How long did you extract brew before going al grain?

I had around 48 batches of extract before switching to all grain.

 

I think I brewed 2 batches that were mine and one batch that was with my father. Then I decided I needed more control.

 

If anyone is in the northern VA area and would like to share some AG knowledge for a noob, let me know. Perhaps, someone who is about to brew their next batch.

I will troll the more local homebrew forums as well, just figured it was worth a shot.

 

I did maybe 5 batches of extract and said piss on extract because of the sheer price of what a recipe was costing me. I knew I liked brewing and had good results early on so I took the plunge into AG and glad I did. Wish I went sooner.

 

It was about 2 years of brewing before I did all grain. This was back in the early 90s when all grain was considered rocket science by some. After doing it, I said gee, that is all there is too it?

 

Straight to all-grain (lucked into some free equipment that allowed me to do so). First batch was a SMaSH English bitter: maris otter and EKG -- and yeast from a friend's brewpub. Kegged in 5-liter party kegs with 1 tsp of corn sugar for light carbonation. At the time, it tasted as close to a homebrewed UK cask ale as I have had. Needless to say, I was hooked.

 

I guess I'm the exception to the rule. I brewed all grain for about 4 yrs before going to extract. Had a big house (rental)in Quincy but had to give it up and move back to take care of my terminally ill mother and knew I wouldn't have room for all my equipment so I sold it off .Didn't brew again for 3-4 yrs and then made do with extact.
Haven't brewed anything in the past 2 yrs simply because I didn't have time but hope to get back into it soon and will work my way back to all grain.

 

I brewed extract for about 9 months at about 1 to 2 batches a month. I've done about 5 batches all grain, and still find myself utilizing extract brewing sometimes. I had those wild hops and needed to whip something up quick, 3 gallon extract batch worked great. It's actually been my favorite beer so far, which is disheartening.

 

one extract, four partial mash, then allgrain

 

About one year of extract before AG. This was the way to go for me because it allowed me to get other parts of the process down before I had to tackle all the variables that come with all grain, such as getting your efficiency dialed in, dealing with water chemistry, etc.

As an aside, I think it's possible to brew great (yes, great) beer in many, if not most styles using extract, and possible to brew good beer in just about every style. It's not necessary for every brewer to "progress" to all grain, or even desirable in every case. It's what I like to do, for sure, but sometimes I think we make people feel like they're not really brewers if they're using extract, and that's not good. For many, especially those who are pressed for time, extract's the way t go.

 

Went straight to all grain.

I watched alot of all grain youtube video's and that gave me confidence. First batch tasted great even though I missed my OG by a huge amount.

 

When I first brewed back in the 90s, I did nothing but extract. When I started brewing again last year, I did one partial-mash batch and then went all-grain.

 

A BIG +1 to:” As an aside, I think it's possible to brew great (yes, great) beer in many, if not most styles using extract, ..”

The vast majority of beer styles can be brewed (and great beer made) using extracts. The ‘mainstream’ malt extracts are perfectly suited to many beer styles: APAs, IPAs, numerous Belgian beer styles, numerous British beer styles, and on and on. Plus there are some ‘specialty’ malt extracts available which include Munich Malt, 100% Maris Otter Malt, Wheat Malt, ….

Having state the above there are some beer styles which greatly benefit from grains that are not available in malt extract form. For example, I really believe that to make a quality Wit you need to brew with raw wheat (I used flaked wheat).

Extract vs. all grain brewing is to large measure a time vs. material cost trade-off. Extract brewing has the disadvantage of having a higher material cost but takes less time. All grain brewing has the advantage of having a lower material cost but takes longer (and requires more equipment).

If your free time is important to you (and it is to me) then all grain brewing can be onerous.

Cheers!

 

I brewed extract for about six years. I switched over when I got a job as an assistant brewer. I continued brewing all grain even after I stopped brewing commercial, though I'm probably going to go back to extract for the convenience.


Phil