Beer kits in a can…. Anyone else?

[Bagarge]

Hey guys,

So this is just to rant slightly and to see if anyone had the same thoughts on a small problem i ran into…

The instructions (and common sense) say to warm the can of liquid extract in warm water to increase the viscosity of the extract. Fine.

But has anybody had a problem with the glue from the label become a sticky sloppy mess of glue and label? Im worried some ended up in my brew and its bugging me

 

[fluketamer]

hi,

i always soak the can in warm water then the label comes off very easily. the patches and bits of glue left you can then scrub off a little. i dunk it back in the warm water for a few minutes then before pouring it i wipe down the outrside of the can to dry it off very well so no liquid or anything from the out side of the can gets in there.

not a lot of kit brewers here in the states. its not as popular here because there isnt enough turn over so kits arent as fresh so its not as popular so theres not enough turn over so the kits............

the sister thread has tons of kits discussion

https://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/forums/beer-kit-brewing-discussion.76/

 

[Bagarge]

hi,

i always soak the can in warm water then the label comes off very easily. the patches and bits of glue left you can then scrub off a little. i dunk it back in the warm water for a few minutes then before pouring it i wipe down the outrside of the can to dry it off very well so no liquid or anything from the out side of the can gets in there.

not a lot of kit brewers here in the states. its not as popular here because there isnt enough turn over so kits arent as fresh so its not as popular so theres not enough turn over so the kits............

the sister thread has tons of kits discussion

https://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/forums/beer-kit-brewing-discussion.76/

Yeah that technique makes sense. Cant believe there is no warning on the kit…. Im moving into biab brewing now but just getting through these few kits i have…

Here in europe they are quite popular, its much cheaper than pints in the pub or in the shops. I like the kits they are super easy and the beer is pretty damn good. First time i have run into this sticky glue issue though hahaha! Makes sense, just a little warning on the kit would have been handy

 

[Bagarge]

For some reason, it also says it makes 15 litres of beer but the actual instructions add up to 14 litres of beer.
In my experience i loose about 3 quarters of a litre to checking the S.G and a bit from not being able to siphon the last bit out…
Cant wait to get to BIAB grain brewing

 

[fluketamer]

what kit are you using i have never seen a 14 or 15 liter kit?

for starting specific gravity a refractometer is less than 20$ and uses only a few drops of wort.

once fermentation starts they are not accurate for checking gravity unless using a conversion calulator.

but great for the start much easier than traditional hydrometer and much less wort usage.

an ispindel is a little more (about60$) but can be used to measure both starting gravity and gravity during fermentaiton. it wastes zero beer.

if you really dont like wasting wort to trub in the kettle, you can just dump the whole kettle into the fermenter that trub wont hurt fermentation at all.

i stopped doing that cause i am convinced my final product is clearer when i leave behind the trub but its prolly in my head,

biab does make very good beer

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

Or take just one 5 oz sample (taken the day after pitching the yeast), let the beer finish fermenting, then measure FG.

Details can be found here: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/threads/first-brew-in-5-years-i-have-questions.730724/#post-10333233

Hydrometer sample tubes are about $4.00.

So, ( ) why 'waste' money on digital devices that are hard to dispose of, require batteries, often fail to work in the presence of trub, often fail to connect to other digital devices, etc. Do you really want to be an IT integration specialist in your spare time? Or would you rather 'invest' 5 oz of wort to get an accurate FG reading, first time, every time?

 

[Bagarge]

what kit are you using i have never seen a 14 or 15 liter kit?

for starting specific gravity a refractometer is less than 20$ and uses only a few drops of wort.

once fermentation starts they are not accurate for checking gravity unless using a conversion calulator.

but great for the start much easier than traditional hydrometer and much less wort usage.

an ispindel is a little more (about60$) but can be used to measure both starting gravity and gravity during fermentaiton. it wastes zero beer.

if you really dont like wasting wort to trub in the kettle, you can just dump the whole kettle into the fermenter that trub wont hurt fermentation at all.

i stopped doing that cause i am convinced my final product is clearer when i leave behind the trub but its prolly in my head,

biab does make very good beer

https://www.geterbrewed.com/beer-kits/brewferm-beer-kits/

Brewferm kits are usually 15/20liters depending on the style of beer. Great kits in my opinion!

I dont mind the 200ml i use to check the gravity with a hydrometer. I only check twice usually, at the start and end of fermentation. Always hit my target FG. I do drink it so its not a waste hahaha!

 

[jerrylotto]

Just put the bottle/can of extract into a plastic bag before you submerse it in warm water. And warming should decrease the viscosity, not increase it.

 

[Bagarge]

Hey guys, so my pilsner kit is done and tasting great! The flavor is good but i was wondering if i could dry hop a kit to make a bolder taste? Is that something that anyone has tried?
Cheers

 

[Bagarge]

Pilsner

 

[tdf]

Nice looking beer! You can definitely dry hop a kit.

