First Brew - Wilks Hoppy Copper Bitter

[flyan]

And so it begins.

Last night I started on my home brew journey and have to say I'm already hooked although no one warned me about the smell of the wort. My bloody kitchen stinks and the cats won't come in the house now which I guess isn't a bad thing :)

I used the Wilks Hoppy Copper Bitter and followed the instructions which to be fair were pretty damn simple to follow. Warmed the wort for about 10 minutes as my house is bloody freezing but other than that I followed the instructions to the letter. The FV I have doesn't have a hole in the top for an airlock so I left the lid just slightly open to let any gas escape. When I checked it this morning the lid was raised but could also hear it seeping out so I'm not worried about it exploding and wreaking my kitchen too much.

Unfortunately I didn't have a hydrometer or thermometer so I've no idea about the gravity or temperature. I'll be sure to pick those up today after work so at least I'll have a good idea for the next batch.

I know Floodster (forum member) outside of this forum and following his advice have wrapped up my FV due to the temperature in my house.

It may look a bit daft but hopefully it'll do the job. The only thing bothering me is the wait now. I understand I have to be patient but after a nights sleep all I want to do is check on it and make sure its doing its thing.

Anyways. I'll give it 2 weeks in the FV then keg it. My worry is transferring from the FV to the keg as the FV doesn't have a tap. The kit I was given has a hose so I assume I need to use that. Bear in mind I'm very new to home brewing and completely useless so any advice would be amazing.

Thanks in advance and I'm looking forward to more beer.

Cheers

Flynn

 

[memit]

Good luck. I brewed this for my 2nd batch of homebrew and it was ready a few weeks ago. It came out very nice (but lighter than I expected) - it seems like a really good value kit. My flat was a bit chilly, so it took about 2 weeks: it seemed to stick after 9-10 days, but once I transferred it to a secondary fermenter it kept going a bit longer (I've ordered a brewing belt for my next batch). Getting the hydrometer will be useful to check how fermentation is going, even if you don't know the original gravity - but I wouldn't bother taking a reading for at least a few days.

You would probably want to siphon the beer across to the keg anyway, so don't worry about the lack of tap.

In case you haven't seen already - the how-to guides section of the forum is great (viewforum.php?f=30).

 

[Floodster]

You may want to cover the lid as well..

I doubt it comes with an auto siphon (which you just pump - worth purchasing) so expect it will just come with the tube? and maybe a sediment filter?

Make sure that the keg or bottles are at a lower level than the fermenting bucket. Then either:
A) Use your mouth to start the siphoning (not recommended as you can contaminate it)
B) Fill the siphon with tap water and put your thumb over one end and lower it compared to the other. Then go to your fermenting bucket put the higher end in with either the sediment filter on and if so put it all the way down to the bottom of the bucket or if no sediment filter just higher than the sediment at the bottom (so no sediment gets passed down). Then using another container (measuring jug or something) take your thumb off the lower end and it will start to move the water that is in the tube and then get to the beer. At this point put your thumb back on again and move the tube to your keg/bottles as required. - practice this before doing it.

There are a few youtube videos on option B which may make it easier to understand.

In either case make sure you sterilise the siphon inside and out.

 

[Floodster]

in fact here is a video of it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6wnVFsGdv0

 

[flyan]

Thanks for the advice guys. We'll see how it goes.

 

[DamageCase]

I'll be doing this tomorrow, my last brew of 2012. I'm quite looking forward to trying it. I've got the Wilko Sweet Newki Brown in a Keg at the moment and that's a pretty decent little brew for the price. I'm going to brew this one a bit short (to 20 litres instead of 23) to give it a bit more body and flavour.

 

[kentmark]

I used this kit as the basis for my festive ale. Very nice but as has already been said quite light. I added spices and fruit to it after primary fermentation to add some festive flavours, its now sitting on my garage workbench in my keg!

