Hi! I’m brand new to this forum and just got into homebrewing a few months ago.
I started out slow by buying a Mr. Beer kit. I know it’s not “real brewing” but I knew NOTHING about the process. I’ve made two batches using their mix and it’s helped me to figure out fermenting and bottling.
Just a few days ago I attempted all-grain brewing. It took me about five hours but I did it :) I have no idea how it’s going to taste.
I also have the materials to make an extract/partial mash brew. But I’m not sure how that works? Do you just make the mash and then combine the liquid with the extract to make your wort?
Do you have to run water through the mash multiple times or does the extract make up for the extra flavor?
Also, how do you know how much water to add? Do you put the extract in your pot and the mash liquid fills it up the rest of the way? Or should the mash liquid take priority?
do the mash using 2 qt. of water per lb. of grain. When it’s done, sparge the grain with another 2 qt. per lb. Then add the extract and as much water as you need to get to the volume you want to boil.
If you have more extract than you want to make at the time (I have enough for a 5 gallon batch but I wanted to make 5 1 gallon batches) what’s the ratio?
It might be worth investing $20 in beersmith or similar. in fact, I think beersmith has a free trial you could check out.
then you can look over the styles and pick one that intrigues you, give it the batch size and it will help you design that recipe, pick how much extract to use, etc.