Is DME-only brewing a good idea?

[FatDragon]

Ha!! Mystery grains lol i have about .5 pounds of Carastan grains.. just wanted to see if it would give more flavor and sugar..

So how much did you steep? Really just .4 oz? Or was it 4 oz or the whole half pound? 4 oz seems about right for a two gallon brew. A tenth of that probably won't make a perceptible difference versus not steeping any grains at all.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

This question has kept me up at night and the rabbit hole only goes deeper. No-boil dme is fine, but you're not getting the full potential of flavor and bitterness from your hops. Alpha acids isomerize in temps above 175. No boil = no isomerization. How about boiling hops in water? No...just no. Too much bitterness and it'll feel like you just ate a dandelion. Boiling is good, but you risk scorching the extract. What about a late extract addition? This is fine and great because less scorching and lighter beer, but you can end up with an overly bitter beer. What about limiting the amount of hops in a late extract addition? Now we're talking, but what about the flavor and aroma hops? Maybe limit those too, but less than that of the bittering hops. Screw it - how about just a full volume boil? That way the extract is diluted enough so it won't scorch and there's enough sugars for appropriate hop utilization. Sounds great... let's talk about the Milliard reaction now ... [jumps out closest window]

... and there's the idea of a 'concentrated wort' and topping off with cold water (3x wort volume to minimize chill time) that's mentioned here:

Early today I brewed a two gallon batch of ordinary bitter. I heated two quarts of water to 190, mixed in half my extracts, added WGV hops and steeped for 30 minutes. Then I mixed in the rest of my extracts added six quarts of cold water and pitched my yeast.

That rabbit hole looks deep enough to cause a person to go BAIB/"all-grain" and "never look back" .

Seriouly, I have a couple of "recipe templates" (currently just in my head) that I use to navigate the short/no boil variations: 15-minute pale ale, BBR hop sampler, hop steep / no-boil, @Steveruch 's "concentrated no-boil" approach, ...

back to the related question:

do you recommend a boil using DME or can I get away with a no boil?

Yes and yes; depending on the style of beer. edit: remember that, in 2019, Munich, Pale Ale, and Vienna DME are available.

 

[TBKCO]

This question has kept me up at night and the rabbit hole only goes deeper. No-boil dme is fine, but you're not getting the full potential of flavor and bitterness from your hops. Alpha acids isomerize in temps above 175. No boil = no isomerization. How about boiling hops in water? No...just no. Too much bitterness and it'll feel like you just ate a dandelion. Boiling is good, but you risk scorching the extract. What about a late extract addition? This is fine and great because less scorching and lighter beer, but you can end up with an overly bitter beer. What about limiting the amount of hops in a late extract addition? Now we're talking, but what about the flavor and aroma hops? Maybe limit those too, but less than that of the bittering hops. Screw it - how about just a full volume boil? That way the extract is diluted enough so it won't scorch and there's enough sugars for appropriate hop utilization. Sounds great... let's talk about the Milliard reaction now ... [jumps out closest window]

WTH!! Everything you just wrote I have thought of! Wow!
Ok now... whats the best way to carbonate your 16oz bottled beer? I read carb tabs??

OG is 1.040. I won't know the final ABV for probably a week.

nice

So how much did you steep? Really just .4 oz? Or was it 4 oz or the whole half pound? 4 oz seems about right for a two gallon brew. A tenth of that probably won't make a perceptible difference versus not steeping any grains at all.

Correct, I used .40 oz of grains. It gave me great color, and fermentable sugars. I am currently using BSG’s carbonation tablets. Can you recommend a different carbonation tablet to give me good carbonation?

 

[eimar]

I brew with extract about 10% of the time . I use Briess CBW® Pilsen Light . I came to the personal conclusion that fresh LME tastes better than the equivalent DME.
I uses DME for making yeast starters, it is less messy and it is easier to weight the exact amount. If well packed it won't absorb moisture.
I started to brew in ...1990 with malt extract, the quality of malt extract has come a long way.

 

[kh54s10]

I started with Northern Brewer kits that had LME, DME and steeping grains. If I do extracts, I now use Briess Golden Light (It's what I bought last for starters) and steeping grains. I prefer to get color and flavor from grain rather than different malt extracts.

I never try to add DME from the bag. I spoon it in so it doesn't get stuck to the bag or bowl. I have only done traditional 60 minute boils for hop isomerization.

My extracts have been every bit as good as all grain, but I prefer all grain. I want control of all the ingredients and amounts. And I enjoy the process a little more even if it does take a long time.