My first batch was brewed on January 6, 2013. I kept this one simple, and did it by the book to ensure good results and the intended taste. Here's what's expected according to Qbrew:
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Classic American Light
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Brewer: James
Style: Generic Ale
Batch: 2.13 galExtract
Characteristics
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Recipe Gravity: 1.032 OG
Recipe Bitterness: 11 IBU
Recipe Color: 2° SRM
Estimated FG: 1.008
Alcohol by Volume: 3.1%
Alcohol by Weight: 2.4%
Ingredients
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Mr. Beer/Coopers Classic American Light1.87 lb, Extract, Extract
Mr. Beer/Coopers Classic American Light1.00 oz, Pellet, 5 minutes
Mr. Beer Dry Ale Yeast 1.00 unit, Yeast, Temperature Range: 68°-76° F 2.0 GRAMS
Notes
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Recipe Notes:
Batch Notes:
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Despite all my reading and research, there were some learning moments with this batch. It all started with the no rinse sanitizer. It is a bit harder to dissolve than I expected and I used water that was a bit cooler than it should have been. I thought I got it mixed up well, put everything into the little brown keg (LBK) and let it sit for 10 minutes. Took it all back out and put on a sanitized plate, and dumped the rest down the sink. Then noticed a fair amount of undissolved sanitizer in the bottom of the LBK. Got out what I could with my sanitized hand, and had to leave the rest as using anything else would have risked infecting the batch. What was left will break down into simple minerals and provide food for the yeast, so it isn't anything to worry about.
The label on the can of HME gets soggy when you put it in hot water as the instructions state. I'd recommend removing the label before opening the can. I didn't, and the can opener shredded it. Little bits of the label fell into the wort as I was emptying the contents of the can into the boiled water. In a momentary panic over this, I reached in with my fingers to grab the bits. In water that has just been boiling. I don't recommend doing this. Used a sanitized spatula to get out what I could, figured rest will settle during fermentation and not pose any issue.
Good thing I sanitized the lid of the HME before I opened it. As I finished with the can opener, the lid fell into the HME and was a pain to get out. That HME is quite sticky! Next time, I'll have a sanitized butter knife on hand and slide it under the lid when it is about half way opened. I'll use it to keep it from falling in, and it raise the lid up out of the way when ready to pour. I leave just a little tab left on the lid, rather than fulling removing it.
You put refrigerated water into the LBK before adding the hot wort. This both cools down the wort for pitching (adding) the yeast and prevents damage to the LBK as it isn't a heat resistant plastic. After adding the hot wort, you top it off with more refrigerated water up to the 8.5 quart mark on the LBK. My fridge is a bit lower than most, so the water was colder and made the resulting wort at the low end for pitching yeast. This slows down the yeast and takes longer to get a good fermentation going. In the future I'll use cold water to start, add the wort, then top off with room temperature water to keep it from getting too cold.
Update 2013/01/26:
Batch bottled and ready for carbonation and conditioning at room temperature for a month. Due to issues with the funnel and measuring spoon, I under primed each bottle. I'm expecting the carbonation to be a bit week with this batch. Discovered the LBK had been leaking around the spigot due to the molding seam. Contacted Mr. Beer customer service who replaced the LBK. The second one also leaked. Ended up using fine grit sanding paper to smooth down the seam and stop the leak.
Update 2013/02/23:
Cracked open first bottle. Has a good taste, no head and (as expected) light carbonation. I expect the taste to get even better as the remaining bottles continue to condition. Not much can be done for the carbonation at this point except learn from my mistake. It is a bit darker in color and has more body than the typical light beer (Bud, Coors, etc). It is a good segue beer for one that typically drinks one of the big corporate brewery's beers into the world of craft beers.
