Improving kits

[BrewnWKopperKat]

 

[jtgoral]

FWIW, people who brew regularly with DME/LME will often use a 30 min boil, 15 min boil, a zero min boil (e.g. Basic Brewing Radio's hop sampler approach).

One can boil for 45 - 60 min. One can also have a shorter brew day with a couple of recipe / process adjustments (link).

I use 15-20 min LME boiling and double amount of bittering hops. The beers are as good as my all grain BIABs.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

I use 15-20 min LME boiling and double amount of bittering hops. The beers are as good as my all grain BIABs.

If you have some time, over the next couple of batches, consider posting a favorite recipe (or two) over in the "I Brewed A Favorite Recipe Today" topic.

 

[Davedrinksbeer]

I brew a lot of 5 gallon extract kits, I start the boil with 3 gallons of water and then top off after the boil with a 2.5 gallon jug of store bought spring water. I ice bath it to 90 degrees and then use the cold jug water to drop it to 65ish. I pitch dry yeast( 1 or 2 packs) and Shake the hell out of the bucket to get the oxygen mix in. I then put it in a tub of water with some ice in it to keep it fermenting in the 65 degree range. I leave it in there 3 weeks and then keg. If your beer is bland could just be the kits your buying. There’s different levels of goodness in different brands of kits, some are just cheap. Try going to a local brew store and get fresh grains and ingredients.

 

[SFC Rudy]

This hobby requires patience. If you're thirsty, go to the liquor store and get some beer in bottles you can refill.

Remember, every bottle you open before it is ready is a great beer you will not be able to enjoy later.

 

[Tooter]

Yer think I might try a boil on my next batch. The only kits I have at the moment are all in one (no DME or added sugar) and have hops in the extract.

 

[Tooter]

This hobby requires patience. If you're thirsty, go to the liquor store and get some beer in bottles you can refill.

Remember, every bottle you open before it is ready is a great beer you will not be able to enjoy later.

Yer good point think I'll leave it a bit longer in the fermenter. At least 2 weeks?

 

[Davedrinksbeer]

Yer think I might try a boil on my next batch. The only kits I have at the moment are all in one (no DME or added sugar) and have hops in the extract.

Yeah, those are pretty generic beer kits, low end. Go to Northernbrewer.com. They have very good beer kits. If you can’t order from them, they have the recipes right there online with the beer kit. They have specialty grains that require steeping, packages of hops that you add to the boil and LME and DME.