(Mods, feel free to move this if it belongs somewhere else. “Recipes” seemed the most appropriate to me.)
I’m gearing up to brew my second-ever batch, but I’m not sure yet what exactly I want to brew. I can only do extract (w/steeping grains) since I’m in an apartment with an electric stove, and I don’t have anything for fermentation temperature control other than an insulated plastic tub with frozen bottles of water.
My first batch was Midwest’s Raspberry Wheat using White Labs WLP300, which turned out fairly decent. The raspberry flavor wasn’t as pronounced as I expected, the carbonation came out a bit low, and there was almost no head retention at all. But it’s still very drinkable.
The two kits that I’m considering the most right now are Midwest’s Honey Bee Ale and Nothern Brewer’s The Innkeeper. I’m leaning toward the Honey Bee since it seems like it’d be less bitter, but I’m wondering if anyone has brewed either of these and could give a review. Any tips for solving the problems I had with the first one are appreciated as well.