addition depending on weight used.

What happens with too much hop? Too little hop?

ryno1ryno said:

What happens with too much hop? Too little hop?

Click to expand...

The beer will be unbalanced. It may taste too sweet or too bitter for your tastes. I made a brown ale that I think is unbalanced with too little hops but my son thinks it is great. I've had IPAs that I think are too bitter but some people really go for them. No sure answer to this question.

Okay... after finishing off my Mr. Beer bottling for the canned stuff from Mr Beer... tonight was brew night.

I ended up steeping 35-36 ozs (not weighed... didnt have a scale) of Caramel 60L.

Steeped for 30 mins.
Strained Grain.
Then added 1/2 ounce of Kent Goldings AA.
Boiled for 60 mins.
Removed Hop ball and strained again.
Added 3.5 lbs of Briess Amber Ale.
Added 8 ounces of sucrose mixed with warm water.
Chilled wort.
Mixed with cool water in my Mr. Beer barrel.
Ended up using a whole vile of WL English Ale Yeast at 75 degrees.

Now she is fermenting... lets see what happens.

It looked thick and syrupy... can't wait for my coca-cola.

Im gonna let it sit for 2 weeks before bottling.

ryno1ryno said:

Okay... after finishing off my Mr. Beer bottling for the canned stuff from Mr Beer... tonight was brew night.

I ended up steeping 35-36 ozs (not weighed... didnt have a scale) of Caramel 60L.

Steeped for 30 mins.
Strained Grain.
Then added 1/2 ounce of Kent Goldings AA.
Boiled for 60 mins.
Removed Hop ball and strained again.
Added 3.5 cups of Briess Amber Ale.
Chilled wort.
Mixed with cool water in my Mr. Beer barrel.
Ended up using a whole vile of WL English Ale Yeast at 75 degrees.

Now she is fermenting... lets see what happens.

It looked thick and syrupy... can't wait for my coca-cola.

Im gonna let it sit for 2 weeks before bottling.

Click to expand...

I wish you would have run that recipe past us before committing it to the brew pot as I would have suggested 4 to 6 ounces of the Caramel 60 but you will have beer from this and it will taste....um...interesting. :cross:

The recipe said steep 2 lbs total of grain. Through my google ventures I found that 3-4 cups equals 1 lb of crushed grains depending on the weight space between the grain. So I added 4 1/2 cups anyway...

I should have used a Pilsen base vs the Amber Malt... this will be an interesting science project to say the least.

Let us know how it turns out. If it is good, I may have to try it. If it turns out bad, it will be a lesson for a bunch of people.

Ogri said:

That's where something like Extra Light DME/LME (Dry/Liquid Malt Extract) would come in handy. You'd still want to adjust your hop additions slightly to accommodate the malt addition depending on weight used.

Click to expand...

Corrent. Amber LME has crystal malt in it (that's what makes it "amber") and then the crystal malt from the steeping grains means that the crystal malt is basically doubled. It was on the high side as it was, and adding the amber LME means a sweet crystal-heavy beer.

I suggest always using pale or light or extra light extract and getting color and flavor from the grains. That's how the all-grain brewers do it, too. Using a light base grain for the base malt, and then adding specialty grains to get the color and flavor right in a recipe.

Also, a little kitchen scale is really important as when you bottle you'll use 4-5 ounces of corn sugar, and the LME/DME needs to be weighed by the ounce and pound and not "cups".

Yooper said:

Corrent. Amber LME has crystal malt in it (that's what makes it "amber") and then the crystal malt from the steeping grains means that the crystal malt is basically doubled. It was on the high side as it was, and adding the amber LME means a sweet crystal-heavy beer.

I suggest always using pale or light or extra light extract and getting color and flavor from the grains. That's how the all-grain brewers do it, too. Using a light base grain for the base malt, and then adding specialty grains to get the color and flavor right in a recipe.

Also, a little kitchen scale is really important as when you bottle you'll use 4-5 ounces of corn sugar, and the LME/DME needs to be weighed by the ounce and pound and not "cups".

Click to expand...

I hear and agree with what you say.

As I said earlier, I am doing this recipe first.

Then in 2 weeks I will use the Pilsen LME... and get a scale... didnt have one and didnt want to wait.

I'll save a bottle and do a taste test with each one.

Then, I may do a third batch using a little more hop with which ever variant I like.

The one good thing about the small Mr. Beer kit os I can try a bunch of smaller batches to experiment with.

I can't wait any longer... its bottled and hopefully ready to taste by Chritsmas

Maybe I will sneak one this week.

So I tried my beer 1 week early.

It is only on week 3 since pitch and 1 week bottled.

Let me just start by saying that this is the best green beer I have had since the Mr. Beer kits.

I taste the caramel... it actually has a caramel aftertaste and its not sweet at all... yet. It does have a sweet hint.

Because I added 8 additional ounces of sucrose (2 gallon batch) it tastes strong.