 

[YankeeBrewer09]

Hey guys,

So this is just to rant slightly and to see if anyone had the same thoughts on a small problem i ran into…

The instructions (and common sense) say to warm the can of liquid extract in warm water to increase the viscosity of the extract. Fine.

But has anybody had a problem with the glue from the label become a sticky sloppy mess of glue and label? Im worried some ended up in my brew and its bugging me

My extract syrup is sent to me in a bag. Think it is easier this way and to me the stuff in a can is usually darker for some reason. Maybe this stuff is fresher?

 

[JakeBowden]

My extract syrup is sent to me in a bag. Think it is easier this way and to me the stuff in a can is usually darker for some reason. Maybe this stuff is fresher?

I remember a number of years some company out west used to package their malt like that. Haven't seen that in a while. Who sells it like that?

 

[YankeeBrewer09]

Boomchugalug is the name of the site I get them from. They ship super quick and I usually get stuff within a coupledays. They used to be my LHBS when I lived near them belive it or not I didn’t even know malt came in a can until after I moved and tried the new LHBS! But when they closed I found out my old place could ship to me so I use them again. the place is called Jaspers but it is https://boomchugalug.com

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

My extract syrup is sent to me in a bag. Think it is easier this way and to me the stuff in a can is usually darker for some reason. Maybe this stuff is fresher?

At their site, they state that the kits are made fresh to order.

Once it's ships, heat, oxygen, and time will cause the LME to go stale.

Store it cool (refrigerator) and use it promptly (within weeks, not months) to help prevent it from going bad.

 

[IslandLizard]

At their site, they state that the kits are made fresh to order.

That may mean that the kits are "freshly" assembled (per order), but it does not imply freshness of the extract itself.

IOW, the extract may be freshly poured (from barrels) but the age of the extract, and how it was stored, is most important.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

@IslandLizard : Yes, I did assume that the store was using good practices for re-packaging LME.

You raised the issue of freshness of the extract.

Let's do something about that (once again).

I occasionally mention a technique for measuring the freshness of extract.

The process may have it's roots in a BYO article from the 2014 - 2015 time frame.

It shows up in books from BYO and Chris Colby in the 2017 time frame:

Yes, I've used the technique (both to confirm freshness or confirm staleness).

Yes, it works (for a light LME prodcut: it was amber and it tasted stale).

Oxygen, heat, time.

• Oxygen: prefer containers with no head space; prefer oxygen barrier material
• Heat: store it cool when it arrives
• Time: use it promptly

--------------------

tagging @fluketamer

 

[mac_1103]

Yes, I've used the technique (both to confirm freshness or confirm staleness).

Confirming freshness is great. But what do we do if we confirm staleness? Besides cry in our beer, that is.

 

[fluketamer]

i may be misquoting kopper kat or another member but i seem to remember seeing something like "if life gives you old extract (lemons) make dark ales (lemonade) . lol

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

@mac_1103:

• in the one instance where I confirmed staleness, the container had head space (and the beer had "ball point pen" off flavors /1/). My bad. Lesson learned (and no reason to drink bad beer)
• the batches where the process confirmed freshness, the LME was "style specific" LMEs from Williams (HBT advertiser/sponsor) and the results were delightful.

My approach in both situations was to store the LME chilled on arrival and use it promptly.

But what do we do if we confirm staleness?

Good question, but in the mid 2020s, this is likely an "edge" condition if one is following good practices for brewing with LME.

It was well known in the mid to late 2010s that LME was better than DME when the local home brew store had good practices for re-packaging LME.

In the mid 2020s, the pattern appears to be similar, but "shipping" is involved.

My guess, in the mid 2020s, is this: if one can assume (or make happen):

• on-line store has good practices for re-packaging LME
• oxygen barrier containers have no head space
• shipping conditions are 'reasonable' /2/
• refrigerate on arrival
• brew promptly

then stale LME will likely not exist on brew day.

----------
/1/ Basic Brewing Radio: Aug 25 / Nov 17 2005
/2/ my orders from Williams (CA) to me (North Coast USA) were in late winter / early spring.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

i may be misquoting kopper kat or another member but i seem to remember seeing something like "if life gives you old extract (lemons) make dark ales (lemonade) . lol

It wasn't me.

IIRC, the idea (late 2010s) was that one could use 1 can/tin of old LME in a big stout and get enjoyable results.

Fortunately (mid 2020s) the days of old (stale) LME in cans are (mostly) in the past.

 

[sibelman]

if i could dry hop a kit

You bet! You can do almost anything with a kit that you can do all-grain except mashing, of course. Also can't subtract the hops and adjuncts/specialty malts.

But you can add, and you can choose the yeast and manage fermentation, etc. Go for it!