I ordered a kit from a vendor other than NB for the first time, what a mess! The liquid malt extract came in a pouch versus the nicely packaged NB “milk jugs”. :evil:
The 9# pouch was very awkward to handle and I definitely felt that I was not able to get all of the LME out of the bag as I am with the NB packaging. It was a messy process too.
What was frustrating the most was the OG was suppose to be 1.070-1.074 and I hit 1.060, first time I was off the mark in about 20 brew sessions. I figured I would be slightly off, but not that far.
[quote=“ScubaBrew”]I ordered a kit from a vendor other than NB for the first time, what a mess! The liquid malt extract came in a pouch versus the nicely packaged NB “milk jugs”. :evil:
The 9# pouch was very awkward to handle and I definitely felt that I was not able to get all of the LME out of the bag as I am with the NB packaging. It was a messy process too.
What was frustrating the most was the OG was suppose to be 1.070-1.074 and I hit 1.060, first time I was off the mark in about 20 brew sessions. I figured I would be slightly off, but not that far.
Oh well, back to having a homebrew! :cheers: [/quote]
Any chance of getting a better hint of the kit vendor?
On the flip side, those plastic bags will probably keep malt fresher, longer. Might still be a step up from cans…
Trying to stay neutral, but since you asked it was morebeer.com. You are right on the freshness, but trying to get a LME out of a bag is a pain. It did hold hot liquid, but it was difficult to pour and shake.
Hmmm, I see the bags on their website. On the up, side they have many more sizes 4 to 9 pounds. On the downside, I’m not sure how you’d really get the bag empty.
I made a wheat beer using a brand of LME called Midwestern a while back. Came in pouches, too. I didn’t get the bag empty, but there wasn’t enough left in the bag that I was really worried about it. The beer came out great; if I ever saw the brand again I’d be interested in giving it another shot.
I’ve found the pouches are a pain to use also, but I didn’t have any issues hitting the target gravity for what I was making. I like the milk jugs way better.
I use morebeer a lot. When I extracted brewed, I would pour as much out as I could (after soaking in some hot water). Then I would roll from the bottom like toothpaste to get the rest out. Worked like a charm.
I use their bags as well, and I use my spoon to scrape out the majority followed by using my measuring cup to pour hot wort in, fold over the top, and gently shake then pour. Gets almost all out. I don’t use kits, but my OG is normally higher than targeted.
Williams also has extract in bags. They have some malt extract blends that might be hard to find elsewhere in a different package which would be another consideration to extract brewers.
I used to do what Cheshire_Cat suggested. Heat a pan of water pretty hot and let it soak a few. Most of it pours, then squeeze the rest. It seemed to work good for me too.
Just grab a pair of tongs and immerse the near-empty bag in the hot wort. Give it a minute, and it’ll come clean. If you’re careful, you may even be able to get away with using your fingers!
