Next kit brew

[Sgreen]

Hi guys,

I have a fresh set of mini kegs that i intend to use but have only done wherry before and want to try something new.
My beer taste is for a lighter ale with a bit of hop. Favorite ales being oakham jhb, landlord, high house farms nels best, elgoods golden newt.
Any recommendations on kits that taste like any of the above or that you knowledgeable people may think id like?

Cheers!

 

[Fil]

It will cost a bit more but how about buying a couple of tins of LME and adding hops yourself with either a mini boil or by brewing a hop tea. you could then dry hop your fermented brew prior to mini kegging for that extra aroma boost too..

you could simply lift the hop bill from an AG recipe of a clone you like the look/taste of..

 

[Graz]

I think Festival's Landlords Finest is supposed to be similar to one of the beers you mention

Haven't tried it myself but any other Festival kits I've made have been pretty good.

 

[Sgreen]

Hi Fil, great idea! I Hadnt realised that you can get lme, and that makes it a much more interesting proposition for me.
So i just need to add hops, sugar and yeast?

 

[Linalmeemow]

Hi Fil, great idea! I Hadnt realised that you can get lme, and that makes it a much more interesting proposition for me.
So i just need to add hops, sugar and yeast?

Pretty much, but you'll need a big-ish stock pot to do it in, and you'll need to put the pot in an ice bath to cool (as well as topping up to fermenter volume) before you pitch your yeast. It's an absolute doddle though, and the results are so much better than kit brewing that you'll never go back...

 

[terrym]

I have done the Festival Landlord kit as mentioned above and it turned out OK.
You could also look in the review section for kits here
http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=61597
Plenty of stuff on the forum about extract brewing and recipes on the internet. Some suppliers sell made up kits like the homebrewcompany
At its basic level all you need is LME, hops and yeast, although you can improve things by minimashes and steeping grains. And you can use your favourite hops.
I do extract brews in a 4.5 litre pot at present, making up to 16 litres in the FV. I just cool the pot in a bowl or two of cold water.
And I often use Holland and Barrett Liquid Malt Extract , its fine for brewing, so you could use that if you wanted to have a go, if you have no LHBS near you.

 

[Sandimas]

If you like Landlord then brew Landlord :)
https://www.brewuk.co.uk/timothy-taylor.html

 

[Sgreen]

Pretty much, but you'll need a big-ish stock pot to do it in, and you'll need to put the pot in an ice bath to cool (as well as topping up to fermenter volume) before you pitch your yeast. It's an absolute doddle though, and the results are so much better than kit brewing that you'll never go back...

Ah now im a little more confused. I was thinking that i could just chuck it all in the fermenter much like the woodsfords kit. Which is preffered because im lazy...

I assume id need to boil up then chill the landlord kit as well?

 

[Fil]

that landlord kit looks pretty close to the GW recipe I favour and due to the partial mash grains will be true-er to the original ( colour and mouthfeel) than simply using lme alone..

if you fancy an extract brew you can get away with a small more concentrated boil as per the kits of the 70's in the largest pot in the kitchen 12-15l is fine.. if you add hops to the boil for bittering then add a bit more as the utilisation(bittering effect) will be slightly less potent due to the extra concentration of the boil, but you can google an online calculator to help you achieve the target IBU if following a standard ag recipe..

Boiling only a small part of the final volume say 10l lets you bypass chilling by adding a couple of kilos of ice with the top up water

extract brewing is the most expensive ingredient wise, but does allow you to brew varied custom brews without any further equipment investment.

 

[terrym]

Ah now im a little more confused. I was thinking that i could just chuck it all in the fermenter much like the woodsfords kit. Which is preffered because im lazy...

I assume id need to boil up then chill the landlord kit as well?

The Festival Landlords Bitter is a 'normal' premium beer kit, and is made up in the normal way.
The brewuk 'kit' Darrelm linked https://www.brewuk.co.uk/timothy-taylor.html is a package of ingredients which you use to make up a clone of Landlord Bitter by using the extract brewing process, and will require a pot (10 litres is suggested).

 

[Sandimas]

The Festival Landlords Bitter is a 'normal' premium beer kit, and is made up in the normal way.
The brewuk 'kit' Darrelm linked https://www.brewuk.co.uk/timothy-taylor.html is a package of ingredients which you use to make up a clone of Landlord Bitter by using the extract brewing process, and will require a pot (10 litres is suggested).

I'd suggets that the latter would produce a better brew.

The former involves no boiling, you're mixing tinned ingredients with water and adding some dry hopping. There's only so far you can go with this method. The BrewUK kit is close to grain brewing except you're replacing the mashing process with dried malt: you still do a full 60min boil adding in hops at various stages, then straining the boil into an FV and top up with cold water like normal kits. The boil is 6-8L so you don't need a massive pan nor to worry about cooling, as you top it up with cold water. Worth giving it a go, it's not complex..

 

[Orval62]

If you want to get a quick brew on to fill a keg try a Cooper's Australian Pale ale, add a Cascade hop tea, and dry hop with Cascade. Result a great, easy drinking hoppy IPA. Cheers👍👍

 

[Sgreen]

Thanks everyone for the info and suggestions. Its really got me thinking. I was not expecting to go the AG route but im definitely going to be trying the extract landlord and then more going forward. Really hadnt considered lme and that appeals to my space, kitchen, and family based limitations.
I think i may do a test run on orval's suggesion as a comparison. I have an order of additional kegs on route from adnams that will just need emptying...
Cheers everyone!