Complete newbie question about kits

[tartancrusader]

Hi all,

First off, please excuse my ignorance. I'm about to start with my very first kit (Muntons Connoiseur Bock Beer) and I have a question before I even start! On the can it says 'pour the can contents into sterilised fermenter. Add sugar (or spray dried malt extract)'. My question is: how much sugar?? A teaspoonful, a kilo, half a tonne? (okay, so I'm being facetious but I don't know enough to even know if this is important).

Any and all help is very much appreciated!

TC :thumb:

 

[joe1002]

If it is a one can, 5 gallon kit then I suspect it will need 1kg of sugar.

 

[lovelldr]

Doing a google search, I found an american site where someone said that it says to used 2.2lb of sugar, which is basically 1kg... So, I think we have our answer

 

[Dave1970]

The more detailed instructions should be under the plastic cap on the tin, along with the yeast sachet :thumb:

 

[oldstout]

The more detailed instructions should be under the plastic cap on the tin, along with the yeast sachet :thumb:

What he said

 

[tartancrusader]

Doing a google search, I found an american site where someone said that it says to used 2.2lb of sugar, which is basically 1kg... So, I think we have our answer

I saw that on google too but thought I'd come here and ask the experts, rather that trust Joe RandomGuy on Google

Yeah, there *should* have been detailed instructions under the cap. Sadly, there weren't any there.

Thanks for your help, guys, I'll go with a kilo and see how it goes. I'll let you know how I get on.

Cheers!

 

[calumscott]

If the instructions are not under the cap, they can sometimes be found printed on the reverse of the label. Youngs do that, not sure about Muntons.

 

[anthonyUK]

Hi TC,
You can add as much sugar as needed to obtain your original gravity (OG). You'll need a hydrometer to measure this and a traditional Bock should have an OG of approx. 1060.
This method helps when you are brewing different volumes and don't want to end up with something too strong or weak.
There is a lot to learn at first and John Palmer has kindly put his book 'How to brew' online here - http://www.howtobrew.com/section1/index.html
It is well worth a quick read.

 

[Aleman]

Hi TC,
You can add as much sugar as needed to obtain your original gravity (OG). You'll need a hydrometer to measure this and a traditional Bock should have an OG of approx. 1060.
This method helps when you are brewing different volumes and don't want to end up with something too strong or weak.

Be very careful, while a traditional bock may have a gravity of greater than 1.060 a 'bock style' kit will probably be at most about1.040 to 1.044 so adding sugar to 1.8Kg of liquid malt extract to make up to 5 gallons at 1.060 will result in a nasty cidery tasting rocket fuel . . . nothing like beer at all.

These kits are designed to be made up with 1Kg of additional fermentables either sugar or Extra Light DME

The best way to improve this kit would be to brew it short say 32 pints instead of 40 Which will increase the gravity to 1.052 and not throw the kit out of balance as the bitterness will increase to 18-28 IBU

There is a lot to learn at first and John Palmer has kindly put his book 'How to brew' online here - http://www.howtobrew.com/section1/index.html
It is well worth a quick read.

There are an awful lot of errors and bad practice in that edition of the book, the 3rd edition is well worth a read, but Graham Wheelers book (Brew Your Own Real Ale At Home) is perhaps better despite its all grain and recipe book bias.

 

[anthonyUK]

You're right Aleman and I should have made it clear. I don't know the details of this kit and how close it is to a traditional bock rather than Bock style.
A quick google has found an OG of 1040-1044 so I'd guess more Bock style.

http://www.muntons.com/homebeer/countri ... _bbeer.htm