specialty grains (extract kit)

[TRIPLEMSU]

i will be purchasing a kit from NB that has specialty grains (extract kit)...this will be my first batch...i am not quite sure what or if that entails any type of extra work...just trying to be preapred before the kit comes in...fyi i will be kegging this kit as well

kit is dead ringer ipa...any help is appreciated

 

[Yooper]

Nope, no extra work at all! That kit is really nice, and the instructions are clear and concise. You'll bring 2 gallons of water to 160 degrees or so, add the bagged grains and "teabag" them and stir them around and cover and keep them under 170 degrees for 20 minutes or so. After the steep, you just lift out the grains (you can pour 170 degree water over the bag if you want, to "rinse" the grains but you don't have to), and then throw them away. The directions are laid out well.

 

[badbrew]

Are the grains malted and cracked?

edit: nm, I see it is in the kit so probably "yes".

 

[jpar345]

For God's sake keep it well under 170, I steeped my first batch too hot and it got the infamous grainy/bitter/astringent off-flavor I was unaware of at the time. I also steeped for an hour per the instructions... carry on.

 

[Yooper]

One of the things I love about northern brewer is that they put their kit ingredients and instructions right on their website. Here's the instruction sheet:

http://www.northernbrewer.com/documentation/beerkits/DeadRingerIPA.pdf

Easy as can be!

 

[jpar345]

What I don't get is why their instructions say to steep for an hour, then everywhere else I read online it says 30 minutes tops.

 

[kh54s10]

I did 4 NB extract kits when I started in July. I put the specialty grains in to steep as soon as the water was hot then heated until the temperature hit 170 degrees. In all cases the timing of 20 minutes and getting to 170 were within a couple of minutes. All of those beers turned out great. The advise I would give that is not clear in NB's instructions is to use the longer of the times for fermentation that are published. You can also skip the secondary and just use the primary for 3-4 weeks then bottle. Also pitch the yeast when the wort is down in the 60's, keep the fermentation of the beer in the low to mid 60's. That is the temperature of the beer - not air temp.

Read the instructions, read them again, gather and sanitize your equipment, read the directions, start brewing and read the instructions again.

Don't let what I have said concern you, NB's kits are great. Very easy to do, and make very tasty beer!

 

[kh54s10]

What I don't get is why their instructions say to steep for an hour, then everywhere else I read online it says 30 minutes tops.

Wrong. The directions say to steep for 20 minutes.

 

[jpar345]

Wrong. The directions say to steep for 20 minutes.

Those might, mine said 60 minutes, which I see they've now changed on their website. I have the print out at home to prove it.

 

[kh54s10]

Those might, mine said 60 minutes, which I see they've now changed on their website. I have the print out at home to prove it.

?? I don't doubt you, but all of mine and all the ones I have looked at online were the same - 20 min or 170 degrees max. Most of the changes in the directions are only in the ingredients.

 

[Brewnoob1]

I steep for 45 minutes without issues. May be overkill, but if you have an extra 30 min, why not?

 

[jpar345]

Ever since I ruined my first batch I'll be very cautious about steeping time and temps moving forward, I have a feeling my beer would have been quite tasty if not for that. Now I'm embarrassed to let anybody try it and I have over a case of gross beer to get rid of (can't bring myself to dump it either).

 

[Brewnoob1]

Steeping time shouldn't be an issue. It's the temps that cause the problem. I don't think if you are steeping in the 155-165 range, that up to an hour would cause any issues.

 

[jayavery]

different grains have different steeping times and temps to add different characteristics to the beer - flavor / color / sugar conversion. basically specialty grains requires no more work except just waiting for the steeping time and trying to keep at a constant temp for the duration of the process. i have a video where i steep, drain and rinse specialty grains here if you'd like to see the process live:


[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRqR9OcYcj0&list=UUzXVt8eSaMOurjhod8bb1KQ&feature=plcp]How to brew with Dry Malt Extract - Epic Beer Dude - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Yooper]

different grains have different steeping times and temps to add different characteristics to the beer - flavor / color / sugar conversion.

I don't have any speakers today for the video, but I just wanted to mention that this info above is not true. Steeping grains can be steeped from 150-165 degrees without issue, and the time is just as long as it takes to extract the color/flavor from them. There is no advantage to longer, or changing the temps, although you certainly want to stay below 170 degrees. You get no sugar conversion with a steep, so there is plenty of room for a range of temperatures/volume with the water.

 

[jayavery]

i never said anything about temperature ????

and there are some weird recipes that ask you to steep 2-row so if you're telling me there's no conversion of 2-row in an hour long steep then that's probably wrong too

 

[Yooper]

i never said anything about temperature ????

and there are some weird recipes that ask you to steep 2-row so if you're telling me there's no conversion of 2-row in an hour long steep then that's probably wrong too

different grains have different steeping times and temps to add different characteristics to the beer - flavor / color / sugar conversion.

You can't steep two-row- it's a base malt and must be mashed. If you're steeping two-row, you're creating a nice starch haze, and not converting sugars.

In any case, I'm not here to nit-pick, I just don't want anyone thinking that steeping is more than what it is. It's simply making a "grain tea", and provides great color and flavor for extract beers.

 

[daksin]

deleted