Devolved Homebrewing (extract, partial boil)

After many years of "research" I started homebrewing one year ago this month. Over the past year I brewed a lot, and did everything from extract to all-grain, amber ales, browns, stouts, hazy NEIPAs, a habanero red ale and even a redwood brown porter that used fresh new-growth redwood tree trimmings for bittering and aroma instead of hops. All of them turned out great and were consumed quickly with very few complaints.

My rig is an 8.5 gallon kettle and a Hellfire propane burner. I use an immersion chiller (with a pre-chiller in Summer months), and I ferment inside 6.5 gallon plastic fermenters. I have never bottled. I built a kegerator that holds two corny kegs and a 5lb CO2 cylinder.

OK, during the past year I was constantly looking to upgrade and make things more complicated. Going from extract to all-grain, adding a pre-chiller to speed up the process, etc. But I've finally reached the point where I want to spend less money on equipment, and spend less time brewing.

I've always done 5 gallon full volume boil batches, but this weekend I'll be brewing 10 gallons of stout (American style, 6% abv) using my 8.5 gallon kettle and two 6.5 gallon fermenters. I'll be using malt extract to save time. Folks seem to talk down on partial-volume boils and extract brewing in general, and I understand it to some degree. When I brew my hazy NEIPA batches I always go all-grain, full volume.

SO NOW, MY QUESTION..

Does it really matter that much if I'm just brewing a dark non-hoppy beer? Partial volume boil is reported to have less hop utilization, and create darker beer. Those two things really don't bother me in this application (stout porter).

Any thoughts? Warnings? Advice?

 

This was meant to be a nod towards back-to-basics brewing. I did a poor job of framing it.

I was just trying to convey that I can handle advanced brewing, and ask if it's wrong for me to want to simplify things in situations where it seems like it doesn't matter.

 

That's a very shortsighted response.
It doesn't have to be all or nothing, bud. There is a middle ground there.

As others in this thread have thankfully highlighted, this process/hobby is very personal. Someone who is retired may have more time to devote. Someone who is a professional brewer would obviously be devoting a lot of time. But someone who gets one or two days off each week from their normal job and various other responsibilities.. why is it that they don't deserve to experience homebrewing? Why is it that they should go buy a six pack and drink it in shame?

When I have an idea for a recipe, I get stoked and I go all out. This summer I jumped on the haze craze and brewed numerous all-grain 5 gallon batches of NEIPA. Multiple rounds of dry-hopping. Plenty of work, but enjoyable in many ways and the finished product was superb.

But my house brew is my Petunia Stout, and I'm constantly running out before the next batch is ready. So I'm going back to basics in an attempt to keep my house homebrew flowing by brewing 10 gallon batches instead of 5, and by not spending a thousand dollars on a larger kettle and chiller, etc.

Thanks for your opinion. Unfortunately it's not very good. Cheers!

 

Thanks for that. Most of the advantages you listed for all-grain do not apply to the stout I'm brewing. I've brewed the recipe both ways many times (all-grain and extract), and there is little no difference in the outcome. The big thing I've never tried is a partial volume boil, so that's what worries me about this 10 gallon stout experiment. I just don't want to waste the time/money if the beer is going to be horrible. But all signs seem to say that, in this context, the beer will be just fine.

 

Thanks! Agreed on both points.

I will continue to brew all-grain, and I do enjoy nerding out on things sometimes. But I'm hoping that this house-stout maintenance brewing, that is definitely starting to become a chore, can be made more manageable with this little shortcut.

Extract brews are definitely a bit syrupy in my experience too. That's why I usually go all-grain if I'm trying to brew a dry beer. But beer can also be made more dry with the right kind of yeast and conditions.

Anyhow, thanks for the encouragement

 

How would brewing beer save time over walking to the liquor store? No one would ever think that. And nowhere in my post did I say I was trying to save money over buying beer by brewing my own.
It's a completely legit concern to not want to spend hundreds/thousands to unnecessarily upgrade one's equipment. And that's the only money concern I've expressed here.

 

I kinda get what you're saying, and if you read post #2 in the thread you'll see me admit to my poor framing. I was trying to give pertinent background info before asking the question in order to save folks time.

But reading this back, these definitely do sound like actual honest to goodness questions..
"Does it really matter that much if I'm just brewing a dark non-hoppy beer? Partial volume boil is reported to have less hop utilization, and create darker beer. Those two things really don't bother me in this application (stout porter).

Any thoughts? Warnings? Advice?"

 

Hey, so the beer turned out great. No noticeable difference between the 5 and 10 gallon batches. Thanks again, all!