A couple of questions for the advanced extract brewers....

[Teufelhunde]

I have been brewing ~3 years now, started with extracts and have been doing all grain for the past year or so in a Brewzilla 3.1.1. I have seriously been thinking of moving back to extract brewing for two reasons.

1) Easier with shorter brew days....
2) While I feel I can get a better beer with more control with all grain, I'm also more consistently good with extracts.

If I do move back, I will be using exclusively DME.....I don't like dealing with the sticky mess of LME, and it settling to the bottom of the pot and scorching....which brings me to one of my questions.....When doing partial boil extracts and adding a late add of DME, I always had a lot of clumping(2-3 inches in diameter) that had to be dealt with. When I would add DME to an all grain batch at the end of the boil to get the OG up when it was low, I never had and issue with clumping, it seemed to be absorbed readily and only minor clumps <.5 inches in diameter that dissolved quickly and I'm wondering why the difference.

Also, if I change back, I am thinking of doing full volume boils using the Brewzilla instead of the 5 gallon pot on the stove (boiling 3.5 gallons) then adding water up to full volume (5 gal). Any pluses/minuses to either method?

One last question Briess or Muntons?

TIA for any input

Lon

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

[full volume boil vs partial boil] Any pluses/minuses to either method?

Take a look at @D.B.Moody 's process for partial boils with late additions (#86 in "I Brewed a Favorite Recipe Today" (link) is a recent example). Note the use of water to avoid adding dry ingredients over steam. #20 (link) in "Late Addition DME" is also worth a read.

My technique (2.5 gal batches) is to add the DME at around 140F (while heating to a boil) using an electric wire whisk. With full volume batches and soft boils, "darker than expected" is not a problem.

With my technique, there is very little steam with water at 140F, slightly more at 160F, and a lot more at 180F. This does vary slightly based on weather - so the better/best techniques may also have a regional bias (what works on the north coast may not be best on the gulf coast).

One last question Briess or Muntons?

Yes.

Like any other base malt brand comparison, there is price / flavor trade-off. And there is also personal taste and recipe design.

Brewing Engineering, 2e (2014) offers suggestions as to which brands may work better with different beer styles. There was a recent topic here at HomeBrewTalk that did a side-by-side comparison and had a similar finding for that recipe and those tasters.

At the moment, I don't have a strong opinion either way - Muntons is finally back in my "supply chain" so I will be able to return to brewing with it over the next couple of months.

 

[D.B.Moody]

.When doing partial boil extracts and adding a late add of DME, I always had a lot of clumping that had to be dealt with . . .

A.lso, if I change back, I am thinking of doing full volume boils . . . Any pluses/minuses to either method?

One last question Briess or Muntons?


Lon

If you first dissolve the DME in some water, there isn't this problem.
If you want easier/shorter, partial boil lessens cool down time and effort. Remember, the boil is for the hops; the extract doesn't need boiling.
I prefer Muntons. I did a comparison in post #146 of I Brewed a Favorite Recipe Today. I Brewed A Favorite Recipe Today (link) I brew only ales, and I have a preference for British bitters and pales.

 

[mac_1103]

Back before I knew any better, I added DME before the boil, during the boil, and after the boil. More steam equals more clumping, but I never had anything that was insurmountable no matter what I did right or wrong.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

@mac_1103 same here - never any insurmountable problems with DME.

Which seems to run a little contrary to some HomeBrewTalk forum "wisdom".

One can add DME without the dust and without the clumps.

 

[mac_1103]

same here - never any insurmountable problems with DME.

Which seems to run a little contrary to some HomeBrewTalk forum "wisdom".

One can add DME without the dust and without the clumps.

Yeah I don't really get it. Are folks just dumping it into the kettle three pounds at a time or what? Pour it in slowly while stirring. Clumps in the pot break up pretty easily. Clumps in the bag fall into the kettle eventually.

 

[Teufelhunde]

If you first dissolve the DME in some water, there isn't this problem.

How much water needed per pound to make a slurry to pour into the boil?

 

[D.B.Moody]

How much water needed per pound to make a slurry to pour into the boil?

My ordinary method of brewing has me dissolving up to three pounds of DME in 1/2 gal.of water. It is not too thick and could obviously handle more, but I've no experience doing so.

 

[Pehlman17]

@Teufelhunde I’ve been in a similar mindset lately. Been heavily considering going back to extract based brewing as my primary method. I just want to have fun and not fuss over a million little decisions with every batch. I have a 6.5gal Anvil Foundry and yet I’m still leaning toward a 5 gallon brew pot on the stovetop. I’ll still use the foundry for the occasional all-grain batch I’m sure. Anyway, I think @D.B.Moody ’s strategy looks pretty solid to me. Whenever I’ve used DME I’ve never had any trouble getting it to dissolve in room temperature water. No reason I’ve found to bother with adding it to a steaming kettle. Good luck to you! Please share any good recipes you make or fun tips and tricks you discover in your new process.

 

[Teufelhunde]

@Teufelhunde I’ve been in a similar mindset lately. Been heavily considering going back to extract based brewing as my primary method. I just want to have fun and not fuss over a million little decisions with every batch. I have a 6.5gal Anvil Foundry and yet I’m still leaning toward a 5 gallon brew pot on the stovetop. I’ll still use the foundry for the occasional all-grain batch I’m sure. Anyway, I think @D.B.Moody ’s strategy looks pretty solid to me. Whenever I’ve used DME I’ve never had any trouble getting it to dissolve in room temperature water. No reason I’ve found to bother with adding it to a steaming kettle. Good luck to you! Please share any good recipes you make or fun tips and tricks you discover in your new process.

What has been your experience with the amount of water needed for adequate mixing of the DME?

 

[Pehlman17]

What has been your experience with the amount of water needed for adequate mixing of the DME?

I’ve done as much as 3 pounds in a gallon of room temperature water and it dissolved pretty well with just a big whisk. I think even less water would have worked just fine. I also found that after stirring a bit, just letting it sit for a few minutes the DME would fully hydrate even if there were any undissolved bits left.

 

[bike2brew]

Likewise here, I slurry my DME and make the 1st addition prior to the boil. The late addition slurry generally comes off without issue as well. That learning curve with experience has been a game change for my recent batches.