Dissolving Malt And Other Questions

[michael_aussie]

DISSOLVING MALT and other questions

Is it only me, or is dry malt a pain in the A to dissolve??

I have tried in cold, lukewarm, hot and boiling water.
I have tried adding before and after the main kit.
I have tried not stirring, gently swirling (as per the Coopers box) and lots of stirring.
I have tried slowly adding, in small batches, and all at once.

Still I end up with a sticky lump that takes forever to dissolve.

Does anyone have any tricks or tips??

And while were at it - how much of a good thing?

The Coopers Light Dry Malt box is only 500gm.
The Brewcraft Malt Extract is 1kg.
The Morgans Master Malt Extract is 1.5kg (liquid).

And just to top it off.. is there any difference between malted barley (Coopers Light Dry Malt)
AND
the Brewcraft Malt Extract??

If so, which is better and why?

Oh one more malt AND dextrose or just malt??

 

[waggastew]

In my experience (and from what I have read) its not a big deal if you get a few lumps of undissolved DM. Over the course of the ferment the yeast will use up the dissolved sugar causing the undissolved sugar lumps to dissolve. I have never had chunks of malt in the bottom of my fermentor at the end of the ferment/after bottling etc.

I usually add it into the fermentor after adding the kit goo and 2L of hot water. I give it a good stir and don't worry too much.

As for the malt questions

All malts (unless it says otherwise e.g. wheat malt) are made from barley. There is no/little difference between name brand e.g. Coopers and your LHB plain package stuff. Dried malt extract (DME) usually comes as light (LDME) or dark and can also be called spray malt.

Liquid malt is the same products as above, just dissolved in water. If you have a look around on this site there are guides to tell you how much dried = how much liquid.

As for malt vs. dextrose vs. maltodextrose, do a quick search or check the info in the link below

http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum//ind...?showtopic=9233

The effects of different ingredients on your brew:
Dextrose adds no exra flavour or body to your brew, only alcohol.
Malt (either dried or liquid) adds body, flavour and alcohol to your brew.
Maltodextrin adds body and some sweetness to your brew.

A good starting point for the ingredients to add to your tin of extract is 500gms dried malt extract and 500 gms dextrose.

This website has heaps of good info. Just use the Google searchy thing or read some articles in the Kits & Extracts section. Happy brewing

 

[Lecterfan]

Hmmmm...I found that the coopers light dry malt is just a super fine, powdery, sticky awful f*cking mess the moment you even thought about opening the box. The LDME I was getting from the local HBS was MUCH coarser and didn't have any of the clumping problems. The coopers malt is so fine that powder can plume up out of it, and I have never experienced that with malt from any HBS (except for dry wheat malt).

Maybe it depends on where it is coming from etc.? But in my experience (in Ballarat, also often shop at G+G in Melbs) there is a considerable difference in the user-friendliness of the products, with the LHBS malt being preferable.

Waggastew has answered your other questions. I personally stick to nothing but malt (now I partial mash or do small AG batches anyway)...but I understand how frustrating that would be if the only malt you could access was the coopers boxed product.

Good luck.

 

[manticle]

Add powder to liquid, whisk with a clean sanitised whisk.

 

[bignath]

Add powder to liquid, whisk with a clean sanitised whisk.

+1 the whisk works brilliantly.

Boiling or hot water for me, slow pour of the powder, whisk well, no lumps even with the coopers stuff.

 

[Lodan]

Dry malt is hygroscopic, it likes to attract water from the surrounding environment. The coopers malt is finer and the increased surface area probably makes it more susceptible to clumping.

I think it depends on the process. Some malts might be spray dried at a higher temperature or with different spray patterns to change the size of the particle.

Another + to the whisk

 

[manticle]

If so, which is "better" and why?

Oh one more malt AND dextrose or just malt??

Skipped out on answering this. Waggastew has summed up what each one brings so the real answer is - it depends. It depends on what you are trying to brew.

Some people like to be purist and add only malt. Fair enough. However, in my experience all malt extract beers can underattenuate* and end up a little thick and cloying. If you are brewing a beer that needs dryness and good attenuation, a little bit of sugar like dextrose or sucrose can help balance things up. Don't be afraid of sugar - just learn what it does and use it appropriately, where appropriate.

Maltodextrin (not maltodextrose) is a another thing entirely and shouldn't be confused with either malt or dextrose. It's even more confusing when you consider maltodextrin is also known as corn syrup and dextrose is also known as corn sugar.

*When you make grain based beer you can push the attenuation so it's not so much of an issue but some brews will still benefit from a sugar addition.

 

[zarth]

Good stuff it was frustrating me as well ill try whisk method now...

 

[enuun]

i sieve out the stuff like I would flour if it looks clumpy for me in the bag
Works fine if you have a large enough boil