novice brewer from newcastle (tyne&wear)

[trophybitter]

good evening boyz n girls.so im a novice and need a bit of advice,i like making bitters and largers.i use 5 gallon drum to make the beer add bag of sugar leave for 8-10 days you know what i mean,so it tastes nice but its lacking body.looking at the way i brew how can i add body ???.any advise would be greatfully appreciated.cheers

 

[equiliser]

welcome neighbour

 

[eggman]

Hello fellow brewer, just starting to experiment myself but try adding Beer kit enhancer or Spray malt in place of the sugar that you're adding to your kit :

 

[StrangeBrew]

Welcome...

:

 

[trophybitter]

thanks folks,yes ill add malt instead of sugar next time cheers for that.im from sunderland origanly (plains farm) now living in geordie land (north shields).so how much malt would i add to the brew 5 gallons,which is the best malt to buy or is malt just malt ???? sorry if this sounds dumb but im new to brewing.cheers folks

 

[equiliser]

By the way my first two brews were with sugar and turned out great ...however try a brew enhancer in place of sugar...or try 500g of dry malt extract and 500g of sugar (if possible dextrose)
the taste of the brew has a far better body and taste....or go the next stage and get a premium two can kit....twice the price but the outcome is amazing.

 

[trophybitter]

last brew i made was geordie bitter nice drop it was too but its lacking somthing.ive got john bull larger brewing at the moment just bottled it yesterday,looking forward to sampling a few bottles.but the next brew im going to try somthing different cos im getting bored of the way ive been brewing,dont get me wrong im doing a canny job but my beer is lacking body.

 

[eggman]

There's quite a few threads on here talking about it, hopefully someone will come along that can explain it better but it kinda depends what kit you're doing. If you're doing a light ale you want a extra light or light malt, if you're doing a bitter you want a dark malt. If the kit calls for an extra 1kg of fermentables try 50/50 malt and brewing sugar, personally i do 2 can kits :

 

[trophybitter]

so whats the crack with this 2 cans is it the best way to brew a nice pint ??.so how is 2 cans brewed and what is added,you dont av to go into to much detail as youve all been a great help already,just a point in the right direction will do.thanks

 

[Dave1970]

2 can kit has 2 cans of extract so you don't add any sugar...more expensive but nearer to how real beer's made, the Woodeford's kits are popular and most seem happy with the results

 

[eggman]

1 can kits are cheaper and you have to add extra fermentables ie sugar, beer kit enhancer, or malt or a combination of them. 2 can kits are more expensive but include everything you need in them. If you use somthing other than sugar in a 1 can kit its soon becomes not much cheaper than a 2 can kit, i'm sure lots of people have brewed great 1 can kits but personally i prefer 2 can kits :

 

[eggman]

+1 that dave the woodfordes kits are great :thumb:

 

[Marrsy86]

Welcome!

Seems like the North East is getting a mini brewing army going on here!

:party:

Marrsy

 

[trophybitter]

ok folks thanks for the advice.im going to try 2 can brew,ive got a brew on now so ill put the 2 can brew away for xmas and new year once finished.lovely jubbley :)

 

[trophybitter]

Welcome!

Seems like the North East is getting a mini brewing army going on here!

:party:

Marrsy

yeah its cheap.if you have a night out ya need £50,4 cans is £4 and thats for swag stuff,good stuff like stella is
£5 for 4 sod that i aint paying that.anyways to be honest im not really a big drinker,i make my own beer cos its cheap and gives me somthing to do and theres always a beer in the fridge if i fancy 1.