Worth Tinkering with Cut Price Geordie LagerOr Not?

[mancer62]

Wife is going to Wilkos this afternoon. I noticed they are selling their Geordie Lager kits for £9....I am not a lager lover and was wondering if it could be turned into a reasonable IPA style tasting brew with the addition of some decent hops?
Recommended ore not?

 

[Sandimas]

I've not tried this one, but I've tinkered with plenty of kits - you can certainly improve them with the addition of hops and grains, but in my experience it's always a bit of a compromise as you don't know what went into the original kit e.g. how many bittering hops IBUs.

So worth giving it a go if you fancy a cheap brew, just don't expect the best beer you've ever tasted. And a load of citrusy hops such as Cascade and Citra can mask the underlying brew.

 

[24902657]

Hi mancer 62.

I have dry hopped this with 75grams of summit and 100grams of cascade I added 1kg of beer enhancer and a Wilko yeast sachet and the result was just good lager.

I also do a same procedure with the bitter.
It was fermented in 7 days a nice quick brew.
I brew to 18 litres and it works out to be 5%abv

Cheap as chips for £9.00

 

[terrym]

Hi mancer 62.

I have dry hopped this with 75grams of summit and 100grams of cascade I added 1kg of beer enhancer and a Wilko yeast sachet and the result was just good lager.

I also do a same procedure with the bitter.
It was fermented in 7 days a nice quick brew.
I brew to 18 litres and it works out to be 5%abv

Cheap as chips for £9.00

But your hops cost nearly as much as the kit can plus the cost of the BE and the yeast, so unless you have a free supply of these extras you are almost up to the cost of a premium kit:unsure:.

 

[Bigd2657]

Hi Terry m

I see your point but people on here seem to be putting hops and other extras with kits anyway nowadays so they will become super expensive.

 

[Drunkula]

Don't do it. Pick anything else apart from that pointless sugar water. It's one of the things the woman in my homebrew shop said she wouldn't wash her socks in.

 

[terrym]

Hi Terry m

I see your point but people on here seem to be putting hops and other extras with kits anyway nowadays so they will become super expensive.

I regularly make up one cans. They are good for experimentation or producing a house beer with added grain and hops when you have sorted out a recipe you like. However I am selective about what I buy and always buy them discounted. I never buy 1.5kg kits since I think they are false economy by the time you have added all the other stuff in to bring them up to scratch. And if you are adding stuff into a one can so the total cost exceeds £20 you may as well start thinking about a premium kit where everything is included because they may produce a comparable or even better beer. So a £9 Geordie lager that only produces 18 litres of beer and costs you £20 or more to brew is not a particularly good option for me, but may suit others.

 

[AdeDunn]

Or, simple tweak, switch the yeast for a Saison one... It won't be lager when it's done, and that's for sure. Cheap and easy, and no worrying about keeping temps down.