Coopers Irish Stout Advice - Northern Ireland

[BrewBilly]

Hi All

I have bought my next kit - a coopers irish stout, going to have a brewday this weekend.

I was wondering what the best way to brew this was, I have got 500g dark DME, brewers sugar (the tin recommends 300g). is it worthwhile adding a bit more brewers sugar or a dark demara sugar for a bit more flavour and lift end ABV?

Any advice to get the best end result would be appreciated.

Cheers
BrewBilly

 

[bobsbeer]

When I made this I only used 1 pack Muntons Beer Enhancer and it turned out great.

 

[BrewBilly]

ok, going to brew this afternoon.

Went out and got some treacle (only planning on putting in about 250g),and dark mascavada sugar (also only planning on putting in about 250g). I am planning on using these two ingredients to replace the 300g of recommended brewers sugar.

Or should I keep the 300g sugar in???

Can anyone see any potential problems with the treacle and dark sugar inclusion???

Cheers
BrewBilly

 

[mickthetrick]

BrewBilly if you have not made this kit before why don't you just try making it to the kit instructions?
i did it to the instructions and batch primed it with 2oz of black treacle and to be honest it was lovely.
i would definitely make it again and i prefer this one over the coopers original stout.
its delicious :thumb:

 

[BrewBilly]

Thanks mickthetrick,much appreciated, I agree - just stick to the instructions. Problem solved

 

[mickthetrick]

well thats it really until you have tried it. then if you think you could improve on it to suit you thats when you can make your additions.
hope you enjoy it :thumb:

 

[BrewBilly]

Im busy getting everything ready now,tinis in hot water to soften up, about to weigh out sugar. Thanks for the advice.

How much treacle should I use per 500ml bottle when priming?

Cheers
BrewBilly

 

[mickthetrick]

i couldnt say.
I batch primed it with 2oz to the 23ltr.

 

[BrewBilly]

Would 2/3g treacle per bottle be sufficient to prime? I dont want bangers or the brew be over powered by treacle taste

 

[mickthetrick]

the problem is getting that amount into your bottles. it will be an awful job.
if you have a spare fermenter, add 2 oz to some boiled water and mix it then add to the clean fermenter. syphon your stout onto that and give it a gentle stir then bottle. all your beer has the same amount of treacle in each bottle to prime then

 

[LeithR]

I'd go with Micks suggestion. Just be gentle when transferring from the FV to the clean FV, you want to disturb the brew as little as possible, you don't want oxygen into the brew. That's not good for yeast at this stage.

Good luck with the brew :thumb: :thumb: :thumb:

 

[bottler]

Billy, your best adding the treacle at the start of the brew. I'd just prime bottles with sugar , or do as mick says and batch prime. Treacle is not easy to work with, and to get it into say 40 bottles... i'd say about 10 hours :

 

[BrewBilly]

Thanks for the advice guys :thumb:

I think I will save the treacle for the next stout I brew - I will add it to the mix before the yeast.

I have some coopers carbonation drops left over from my starter kit, is it worth while using these or just plain sugar?

I dont have a spare FV to batch prime :| so thats not an option at the moment.

 

[bottler]

Yeah use the drops you have left and use sugar for the rest of the bottles. I use a half teaspoon for stout and ales, and one teaspoon for lagers and this works weel for me. :thumb:

 

[BrewBilly]

Thanks bottler, I will do that.

I checked my Irish stout now and it has almost a foot of foam on top, good thing I have the coopers FV with the krausen collar giving it a bit more room or it would have certainly gone up the airlock.

Is it normal for the coopers irish stout to ferment so vigorously???

Im still planning on leaving it in the FV for about 2 weeks or so.

 

[bottler]

Yeah its common. First one i did went a bit crazy, but the second one was a bit calmer. But mine were coopers original stout and not the irish, but they must be similar. :thumb:

 

[Markus]

Is it normal for the coopers irish stout to ferment so vigorously???

Big yes on that. I brewed mine short and it still nearly blew the lid off. Most active I've brewed yet, although the Coopers Dark Ale is giving it a run for it's money right now. I'd also agree with Bottler on adding treacle at the start. I put 300g in along with the dark spraymalt. Was lovely, not too overpowering at all. Priming with treacle sounds like a headache.

 

[mickthetrick]

priming with treacle is very easy Marcus to be honest :thumb:

 

[Markus]

Mick, I don't trust batch priming any more, so if at all possible I try to bottle prime with a good old funnel-and-spoon combo, so it sounds like it'd be a hassle for me. Kegging would probably be a different story tho.