Extract brewing ?

Brian Foster wrote:).

Go for it! That's the reason you bought the bigger kettle! An added bonus is that now you are not boiling concentrated wort and have less chance of caramelizing on the bottom. The only dis-advantage is that now you will have

5 gallons to carry from the stove to the sink-top to cool unless your stove and cold water source are side by side.

mike

I can think of some pro's and cons.

pro, you have thinner wort, so boil over might be less. pro, less chance of over heating, so less chance of burns.

con, time. The heating of 5 gallons of water can take a while. con, weight. That is a big pot!

So, depending on your strength, you might have a good thing.

As for me, I stand over my boiling pot like an expecting hen, and don't want to carry around hot liquid. Now if I had a wort cooler, I might want to try boiling larger batches.

imho,

tom @

In addition to the positive aspects stated by others, hop utilization is better in a low gravity boil. As long as you have the means to handle the hot wort (and not lobster boil any parts of your body), then this is the best and most predictable way to go. Wish I had the equipment to do it this way! (Well, no I really wish I had twice as much IPA in bottle, then I wouldn't care about anything.)

Use 1/4 less hops in the boil or you will over hop for the intended recipe. Other than that, go for it.

I would definitely NOT do this. Switching to a full wort boil will make vast improvements in your beer. It is second only to going all-grain as a giant step in beer making. And you do get better hop utilization, but not four times. If you google 'hop utilization' you'll find a formula, using AA vs. weight to get the right bitterness, flavor and aroma.

Michael

Ummmmmmm...he didn't say to use only 1/4 of the usual amount, he said to use 1/4 less, in other words use 3/4 or 75% of the usual amount.

For example, instead of using say, 2 ounces, use 1.5 ounces.

OOPS! My bad. Although I still recommend finding and using a chart.

Michael