Cracked open my first bottle of homebrew..Is this normal?

[cephei]

I just opened a bottle of Coopers European Lager which I brewed over the last few weeks.It was 2 weeks in the fermenter and then a further two weeks in the bottles. The beer has been kept at around 22 celcius consistently in the fermenter and the bottles.

When I tasted the beer after a week there was a slight cidery taste, and after two weeks a slightly less cidery taste.. Now after 4 weeks and two weeks in the bottles there still his a hint of cider and the beer is slightly sweet.. The beer is also still quite cloudy..

I've been hearing that the lagers should be bottled for 12 weeks + before they are ready so im thinking maybe I just tried it a bit too soon?

The shop that sold the kit to me said the beer would be good to drink after two weeks in bottles but after trying it, it definitly seems not to be ready yet.. Should I just wait or is my beer infected?

Cheer! :)

 

[Samarith]

Just wait, there is a large gap between 'ready to drink' and 'worth drinking'.

Largers tend to show the cidery taste more than heavier brews, its usually compounds formed during brewing that the yeast should breakdown once it runs out of sugar. If as you say its getting better over time then wait, an infection would get worse over time.

I'd move it to somewhere cooler (if possible) as this should help the yeast settle out and largers generally do better at a cooler temp anyway.

 

[cephei]

Thanks Sam.. The cidery taste is definitly getting less noticeable.. I have a Coopers Australian Pale ale fermenting at the minute which should be ready to bottle by Sunday. Im using 500ml glass bottles this time instead of the 500ml coopers plastic ones. For the 500ml plastic bottles coopers say to use one carbonation drop per bottle.. Would that be the same for the 500ml glass bottles?

Cheers

 

[Sussex Hopburner]

Hi

Glass bottles absolutely fine- just make sure they are sterilised properly- I run them through the dishwasher then swill with boiling water or sanitiser.

I prime bottles with 5ml of sugar solution which I make with about 1 teaspoon of sugar per bottle, dissolved in 200ml of boiling water then cooled.

Once capped, keep them somewhere warm for a few days, then transfer them to somewhere cool for as long as you can wait.

Coopers APA is a good one (although I prefer the IPA)

Cheers


dave

 

[Garry35]

It also says in the European Lager instructions that it's best left for 12 weeks before drinking.

I don't recall a cidery taste in mine, which I think I managed to hold off for at least a month before trying, but it definitely tasted better the longer I left it.