Less water than what the instructions ask for ???

Hello everyone.

I am new to beer making and even newer to this forum.
Let me thank you all and especially the management for this opportunity .
So, I went through the postings but couldn't find an answer to this question.
My question is: As long as my kegs (Labatt Sankey type ones) are of 20-L / 5-gallon size and the concentrate for the beer asks for a total of 23-L / 6-gallon, may I make only 20-L / 5-gallon mix in order not to have some of it left and worry what I'll do with it ???
Meaning, the final product will be more concentrate, but will this affect the fermentation process ???
Also, will the beer be drinkable?

Thank you .

Welcome! Yes, you can definitely do that, with no problems with the fermentation. The only difference you may notice is that the beer is heavier, more alcohol, and a bit "thicker" than the kit intended. If you like it, then there is absolutely no problem!

Great !!!

Thank you very much for the reply YooperBrew .
Great news you just gave me.
What's the point of drinking more water?

.

Marginal said:

Great !!!

Thank you very much for the reply YooperBrew .
Great news you just gave me.
What's the point of drinking more water?

.

Click to expand...

Right- water is completely overrated!

Seriously, though, it may make the beer not be "quite right" if you're following the directions and expecting a final "cream ale" for example.

But if you like the results, I think it's fine. One other thing to consider is making the full 6 gallons and then bottling the first gallon, and putting the remaining 5 gallons in the keg. See if you like those results more. Or, you could try a recipe that makes only 5 gallons, and see if you like that better, too. Most of us in the US make 5 gallon batches, so we'd be happy to help you find a kit/recipe that would work in that case too.

Still, if you're happy with the results, there wouldn't be any reason to change.

Thanks again for the help YooperBrew.

I think I'll try a more concentrated beer as I don't bottle, only geg it.
Also where I buy from, they only sell 6-Gallon kits, so ...
If you could give me some info on 5-Gallon kits I'd appreciate.

.

Marginal said:

Thanks again for the help YooperBrew.

I think I'll try a more concentrated beer as I don't bottle, only geg it.
Also where I buy from, they only sell 6-Gallon kits, so ...
If you could give me some info on 5-Gallon kits I'd appreciate.

.

Click to expand...

All of the 5 gallon kits I know of are available in the US. I know that austinhomebrew.com ships to Canada, but I have no idea how much it would cost. It might be cost prohibitive. Their kits are great, though. They have several different kinds, and even many "clone" kits. When I did extract brewing, I loved the "Pete's Wicked Ale" clone especially.

We have a recipe database, and many of the recipes are extract version. If you have a homebrew store where you can purchase unhopped malt extract, and some hops, and a few grains, you can make just about anything you want.

Thanks again YooperBrew.

I'll check this out.
For now though, I'll stick with the making of beer from Home Brew Concentrate cans.

.

IMO the canned kits make a decent brew if you:

- Practice good sanitation.
- Use a fresh kit. Check the expiration date, if it's close to the date on the can find another source. Old extract is nassss-tay.
- Use extra light malt extract instead of the sugar they call for. A pound of XLDME with a canned kit is probably about right.
- Make 5.25 gallons instead of 6. At 6 gallons the brew is thin and watered down (again IMO). 5.25 gives you 5 gallons in the keg/bottles since you will lose about a quart to trub in the fermenter.
- Use a good dry ale yeast like SafAle. Throw away the canned kit yeast, it's not a great quality, it's probably not fresh, it's probably not a clean fermenter (the beer will taste fruity fermented with it), and many of the kit yeasts like Munton's are poor attenuators leaving your brew overly sweet and low in %ABV. The yeast make the beer, so don't sell your beer short!
- Ferment around 68*F.

Good luck.

Saccharomyces said:

- Make 5.25 gallons instead of 6. At 6 gallons the brew is thin and watered down (again IMO). 5.25 gives you 5 gallons in the keg/bottles since you will lose about a quart to trub in the fermenter.

Click to expand...

Thank you for the great news Saccharomyces
By the way, almost all of my kits are made by the Coopers Brewery.

.