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I've used both Saflager and the yeast that came with a Cooper's Bavarian Lager.

They seemed to have different properties to me - the saflager made interesting patterns in the bottom of the fermenter as I was emptying it (high flocculation) but the yeast in the Bavarian Lager didn't.

The Bavarian ...

It won't - as you've guessed the main reason for the use of dark bottles is light causing oxidation.

If there's no light, there won't be any oxidation caused by it, no matter what colour the bottles are.

It will... but those are external dimensions - they multiply to ~114 litres, the rated capacity is only 48.

I'm guessing my fermenter won't fit in this thing - it would only just fit into the external dimensions. Anyone know if there are any K-Marts with the $249 model above? I visited one today ...

Would one of these do a similar job? In particular, anyone know if they will hold a standard 23 litre fermenter?

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll ... eName=WDVW

They're going for around $150.

Great idea. One suggestion though, cut out your local HBS completely, it's obvious he doesn't deserve your business.

There's plenty of online stores that will sell you grain at good prices via mail order - check out http://www.grainandgrape.com.au/kits.htm .

There are relatively few people on ...

Check out http://zymo.homemail.com.au/beer.htm for a description of a RIMS (Recirculating Infusion Mash System):


After much reading of the internet, I decided I wanted to make a RIMS , or Recirculating Infusion Mash System. I wanted to do this after having such large temp gradients in the mash ...

You can't age the beer long in a plastic bottle - they gradually let the CO2 out so they'll go flat after a year or two. So you're stuck with drinking young beer -- which isn't necessarily bad.

That said I've made about five brews using the same set of PET bottles (Cooper's) and they look none the ...

Chemical supply shops sell 95% ethanol (the other 5% is water, it's impossible to distill this away as it forms an azeotrope with the ethanol) for about $200 for 20 litres (less for smaller amounts). Dilute this with water to give 40 proof spirits and you get about 50 litres, add the flavourings ...

Never tried it before - but if bitterness is a result of alpha acids, then maybe something basic might reduce the bitterness.

Try some bicarb soda?

11.5g Saflager23 yeast (additional
to Kit yeast)


You didn't put both yeasts in, did you? More is not necessarily better, except in that you may be able to get the ferment started earlier which helps to ward off any infections... But two yeast strains in the one brew is probably not a good idea ...

It won't carbonate properly at very low temperatures so leave it at 14-16 for a couple of weeks until you get some bubbles, then put it in your beer fridge for a few weeks to lager it.

I'd also leave it in the primary for a few extra days - 1.012 sounds a bit high for a Pilsner - mine took two ...

A decent brew kit (say, Coopers premium range) should only cost around $12. Some of these include good yeasts - Coopers Pilsner and Bohemian Lager include Saflager - so there may be no extra expense there.

Assuming you need the extra malt, you can pick up unhopped liquid extract for under $9 for 1 ...

Dry malt can get expensive. Instead of buying 2x500g packets of it at about $5 each, it's worthwhile getting a 1.5kg can of liquid malt for about $9. Put that in with your kit, add some hops and you're all set.

$300, two keg starters system:

http://www.hbrews.com.au/product_info.php?cPath=24_57&products_id=198&osCsid=641b72d3c18db1c38a9efc1f87ca9575

That said, I think it comes with the dreaded "Cobra" tap, as above. Either that or it's just a really cheap plastic tap, which may not be any good anyway ...

I've just done a 23 litre brew with 2x1.5 kg cans of extract plus 1kg of dextrose. The original SG reading was off the scale on my el-cheapo beer hyrdrometer, so it probably started off around 1050 and fermented down to about 1006 - which means I've got about 6%. Bottom line, the more fermentables ...

Anyway, henry's law (google it) states that the solubility of a gas into a liquid depends on temperature and the partial pressure of the gas.


Specifically, the colder the liquid the more soluble the gas, so it's better to carbonate your beer while it's in the fridge. Let it sit at the desired ...

Boil up a few chillies for 10 minutes and toss the lot into the fermenter as an addition to your normal brew. Alternatively toss them into the last 10 minutes of your boil if you do the whole boiling the malt extract thing.

Isaac,

To get the temperature easily and for free, find a basement. Temperature stay around 10 deg C winter/summer which lend themselves to lagers. Option two is lagers in winter, ales in summer. Someone else has said this but I have also done this for years..


In my 22 years in Australia, I ...

All home brew shops carry "real" yeast. Check out the yellow pages, under "home brewing" or something similar.

Many yeasts won't work after about 8% alcohol, at this level it starts to stunt the yeast. Champagne yeast will ferment over 12%, and some "turbo yeasts" will do about 20%.

Some people blame stale malt for the cidery taste - see if you can find a beer kit manufactured within a few months.