DME Amber from light

[_BullDog_]

Just starting to do non-kit brews. I would prefer to start with light DME and use crystals or Carmel malts to darken the wort? I would think this would give me a better understanding of brewing.

For instance how much 60L would I use if a recipe calls for Amber DME?

Could I mix 60L and 20L if a recipe calls for 40L

And how about for dark DM?

 

[Pappers_]

I completely agree with you. For extract brewing, I think it is better to start with the lightest DME or LME you can get, then add flavor and colors through steeping specialty malts and grains.

If you're starting to build your own recipes, I would suggest buying a copy of Beersmith, which was a great help to me when I started building extract recipes. It will give you the expected color, gravity, and IBUs (bitterness) of any recipe you enter into it, so you can adjust the recipe as you wish. One great feature is that you can select a beer style (according to the BJCP style guidelines) and it will tell you whether your beer is in the color range for that style, for example.

As for mixing caramel malts, I do that all the time. Its not the same, but it works.

 

[JohnSand]

Agreed. Except that I use BrewersFriend, which is free, up to 5 recipes. And I've mixed crystal, or used 10 for 20, and approximated crystal amounts by srm.

 

[bobbrews]

Unless you're making a very dark extract or partial mash beer like a stout, and you have very little ability to mash or add enough character grains, then using anything other than extra light or light DME is really a waste. You will have more flexibility and confidence in the %'s of the individual ingredients if you build the recipe yourself. You will also have better control over the pH and the gravity of the beer.

 

[beergolf]

This may help. It gives the percentages if what is in their extracts. You should be able to convert the DME to steeping grains to get you close to what you want.

http://www.brewingwithbriess.com/Products/Extracts.htm#SparklingAmber

edit.. ooops it give the percentages for every extract except the amber but it does give the color so you should be able to get close.