Some Beginner Questions

I am very new at this brewing hobby and I have what is probably a simple question. I recently received a Mr. Beer kit and am currently in the process of brewing their WCPA. In my early excitement I ordered 3 more brew kits from MRB before finding this forum. I am now considering upgrading my equipment but I think I actually like the 2 gal size of the MRB keg. I'm not a large quantity drinker and the smaller batches will give me more opportunity to experiment with different recipes. Any thoughts on fermenter size?

The three recipes I will do with the MRB kits are the 1776 Ale, the Irish Red Ale and the Dubliner stout. I already plan on purchasing some DME to replace the booster pouch called for in the MRB 1776 ale recipe. I was thinking Munton's Extra Light DME. Is this a good choice?

I also plan on replacing the yeast packages that come with the MRB kits. The MRB dried yeast package is 2 gm. I was thinking of using the dried Nottingham Ale yeast. Is this a good choice for all three recipes? I think this package is an 11 gm package. Should I buy 1 package and measure out 2 gm for each brew (and refrigerate extra yeast between uses) or is it okay to just add all 11 gm to my MRB keg? I don't want to blow the little keg up?

Thanks in advance for your help. I love the forum and I can see where this could quickly become an obsession.

Dan

You'll be shocked how quickly two gallons of beer will vanish, especially when you want to show friends what great beer you make. If you think it's a hobby you're going to enjoy, I'd definitely gear up for five gallon batches. It really doesn't take a lot of gear to brew five gallon with extract and steeping grains, and you may already have some of what you need around the house. You'll probably outgrow the Mr. Beer setup pretty quickly, it's a great means of introduction to the hobby but not what most of us consider real brewing.

I'd go with half a packet of Nottingham, and immediately seal up the rest. It's a very popular yeast with homebrewers, quite clean and neutral. Should be OK with all of your kits. As you get into the hobby, you'll discover the incredibly wide array of yeast strains that are available, and how they can dramatically impact your beer.

Munton's DME is quite good, I keep a few pounds around for making yeast starters. I don't know what's in the booster pack, so I can't speak as to whether it's a good replacement.

Read, Read, Read, then read some more.

I have learned more from reading the many posts on this forum then I would have imagined. When the temptation arises to sit in front of the TV, grab a brew and peruse the hundreds of articles that answer questions you haven't even thought to ask yet.

Take time to read the "sticky" notes on each of the Topics. As they are intended, they are full of great information.

But what ever you do, no matter how tempting it is, and no matter how curious you are, or puzzled you may find yourself... never, never, never, never, never ask what "RDWHAHB" means.

Sounds like you should SAVE the MBK and just go ahead and upgrade yourself to a 5 gallon setup.
Sounds like the smaller MBK containters would be perfect for some 'real' experimenting! (Like with wines and meads!)
-Me

BlindLemonLars said:

Munton's DME is quite good, I keep a few pounds around for making yeast starters.

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Thanks for the quick response.

The MRB recipe just calls for adding their booster to the water before adding the mixes and tossing the dry yeast on top of the wort after it is in the keg. Will I be able to use the Munton's DME and the Nottingham yeast the same way.

Dan

LewBrew said:

Read, Read, Read, then read some more.

I have learned more from reading the many posts on this forum then I would have imagined. When the temptation arises to sit in front of the TV, grab a brew and peruse the hundreds of articles that answer questions you haven't even thought to ask yet.

Take time to read the "sticky" notes on each of the Topics. As they are intended, they are full of great information.

But what ever you do, no matter how tempting it is, and no matter how curious you are, or puzzled you may find yourself... never, never, never, never, never ask what "RDWHAHB" means.

Click to expand...

I have been reading a lot. Much of it has been very helpful but with the varying levels of experience and points of view it is also sometimes confusing. Sometimes I hear posters mention tossing the dry yeast on top of the wort and other times I read about rehydrating the yeast. Then there's the debate on whether or not to use a secondary. I suppose it will be less confusing as I move up to the "big boy" equipment and start to experiment on my own.

...and I think I've already figured out roughly what RDWHAHB stands for.

Dan

JoeMama said:

Sounds like you should SAVE the MBK and just go ahead and upgrade yourself to a 5 gallon setup.
Sounds like the smaller MBK containters would be perfect for some 'real' experimenting! (Like with wines and meads!)
-Me

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So far my wife has been supportive of my new hobby and even cleaned out a spare bedroom closet for me to use as my brewery. She has even visited our LHBS with me. Although she doesn't drink beer herself, I'm kind of hoping for the starter kit I saw there for a Christmas gift.

scubadan said:

Thanks for the quick response.

The MRB recipe just calls for adding their booster to the water before adding the mixes and tossing the dry yeast on top of the wort after it is in the keg. Will I be able to use the Munton's DME and the Nottingham yeast the same way.

Dan

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I'm almost positive that the "booster" is corn sugar (dextrose), which will bump up the gravity of your beer and give you more alcohol in your finished beer.

I think I speak for almost everyone on the forum when I say that you are better off using LME or DME in place of the booster. LME with give you pretty much the same dumber of additional gravity points and DME will give you about 20% more than that.

Nottingham is a great choice for dry yeast, you can rehydrate or pitch dry and will most likely get very good results

scubadan said:

So far my wife has been supportive of my new hobby and even cleaned out a spare bedroom closet for me to use as my brewery. She has even visited our LHBS with me. Although she doesn't drink beer herself, I'm kind of hoping for the starter kit I saw there for a Christmas gift.

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Yes, +1 for the graces of the war department. Mine too has been rather 'supportive' (see - not bitched excessively)

A closet though... Thats an awesome idea... (Might have to clear out half of mine!)
-Me

JoeMama said:

A closet though... Thats an awesome idea... (Might have to clear out half of mine!)
-Me

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The closet has worked real well so far. Here in Michigan our winters get pretty cold and we keep the thermostat quite low. I put a small space heater in the closet to keep it up to temperature.