But I had a Killians red tonight, a Sam Adams Noble Pils and then decided to try mine for the heck of it. I honest to God like mine better than both of those! (I do think the Killians is a bit skunky) And its only in week 3.

The official grain bill was:

2.5 gallons Mr Beer fermentor

Briess Amber LME 3.8 lbs
Crystal Malt 60L ~1.2 lbs (4 1/2 cups)
Kent Goldings 0.5 ozs
English Ale Yeast WPL 002

Steeped the caramel malt for 35 mins
Hopped the Goldings for 60 mins
Added the LME and then the 8 ounces of sugar (tbh... the sugar was prob overkill... but its drinkable and strong)

This is where I probably screwed up.. I fermeneted in my closet at 75-79 degrees... then bottle after 2 weeks and let sit at 68 degrees (finally upgraded to a temp controlled fridge) for a week.

Put in the fridge and tried tonight after our softball championship.

It tastes better than my Killians. I cant wait until Christmas... and Ill save a few for New Years.

Very happy.

Tonight I had a bottle that tastes strong with alcohol and another taste that seems to be astringant.

Do some bottles taste different than others?

Do high fusels go away? Can more sugar in the primer vs less cause different tastes? Can the bottom barrel beer with a lot of yeast being bottle be the culprit?

I am not gonna try another bottle fo 2 days.

I find it odd how a bottle 2 nights ago tasted fine... but tonight it tasted astringant. I think its ruined... who knows.

I cant wait for my next batch as I didnt ruin it with extra table sugar.

I frequently hit close to 25% of my grain bill as simple sugar, light brown, dark brown, plain white and going to try some Lyle's golden syrup in an upcoming brew, so I don't think that's necessarily your problem. Fermentation temps of 75 to 79 would elevate chances of fusels developing during the first few days after pitching.

If you only did two weeks in primary, then bottled for just over a week the beer is still really green, so give it more time and, in future, let it sit for three weeks in primary. You'll probably recognize the difference.

With this batch, leaving it for an extended period to condition might see the fusel flavour, alcohol bite and sort of an astringency, decrease slightly but they're not going to disappear entirely.

Chalk it up to experience/learning and make controlling of initial fermentation temps one of your next, major, priorities.

Ogri said:

I frequently hit close to 25% of my grain bill as simple sugar, light brown, dark brown, plain white and going to try some Lyle's golden syrup in an upcoming brew, so I don't think that's necessarily your problem. Fermentation temps of 75 to 79 would elevate chances of fusels developing during the first few days after pitching.

If you only did two weeks in primary, then bottled for just over a week the beer is still really green, so give it more time and, in future, let it sit for three weeks in primary. You'll probably recognize the difference.

With this batch, leaving it for an extended period to condition might see the fusel flavour, alcohol bite and sort of an astringency, decrease slightly but they're not going to disappear entirely.

Chalk it up to experience/learning and make controlling of initial fermentation temps one of your next, major, priorities.

Click to expand...

Thanks.

So how would I be able to get the sweet taste? By adding a 120L caramel grain?

ryno1ryno said:

Tonight I had a bottle that tastes strong with alcohol and another taste that seems to be astringant.

Do some bottles taste different than others?

Do high fusels go away? Can more sugar in the primer vs less cause different tastes? Can the bottom barrel beer with a lot of yeast being bottle be the culprit?

I am not gonna try another bottle fo 2 days.

I find it odd how a bottle 2 nights ago tasted fine... but tonight it tasted astringant. I think its ruined... who knows.

I cant wait for my next batch as I didnt ruin it with extra table sugar.

Click to expand...

Had more of these beers over New Years with friends.

The beer tasted much, much better. I liked it as did everyone at the party.

I realized that it takes longer for a higher gravity beer to 'be ready' to drink.

Keep some of these beers hidden away for a bit, don't drink them all now. They'll get better, probably much better.:rockin:

RM-MN said:

Keep some of these beers hidden away for a bit, don't drink them all now. They'll get better, probably much better.:rockin:

Click to expand...

I am already planning that.

I have 2 liters in the 65 degree fermenting fridge still that I havent even cooled down yet.

I'll try them later in the year. Feb?

Okay... down to the final few... I need the bottles for the new stuff...

Official Verdict: I do not recommend my recipe.

I think I added too much caramel coupled wth the Amber base and also the sucrose sugar. Then I fermented for barely 2 weeks and even still it as fermenting in the high 78,79,80 range.

I just tasted my second batch, altered:

-used Pilsen LME instead of the Amber
-Used a smaller ratio of Caramel
-Did not use sugar
-Fermented at 68 on the nose (temp controller) for 3 weeks, then bottled for 2.
-Increased the hop ratio too

Tasted tonight in a side by side... #2 is the winner by leaps and bounds... and it still might need a week in the fridge.

The first recipe in the OP, is just a thick, heavy, tummy buster with a weird aftertaste.

It is funny how the wort can taste amazing but the yeast conversion turns it into something totally different. Sweet is not always gonna end up sweet with beer. The yeast eats the sugar. One must master what will make yeast pea tasty.