Newbie questions, using Coopers Pilsner kit

[bibowski]

So a friend and I just did our first brew tonight. We sterilized all of the equipment quite thoroughly, then we did the following steps:

1. Boiled 2 litres of water
2. Added the can of malt extract to the boiled water
3. Added approx. 300g of dextrose to the boiled water
4. Stirred everything up
5. Added stirred 'wort' to 20 litres of cold water in the fermenting bin
6. Stirred up again
7. Made sure the temperature was within range (I think it was about 24C)
8. Added yeast
9. Put lid on, with airlock

I have a couple of concerns though...

Do I NEED to add dry light malt to the wort? I don't have any, nor do I even know where to get it (I'm in Burlington, Ontario).

Also, my measurement for the dextrose wasn't exact (I used 300ml as a measurement :-S). I've read though that using less dextrose is MUCH better than using too much.

This was our first attempt, so hopefully everything goes well. Any tips otherwise?

 

[mewithstewpid]

adding the DME will only increase the fermentable sugars giving you more body and a higher alcohol brew. It should be fine without it, tho. Possibly a little thinner, and definitely less alcoholic, but also very very drinkable.

I order all my supplies online. there is a great Vendor section on this forum. northernbrewer, farmhousebrewingsupply, brewmasterswarehouse are some of my favorites.

 

[bibowski]

I see a lot of people use 'carbonation drops'. Are they simply compacted dextrose tablets? If I don't add dextrose before bottling, how will the beer become carbonated?