Why LME not DME

[mixedbrewer]

LME might seem less expensive, but it is 20% water. DME is 99-100% malt. A 3.3 lb can of LME is really 2.64 lbs of malt.

 

[Weizenwerks]

And Breiss LME cans are plastic. If I use extract, it's Breiss and Breiss only.

 

[Weizenwerks]

DME is 99-100% malt.

No, not that high.

 

[terrapinj]

No, not that high.

briess golden light LME is 79% solids; golden light DME is 97% solids

both have 75% fermentability

also the FAN (free amino nitrogen) content is higher with the DME (4200 v 3500 for LME) which I have read can help avoid stuck fermentations around the 1.020 mark

 

[Homercidal]

Oh,it gets better. Not all DME's are "spray dried",some are belt dried. Although the later may be the old way of doing it. I say they're both great,so let's have fun mixing & matching to make some great beers!!
There are so many combinations of extra light,light,amber,dark. Breisse,Munich,Australian,English,American...you get the idea. Different countries,different colors & aroma/flavor profiles that are popular in that country. Even more fun to be had! This is the way I look at the whole thing. I hope that gives a little insight to this madness.:rockin:

I've never heard of belt dried. I have heard of DME called Spray Malt by some older people. DME is the new norm for the stuff.

And I think it's common knowledge that DME is lighter in color than LME due to the processing. Although I have just recently heard that wheat DME is darker then Wheat LME. I'd be curious to know why that is, or if it's true.

The only reason I choose DME is because I brew AG and can store a bag of DME for any length of time and pull it out whenever I need it and use how much I need and put the rest back. It's always fresh because the shelf life is way longer than LME.

I think I saw a video or web page from one of the big name maltsters explaining how the different extracts were made.

 

[mixedbrewer]

(deleted) terrapinj already covered my reply.

 

[Weizenwerks]

briess golden light LME is 79% solids; golden light DME is 97% solids

both have 75% fermentability

97% isn't "99-100%" as stated previously, is it?

 

[terrapinj]

DME is also clutch to have on hand for starters

 

[terrapinj]

97% isn't "99-100%" as stated previously, is it?

depends on what margin of error you find acceptable

 

[unionrdr]

Interesting that the DME is lighter,I added plain extra light DME to a lme that was for a straw gold beer. It is now amber. Good color,great flavor,so far though.

 

[mixedbrewer]

97% isn't "99-100%" as stated previously, is it?

Ugh... now I know why I went to a different forum. No.. 97% is 2 % less than 99%. You are right and I am wrong. Sorry, you know best and I am a fool who doesn't know anything. Thanks for pointing that out because I didn't realize how stupid I was being. Have a nice day.

 

[Weizenwerks]

Get some thicker skin. It was a joke.

 

[iswenson]

DME is also clutch to have on hand for starters

Very good point. I always have some DME on hand for a starter

 

[ptra1004]

I have always been of the school of thought that DME, in addition to storing better, grants the final product a lighter color. Plus, my LHBS has a crap selection of LME, I can never be sure how fresh it really is...

 

[unionrdr]

It's usually the opposite for me. I used a straw light LME.& the extra light DME made it amber. Even though I added both at the end to make sure it didn't darken.?...

 

[Homercidal]

It's usually the opposite for me. I used a straw light LME.& the extra light DME made it amber. Even though I added both at the end to make sure it didn't darken.?...

Well, adding MORE extract is not going to make it LIGHTER. What do you think woudl have happened if you added a comparable amount of LME instead?

 

[chicagobrew]

I just jumped over to the muntons site and did a comparison of the SRM for various malts. Assuming that the ingredients are the same between the two and the processing is the only difference, I can say that they're almost exactly the same. In some cases the DME is 1-2 SRM darker and in some cases it's 1-2 SRM lighter. I would say that if you got a big difference between the 2 it was because the LME was way old and had darkened. For me, I don't care about 1-2 SRM difference so I'll just use whatever is cheapest and most convenient.

 

[unionrdr]

Well, adding MORE extract is not going to make it LIGHTER. What do you think woudl have happened if you added a comparable amount of LME instead?

I wanted more body,flavor/aroma,that sort of thing. That's why I combined the Cooper's OS lager can (straw gold beer is supposed result) with the Munton's plain extra light DME. But the lager can had Julian date of 32809 yeast (ale) in the lid. Maybe both were old.?

I just jumped over to the muntons site and did a comparison of the SRM for various malts. Assuming that the ingredients are the same between the two and the processing is the only difference, I can say that they're almost exactly the same. In some cases the DME is 1-2 SRM darker and in some cases it's 1-2 SRM lighter. I would say that if you got a big difference between the 2 it was because the LME was way old and had darkened. For me, I don't care about 1-2 SRM difference so I'll just use whatever is cheapest and most convenient.

Exactly my theory. I thought,at most,the English DME might be a lil more golden amber,but not this much. Just seemed odd that the DME was supposed to be "lighter" than the LME. But it's looking like a happy accident as of now. They've been in the bottle since last Sunday,& clearing nicely. But it has the same amber color as a Salvator Doppel Bock. Flavor was close,even though it was flat/green. So we;ll see how it comes out. Just have to watch the dates on the malts more closely. You guys could be right about that part. I'll know for sure next time I brew it.
But I'm thinking of doing a dark ale whiskely next.