Newbie brewing Coopers starter Lager Kit

[Roscoe9]

Hi,

I'm completely new to home brewing but always had a keen interest in all things beer!

So i've brought the Coopers Lager home brew DIY beginners kit and will begin my first brew this weekend.

After trawling the internet for advice, guides and opinions, I have come up with the following plan of action.

Will use the 1 can kit provided by Coopers and the beer enhancer, with the addition of 500g of DME and a further 500g of granulated sugar. I've brought spring water to use as my home supply is chalky. Will leave for 2 weeks to ferment then begin bottling once the gravity readings become consistent over 2/3 days. I'll use the carbonation drops provided (2 in each 500ml bottle) and then leave the bottles for 2 to 3 weeks until fully conditioned and carbonated.

Does this sound like a good plan of action? Any advice would be greatly received.

Cheers!

 

[Mark1964]

don't use granulated sugar use dextrose (brewing sugar) granulated will give a dry beer and a thin taste, try using honey or something similar. You could jazz it up a bit by dry hopping with a decent hop like saaz or similar in a secondary fermenter.

 

[Roscoe9]

Thanks for the suggestion Mark1964. Think I'll try dry hopping after I have a few brews under my belt.

So should I drop the 500g sugar from the brew?

 

[Sandimas]

No, you need 1kg of fermentables in addition to the 1-can kit. If you have a local Wilko you can get brewing sugar there, but if not normal household will be OK.

Don't make the kit up to full volume (23L), do a bit less 20L or 21L and you'll end up with a bit more flavour. And if you can get some Saaz or Hallertau hops, chuck 25g in the fermenter after 3 days and it'll make a big improvement.

Finally, don't be too much in a hurry, I'd leave it 3 weeks before bottling. And use your normal sugar (1 teaspoon per bottle) instead of carbonation drops. Then 2-3 weeks in the warm, and leave for 8 weeks before drinking - this kit benefits from being left alone a bit.

Then drink and you'll be surprised how good it is.

 

[Roscoe9]

No, you need 1kg of fermentables in addition to the 1-can kit. If you have a local Wilko you can get brewing sugar there, but if not normal household will be OK.

Don't make the kit up to full volume (23L), do a bit less 20L or 21L and you'll end up with a bit more flavour. And if you can get some Saaz or Hallertau hops, chuck 25g in the fermenter after 3 days and it'll make a big improvement.

Finally, don't be too much in a hurry, I'd leave it 3 weeks before bottling. And use your normal sugar (1 teaspoon per bottle) instead of carbonation drops. Then 2-3 weeks in the warm, and leave for 8 weeks before drinking - this kit benefits from being left alone a bit.

Then drink and you'll be surprised how good it is.

I have 1kg of beer enhancer that was going in with the 1 can mix. So will that be enough? I've read that adding additional light DME will give it more body and taste, is that right?

 

[Slid]

I have 1kg of beer enhancer that was going in with the 1 can mix. So will that be enough? I've read that adding additional light DME will give it more body and taste, is that right?

If you are used to drinking real ale, add a further 500g DME.

If you have spent (wasted?) the last n years drinking popular, heavily promoted "lagers" add another 500g of sugar (it's all chemically the same, no matter what) and brew to 25L.

Either way you are unlikely to be disappointed :drink:

 

[Roscoe9]

If you are used to drinking real ale, add a further 500g DME.

If you have spent (wasted?) the last n years drinking popular, heavily promoted "lagers" add another 500g of sugar (it's all chemically the same, no matter what) and brew to 25L.

Either way you are unlikely to be disappointed :drink:

Thanks for the advice. Think I'll add the extra 500g DME & 500g sugar for my first brew and go to 25L.

 

[Roscoe9]

Right the brew is in! Added the additional light DME and sugar and brewed to 25L. Pitched the yeast at 24c which I wasn't happy about but had to get it in. First gravity reading of 1050, so hoping for around 4.8-5.3% if all goes to plan!

 

[Roscoe9]

Checked this morning and temp seems to have stabilise at 20c. Huge frothy head on it and seems to got lighter over night.

