DME instead of LME?

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Date: 05 Sep 2006 20:46:32
From: Bob
Subject: DME instead of LME?

Can you use DME instead of LME for extract brews? What
would be the differences? What amounts of DME would you
substitute?

Bob

Date: 06 Sep 2006 15:03:01
From: John 'Shaggy' Kolesar
Subject: Re: DME instead of LME?

On Tue, 5 Sep 2006 20:46:32 -0700, <bobnospam@gmail.com > wrote:
> Can you use DME instead of LME for extract brews? What
> would be the differences? What amounts of DME would you
> substitute?

It should work fine. I'd try to stick with the same brand, since the
attenuations can vary quite a bit. Regarding equivalent amounts, LME is
20% water. So, if you are substituting DME for LME use 80% as much.

IE, 4 lbs DME = 5 lbs LME.

Make sure that the LME you're subing for was not pre-hopped though.
Otherwise you'll want to take the bitterness into account as well.

John.

Date: 06 Sep 2006 05:39:54
From:
Subject: Re: DME instead of LME?

Bob wrote:
> Can you use DME instead of LME for extract brews? What
> would be the differences? What amounts of DME would you
> substitute?
>
> Bob

It's my understanding that the water content varies a bit from brand to
brand, but the standard I have seen is thet LME is 80% extract so
multiply LME time .8 to get DME and multiply DME time 1.2 to get LME.

As to differences LME seems to produce lighter colored beers and DME
seems to have a much greater shelf life.

Regards,
Bryan

Date: 06 Sep 2006 17:37:50
From: David M. Taylor
Subject: Re: DME instead of LME?

"Bob" <bobnospam@gmail.com > wrote in message
news:H_GdnRYrWLw52WPZnZ2dnUVZ_sudnZ2d@comcast.com...
> Can you use DME instead of LME for extract brews? What
> would be the differences? What amounts of DME would you
> substitute?

Heck yeah, you can use them pretty much interchangeably. You can use
slightly less DME than LME because the LME contains water. I always figured
a 3.3 lb can of LME was approximately the same as a 3 lb bag of DME, not
sure how far off I was, but I figure it's close enough.

Other than that, the main differences are that DME generally makes lighter
colored beers, is easier to measure and use than LME; but supposedly LME
tastes a little better. It depends on what you're looking for. If taste
matters more than color and ease of measurement, then stick with LME. If
you'd rather not deal with the stickiness that is LME, use DME. Personally,
when I use extract (which is rare), I use DME more than LME because it is
easier to measure and deal with. Much more convenient, and the beers don't
all end up red to brown in color.

--
Dave
"Just a drink, a little drink, and I'll be feeling GOOooOOooOOooD!" --
Genesis, 1973-ish

Date: 07 Sep 2006 12:32:55
From: Scotty B
Subject: Re: DME instead of LME?

Wait a minute!

Bryan: "...LME seems to produce lighter colored beers..."
Dave: "...DME generally makes lighter colored beers..."

Which is it?! Anyone?

/Scotty B

Date: 07 Sep 2006 21:17:53
From: David M. Taylor
Subject: Re: DME instead of LME?

"Scotty B" <michaellasalle@gmail.com > wrote in message
news:1157657575.677284.128020@b28g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
> Wait a minute!
>
> Bryan: "...LME seems to produce lighter colored beers..."
> Dave: "...DME generally makes lighter colored beers..."
>
> Which is it?! Anyone?

Allow me to elaborate...

LME darkens quickly with age, while DME doesn't darken much at all,
reference:

http://www.homebrewzone.com/maltextract.htm

http://byo.com/recipe/898.html

http://beerandwine.tribe.net/thread/a85d5e32-9605-42a9-a10c-90ab2fe72f59

I believe there was also a BYO article all about the color issue a couple of
years back.... they found that LME made for darker brews than DME. If you
are very curious I could try and look it up.

So anyway, for the most part, unless you get some really super fresh LME,
LME tends to be at least a little bit on the darker side than DME.

I have also confirmed this by personal experience. I once made a hefeweizen
with LME, and it turned out to be an intimidating brown color. When I
switched to DME, the color was a perfect amber. Granted, the age of the LME
might have come into play, who knows how fresh it was, probably several
months old if not a year. If I had used the freshest possible LME, my
result might have been different.

Bottom line: If you want to brew a light colored beer, and you buy the
lightest LME available, and it is extremely fresh, you MIGHT be alright, but
it is iffy at best. With DME, if you use the extra-light extract, you'll
most likely be fine, regardless of how many months or years it has been
sitting on the shelf.

--
Dave
"Just a drink, a little drink, and I'll be feeling GOOooOOooOOooD!" --
Genesis, 1973-ish

Date: 08 Sep 2006 14:38:28
From: John 'Shaggy' Kolesar
Subject: Re: DME instead of LME?

On Thu, 7 Sep 2006 21:17:53 -0500, <dmtaylor@SPAM.geocities.SUCKS.com > wrote:
> Bottom line: If you want to brew a light colored beer, and you buy the
> lightest LME available, and it is extremely fresh, you MIGHT be alright, but
> it is iffy at best. With DME, if you use the extra-light extract, you'll
> most likely be fine, regardless of how many months or years it has been
> sitting on the shelf.

IMO, fresh LME is important for several reasons. In addition to the color
thing, old LME is often said to be the cause of the "extract twang" that
extract beers are notorious for. IMO, if you're going to brew using LME,
then being concerned with the freshness is an important part of making it
the best beer you can.

John.

Date: 07 Sep 2006 20:32:03
From: Gerard Eberlein
Subject: Re: DME instead of LME?

Date: 07 Sep 2006 13:14:14
From: satellite_chris
Subject: Re: Hoisting a Keg using Garage Ceiling

I think you are right, I should just build a ramp, which will still let
me save my back and for sure not put any stress on my trusses. Thanks
for bringing me back to reality.

Harry K wrote:
> satellite_chris wrote:
> > I have to unload four 50L kegs in two weeks in a single session which
> > is rough on the back. It has nothing to do with being too weak, it is
> > a matter of being cautious about the situation. I herniated a disc in
> > my back last year after the same party which I assume was directly
> > related to the lifting and lowering of four kegs from the pickup bed
> > and then the lifting up and over the hieght of chest freezer and then
> > lowering down. One false move with your back or legs and you can open
> > yourself up to serious injury with even less than 160lbs no matter how
> > strong you are.
> >
> > Normally I have one or two kegs to unload at a time with a month or two
> > inbetween, but once a year I have four and for that day I would rather
> > make it as pain free as possible. I already have the chain hoist for
> > something I rigged up in the basement to raise them up above the height
> > of the kegerator (chest freezer conversion) and then roll the freezer
> > underneath and lower. I figured I might as well leaverage what I have
> > to make the operation as painless as possible. I could do something
> > with a ramp but if the trussess are strong enough to handle the
> > downward load, then I would like to take an approach that seems to
> > guarantee no injury to me or the precious nectar inside the keg. Plus
> > I like fooling with stuff and thought it is just a cool thing to have
> > if it is safe on the home.
> >
> >
>
> Okay, I can buy that but I still think the chain hoist is way
> overboard. I would get a lot more fun out of rigging a few pulleys
> than using one of those as heavy and slow as they are. I can see
> needing a hoist to raise the kegs -up- but a ramp would be plenty for
> bringing them -down-.
>
> No, I wouldn't make a practice of regularly lifting 160 pounds (don't
> know if I still could anyhow). I was loading/unloading full 55 gal
> fuel drums from farm trucks back when I was young and stupid using
> nothing but a ramp. No lifting involved except for uprighting the drum
> when it was in place.
>
> Harry K