To boil or not to boil extract

bburen

Hello all,
I just brewed my first batch of beer and it has turned out to be delicious and well done.  I'm very pleased.
I would like some suggestions here for future brewing.  I would like to do one more extract kit before trying some mini-mash projects.  My question is should one boil the LME from the kit or not?  I was listening to the BrewStrong podcast on kits and I believe John said not to.  But I also have read several books that suggest that one should.  I did on my first batch and it turned out acceptable.  
Any thoughts would be appreciated.  
Thanks,
B.Next Brew:  Spiced Winter Ale & Blonde Ale
Fermenting:  Brown Ale & Mead
Conditioning:  SMASH Ale (Pilsner/Simcoe)
Drinking:  Saison & IIPA
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brewinhard

I have always boiled the extract (Be it DME or LME) for two reasons
1.  your hops will be better utilized due to the isomerization that occurs during the boiling of the wort
2.  you are assuring yourself that your precious wort is sanitized completely before chilling"A bad man is a good man's job, while a good man is a bad man's teacher."

pythoner

You could do a late extract method to get proper utilization and not have carmelization or lose of head retention or the "extract twang""Owning a Type R is like a dream... You wake up and it's gone!" - some Honda guy

thatguy314

Palmer was speaking specifically of prehopped malt extract kits
If it is unhopped, the hops at least must be boiled. Water is a different pH than wort so you'll get a different chatacter boiling hops in beer. If using hops in the boil and any unhopped extract boil at least some of the extract at least as long as the hops (technically extract first, wait for hot break and then add hops or you'll see foam lik you wouldn't believe). I would think mayb on the order of 2-3 pounds of extract per 5 galloms (giving a 1.020-25ish preboil gravity, same gravity as a small beer. less malt same gravity for partial boil). Hopped extract/remaining unhopped add at end to pasteurize it.EGADS!  3 MONTHS WITHOUT BREWING?  MOVING YOU SUCK....  NEVER AGAIN
In Kegerator - Hopfen Weiss, Best Bitter
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Next up: Petite Saison

bburen

Awesome. Thanks yall!

fatcat660

I have allways done the full hour boil with very good results.  I think I might try the late extract method just to see how it works.  After all this is the fun of it all.....besides drinking it LOL

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krizwit

I boil for 20min and like the results.Private Krizwit

brewinhard

Full boil is the best way. You can then boil all ingredients for a complete 60 minutes, or more. It made a huge difference for me. I went from making mediocre beer to award winning beer by utilizing full boils.I had to replace my motion sensor light on the front of my house. I made a mistake and replaced it with a emotion sensor light. Every time the guy across the street from me got mad at his wife, it would turn on.
Full boil meaning full volume too? I'm still in need of a brew kettle. Looking into getting an 8 gal SS pot soon. Up till now I've just done maybe 2-3 gal boils  and have had to add water to the fermenter. Got the ingredients to do a Sierra Nevada clone tomorrow (DME and LME plus Crystal 40L steeping). Intended to do a 60 minute boil. Going to use two small pots to boil about 4 gal total, splitting the DME  between the pots to give it some thing for the hops to boil with, adding the LME toward the end.
Will going to a full 6 gal wort boil make a big difference? Others seem to think the LME should go too.. all DME is best if brewing extract?
Late addition is better to avoid carmelization and overly dark color?• considering: first lager
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• drinking: JBA batch #2
• bottle conditioning: Best Bitter
• recent past: (AG) Rye IPA rebrew; rye saison; BCS Cal Common, Rye IPA, Tasty APA, JZ's Cowboy Altbier