Boil hops before adding extract?

[PHLarry]

Hi- I couldn’t pass up a great deal on 50 lbs DME (I normally brew all grain). Is there any reason I cant just boil the hops for 60, say in a gallon of water, then just add that to the kettle with the DME at a lower temp? is there any reason to boil DME or to boil hops actually with the DME? I’m low on propane, and cant get it filled before brew day.
Thanks for any input...

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

FWIW, some (maybe all) DME makers recommend boiling / pasteurizing DME/LME.

Brewing Engineering has a section that talks about boiling hops in water (before brew day) to make a "hop extract" that can be added. There are also pre-made "hop extract" products that can be used.

 

[D.B.Moody]

You might also consider that a 30 minute boil will get 90% of the alphas that a 60 minute will get, and boiling without extract or grains will get more than boiling with. Best practice would suggest boiling, or at least pasteurizing, the DME. You can dissolve it in a half a gallon and then pour in the boiling water. I recommend dissolving DME in cold water, because hot water and DME make a dust cloud.

 

[PHLarry]

Thanks for the tips. I’ll probably just go to pasteurizing temp on the DME. Briess website says they boil it twice in the process of making the DME. My 50 lbs of it should make for many experiments.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

Briess website says they boil it twice in the process of making the DME

Do you have a link for that?

 

[PHLarry]

Sorry, I probably misspoke. I found it on this forum ( which now I cannot find) which referenced the malting company’s website. If I find it again I’ll post a link.

 

[PHLarry]

Found it...https://food.briess.com/capabilities/extraction-drying/

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

In additional to their "food" site, Briess also has a brewing-related site at: Brewing with Briess: Specialty Malts & Ingredients

LME & DME - Briess Brewer's Grade Malt Extracts talks more about their DME/LME products.

update: fixed typing error(s)

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

I found it on this forum

The popular source may be the podcast episode that's mentioned in this quote:

Basically [podcast] said "Don't double boil the stuff, it's already been boiled" in reference to boiling extracts. In thinking about that LME is already wort that has been boiled off the under a partial vacuum and DME is just extract that has been atomized and dried

Although, Boil the hops, not the Malt Extract! (link, also BYO Oct 2002) may be more interesting. It offers guidance on how to adjust a recipe (without software).

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Here's an interesting side-by-side brew day to consider. Using BBR's hop sampler process, brew the same six-pack IPA-ish recipe with two different brands of DME (say Briess and Muntons). Rather than adding the DME when the boil is reached, add it at "flame-on". Watch the wort as the temperature goes from around 140F to 190F (don't stir and don't add hops during this temperature range). After the beers have been bottle conditioned, do some triangle taste tests with the two batches. One could also experiment with adding additional "minerals in the glass".

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

My 50 lbs of it should make for many experiments.

Consider picking up a copy of Brewing Engineering and/or find the author's web site. There are a number of interesting ideas in the book that don't show up often (if at all) in forums. I've tried some of them and got good results.

 

[Beermeister32]

Boil some of it up on your kitchen stove if you are short on propane. You can split components of the batch up and recombine for the final boil before your tank sputters out...!

 

[ncbrewer]

Boil some of it up on your kitchen stove if you are short on propane. You can split components of the batch up and recombine for the final boil before your tank sputters out...!

Or boil it on the stove and use a partial boil with late extract addition (maybe 1/3 - 1/4 of the extract in the boil and the rest added at flameout).