DME vs LME. Which is preferred more often?

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Which wins?

  • DME

  • LME


Results are only viewable after voting.

TxNative

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Usage in general, across the board for both beginner and advanced brewers in any application which is the overall winner. Im sure there are advantages and disadvantages to each considering different uses. But generalize for me.

Thanks in advance!
 
I use DME to make yeast starters. I like it because it stores well and is easy to measure.

When I was making extract brews I used both, for no real reason at all.

Adding DME to boiling water can lead to a pretty fast boilover. The DME can also clump up, but it does dissolve.

LME drops to the bottom and can scorch.

For both I think there are quality options. Freshness matters for either one but I think LME is more susceptible to age while at the same time it has gone through less "stress" so if fresh it will more closely resemble wort made fresh from grain. I don't say that with any real authority or expertise.
 
I liked using DME for the boil to do hop additions. Then add the LME @ flame out to keep color lighter & cleaner flavor.
 
LME for me.

I don't care what anyone says about it, I've used it for 20 years and find it cheaper, and easier to use and store than DME.
 
I used LME when I was brewing with extract. Now I brew all grain and use DME to prime my bottles.
 
When I was doing extract brews I preferred LME, at my LHBS it was cheaper and I'm fairly certain fresher as well. I also find it easier to handle than DME which always got everywhere when I used it and left me with sticky everything.
 
Put me down for DME. It does stay fresh much longer than LME. I tend to buy 50 lb bags of DME, which reduces the cost per pound drastically, and then store it in 5 gallon buckets. LME doesn't store nearly as well. It darkens over time. If you ever hear anyone talking about the, "extract twang" IMO it is usually the result of old LME and nothing to do with extract brews in general.
 
I use DME for starters mainly. So I have it on hand for the occasional beer, mostly in winter when I don't want to brew on the freezing cold porch. I haven't used LME since 2011 when I was starting with kits.
 
I've recently begun using LME more frequently since my LHBS has them on sale. I mostly use DME to prime my batches. I am a committed all grain brewer though so I use other fermentables sparingly. I did make a wonderful Cascadian Dark with some LME recently!
 
They serve different functions for me.

Topping off gravity, or making starters? Extra Light DME, stores well enough that it's ok if I don't use it for awhile.

Actually making an extract batch instead of all grain? LME. MoreBeer has just enough variety of different LME products that I don't have to bother with steeping grains and can just dissolve wort and do a 15min boil. Comes in sealed pouches that are single use from MoreBeer. Never bought from anyone else.

Not sure what I would choose if I was a regular extract brewer, but I'm not.
 
I use both, but just like a lot of other people in this thread, I use them for different purposes. I NEVER store LME. I always have DME on hand in case I want need to use some malt extract for something other than a core part of a beer recipe. When fresh, LME is a lot better than DME in my opinion and I only buy fresh LME and always use it within a month of buying it so it can't go bad.

The most recent beer I made was a mixture of two different types of LME and two different types of DME, not to mention some maltodextrin, so I obviously don't have anything against DME. But if you have to go with only one or the other, my vote would be for (fresh) LME.
 

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