when to add LME/DME?

[bwookie]

I am on my 4th 5 gallon extract and on this kit (a german hefe from a local home brew shop) I was using 2X 3.3lb of LME and 1 lb. Of DME.....I was told to add half of the extract at the start of boil, and to add the rest with 15 minutes left in the boil....I asked why I was to do this since my other 3 kits (brewers best) have you add it all at once....they gave me an answer that still left me a little confused.....so my question is, why split the extract additions....what does it do/not do for the beer, and should I always do it that way....?

Thanks!

 

[Yooper]

The reasoning behind adding the bulk of the extract late in the boil (this is a fairly new concept, that's why your kits didn't instruct that) is to keep the color lighter and the maillard reactions reduced in the final beer.

If you think about it, the extract has already been processed during the manufacturing, and it doesn't need to be boiled again, unlike making your own wort out of grain. The only reason to boil an extract batch at all is to isomerize the hops oils, to extract bittering from them. And possibly (maybe) to pasteurize the extract. Since the hops are boiled 60 minutes, it's just been practice to boil the extract all of that time too. But it's not necessary, and it's been found that the beer tastes better with less caramelized type flavors and less of a "cooked extract" taste.

Adding the bulk of the extract really helpful when a brewer does a partial boil (only boiling a portion of the wort and topping up with water) as the wort can get very thick and dark from boiling in a small amount of water.

 

[rhamilton]

Yooper is spot on. I add maybe 1/2 cup of LME at the beginning of the boil. I'll add the rest at flame out. Not only does it preserve the color, but it'll help you a little more in terms of temp reduction.

 

[unionrdr]

Here we go with try #7,reply keeps logging me off? I use hlaf a 3lb bag of plain DME in a 3G boil for hop additions. I add the remaining DME & all the LME at flame out,since pasteurization happens at 162F. Steeping a few minutes works fine for this right before ice bath. Cleaner flavor & lighter color.

 

[bwookie]

Hmm ok thanks! Ill have to try this on my next batch....makes sense now, thanks for the explanation....I keep re-writing my own kit instructions because of how different I've learned to do things.....the hefe is lookin grrreat too, blew 2 airlocks off w/in 12 hours and when I put the blowoff tube remedy in, the lid on my bucket popped off.....sooo much krausen and pressure, my favorite part!

Thanks again for all the info