With a 1 can kit can you use grain?

[Jeltz]

I've a John Bull English Ale kit picked up cheap from Tesco and will have an empty FV in a few days.

It's occurred that instead of using brew enhancer maybe I could possibly buy some crystal malt and use a 4.5L pan to boil up the grain to provide at least some of the sugars?

If so what kind of quantity of malt should I use? Would I also need brewing sugar? Should I also add some hops?

 

[Pearlfisher]

Have only ever done kits ,but if I were you ,I'd add a 1.5kg can of Cooper's light or amber malt extract to it , IMO well worth the money.
You'd still have a very cheap excellent pint .

 

[graysalchemy]

In order to get the sugar out of crystal malt you need to mash it with pale malt as well at 66c as it is not diastic (ie it doesn't have the enzymes to convert the starch to sugar). I think you would be better off using malt extract. Perhaps you should start looking at doing extract brews. :thumb: :thumb:

 

[Jeltz]

Yeah that sounds like a plan :thumb:

 

[Buzzing]

Jeltz,

You don't want to boil the grain at all, ever.

If you do want to tweak your kit a bit, some ctystal malt can be used, but not for the sugar contents, but rather some colour and taste tweaks. If this is what you'd like to do, then put the crystal malt in a sieve and let it heat up in a few litres of pre-boiled water in your 4.5l pan, but don't let it boil. You'll see the colour change and you'll smell the aroma form the malt, stir the malt with a spoon whilst in the sieve a bit and lift the sieve out of the water to drain and put it back in the water a few times until the desired colour and flavours have been pulled out. If you want, you can dissolve some sugar into this solution now and add to your wort.

Adding hops if you use a small qty of crystal wouldn't be essential, but if you do, go very light.

 

[jonnymorris]

Perhaps you should start looking at doing extract brews.

Exactly what I was thinking. If you're looking to steep some grains and are prepared to boil the wort you're ready for extract brewing.

 

[graysalchemy]

Then it won't belong until you cross over to the darkside :twisted: :twisted:

 

[Jeltz]

I can resist anything except temptation!

 

[RobWalker]

Jeltz,

You don't want to boil the grain at all, ever..

I'm gonna butt in with my annoying pedantic self and say...sometimes I boil black malt in extract beer, it's used in such a small quantity and already so roasted that tannins at least arn't noticable, and it beats the effort of steeping it!

"Cara" malts are especially useful for this as they have already gone through a process that allows you to "mash" them by simply steeping them, extracting the sugars in the process - CaraPils adds head retention and mouthfeel, CaraGold adds toffee without colour, CaraMalt is a nice version of crystal :)