Improving a Muntons Beer Kit

[tcnjdeluca]

I am familiar with basic home brewing and usually do simple partial mash recipes. I have not done hopped malt extract in years, but I received 2 muttons kits as a gift months ago and I figured I'd put them to use. I did not like the results back in the day so I am looking for simple ways to improve these kits and would like a little advice.

The first one I am going to use is Irish Stout. The instructions call for 1 Kg of sugar. I figure I could use about 3 pounds of dark dry malt extract as a substitute. I was also wondering if the kit could benefit from any additional hops?

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Dan

 

[JimRausch]

Most of those kits are kind of light on the steeping grains, so that's one place to start. Switching the sugar for dark DME is another, but if it's designed to be a dry stout, then doing that will change the flavor. Whatever you do, make sure you run it through a recipe calculator.

 

[Thejbj13]

I am familiar with basic home brewing and usually do simple partial mash recipes. I have not done hopped malt extract in years, but I received 2 muttons kits as a gift months ago and I figured I'd put them to use. I did not like the results back in the day so I am looking for simple ways to improve these kits and would like a little advice.



The first one I am going to use is Irish Stout. The instructions call for 1 Kg of sugar. I figure I could use about 3 pounds of dark dry malt extract as a substitute. I was also wondering if the kit could benefit from any additional hops?



Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!



Dan

Can you post the recipe/kit instructions

 

[tcnjdeluca]

The kit is muttons home brew premium Irish Stout. It is literally a 3.3lb can of hopped extract with a packet of dry yeast under the cover.

http://www.muntonshomebrew.com/category/premium-range/

The instructions are suspiciously unlike any brewing I have ever done.

http://www.muntonshomebrew.com/wp-c.../Muntons_Premium_full_special_instruction.pdf

Basically it says pour empty the can into the fermenter and pour boiling water over it. Then add a kg of sugar top off and pinch.

I have found another similar thread and have been playing around with a brewing calculator. Settling in on something like;

Steep Roasted Barley (10oz?) at 170 for 30 minutes
Add 2 pounds DME
1 ounce cascade pellets for good measure

I'm not really sure the best steeping grains for Irish Stout, but roasted barley seemed a good place to start.

 

[HB_in_Subic]

I tried a Irish Spring Stout DME Kit from AHS. The Specialty grains were;

1/2lb Crystal 120L Malt
1/4lb De-bittered Black Malt
1/2lb Flaked Barley
1/2lb Brown Malt
1/4lb Black Roasted Barley

6lb Extra Light DME
1 oz Galena at 60 minutes
1/2 oz Kent Golding at 15 minutes
1/2 oz Kent Golding at 5 minutes

I also like to make a Dry Spring Stout DME Kit from AHS. Here is the specialty grains for that;

4 oz Black Patent Malt
8 oz Black Roasted Barley
1lb Crystal 60L Malt
8 oz Marris Otter Malt

6lb Dark DME
1 oz Nugget at 60 minutes


I used Muntins Premium Gold dry yeast for both recipes with good results. Keep the steeping temperature around 155F. At 170F, Tannins are produced and can adversely affect your beer.

A lot of people will add the LME into the wort at the end of the boil. I typically do full boils (21L) after steeping the grains in them for 25-30 minutes. I then add the DME or LME. By adding the LME at a later time it will help keep the color of the beer lighter. For a Stout I do not think that it would matter.

 

[aprichman]

Does the kit come with standard muntons yeast: http://www.midwestsupplies.com/munton-and-fison-ale-yeast.html

Or does it come with muntons premium gold:
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/munton-s-premium-gold-yeast-6-grams.html

Standard muntons yeast is meant to be brewed with sugar. If you exclude the sugar and use all malt your yeast will stall out and have an abnormally high FG.

Muntons gold should have no problems with all malt brews but keep in mind a 6g packet is pretty small if you are doing a high gravity brew you might want to use more than one packet.

Cheers

 

[tcnjdeluca]

Looks like I have the standard yeast. So thats another thing to add to the list. One last question. It is my understanding that you really can't boil a hopped LME. So should I add that at the end of the process? Or does that not really matter and just brew as normal.

 

[Psylocide]

Put it in at flame out.