It doesn't seem to be "bubbling" though. Does that mean it's not fermenting correctly?

 

[Spapro]

The bubblers don't always bubble, I stopped using them as it was just something else to clean/sterilise. I swapped my lids with grommet holes for solid lids with no holes.

The lids on beer fermenting buckets don't tend to be properly airtight which isn't a problem at all but just means the CO2 produced by the fermentation is escaping without having to go through the airlock.

If its at 20°C and you have a layer of froth then its off and fermenting - the layer of froth is called krausen and will subside over the next few days.

Leave it at least a week, 2 weeks if you can leave it alone that long then check the gravity with a hydrometer to check where its at.

Just worth keeping an eye on the temperature - 20°C is perfect so ideally you want it to remain at that temp throughout fermentation.

Good luck with it.

 

[Roscoe9]

The bubblers don't always bubble, I stopped using them as it was just something else to clean/sterilise. I swapped my lids with grommet holes for solid lids with no holes.

The lids on beer fermenting buckets don't tend to be properly airtight which isn't a problem at all but just means the CO2 produced by the fermentation is escaping without having to go through the airlock.

If its at 20°C and you have a layer of froth then its off and fermenting - the layer of froth is called krausen and will subside over the next few days.

Leave it at least a week, 2 weeks if you can leave it alone that long then check the gravity with a hydrometer to check where its at.

Just worth keeping an eye on the temperature - 20°C is perfect so ideally you want it to remain at that temp throughout fermentation.

Good luck with it.

Thanks Spapro! All does seem to be going to plan. Just hope that continues! Had a gravity of 1050 so would take 1015 at bottling!

 

[Roscoe9]

I couldn't resist and took a sneaky sample to test the gravity! It's 1.025, so already dropped 25 in two days! If it gets down to 1.010, I'll have a 5.8% lager on my hands!:shock:

 

[Roscoe9]

So to ask a simple/silly question about my brew, but after reading more on here I think i might have made a newbie mistake.

My brew consisted of the 1 can kit (1.7kg liquid), 1kg of beer enhancer 1, 500g of light DME & 500g of granulated sugar. all topped up to 25L with spring water. I'm now thinking I've added too much fermentables?

Most suggest just adding 1kg of fermentables but ive added 2kg!?? Will this have ruined the brew? Or just make it take longer to ferment and condition??

Slightly worried i've over cooked my first brew!

 

[scotjer]

It will be fine. Adding more fermentables will only increase the final ABV. At least to a point that the normal yeast can still go through it.
And as you have topped up to 25l all things look good.

 

[Roscoe9]

It will be fine. Adding more fermentables will only increase the final ABV. At least to a point that the normal yeast can still go through it.
And as you have topped up to 25l all things look good.

Thanks for the reassurance!! I'm just a bit nervous over my first brew!

 

[Roscoe9]

5 full days in the FV and the gravity is 1.014. Chuffed to bits with a drop of 36!

Still plan to leave it for a full two weeks in the FV before bottling and will dry hop 4 days before end with Hersbrucker hops.

 

[Roscoe9]

The brew has been in over a week now and I thought everything was going to plan. However, over the last two days the brew as darkened considerably! Is this normal?

The top inch of the brew seems a lot clearer than the rest as well. The temp has been around 18c-20c for the full week. Should a lager come out that dark? Tried to upload a pic but can't seem to from my iPhone. But I would say it's currently as dark as a bitter!

Has it gone bad?

 

[Roscoe9]

Any one? Really worried it's ruined

 

[Spapro]

It looks darker in the FV than it will in the bottle - due to depth of the fluid you are looking through, will also look much lighter coming through the syphon tube as its thin !

Stop worrying, leave another week then think about bottling if gravity reading with a hydrometer is stable over a 3 days.

 

[Roscoe9]

It looks darker in the FV than it will in the bottle - due to depth of the fluid you are looking through, will also look much lighter coming through the syphon tube as its thin !

Stop worrying, leave another week then think about bottling if gravity reading with a hydrometer is stable over a 3 days.

Cheers Spapro! Just got newbie nerves over my first brew!