Single Extract Can In 11.5 L Fermenter

[gazeboar]

I have a small 11.5 fermenter to use alongside my 30 litre in the fermenting fridge. It was suited for the Malt Shovel Brewery extract cans (one can per 11.5 L fermenter), but I can't seem to find any of these cans around where I live. Can I use a decent brand of wheat beer (perhaps Blackrock) extract instead? I'm thinking of just using one whole can, with no other fermentable sugars, considering the volume of the vessel i'm brewing in. Will doing this with a good quality yeast at 18 degrees for fermentation produce good results?

 

[Pennywise]

Can't comment of the results as I've never done it, I'd suspect it may end up a little more bitter than desired, and quite full body wise.
Have you considered doing an extract brew with a can of plain, un-hopped malt? You could quite easily get away with a 6L boil and a wheat extract tin (with topping up to 11.5L in the fermenter). All you'd need is a good clean hop for a 60 min addition and a wheat beer yeast. And it going in to the fridge you really don't need to concern yourself if you need to pitch a little on the high side

If you don't have any brew software to work out the hop additions I'm more than happy to help there. Or the kit and extract spreadsheet floating around this forum gets a good wrap

 

[gazeboar]

Can't comment of the results as I've never done it, I'd suspect it may end up a little more bitter than desired, and quite full body wise.
Have you considered doing an extract brew with a can of plain, un-hopped malt? You could quite easily get away with a 6L boil and a wheat extract tin (with topping up to 11.5L in the fermenter). All you'd need is a good clean hop for a 60 min addition and a wheat beer yeast. And it going in to the fridge you really don't need to concern yourself if you need to pitch a little on the high side

If you don't have any brew software to work out the hop additions I'm more than happy to help there. Or the kit and extract spreadsheet floating around this forum gets a good wrap

Ok... I did consider that. I'm really new to this stuff, is Coopers liquid malt extract unhopped do you know? I thought it was. Also, when you say '60 min addition', doesn't that mean I add add the hops at the very start of the boil and boil for one hour? I didn't think I was supposed to boil extract cans as it stripped away flavour. Definitely need guidance with hop additions as I don't have any software. Could you recommend a suitable wheat yeast also? Sorry man, i'm very much a newbie :/

 

[donburke]

I have a small 11.5 fermenter to use alongside my 30 litre in the fermenting fridge. It was suited for the Malt Shovel Brewery extract cans (one can per 11.5 L fermenter), but I can't seem to find any of these cans around where I live. Can I use a decent brand of wheat beer (perhaps Blackrock) extract instead? I'm thinking of just using one whole can, with no other fermentable sugars, considering the volume of the vessel i'm brewing in. Will doing this with a good quality yeast at 18 degrees for fermentation produce good results?

it will work, 1.7kg of liquid malt in 10 litres will yield an og of 1.050 approx
the pre bittered cans have an ibu for 23 litres, so you will end up a beer thats roughly twice as bitter as that intended by the manufacturer

you are making half a toucan

you could try a stove top 10 litre all grain batch, very easy to do this size volume in your kitchen with very little equipment

 

[gazeboar]

it will work, 1.7kg of liquid malt in 10 litres will yield an og of 1.050 approx
the pre bittered cans have an ibu for 23 litres, so you will end up a beer thats roughly twice as bitter as that intended by the manufacturer

you are making half a toucan

you could try a stove top 10 litre all grain batch, very easy to do this size volume in your kitchen with very little equipment

Okay. I'll do that then. I haven't even brewed one decent batch yet, but I have a lot of faith in the one in my fridge at the moment. So, i've made myself a rule, to perfect 3-5 partial extract/extract brews before i'm looking to 'roll with the big boys' with AG. Besides, I don't think i'm ready just yet. Lol! I'm kidding, I don't believe in elitism. I do believe in good beer though

 

[manticle]

Could just dried wheat extract, some noble hops to about 15-17 IBU in a single addition, cool it down and add it to the fermenter and dilute if necessary. Thing with using dried is you can store away what you don't use and can tailor the exact amount, IBU and abv to your tastes without hassle (as long as you have some scales).

Make sure you use a proper wheat beer yeast.

