First Brew.....so excited but..............nothing as yet

[reno223]

Hi All,

So I spent hours looking through this forum soaking up the advice whilst plotting/dreaming about my first brew. Whilst saving up for a £70.00 starter kit I ran into the unbelievable Tesco offer of a Coopers Australian Lager Starter Kit for just £35.00 so I snapped it up along with a John Bull IPA for under £7.00 and 24L of Tesco's not so fine 17p water. Brewed it to the letter OG 1.037 and plenty of aeration as I filled it up from a great height anyway 48 hours on and there are a few bubbles knocking around the but not many...............patience is everything but as its my first brew I am eager. Should I expect to see frequent bubbles? There is no air lock on this kit as it has the collar so its difficult to tell exactly whats going on in there, I am happy all is going well so far but I just wanted to tell someone really :)

The temp is sat at a steady 22 degrees, is that ok?

 

[critty]

Be patient lol. No two brews ever act the same. Give it a week or more then check the gravity. If your getting bubbles then something is happening.

 

[Mark1964]

Hi welcome you should see some acivity after 24 hours. Make sure the brew is covered even if you have no airlock. Leave the lid on the bucket loose. I assume you used the yeast that came with the kit if so could take up to 3 days to start fermenting. 22 degrees is ok as long as it goes no higher :thumb:

 

[Rwilts]

Doesn't the Coopers FV intentionally have a loose fitting lid and vent that way? From my limited experience I have settled on a set it up and leave for two weeks before even looking inside :)

 

[critty]

Yeah I have read that the coopers FV's don't have airlock holes. But they are designed to let co2 out. Their site has a FAQ http://www.coopers.com.au/the-brewers-g ... no_airlock?

 

[BrewDan]

Yep seen this on the craigtube channel on YouTube, if it's the newer version, no airlock, you remove a collar after a few days and place the lid back on.

It's meant to make cleaning easier if I remember rightly, the gunk from fermentation doesn't have days to go rock hard on the sides, and the co2 can still escape as the lid doesn't snap tight

 

[reno223]

Thanks for the responses guys, fingers crossed its going to be a great hobby and also have a nice end result!

Yeah the lack of any air lock is not a problem its just harder to see the action but sure it will happen soon enough, I cant wait to get a few brews bottled and see what they taste like, I have one final question, is there always a homebrew twang?

 

[dennisking]

Hi and welcome.

 

[bobsbeer]

Welcome Reno. Sounds like you are doing ok. Don't worry. :

 

[reno223]

Ok so 60 hours in and the original head has almost disappeared completely so I will give the collar a quick clean tonight as the instructions on the kit say, I will also check the gravity.

:pray:

 

[Pearlfisher]

Thanks for the responses guys, fingers crossed its going to be a great hobby and also have a nice end result!

Yeah the lack of any air lock is not a problem its just harder to see the action but sure it will happen soon enough, I cant wait to get a few brews bottled and see what they taste like, I have one final question, is there always a homebrew twang?

I started brewing beginning of this year after a break of over 30 years ,I've done about 8 kits so far all have been 2 can kits and none have had the homebrew twang I used to get when using single can kit and sugar.

 

[Jeltz]

I've yet to keg my 1st beer, but having checked the sg and sampled the contents of the trial jar, even the yeasty suspension tasted way better than my Brother in Law's fully conditioned home brew did 20 years ago.

Mind, it was done with an enhancer.

 

[reno223]

OK so 3 days in and as per the instructions I cleaned the collar and checked a sample with the hydrometer......when I collected my sample via the tap it was FIZZY! So much so that the hydrometer sat at 1.021 until the fizz became too much and up she went!

Is this all normal so far?

 

[Vossy1]

Yup 3 days is very short, leave it until at least 7-10 days. Give the hydro a good spin to get rid of the bubbles to get a reading, and make sure it's clean :thumb:

 

[reno223]

Hi again all,

So the bug has bitten and I have splashed out on a muntons imperial stout kit and a load of bottles and am just waiting for my FV to be free. My Coopers Oz lager has been in there 8 days now and is now down to 1.012 from 1.037 but I am concerned its not coming down quick enough as is hasnt moved in the last 24hrs, should I be concerned? There was no final gravity guide on the instructions so I have nothing to go on.

 

[Slate Miner]

Hi again all,

So the bug has bitten and I have splashed out on a muntons imperial stout kit and a load of bottles and am just waiting for my FV to be free. My Coopers Oz lager has been in there 8 days now and is now down to 1.012 from 1.037 but I am concerned its not coming down quick enough as is hasnt moved in the last 24hrs, should I be concerned? There was no final gravity guide on the instructions so I have nothing to go on.

No need to be concerned, I brewed a Coopers Aussie lager kit back in February, the final gravity was 1008, it took 14 days in the FV to get there. Patience really is the key here, give it a couple of weeks in the FV before you bottle. a final gravity of somewhere around 1.010 is perfectly normal. :drink: Don't forget to add a teaspoon of sugar to each 500ml bottle. :

Incidently I'm more of a real ale drinker rather than lager, however I was really impressed with this kit as have been my lager drinking friends and family. :thumb:

 

[reno223]

Thanks Slate Miner :thumb:

It all sounds very promising, did you bottle with standard granulated sugar? Everyone says patience is key but when yoy have just started its is never going to be easy and you worry it might be going wrong

 

[Slate Miner]

Thanks Slate Miner :thumb:

It all sounds very promising, did you bottle with standard granulated sugar? Everyone says patience is key but when yoy have just started its is never going to be easy and you worry it might be going wrong

Yes granulated sugar is fine, then after capping put the bottles in a warm room for a week before transfering to somewhere cooler for a fortnight before sampling your first beer. :thumb: This all helps to condition and clear the beer, a small amount of sediment will form don't worry this is perfectly normal, just take care whilst pouring.

Patience really is the key :whistle: Your brew will improve if you can resist for 2-3 months. :shock:

 

[reno223]

11 days in still sat at 1.012, time for bottling?

Is there anything I have done wrong for it not to have gone lower? Also when bottling I am using the carbonation drops, are these as good as sugar and can I bottle in two batches so as to give the second lot of bottles time to sterilise or should I just ban the family from the bath for the day?

 

[PD]

Probably a little late for you now but bottle in one session without a break carb drops are fine to use but a little on the expensive side. However they make it easier to add a consistent amount of sugar to each bottle. How many depends on your taste and the style of beer you are making. Certainly one drop to each bottle, for my tastes and styles I like a bit more fizz so I try and add quarter to a half of teaspoon of sugar to each bottle as well as I cannot find a way to break those drops in half !
The final gravity depends on many factors of your brew and yeast. some work out lower than others, wine goes a lot lower than beers. My first lager gave me a drop of 28 points between the gravities but that's ok for a light session drink, a recent dark ale gave me a drop of 43 points. Just let it work to its limit and you will not have a problem especially with kits. After bottling give each a good shake move to somewhere warmish for 2 weeks, then back into the cool.
Patience patience patience..... :