Extract Brewing

[Thunderlips]

Hi all,

I've never tried extract brewing before. With all the recipes out there the temptation is too great.
I've been having a bit of a read of various instructions all over the place and thought this one was fairly clear and it seems easy enough.
http://www.northernbrewer.com/documentatio...nstructions.pdf

My question is regarding full boil vs partial boil.
I'd rather start of with partial boil as I don't need to worry about a seperate burner connected to a gas bottle and so on.
I've noticed that most recipes out there seem to be for full boil.
Is it correct that the amount of hops used is different between the two methods?
If you had a recipe for a full boil, how would you go about working out the differences for a partial boil?
One recipe I'd like to try is this one, which someone else here posted...
http://www.cornells.com/content.cfm?s=5&p=29
I love APA's

Is there anything else, besides hops, that needs to be changed?

As far as pots go, I was looking at either a 20 or 30L Robinox aluminium stockpot from allquip.
I suppose 30L is probably a bit too big for partial boil, maybe even 20L is too big.
What size do think would be best?


Thanks.

 

[bconnery]

Firstly I will say go for it! Extract brewing is an easy step up and the results are worth it!
There are heaps of recipes, particularly form the US, and lots of info.

There is a difference in hop utilisation, and beersmith 1.4 allows you to specify when you are adding extract and then uses this in calculations so I would highly recommend this program if you don't have it already.
I always did a partial boil due to equipment. It was easy to get a stockpot up to a certain size from most places, so I went with that rather than search out a dedicated supply place. THe more you can boil the better I think but this also leads to increased cooling requirements so there is a trade off...

If you haven't seen it already here is a guide I posted detailing my method and an example recipe. Shameless plug I know but it is a method that worked well for me for a number of years...

http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum//ind...opic=15469.html

 

[lonte]

Is it correct that the amount of hops used is different between the two methods?

another way is to only use part of the extract in the initial boil. use enough to have your partial boil at the same gravity as you would have for a full boil and only add the balance of extract near the end (enough time to dissolve it and pasteurise it). This will bring your hop utilisation back into the expected range.

As far as pots go, I was looking at either a 20 or 30L Robinox aluminium stockpot from allquip.
I suppose 30L is probably a bit too big for partial boil, maybe even 20L is too big.
What size do think would be best?
Thanks.

as the boil needs some head space, a 20L stock pot will not allow you to boil a full 20L. Also be aware that extract (especially LME) adds volume to the boil when added, so you might only get 10-12L water into a 20L stock pot and boil comfortably. Go the 30L.

 

[captian black beer]

My question is regarding full boil vs partial boil.
I'd rather start of with partial boil as I don't need to worry about a seperate burner connected to a gas bottle and so on.
I've noticed that most recipes out there seem to be for full boil.
Is it correct that the amount of hops used is different between the two methods?
If you had a recipe for a full boil, how would you go about working out the differences for a partial boil?
One recipe I'd like to try is this one, which someone else here posted...
http://www.cornells.com/content.cfm?s=5&p=29
I love APA's

An easy way to do it although slightly more risky infection wise (mind you brewed 1000L this way and never had an infection except for a rouge bottle) is to avoid boiling the wort. I tend to boil my hops seperaterately (usually for 60min) to get the desired flavours and put the malt extract directly into the fermenter. This has the 3 following advantages:

1) You need a smaller pot as your only boiling a few grams of hops
2) You don't have to chill your wort so its quicker to brew
3) All can be done on a small stove

Also when you move to adding specialty grains you can steep them seperatly in another pot and treat them similar to hops.

Have Fun.

Black Beer

 

[Thunderlips]

If you haven't seen it already here is a guide I posted detailing my method and an example recipe. Shameless plug I know but it is a method that worked well for me for a number of years...
http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum//ind...opic=15469.html

Thanks bconnery.
That sure does help.
More questions later

 

[Thunderlips]

another way is to only use part of the extract in the initial boil. use enough to have your partial boil at the same gravity as you would have for a full boil and only add the balance of extract near the end (enough time to dissolve it and pasteurise it). This will bring your hop utilisation back into the expected range.

Great idea.
More maths involved. I don't suppose it would be a simple case of using half the extract or DME, or is that too easy?

as the boil needs some head space, a 20L stock pot will not allow you to boil a full 20L. Also be aware that extract (especially LME) adds volume to the boil when added, so you might only get 10-12L water into a 20L stock pot and boil comfortably. Go the 30L.

Ordered a 30L yesterday

 

[bconnery]

Thanks bconnery.
That sure does help.
More questions later

Feel free to PM me. Always happy to help with transition to the grey area on the edges of the dark side

 

[Thunderlips]

An easy way to do it although slightly more risky infection wise (mind you brewed 1000L this way and never had an infection except for a rouge bottle) is to avoid boiling the wort. I tend to boil my hops seperaterately (usually for 60min) to get the desired flavours and put the malt extract directly into the fermenter. This has the 3 following advantages:

Another great idea.
So your just adding the hops to water and following the hop addition times in the recipe for full boils?

 

[bconnery]

Another great idea.
So your just adding the hops to water and following the hop addition times in the recipe for full boils?

The downside to this is that hops require some wort to get best extraction rates. It is decreased if you only use water. The best method is to have at least some, and I used to sometimes use as little as 500g, wort to aid in extraction.

In the article I linked you to there is some information from bodensatz about extract brewing (intermediate under their terms) and one of the things it mentions is reasons for boiling your extract, even for just 5 minutes. I think it is worth a read. You always have to find what works for you of course but I believe it is best to do so. Cooling that amount by using pre-chilled water isn't that hard. I used to do about a 10L boil all told, most of the time even less.