 

[Pennywise]

Ok... I did consider that. I'm really new to this stuff, is Coopers liquid malt extract unhopped do you know? I thought it was. Also, when you say '60 min addition', doesn't that mean I add add the hops at the very start of the boil and boil for one hour? I didn't think I was supposed to boil extract cans as it stripped away flavour. Definitely need guidance with hop additions as I don't have any software. Could you recommend a suitable wheat yeast also? Sorry man, i'm very much a newbie :/

As long as the can says un-hopped malt extrcat, then it's plain, no hops or hop oils have been added. Generally, well, all the times I've taken note, if it's a pre-bittered kit it'll have a style attached to it. Like the Coopers kits, Pale Ale, cerveza, Stout and such. These are all pre-bittered and "flavored ", so you'd generally not boil these. If it's plain extract, it'll say light (or pale) extract, or in your case you'd look for wheat malt extract.
Yep, you boil the hops in some water with malt extract added to isomerize the hop alpha acids to bitter it, for wheat beers you generally only want to look at a single bittering addition, as the flavor should come from the yeast, and this addition would be for 60 mins.
A very good wheat yeast is Wyeast 3068, it's a liquid yeast (sponsors sell it), IMO, for a decent wheat beer, liquid yeast is a must.

Just about to get the kids sorted for dinner so if no-one beats me to it I'll try and help out re the bitterness and such.

 

[gazeboar]

As long as the can says un-hopped malt extrcat, then it's plain, no hops or hop oils have been added. Generally, well, all the times I've taken note, if it's a pre-bittered kit it'll have a style attached to it. Like the Coopers kits, Pale Ale, cerveza, Stout and such. These are all pre-bittered and "flavored ", so you'd generally not boil these. If it's plain extract, it'll say light (or pale) extract, or in your case you'd look for wheat malt extract.
Yep, you boil the hops in some water with malt extract added to isomerize the hop alpha acids to bitter it, for wheat beers you generally only want to look at a single bittering addition, as the flavor should come from the yeast, and this addition would be for 60 mins.
A very good wheat yeast is Wyeast 3068, it's a liquid yeast (sponsors sell it), IMO, for a decent wheat beer, liquid yeast is a must.

Just about to get the kids sorted for dinner so if no-one beats me to it I'll try and help out re the bitterness and such.

Thanks for the info man, you definitely don't clown around. Just a couple more questions, what is a suitable hop variety to use, and how many grams am I boiling for 60 minutes? (I don't expect a response soon if you have things to do). Can I ferment a good wheat beer at 18 degrees?

 

[keifer33]

It's going to depend on the AA% of the hops so until you buy them its hard to calculate accurately. Not really sure what the lhbs are like down in Bunbury but you want to make sure they are stored in a fridge and vacuum packed. A noble hop variety will suit a wheat beer best so something like Haluetuer or Tettnanger. Different temperatures with different wheat beer yeasts can promote the creation of different things esters such as clove, banana, bubblegum etc.

 

[gazeboar]

It's going to depend on the AA% of the hops so until you buy them its hard to calculate accurately. Not really sure what the lhbs are like down in Bunbury but you want to make sure they are stored in a fridge and vacuum packed. A noble hop variety will suit a wheat beer best so something like Haluetuer or Tettnanger. Different temperatures with different wheat beer yeasts can promote the creation of different things esters such as clove, banana, bubblegum etc.

I just rang the owner of my local HBS and she's getting in some liquid wheat yeasts on Friday. She always has a lot of variety of hops, although they're all stored in plastic containers in the fridge. Why does it matter if they aren't vacuum packed? I'll look for Haluetuer.
Haluetuer

 

[gazeboar]

Sorry, presume I use this hops, whats a rough figure of grams to use? Unsure if i'm using 15 grams or 50.

 

[Pennywise]

As a quick one.
If you were to boil 6.5L with both water and the 1.5kg tin of wheat malt, topping up the fermenter after the boil to 11.5L. You'd need to use 12g of tettnang if the AA% rating on them were 4.5%. This will give you an IBU of just under 14, on the high side for style but within range. 10g would give you 11.5 IBU if you prefer it a little lower on the bitterness side. Personally I'd use the Tett rather than Halertau (sp?). Fermenting a wheat yeast, as said, you can ferment anywhere from 17-22. Depending on what esters you want. Lower will give you more clove type esters and hight will give you some bloody nice banana esters, my favorite...

Hops are better stored in the fridge, airtight as they can stale if left to the open, and cooler temps keep them fresher for longer

 

[gazeboar]

Thanks for all the help guys. Much more helpful than the people at my homebrew store, and a hell of a lot more helpful than any instructions with extract cans.