Difference between American and Aussie brew kits.

[YBC]

Here in Oz the packs that I have bought for different bears merely have one can of wort. I assumed this was extract brewing. However, when looking around here it seems that the kits most of the americans on here are buying are a combo of different ingredients that you cook up to make your wort. Are there any australian's on here that can comment?

I'd much rather be cooking them up as i can only assume this will yield better results. The main processes i've used so far are just buying the kits heating up the wort and adding it to the fermenter. Waiting for it to cool then adding the yeast. I've started experimenting with adding different malt extracts and hops to the kit when i heat up the wort in a pot.

Looking at most of the home brew stores in Perth they all just seem to offer the same pre-made packs.

 

[sockmerchant]

Hey. Probably similar to the Auckland scene so may be able to help. A lot of brew shops here just sell cans too. But there are a handful of shops that sell grains etc. ie there are some serious shops.
I would suggest you try extract and grain which isn't a big step up. You Use mostly extract, but add some specialty malts to change up the flavor. If you use unhooked extract you can do a full boil, hop additions etc (or partial boil if you don't have a big enough pot)
Good luck!

 

[YBC]

What is the difference between a full boil and a partial boil? Would the wort in the cans be considered extract?

Could you also explain the term unhooked extract to me? This is what i'm loving about getting into brewing so many new terms and ideas to nerd out on.

 

[dbreienrk1]

Full boil uses all the water and a partial boil uses part of it (usually half). So for a 5 gallon batch you would boil ~5.5 gallons of water for a full boil or 3 for a partial boil. After the boil is complete you top off the fermenter to your desired final volume. It's for those that don't have the kettle capacity.

 

[Somebirs]

My guess is that when he said "unhooked extract" he typed unhopped extract and the autocorrect changed it.