Never brewed before but want to start brewing my own Strong Lager

[Dutto]

Arguably he was an alcoholic.

This is Post 18 as the Thread seems to have taken on a life of its own!

On the basis that the OP may not return I have quoted the above to remind everyone of Mr. Churchill's wit.

Legend has it that Bessie Braddock (a female MP) once said to Churchill "Winston, you are drunk!"...

... to which Winston replied "Bessie you are ugly, but tomorrow I will be sober." and walked away.

PS It was Post 18 when I started it!!

 

[terrym]

-

 

[The Baron]

Correct JCR probably one of the hardest styles to get right. I don't even try so just make pseudo lagers or Kolsch

 

[crowcrow]

I don't drink it often at all, but I've always been partial to a Special Brew - they are a great lager, and well worth giving one a go if only once. They are well made and to me far tastier than a Bud or even a Stella. I used to take a 4 pack for a days festival drinking. Far fewer wees to contend with!

Loads of great advice above, but to add, I'd drop into to wilko and grab a fermentation bucket and any tinned kit that takes your fancy and brew it as described. Once that is brewed and then in the keg try something a little different, but get a least one standard and by the book brew in to test out the basics and the kit.

Adding more sugar will increase the strength but will make more cidery - and not the nice Special Brew taste, which is extra malt and the right yeast. Enjoy! And keep us posted on your journey please!

If you are on a budget post to gumtree and similar locally looking for a second hand fermentation bucket and keg - you might get lucky.

G4 is good for wine, better use a high abv mangrove jack's belgian yeast than can go 12%, brew short to 20ltr then add light malt lme or dme or both instead of a ton of sugar. No more than 500g of medium Dme to a larger and light dme will give you a similar colour, a small addition of golden syrup 150g, I wouldn't aim over 8% for og and then add 250g of maltodextrin at bottling with your priming sugar may give you more like the ***** your looking for. Good luck

 

[terrym]

The continuation of advice in this thread reminds me of the postman in the classic 1930s film Oh Mr Porter

 

[Chippy_Tea]

The OP last logged in at 11am on Tuesday he was probably put off answering his own thread by some of the posts in it, this is known as a friendly place where new members can find help, taking the piss out of a new members preferred beer doesn't do the forums reputation any favours so can we consider that when answering in furure.
Let's hope he reads this and decides to post again.

 

[Drunkula]

Adding more sugar will increase the strength but will make more cidery

After reading about this being a myth I've run tests doing a split batch, one all grain, the other grain + the equivalent of a kit and a kilo. Results had absolutely no cider taste and some people, me included, thinking the sugar one was more like a pub pint.

I did some other tests and part way through a brew it WAS as cidery as hell and I thought, yep, absolutely confirmed, then when it had fully attenuated 2 days later all the apple taste had completely gone - and I mean completely. I wondered if the cidery taste was because of invertase or that it creates more acetaldehyde. You really can't find any info on invertase taste apart from threshold info but sod all about what it tastes like. I'd like to do a sugar vs dextrose experiment and see if I can get the same apple flavour midway.

I know it's not the most extensive set of tests but I think the cidery reputation might be because of crappy 70's yeasts or whenever it was the homebrew boom started and they didn't finish properly.

 

[chthon]

From what I can find acetaldehyde is really part of the fermentation process, formed just before the alcohol. So as long as fermentation is going you will probably get this cider taste.

The question is then, did these early homebrewers bottle and drink their homebrew always too early?

 

[strange-steve]

@Drunkula completely agree, it's another one of those home brew myths that needs to die. I was just looking through Brewing Classic Styles by JZ at the sugar content in his Belgian beer recipes:

Saison - 10% sugar
Biere de garde - 8%
Belgian specialty - 10%
Blonde - 14%
Dubbel - 11%
Tripel - 19%
Golden strong - 26%!

 

[The Baron]

Don't forget in the 70s/80s there were not homebrewers like today who have learned a lot more of the science of brewing and that time is still brewings friend. I think looking back to the 80s when I used to do the Boots and Tom Caxtons etc we did not know any better so followed the instructions from the kit manufacturers who were trying to make the idea of having a pint in your hand in 7 days etc as a selling point. As we all know now that is not really the truth and thats why I think Drunkula has got it right we were drinking it before it had finished fermenting fully

 

[nige]

All science is learned of the backs of people who didn't know but took us too the bridges or over towards enlightenment
(nige 2020) Anon.

 

[GerritT]

I don't drink it often at all, but I've always been partial to a Special Brew - they are a great lager, and well worth giving one a go if only once. They are well made and to me far tastier than a Bud or even a Stella. I used to take a 4 pack for a days festival drinking. Far fewer wees to contend with!

Loads of great advice above, but to add, I'd drop into to wilko and grab a fermentation bucket and any tinned kit that takes your fancy and brew it as described. Once that is brewed and then in the keg try something a little different, but get a least one standard and by the book brew in to test out the basics and the kit.

Adding more sugar will increase the strength but will make more cidery - and not the nice Special Brew taste, which is extra malt and the right yeast. Enjoy! And keep us posted on your journey please!

If you are on a budget post to gumtree and similar locally looking for a second hand fermentation bucket and keg - you might get lucky.

Totally agree. Cheap strong drinks serve their own purpose. They might not even be bad, just misunderstood.

 

[nige]

There's a song about that

 

[An Ankoù]

Special brew ? Is this a bot ? Who in their right mind wants the pinnacle of their brewing to be super strength chemically abused *****! Sorry but if this is real then please please try some real lagers & Belgian blondes to educate your palate. If this sounds abrupt then I make no apologies. Broaden your palate & enjoy brewing quality beer.

I have to confess that I went through a phase of enjoying Special Brew. It was in the early eighties when you could buy it in bottles. I rose to a challenge from a lad who claimed he was champion at drinking SB in his university in Singapore. Well I saw him off and, as we were in a Ringwood pub, finished with an Old Thumper. Some things are just not worth winning. I had to drag him home, leave him at the bottom of the stairs and missed the next day's work. Well, you live and learn.
Well, we're supposed to.

 

[Rodcx500z]

+1 Drunkula, I recently did a few kits tweaked with dme and tate & lyle none had the twang or cider taste, time I think is what is needed

 

[Winterbournebrewery]

The continuation of advice in this thread reminds me of the postman in the classic 1930s film Oh Mr Porter

love it this was comedy my brother & I were bought up on , Will Hay films & the like, bloody fantastic ! Nice one Tel. Classic.

 

[Hoddy]

There's 2 main reasons I wanted to start brewing my own Strong lager (8-10% ABV)
1. I really enjoy the taste of the likes of Special Brew and Super Tennant but it is LUDICROUSLY expensive and I am but a mere pauper
2. I have wanted to try and brew my own beers/lagers since doing my Cask Ale cellar management course about 10 years ago

I have quite literally no idea what I need to do or what equipment I will need. All I have so far is a 5g packet of "Gervin GV4 - High alcohol wine yeast" (assuming this will be suitable for brewing higher ABV drinks)

Am i attempting to run before I can walk or (with some of you kinds folks' words of wisdom) is this something I will be able to achieve?

Thank you in advance for any help you can give me!

your in this for the wrong reason. Plus you’ve picked one of the most difficult styles of lager to make. Which as a novice you’ll end up making petrol.
I would suggest lowering your expectations and ABV of the beer you might make.
Maybe have a go at a mad dog kit and see how you go.