First Extract Brew, Any Simple Suggestions?

[bignath]

The only reason I went that high was to bring the FG up to the "Good" range. But the spreadsheet still says 1.009 with 200g, could alway up the LDME to 3kg to bring it back up.

Your final gravity is more dependant on the attenuation level of your yeast. To a point....

Obviously, give the yeast way too much sugar to eat and it will naturally bump up the FG, but yeast attenuation goes a long way to determine your final gravity.

US05 usually attenuates quite well for me. I regularly get down to 1006 from a starting gravity anywhere from 1040-50.
Not sure what that figure is exactly, but from memory, i think i've got my US05 profile in Beersmith set to around 82-85% attenuation, and this seems to give real life representation of what my brews get to.

 

[Nick JD]

What sort of proportions are you thinking Nick, and more importantly why? Would it be too sweet otherwise? I don't like sweet very much.

2:1, LDMEex.

But this depends on your LDME - some of the confectionary malts are mashed really high and have a lot of unfermentables in them leaving the FG high and the beer sweet.

Some don't (the beer extracts especially). Is your LDME made for malteezers and mars bars, or beer?

Brew it as per your recipe first - if it finishes high and sweet, up the dextrose; lower the malt.

 

[wbosher]

Brew it as per your recipe first.

Thanks Nick, will do. Although I might go with slash's suggestion of lowering the crystal to 200g, and dropping the 0 minute hop addition and replace it with a 20g dry hop.

Can't wait until I've got an available FV and bottles to get this one on.

Thanks for all your help guys.