First Extract Recipe Advice

[benner]

I am planning my first extract brew, having a handful of kits under my belt. I have built a boiler and immersion chiller following advice on this forum.

How much could I get away with boiling in this, and how much am I likely to lose through evaporation etc?
I was thinking of putting 20l into boil, is this likely to boil over? Could I expect to have 18l left after a 60min boil?

This is the recipe I have come up with, going for a hoppy APA/IPA:

20l water, 60min boil
3kg pale DME
0.5kg crystal malt
30g chinook 60mins
30g cascade 15min
1 protofloc 15min
Safale US-05
30g Cascade dry hop 7 days in secondary

Does this sound reasonable? I want something 5.5-6% with quite a lot of bitterness and some citrus aromas.
How long should I steep the crystal for and at what temp?

I have just bought the ingredients and I was shocked at how pricey DME is. Might be going AG sooner than I thought!

Sorry for so many questions, but I've spent too much on this already, I don't want any expensive mistakes!

Cheers,
Ben

 

[Aleman]

Looks OK to me . . . boiling 20 litres should be fine, in fact after 30 minutes you could start topping up with boiling water (treated for chlorine of course) from the kettle. I would suspect that you will loose more than 2L to evaporation in 60 minutes, but as I've said there is nothing to stop you topping up during the boil with no issues.

How long should I steep the crystal for and at what temp?

You want to steep the Crystal at 60-65C for 30 minutes, although you can drop the grain bag in at 50C and remove it when it hits 72-24C . . . then rinse it with a litre or so of water (Taken from the original wort volume before adding the LME)

One other tip that might make things a little bit easier is to mix the DME in cold water rather than hot water. This stops the steam turning the DME int a nasty sticky mess. It also makes it less likely to clump.

DME is pricey but IME it stores better than LME . . . and makes better beer, the premium is worth it

Of course All grain is even cheaper :lol:

 

[Springer]

I was thinking of putting 20l into boil, is this likely to boil over?

As A said 20 litres no problem at all and more will be ok.
The time to watch it for boiling over is when it comes up to boiling and there is lots of foam and you have just added the hops. They float around until they get wet and pile up with the foam at the edge of the boiler, ready to climb out with the boil. Place the lid on loosely to help minimise heat losses as you get it up to the boil and then remove it well before boiling point and keep a close watch on what's happening. You can use your paddle to pull the foam / hops about.
Yesterday nipped in to the computer to work out my hop quantities and returned to find by brew had climbed out up the boiler side 12 inches, mind you had left 6kws whipping things up. Not added hops at that stage fortunately, there's always good news if you look for it :lol:
So its not about room left its about keeping an eye on it at the crucial time :evil: Lesson learnt, won't be doing that again
S

 

[Aleman]

The time to watch it for boiling over is when it comes up to boiling and there is lots of foam and you have just added the hops.

Another useful tip, is to either not add the hops until after the foam has subsided back into the boil (usually about 10 minutes after the boil has started) . . . then add hops and start the '60' minute boil. Or, to add the hops when you remove the grain bag, and allow them to soak . . . by the time the wort comes to the boil they have already absorbed enough liquid and don't sit on the surface, plus the hop oils help suppress foam formation. First Wort Hopping in this way, does reduce the perceived bitterness of the beer, but it is a much smother bitterness

 

[benner]

Thanks for the advice.

I think I might try popping my first hops in before I come up to the boil. I think i shouldn't be short of bitterness, and smooth sounds good!

Another question, does it matter when I add my extract? I presume it doesn't actually need any boiling, just time to dissolve properly.

 

[Aleman]

Extract most certainly does need boiling, boil all of the extract with the hops for the entire duration of the boil . . . and ideally as close to final volume as possible. This will ensure that you get a good break.

Do not assume that because you add extract to kits without boiling that it is best practice. It isn't can can lead to haze issues as the protein it contains is still present in the wort. when making extract the wort from the mash is run off into an evaporator where is is boiled under very low pressure . . . this drops the boiling point to around 50C, which is good as the wort does not darken and caramelise. . . . however it is below the temperature required for protein degradation, so all teh protein remains in the concentrated wort. . . . Spray dried extract is even worse, as the wort from the mash is sprayed through a fine nozzle at the top of a tall tower, Warm dry air is pumped in at the bottom evaporating the liquid . .. and again leaving behind all the protein.

So yes you do need to boil

 

[benner]

Glad I asked! :shock: