Extract and Fresh Wort Kits

Brewing for the time poor.

Years and years ago there was only one option to make home brew, the beer kit. You would initially buy the kit that included the fermenter, airlock and extract. You add water to the extract and a packet of dextrose or malt extract for a little kick, and that was pretty much it. Modern kits include a little more, and are a great way to get your initial equipment for around $100. The modern Coopers Kit includes the fermenter, tap, clips, hydrometer, measuring flask, spoon, thermometer strip, bottling wand, PET bottles & caps, brewing extract, brew enhancer (malt extract), and carbonation drops (for bottle carbonation). They really are a good investment and a great way to get a start in brewing - and the quality is much better than it used to be if you follow a few simple instructions (like cleaning and sanitising all your equipment).

“People don’t run out of dreams - people just run out of time.”

— Glenn Frey

These days though, there are a number of alternatives to get a brew on quickly. A number of brew stores make their own fresh wort kits, where they do the brewing for you and put the wort into a 20L cube and all you have to do is ferment it. There are some breweries like All Inn Brewing that do fresh wort kits in bogan pillows (inflatable bladders) as well. All you have to do here is add water and yeast and you’re halfway to a fresh brew.

Whichever way you go is up to you and your budget, and this can be a great way to ease your way into home brewing, so you can concentrate on the fermentation steps and getting that right before you dive into all grain brewing. Each has it’s pros and cons.

For my money, I’d start out with the extract kit to get the equipment you’ll need. Then move on to the fresh wort kit where you have a little more control and can influence the taste a little, then graduate to all grain brewing. By then you will have the fermenting process down pat.

Processes

Cleaning

Firstly, read our blog post on Brewery Cleaning, listen to the podcast, and watch the YouTube video. Everything needs to be cleaned and sanitised before we start.

Equipment and Ingredients

Apart from a bowl of sanitiser and scissors, you’ll need a few things for each kit.

For the extract kit you’ll need

• A fermenter with lid and airlock

• A bowl of hot water

• A jug of just boiled water

• An extract tin

• A stirring spoon

• A packet of dry malt extract or dextrose

For the fresh wort kit you’ll need

• A fermenter with lid and airlock

• A pack of yeast

• A fresh wort kit

• A jug of boiled water if you need to top the wort up

Optional

• A hydrometer to measure the strength of your wort

Extract Kit

1. Stand your tin of extract in hot water to reduce its viscosity.

2. Pour some hot (but not boiling) water, about 5L, into your fermenter.

3. Open the extract tin and pour the contents into the fermenter.

4. Open the dextrose or malt extract pack and pour that into the fermenter.

5. Pour boiling water into the tin to clean it out and empty that into the fermenter.

6. Stir like crazy to dissolve all the ingredients.

7. Top the fermenter up with clean water to the desired level, making sure the temperature is within the yeast’s temperature range. You may need to alternate hot and cold water to achieve this.

8. Pitch your yeast into the wort to start fermentation.

9. Fit your lid or bung and insert your airlock. Fill the airlock with sanitiser liquid.

10. Wait until fermentation stops - usually 7-14 days depending on the wort, yeast and ambient temperature.

11. Check out our articles (blog, podcast and YouTube) on bottling.

Fresh Wort

1. Open your wort kit and pour the contents into a clean, sanitised fermenter.

2. Top up with clean water if required.

3. Continue from point 7. for the Beer Kit.

All Grain

Whoa there cowboy. If you think you’re ready for all grain, we’ll have a whole range of articles coming out with numerous recipes.