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That's a good tip - thanks. I think the cherry stout I made previously could have definitely benefited from more time in the beer before bottling: the taste was there but it was very subtle.

I think it could work. I've added frozen sweet black cherries to a coopers stout (and planning to brew another with prune juice). The cherry version worked well in the stout, but I think blackberries would suit Wherry better if you can find them in the frozen fruit aisle.

I'm so slow sometimes (I blame the home brew this evening). I'm reading the op thinking 'yeah, cool gadget but why would that be useful' Then I see the update HOPS, OF COURSE! :doh: Not wanting to rub salt into the wound, but I've just got back from lidl having snapped up some more...

Great article - thanks. I'm not sure what to make of the reference to prunes in a stout: "Prune-Plums: 0.9 kgs (2 lbs) in a Stout puts the fruit and malt flavours in conflict. Try 0.45 kgs (1 lbs) in a less full-flavoured beer." Is having the fruit and malt flavours in conflict a good or bad...

Thanks for the replies guys. I was thinking of replacing water for the juice but brewing to 23 ltrs so it wouldn't be too short. I could split the brew as I've got a spare FV - that's a good idea. It will be interesting to see if it retains any laxative qualities. I'll have to add a warning to...

Good luck mike! I like the fact that this started with plum porter and ended up as date pilsner! That's just how my brew plans evolve - with crossings out throughout my brew log as I change my mind midway through fermentation!

Having tried a bottle of Titanic Plum Porter this weekend (highly recommended), I was thinking of brewing something similar. I've read a few threads where people have suggested prune juice instead of plums. I'm not sure the taste would be quite the same but it could prove an interesting addition...

I tried a bottle of Titanic Plum Porter yesterday and it was very good. £1.49 in Lidl at the moment in their special offer isle rather than the normal beer section. I would love to make something similar but achieving a good plum taste is very difficult: I've tried artificial plum...

Great news on the tasting update! I have just brewed this kit this evening - so very pleased to hear it's improved so well. I was a little worried about choosing a Muntons kit. I've only ever brewed Woodford Wherry from their range, but wasn't particularly impressed with it and suffered with...

Good advice from Slid about boiling the liquid you've steeped the malt in once this has been strained. I didn't realise this when I used choc malt in a couple stouts. Luckily I got away without an infected brew, but I lost two others which I steeped crystal malt in and didn't boil it. It's the...

The Festival Razorback IPA is perhaps the best kit I have done so far (although the Coopers Stout must be a very close second). Fingers crossed for your Directors - remember to post an update once you've tried it again at Christmas. I really like the commercial version, so would be keen to...

I used to brew with bottled water, but after tasting a friends beer after we both brewed the same kit, I thought his tasted better and he'd just used tap water! Of course, the difference could have been down to any number of different factors, but I've used tap water since and never had any...

I guess they have to deviate from the commercial recipe sometimes to ensure it can be brewed from a kit - the yeast being the most obvious example where it needs to be a strain that can be dried. However, I'm surprised by the difference in hops between the commercial and kit versions. How did...

If it's still not moving, you could try increasing the temp slightly if you're able to, and giving it a gentle stir.

Using DME instead of sugar will definitely help. Malt has slightly less fermentable sugars in it which means you get more 'mouth feel' in the beer and better head retention. I would brew short as you've suggested and also add some extra hops. Either as a hop tea or just dry hopping into the brew...

Disappointed to hear that as I was interested in trying the Directors kit. Still, two weeks in the bottle is pretty young. Definitely worth leaving a few weeks longer to see how it develops. From my experience I've found the greatest difference in taste is caused by the fermentation temperature...

Hey Rob, How did this one turn out? I started brewing a Coopers Canadian Blonde kit yesterday with the intention of adding frozen raspberries in a couple of days. I also have some tettnang hops and was thinking of using these to dry hop later in the fermentation. I wasn't sure whether the hops...

How long has it been in the bottle? There's a chance it may improve a little with more conditioning. (Although I made a brewpaks Bavarian Pilsner which even after 9 months is pretty flat and still tastes like a musty old rag!)

No, not at all. Dissolve the treacle with the dried malt extract in a pan of water and then use this to mix with kit malt in the FV (or easier still - add the kit malt to the pan as well, then add the whole lot into the FV and then top up with cold water)

Looking forward to hearing how it comes out. There's very little on the forums about Finlandia kits.