Midwest Supplies- Simply Stout Extract kit

[shblakely]

I'm pretty new to brewing, 3 kits under my belt. I brewed the kit yesterday, and the US05 is chugging away. My question is: the taste wasn't exactly what I was shooting for. I hit the 1.052 OG, and it is definitely a stout. I like a sweeter stout, mainly milk stout. I've read that lactose doesn't ferment well anyway. And have read about adding sugars after pitching the yeast.

Would adding a pound of lactose at this point give it a milk stout taste? Or should I wait till secondary fermentation and add coffee, and lactose? Or let it ride as Midwest intended and see how it turns out?

 

[MrVix]

I think that you should brew the Stout as per the kits instructions. This will give you a good baseline. You will have a better idea of what additions if any that the kit will tolerate. Remember that "additions" can dramatically change body and IBU's. Get a good idea of what you want in a recipe and then use any of the free brewers software to calculate your new recipe.

 

[TonyKZ1]

It'll be interesting to see how this turns out. I've also bought this recipe and will be brewing it soon. I'm current/y fermenting the wheat and then I'll brew the cream ales before the stout.

 

[Rush]

Tasting a beer 2 days after pitch will not give you much of an accurate clue as to how the resulting beer will ultimately taste. I highly recommend giving it at least 1 month before you make any assumptions. Also, just adding carbonation will make a large difference in mouthfeel.

I actually brewed this beer on 7/17 for the first time but I started with a minimash of 1LB 2-row and 1LB flaked oats to make it an oatmeal stout. I had this in a keg and carbed by 8/8 and it was okay but relatively underwhelming as an oatmeal stout. I just took another pour last night (8/15) and it has developed more body and more roast character and over-all I'm extremely impressed for $20.

I'll wait a few more weeks to make the ultimate judgement but, for my tastes, I think I'm going to double the grain bill that the kit comes with since I'm a fan of roasty stouts.

I ordered both the Simply Beer stout and Simply Beer IPA and both have turned out to be fantastic deals for extract beers. It's hard to get to this price point unless you are buying all of your hops/grains in bulk and have a cheap source of local extract.

 

[CJ-3]

Lactose is very good for adding body but it really doesn't sweeten a beer very much.

Give it time to ferment out. Taste it again before you bottle and if it feels thin lactose can be added at bottling time with the priming sugar.

 

[Rush]

After having this on tap for a month I wanted to update some opinions. It's a great value for $20, but there is a high chance you will get the "extract twang" flavor. I brew extract + grains only. Since this kit comes with dark extract instead if light extract + steeping grains, the chance of extract twang is increased pretty significantly. I do not know what extract makers do differently for dark extracts, but the twang is only present on the rare occasion that I use dark extract. My extract beers have absolutely no twang since I've taken many steps (light extract + grains instead of dark extract, fermentation control, late/flame-out extract additions, proper yeast pitching, proper aeration) to prevent most off-flavors. However, this simply beer stout that I brewed with 1LB 2-row and 1LB oatmeal stout has that certain twang that I haven't tasted since my first handful of extract beers.

Will most people notice it? Probably not. Will I make this beer for a party when I don't want my Bourbon Oak-aged chocolate pecan imperial stout keg emptied? Hell-freakin' yes.