Notes |
1. Add the water to the brewpot. We like to start with about 2 gallons.
2. Put the specialty grains into the muslin grain bag & tie a knot at the top of the bag. Leave some room for the grains to “swish around†within the bag. Suspend the filled bag in the water to avoid scorching, or burning a hole in the bag & heat to between 165o F - 170o F. Be sure to occasionally give the bag a light squeeze & use a teabag motion to help swish things around a bit. When the water reaches 165o F - 170o F, remove the bag...it has done its’ job. Exceeding 170o F will cause tannins to leach out of the grains, which can make your beer astringent.
3. Continue heating until the water comes to a boil. Now it’s time to add the dry malt extract. You will have to add the contents slowly while stirring to mix. We like to remove the brewpot from the heat for this step, to prevent the malt from scorching at the bottom of the brewpot.
Dry malt takes a while to dissolve into the water. Just keep stirring until the entire amount of malt has been emptied into the pot.
4. Now, bring the mixture back to a boil and make note of the time when you have achieved a good rolling boil. You’ll be boiling your mixture (now called wort) for one-hour total time from this point on. This one-hour boil ensures a good breakdown of the malt & hops. Ideally, you’ll maintain a nice rolling boil (not too vigorously now) for the entire time. It is ESSENTIAL that you WATCH FOR BOIL OVERS at this stage. Your beer will not be ruined, but a boil over makes a BIG, STICKY MESS! Keep stirring the green stuff (hops) back into the boil as they like to stick to the sides of the brewpot.
5. At 15 minutes before the end of the boil (45 minutes after the start of the boil), it is time to add 1oz of Flavoring hops and Clarifier Tablet. This addition adds a unique flavor and aids in clarifying your finished beer. If you are going to be using a wort chiller to cool your finished wort, you should place it into the brewpot for the last 10 – 15 minutes of the boil to sterilize it.
6. At 2 minutes before the end of the boil (58 minutes after the start – or so...), add 0.5oz of Finishing hops. This addition provides a wonderful aroma to your finished beer.
7. At 60 minutes from the start of the boil, turn off the heat and cool your wort as quickly as possible. The best way to cool your wort is with a wort chiller. If you don’t have one, you can set your brewpot in a sink full of ice water. A wort chiller will cool your wort in a bout 15 minutes, whereas the “sink full of ice water†method takes at least an hour, so leave the lid on the pot to avoid airborne bacteria. If you boiled less than 5 gallons, you can add cold water to help cool your wort. The point is, cool it quickly, keeping the pot covered if possible!
8. When your wort has cooled to 80°, or below, it’s time to pour it into your primary fermentor. Go ahead and splash your wort in order to aerate or “oxygenate†your wort at this point. Yeast “like†a little oxygen at this point ---- but never after. Don’t worry about the residue. It is protein and hop residue (called “trubâ€).
Now you should take a “starting gravity†reading (approx.1.044 – 1.052), using your hydrometer and test jar. If you record this number, you can use it to determine your actual alcohol per volume at bottling. After pouring the wort into your primary fermentor and taking a hydrometer reading, you can add (“pitchâ€) your yeast. When using the dry yeast that came with the kit, either stirring the yeast into the wort, or sprinkling it on top will work just fine. We usually just sprinkle it on top. While you can make a yeast starter following the directions on the yeast package, it is not necessary. Be sure to put a tight sealing lid on the fermentor & use an airlock. |
