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Brewing Problem...Help please.

szechman

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Jun 12, 2011
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Location
Northampton, PA
Hi everyone,

I am trying to make something that my wife will actually drink. She hates beer but will drink those funky malt coolers. (Seagram's, etc.). So this is what I tried...

1 lbs Sugar, Table (Sucrose) (1.0 SRM) Sugar 1 25.0 %
3 lbs Light Dry Extract (5.1 SRM) Dry Extract 2 75.0 %
2.0 pkg Cooper Ale (Coopers #-) [23.66 ml] Yeast 5 -
1.00 oz Strisslespalt [2.60 %] - Boil 15.0 min Hop 4 4.5 IBUs
5.00 tsp Yeast Nutrient (Primary 1.0 mins) Other 6 -
1.00 tsp Irish Moss (Boil 15.0 mins) Fining 3 -

I know I have 25% adjuncts but don't really care about taste yet. Just want to get the alcohol up. Beersmith says that the ABV should be around 3.5. Perfect. Then I figured after fermentation, I would keg and force carbonate. I was going to add like those frozen lemon aid mixes you get at the grocery store, to taste.

Well.... I have not gotten that far yet. Here is my problem.

I heated up my water (3 gal) to about 170 and turned off my propane burner. Added my DME and my sugar. I stirred and stirred until I was sure that everything was dissolved. Turned the heat back on, started the boil (15min) added my hops and Irish moss (15 min), chilled with wort chiller, added water to final vol (5 gal) and the color is not 3.5 srm like beersmith says it should be. It is closer to a 25 or 30 srm!!!  :-\

I did pitch my yeast but had to leave for vacation so I cannot check on it for another week.

Anyone know why it is so dark? What did I do wrong?  ???

Thanks,

Scott
 
only one of two things
you burned the DME  pretty bad
The DME you used was DARK, not light.
 
I disagree. You may have burned the DME but only if you didnt stir it in good or frequently. You may have added the sugar too early. Anytime you cook sugar for any period of time it will change color (carmelize). The higher the heat and longer the time the darker it gets. I would attempt to put the sugar in as a late extract addition. Like 15 minutes to the end of the boil to sanitize and mix it in real well. That would bring it in closer the color you are looking for. If you want to brew something the wifey will drink try a Raspberry Wheat or a Raspberry Lambic. Here is a Lindmans Framboise Clone Recipe I found that Im thinking of brewing for the holidays.
 

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I agree that burning the DME and/or sugar is unlikely.

The DME being DARK DME is much more likely, but to go from a light amber (more likely color than an SRM of 3.5) to a Stout?  That much change had to be a different DME.
 
Thanks everyone for the reply's. I checked the packaging and it is Light DME (not extra light). I DID put the regular table sugar in at the very beginning and I did notice a slow color change as the boil progresses but i just thought that it was because I only boiled 3 gal to start and figured it was getting darker due to concentration due to evaporation. Guess I was wrong. Thanks very much for the recipe for the Lambic. My wife loves Lindman's and she said that she would give it a try.

Scott
 
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