2nd brew

[sully626]

So I did end up putting my first brew in the secondary, primarily to get another brew going since half of my first batch is spoken for. I understand now what you guys where talking about with passing out to much homebrew. I am thinking about this recipe, but would really like some advice.

IPA

Est OG: 1.068
Est FG: 1.015

1lb caramalt

3.15lb Pilsen liquid extract( 60 min)
6lb golden liquid extract( 15 min)

1oz warrior(60 min)
1oz Amarillo (15 min)
1oz amarillo (10 min)
1oz centennial (1 min)

2pkgs safale us-05 ale yeast

I'm not sure my calculations are correct, the app I'm using might not be spot on. Will this come out as a decent beer? Any suggestions if not.

Thanks!

[corkybstewart]

It ought to turn out good. Keep your fermentation temps low and it should be good. To keep the color as light as possible add most of your extract at the end of the boil, maybe the last 10 minutes should be enough.

[sully626]

Thanks corky, I was going to add the golden at 15 min, but if 10 will be ok then I will do that. I know it's basic, but is there anything you would do differently? I really want to get a nice full flavored beer and love a good amount of hops. The beer that came with the kit I bought doesnt seem like it is going to give me that, so it will be great to hand put to friends!

[Velkyal]

This is probably a daft question, but why do you say add most of the extract at the end of the boil?

[corkybstewart]

Liquid extract has already been boiled so you don't need to boil it more to concentrate sugars. Plus extended boiling darkens LME so if you want a light colored beer add most of the extract late-it's called the late extract method I think. You need some extract boiled with the hops but you really only need to boil the rest long enough to kill any nasties in it.

[BrewDog]

To add to what Corky said, many extract brewers do partial boils and then top up with extra water when they rack to the primary. The high sugar concentrations drastically reduce the amount of hop acids that isomerize in the boil, leaving the beer dramatically under-bittered.

Waiting until late leaves the concentrations lower, allowing more bitterness to form and stay in the smaller boil.

HTH-

[sully626]

It looks like my LHBS doesn't have golden extract, should I put in all Pilsen or sub in amber for the golden? I know that going to amber will darken the color, which is ok with me, I more concerned about flavor.

[Mill Rat]

General rule is to keep you base malt, whether grain or extract, as light as possible and deliberately add the color and flavor malts you want. So the pils would be my recommendation.

[Velkyal]

Liquid extract has already been boiled so you don't need to boil it more to concentrate sugars. Plus extended boiling darkens LME so if you want a light colored beer add most of the extract late-it's called the late extract method I think. You need some extract boiled with the hops but you really only need to boil the rest long enough to kill any nasties in it.

Is the same true of dry malt extract? I don't use the liquid stuff.

[corkybstewart]

Is the same true of dry malt extract? I don't use the liquid stuff.
I don't think so but then I only used dry extract once and it was so messy I never tried it again.

[sully626]

what are the differences between DME and LME? Other than the liquid/dry thing, and from what corky is saying the mess. When I was at my LHBS today I had thought to ask, but ended up with many many other questions which were more of a priority.

[msk]

LME is like molasses. You pour it, put some hot water in the container [and swirl] and drain it [maybe repeat once, depending on the spigot temperature], it is done. DME turns into a rock when it hits the water. If you pour it in slow, it turns into pebbles, but the bag [or even mixing bowl] it comes from forms a ring of rock around the hole you are pouring out of. It turns into a rock when steam confronts it. It stores better, but it is not easier to work with. Hot water from the spigot resolves 'getting all of the LME' from its container and into the boiling kettle. I have only used DME three times and it was a lot of work to get it disolved [a mess]. I have multiple times used a favored kit-in-a-can MountMellick and it was so much easier to use than DME.

I would throw half of the centenial in with each of the amarillo additions. Think majic hat number 9. Get some flavor out of the centenial. Amarillo alone for flavor, to me, is like drinking liquid apricots.... I do not recommend ever buying majic hat variety packs [I only like their number 9, they put fruit into almost everything], but number 9's recepie reads as if it is fruit-free. I liked it enough to try to duplicate it even though I disliked everything else about the variety pack.

And I would only ever use 1 pack of SAF yeast for that gravity.

[sully626]

Thanks for the description and recommendation for the hops! I ended up getting wyeast 1056 instead of the dry yeast. And my LHBS didn't have Warrior, so I ended up with Columbus. I didn't realize amarillo gave that kind of flavor and I don't mind #9, but I wasn't really looking for that out of this brew. Well I guess that's the trial and error part of the hobby, I shall see how it comes out.

[Mikegobrew]

I used both DME and LME in my extract days, and agree with MSK except for the rock part. Mine turn into balls like milk duds. I still use DME for starters, and look forward to eating those milk duds. I've been known to put some on a spoon and actually create them with the steam. :D And I found that LME was much cheaper but isn't easy to make starters from.

[sully626]

I ended up brewing this one Wednesday night and has been bubbling away since then, which was good to see since my first brew didn't go crazy for to long. Here is what I ended up brewing:

.75 lbs Crystal 20L(LHBS sold as 1lb pkgs, weighed it when I got home)

2.65lb Amber LME (60 min)
7.5lb Amber LME (10 min)

1oz Columbus 14% a (60 min)
1oz Amarillo 8%a (15 min)
1oz Amarillo 8%a (10 min)
1oz Centennial 9.1%a (1min)

Wyeast 1056

OG was almost spot on @ 1.072

Smelled great brewing and tasted good too, though I'm still not sure what to taste for at this time in the process.

I think that after my next batch(an ESB I already have everything for) I am going to start making some single hop batches to really figure out what flavors each hop gives to the beer.

[Istvan]

I'm new to homebrewing ... so my comments might not be that relevant. But ... John Palmer, in his book titled How to Brew, has a number of pages in the Hops chapter (pp 45-54) which describe the "profile" of lots and lots of the common hops. He even cites "examples" of commercial beers which use each hop.

Maybe that would help with the identification process.

[gestyr]

As with any other skill, practice makes a whole lot of difference. If you get a batch that did not come out just the way you want it, just jump back on that horse and try again, making a few adjustments. :)

There are a lot of great people on this forum who give excellent advice based on experience. I totally agree with the late extract addition method.

[sully626]

Thanks Istvan, I had actually forgotten about that part, even though I read through it recently. I still plan on doing a couple of single hop brews, since I'm also new to the hobby I am not sure where exactly all the flavors are coming from. I'm sure that will come over time.

And thanks Gestyr, everyone has been a great help here, and I won't be getting off the horse any time soon. Bottling my first brew Tues or Wed and brewing my next one next week after this IPA goes to the secondary and can't wait to have some of my own homebrew.

[sully626]

So I bottled this beer 2 weeks ago Friday(tomorrow) and just tested a bottle out last night and there is no carbonation what so ever. I had put the bottles in the basement this past weekend since it was warm and we had the windows open upstairs. The basement has been about 58 degrees each time I have checked. Should I move it back upstairs or just leave it a bit longer in the basement? Or could there be something else wrong? Though it is good, to my tastes, and I will drink it flat if need be :D

[gestyr]

Give it another week and try a bottle

[corkybstewart]

58F is pretty cool for carbonating, try to put it someplace closer to 70F.

[sully626]

I'll bring it back upstairs tonightand leave it for another week. I was thinking 70 was going to be too warm. That's how warm it was last weekend when I moved the brew downstairs.

[BrewDog]

70F is perfect for carbonating, but the upper limit for the majority of ales in primary.

HTH-

[sully626]

I tried one last night and it is almost ready, thanks for all the advice!