 

[klaus]

Done the Hoppy Copper Bitter earlier in the month to stock up on bottled beer. As I do with most cheap kits I brewed this one to 20 pints only, with an additional 500g of the Wilko brewing sugar which came free with the kit.
Drinking this now, full-bodied and decent strength, around 5% ABV.

 

[flyan]

I fear I may have completely ruined my first attempt at home brewing. I siphoned a little off this evening to get a hydrometer reading (I think it was 1.10 or something). I checked the sample which was cloudy as hell and had an 'odd' smell to it. I thought I'd have a little sip to put my mind at rest and at 1st it wasn't so bad. A few moments after I have a taste in my mouth that won't leave and a strange feeling in my stomach.

I'm going to siphon the lot into the pressure keg tomorrow night anyway just in case I'm being a drama queen but I can't shake the feeling I've made 40 pints worth of vinegar

 

[Floodster]

I would recommend leaving it. It hasn't had enough time to ferment. Maybe double check the hydrometer reading and post that. It may taste funny as it's not finished. Generally i leave a beer for 2 weeks in a fermenter before checking hydrometer. Cloudy wouldn't worry as it clears during bottling or kegging

 

[flyan]

Cheers Flood. Bricking it as its my 1st one. I get that whatever happens I learn something but I really to be able to drink my 1st pint and be proud. Not spray it on my chips

 

[Floodster]

That's fine. First kit its hard to leave it alone but try and do so.

Do you know what temperature its at and if it had a foamy head? Don't rush and take the lid off to check just wondering!

 

[flyan]

The surface isn't foamy as such but there are lots of bubbles covering it. The temp is usually 20 through the day and 18 / 19 in the evening / through the night.

 

[Floodster]

Sounds ok to me. So leave it!

 

[sblair1979]

You may want to cover the lid as well..

I doubt it comes with an auto siphon (which you just pump - worth purchasing) so expect it will just come with the tube? and maybe a sediment filter?

Make sure that the keg or bottles are at a lower level than the fermenting bucket. Then either:
A) Use your mouth to start the siphoning (not recommended as you can contaminate it)
B) Fill the siphon with tap water and put your thumb over one end and lower it compared to the other. Then go to your fermenting bucket put the higher end in with either the sediment filter on and if so put it all the way down to the bottom of the bucket or if no sediment filter just higher than the sediment at the bottom (so no sediment gets passed down). Then using another container (measuring jug or something) take your thumb off the lower end and it will start to move the water that is in the tube and then get to the beer. At this point put your thumb back on again and move the tube to your keg/bottles as required. - practice this before doing it.

There are a few youtube videos on option B which may make it easier to understand.

In either case make sure you sterilise the siphon inside and out.

Fantastic advice. I've got my first transfer coming up soon and im a bit apprehensive. This advice will help.

 

[Andy.H]

Bottled this kit about 6 weeks ago, and decided to try a bottle today. I brewed it to 20l

It's alright for what it is... it's no Woodfordes Wherry, but it's certainly not offensive. I wouldn't turn my nose up at it if it was served to me in a pub.

I know different people have different expectations, but it's certainly not the worst ten quid I've ever spent :)

 

[flyan]

Its been sat in the pressure keg for near two weeks now. I took a little sample from it Thursday night and I was unimpressed. Very weak taste, light colour, just not overly nice. More than likely it still needs time and my house is like a ******* icebox right now.

I'll leave it another two weeks and give it another sample.

On another note I've bottled my Coopers Stout and it looks lovely. Was a messy job bottling it but definitely a learning experience.

Time to get a Wherry on the go now

 

[flyan]

Lessons learnt.

1st brew got infected due to my stupidity and impatient nature.

Sad Times.

Still, its not all bad news. The Stout is bottled and conditioning and the Wherry is still bubbling away after 12 days. She slowed around day 4 due to the house being freezing but I bagged an electric blanket and wrapped that around it on low and she's picking back up. I gave the mix a gentle stir making sure not to disturb the bottom and now she's firing away. Hopefully it'll come out lovely.