Award-Winning Extracts?

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Slappy White

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 17, 2008
Messages
328
Reaction score
0
Location
Columbia, SC
I've heard of many people talk about how extract brews can be just as good as AG, and even win contests! The winner of my local brew contest is always the same guy in almost every category....and he is an extract brewer. He has been brewing for a very long time and his extract brews are excellent. He uses specialty grains also, so it is more of a PM than just extract but still......I was wondering what are some techniques that I could use to improve my extract or PM brews. Mine have been good but not as good as I want them to be.....any ideas

Thanks
 
Three things that I can think of off the top of my head that will help a lot.

1. Always use a starter (unless using dry yeast of course). Pitching the correct amount of yeast will help your beers immensely.

2. Go full boil. Ask just about anyone who has gone from partial boil to full boil and they will say they noticed a huge difference in quality after switching to a full boil.

3. Temp control during fermentation. Make sure you are fermenting without much temp fluctuation, and make sure you are fermenting at the appropriate temp for the yeast you are using.
 
I second fermentation temperature control. Try to pitch your yeast at your desired fermentation temperature and control that temperature throughout fermentation. When I started controlling my fermentation temperature, it tasted much more like commercial craft beer. Fermenting too warm can cause an excess of esters from the yeast.

If you can't do full boils, use late extract addition. Some argue that doing a concentrated boil of extract causes "extract twang" from the Malliard reactions. Add enough extract to reach a gravity of about 1.040 (about 3-4 lbs extract for 3 gallons water) in the wort, then the rest towards the end of the boil. Make sure to adjust your hops, as you will get more utilization out of them with the lower gravity boil (another good reason to use late addition: can use fewer hops). Search this forum for "late extract addition." There are many threads with a lot of good information.

Use fresh ingredients. Liquid malt extract can go stale if on the shelf for a while. If you can't determine the age of the liquid malt extract from your local homebrew store, then use dry malt extract. It stays better much longer.

Pitching proper amounts of yeast is also seconded. Make sure to rehydrate if you're going with dry yeast.


You can definitely make award winning beer with extract. I've never entered any competitions, but some of the extract beers I made were very good. I was actually surprised to find out how many award winning extract beers there were when reading "Designing Great Beers." In some categories, half of the NHC second round competitors were just extract+grain brewers. Making good beer is more than extract versus all grain, it has to do with sound brewing practice. Proper sanitation and proper fermentation control have much more to do with brewing award winning beer.

Edit:

Also, if you're not already doing so, use only light malt extract and get flavor and color from steeping grains. The only exceptions to this are special extracts required to make certain beers, i.e. Munich malt extract, Wheat extract.
 
Alright...well in my next brew I will try a full boil and rehydrating my dry yeast. I will wait to do late addition of my extract if the full boil doesnt cure my extract twang. I saw in Palmers book that he used two packs of dry yeast and rehydrated it....I have only being using one but not hydrating....Is two too much?...that kinda confused me a little
 
I did....he just laughed and said that I will figure it out after awhile....so not much help. If I pursued it he might help me out tho

Sounds like a bit of a pompous jerk. Check out Jamil Zainasheff and John Palmer's "Brewing Classic Styles" book and Jamil's podcasts on The Brewing Network. Jamil says, and I agree, that a really good brewer will share what he's learned. I've brewed a couple of Jamil's extract recipes (I partial mash, so I alter a little, but still use extract), and they're great.
 
Man, looks like it's all covered here. I was going to say get Jamil's book (as a good recipe is essential), and control your fermentation temps.

Two packs of dry yeast would be fine, but isn't necessary - a single pack works perfectly well. You can also get away without rehydrating your yeast. I rehydrate mine as it helps fermentation get started a little quicker, but if you'd prefer to just go the easier route of pitching your yeast dry, that will be fine too. I've done it with no negative effects.
 
I personally wouldn't worry about late extract addition if I were doing full boil, but others may have different view points on this.
 
I'll echo what others have said..it's easy to make great extract /w grains brew:

-good sanitization
-quality fresh ingredients
-temp control
-the right yeast & ingredients for the desired flavor profile

understanding what you're trying to do with all the ingredients and how they effect the flavor is very helpful...designing great beers is a handy resource.
 
There has been some different opinions on the yeast....does it not really matter if I just use one pack of dry yeast or should I rehydrate it? also, is it better to use two in comparison to one pack of 5g. I've heard different opinions and am still wondering which produces the best results.
 
www.mrmalty.com has a yeast pitching rate calculator. You will usually need 10-15g of dry yeast. And yes, you should always rehydrate your dried yeast. Just boil some water, let it cool to 90-100 covered, pour the yeast in, keep covered until ready to pitch.
 
There has been some different opinions on the yeast....does it not really matter if I just use one pack of dry yeast or should I rehydrate it? also, is it better to use two in comparison to one pack of 5g. I've heard different opinions and am still wondering which produces the best results.

Bobby_M here did an experiment with yeasts, and got less lag time by rehydrating the dry yeast, so I tend to do that, but I've also dumped it straight in and done well. Jamil's book (the Mr. Malty site is his as well) specifies amounts of dry yeast for all the recipes, if you're so inclined. His results are hard to argue with (though he uses liquid yeasts for his own brews).
 
So if I have an extract kit that calls for a 2 1/2 gallon boil and then I'm supposed to top off after, I can boil say 5 1/2 to 6 gallons without changing the recipe at all? I'm assuming you would just boil down to 5 gallons?
 
Just to clarify....if I do a full boil there would be no need to do late extract addition?

I do full boils and late extract addition, i add the extract at flame out actually. Late extract addition even in a full boil will result in a beer with a lighter color more accurate to the style. If you are doing partial mash the initial grains will add enough gravity for the hops.
 
I've used Cooper's ale yeast mostly. But I found that midwest & northern brewer carry the same yeast from Cooper's in a 15g packet vs the 7g normal size you get in the can's false lid. I re-hydrate the 15g packets for 20-30 minutes. Then after hydrometer test,stir the yeast cream & pitch. Def starts faster & more vigorously.
Fermenting this yeast at 66-68F is better as well. I've also used US-05 with results very much like the Cooper's. Just no or very little fruity esters from the 05. But the US-05 is only like 11.5g.
 
If you decide to re-hydrate your yeast, you may want to check the manufacturer's spec sheets to get the correct temperature at which to re-hydrate. Pitching your yeast dry is not as bad as re-hydrating your yeast incorrectly. FYI, US-05 should be re-hydrated at 80* +-5, not 90-100. See http://www.fermentis.com/fo/pdf/IB/EN/Safale_US-05_IB.pdf for more info.
 
Forgot to mention that,my bad y'all. I re-hydrate at about 75F in 2 cups of boiled & cooled water. I boil it for only about 10 minutes before covering & cooling. Then add dry yeast & cover again. I've even nuked 2C of water in a pyrex measuring cup covered with plastic wrap. Stick a quick check thermometer in it to keep an eye on the lowering temp till I get 75F-ish.
 
I did....he just laughed and said that I will figure it out after awhile....so not much help. If I pursued it he might help me out tho

Sounds like a dick.
I'm serious.
(unless he dislikes you :confused:)

Did he invent all of his recipes, without copying and modifying others recipes?

How did he learn to brew?
Did he ask questions and people answered him?

If someone asks for advice at a friendly gathering, like a home brew club, why would you not offer some advice? What does it cost you.


PS - I just realized this is a zombie thread (from 4 years ago). LOL
 

Latest posts

Back
Top