partial grain questions for a beginner

I have about 2+ years of brewing simple extract kits (coopers) etc...

now i think is time to move up to a better beer! nothing wrong with the coopers kits i just know there is better out there!!

so..... what would you recommend i try for my first partial grain beer???
the extract kit i have now on the shelf is a coopers lager kit.

anything that is easy drinking like keystone...bud light....coors...
something the lady can drink.

if possible please keep it with simple ingredients since 1 of the places i get my supplies does not carry a ton of grains or malts etc and the other place requires 48 hours to process your order

thanks for your time!

 

By partial grain, do you mean you want to do extract with steeping grains simply for flavor, or do you want to do a partial mash to extract actual fermentable sugars from the grain?

 

hmmmm

i guess you got me on that one..

i dont know what i want to do!
id like to step away from pure extract kits as it is a decent beer but i know i can do better!

what do you suggest for a first time????

i guess steeping for now??

 

Steeping is a nice, if simple, next step. It definitely gives you more variety than pure extract brewing. Check out some recipes on here, or some high quality kits like Brewer's Best, that include steeping grains. In reality, partial mashing is steeping for an extended period with closer temperature control, so whenever you feel comfortable to research a bit more in depth, there is nothing too complex to keep you from starting small mashes and going from there.

 

I would try a Brewers Best kit. They have them at that mailorder house in Brampton

 

For the type of beer you're asking for (bud, miller coors) you might as well just use extra light extract and throw in an ounce of low AA hops at 60 minutes and 15 minutes. This isn't a type of beer meant for steeping grains. If you want to go all grain then that may be a different story. Get yourself a bag for BIAB and you'll need at least an 8 or 9 gallon kettle. Do this and your girl will love you forever:

5.5 gallon batch. This should give you 5 gallons into the keg/bottle. Low 1.05x range for OG. 1.008-1.010 FG. If your OG is a little lower then it's just that your efficiency is lower. Don't sweat it too much unless it's really low.

10 lbs 2-row
.5 lbs crystal 20 ------ If your LHBS doesn't have these then ditch them immediately!

mash at 152 for 60 minutes

1 oz willamette at 60 minutes
1 oz willamette at 10 minutes

1 PKG US-05 yeast. Re-hydrated!!!!!!

Try to ferment in the mid 60s. Use a swamp cooler if necessary.

Very cheap and good recipe. Every Bud light drinker thinks this is the SH*T

Look up a biab calculator such as this one:
http://pricelessbrewing.github.io/BiabCalc/

to figure out your volumes and temperatures.

Good luck!!!

EDIT: If your kettle isn't big enough to do 5 gallons you could certainly cut the recipe in half and do a 2.5 gallon batch. NOTE! Read earlier, you need at least an 8 gallon kettle to do a 5 gallon batch since the grains will take up a good amount of space

 

I would recommend a California Common (Anchor Steam) style beer. A little richness, which will be great with grain, a bit of amber color.

 

When you add steeping grains to an extract kit you add color and complexity. That may not be what you want but you still should try at least one. By the time you have worked your way through 5 gallons of it you likely will develop a taste, nay, a real desire for beers with complexity. If not, you can go back to just extract beers or move to all grain.