First beer recipe, substitute for pilsen light liquid malt extract

[zwbsch]

Hello all,

I'm brewing my first beer soon. I've had good experience with Youtube so far, so I picked the recipe here.
This is the most clicked in Youtube.
Video:
Recipe: Homemade Beer


The problem is that I can not buy many of the ingredients in Germany.
I have now found an equal substitute for everything.
Except for this:
- 5 pounds (2.25 kg) pilsen light liquid malt extract
which I would replace with Brewferm liquid malt extract, medium, unhopped, 1,5 kg (3,3 pounds)
Alternatively, malt extract "Bavarian Pilsner" or Mangrove Jack's Traidtional Series Saison - 1.8 kg (4 pounds).


My questions are as follows.

- Can I replace the liquid yeast extract with Brew Ferm? That's 0.7 kg (1.5 pounds) less at first glance for me. Will I need other ingredients more?
- Can I buy more malt and make that up to 7 gallon proportionally? It does have a 6 gallon container in the recipe, but much less liquid if I am reading this correctly. That makes me wonder a bit, 3 gallon water, 4 cups water, 5 pounds liquid malt extract and the 6 gallon container is almost full.
- Is headspace relevant when brewing beer, should I fill the container a few inches apart? Such gallon containers are not available here.
- There are also malt blends in the store where I buy. They use 4.6 kg (10 pounds) of malt for 20 liters. Why is that significantly less malt in the recipe (about 1.5 kg, 3.3 pounds), plus probably the liquid malt at 2.25 kg (5 pounds) = 3.75 kg (8.3 pounds)? ( Malt Mix "Festbier" - warm fermenting - crushed, 21,53 &eur )

I mean it has 2 million clicks so it will work, but I don't really understand the deviation.
And has anyone brewed this before?


Thank you.

 

[IslandLizard]

Recipe: Homemade Beer

I would NOT buy glass carboys. Aside from their (high) price, they're dangerous as they can break unexpectedly, and potentially cause serious injuries.
Plastic fermenter buckets are much safer to use and much cheaper.

Regardless of what they try to tell and sell you, there's also no need for secondaries. None! They're even harmful (quality wise) for your beer.

Please read up on the difference between steeping and mashing. They are similar processes, but with some noted differences.
The grains in your recipe need to be mashed, not steeped. I'd say best at 152F, for an hour.

Regarding substituting malt extracts from different manufacturers, yes, no problem. Equal amounts should work fine. Generally aim for a similar kind, some may be a bit darker than the Pilsen Light LME, so try to match their color as close as possible.

Many pre-canned Liquid Malt Extracts (LME) come in 1.5 kg (3.3 pound) containers. You can use a partial can, then cover (with lid and/or plastic wrap) and store the remainder in the fridge. Can be kept for a few weeks or longer, but it will oxidize slowly, or may even pick up odd flavors from the fridge.

Some places will sell LME in jugs or plastic bags, in any amount you need, filled from a large plastic barrel.

When buying liquid malt extract (LME) ,make sure it is as fresh as can be. It doesn't age well, it gets stale and darker.

Most advanced extract brewers prefer to use Dry Malt Extract ("DME"). It's a dry powder, and fares much better with time, much more stable. Store it well sealed, and cool, but not refrigerated (avoid moisture). Since there's no water in it, you need to use about 20% less by weight, compared to LME, for the same net gravity.

 

[IslandLizard]

I also recommend reading John Palmer's How to Brew. It's in its 4th edition currently.

An old, 1st edition is free here at howtobrew.com, but it's a bit dated. Although the principles and brewing theories are still valid, the modern day version has many updates and covers more modern brewing methods too, such as BIAB.

 

[IslandLizard]

- Is headspace relevant when brewing beer, should I fill the container a few inches apart

Absolutely relevant!
Beer fermentation creates lots of foam and, you need to leave about 20% headspace. For some beers, like wheat beers, even more.
If you don't leave enough headspace, it will foam over, or worse, blow the stopper or lid off creating a big mess.

So you can fill a 6.5 gallon brew bucket with 5-5.5 gallons of wort, leaving 1-1.5 gallons of headspace.
Controlling your ferm temps is also very important, it makes better beer.

Instead of using plastic buckets there are dedicated plastic (PET) carboys and other plastic fermenters (e.g., Fermonster, Fermzilla, All Rounder, Speidel) made for that purpose. Then there are $$$ stainless fermenters in all kinds of configurations.

 

[zwbsch]

Thanks for all the information and keywords. Has helped me first very much in the beer brewing to get a foothold.
Plastic I will use, also because the amount is too large for me for a glass accident. Then I still read that in the LME to the DME the sugar content is 0.8/1.0. This also helps me with the dosage. Depending on the LME.
I will use the biab method, it sounds feasible. And otherwise I have now looked at other recipes and my quantities should fit approximately for the sugar content where I want to go, so everything is fine.