new to brewing

[Corey]

Hi,

This is probably a really dumb question but ...

I live in Melbourne, have just bottled my 1st brew (4 days ago) from a coopers kit (came with a lager can) & am preparing for my next batch. I just went & bought a coopers lager can & 2kgs of brewing sugar(was planning on putting in 1.5 kgs of sugar in this time, hoping to increase the alcohol content).

On to the dumb questions....


1. Will my 'increased sugar' plan work?

2. All the docs that came with the kit say the temp should be between 18C-27C.. You say that you dont use heaters in winter for your lagers... can i put away my electric blanket & sleeping bag(that I've had wrapped around the bucket)?

3. Where do I find a 'brew shop' here in Melbourne that stocks the yeast you seem so passionate about?

Thanks for your time,

Corey

[Q]

Hi Corey

Just curious ...

why are you bumping up the alcohol content when you haven't tasted your first brew yet?

Do you have a problem????? Hehehe

Your nearest servo will have some brake fluid if all you want is an alcohol fix

[Dogger Dan]

Yep, increase the sugar, increase the effect. This dies off around 11 percent top end as yeast doesn't like high alcohol concentrations either.

Using straight sugar is a bad idea as it leads to off tastes, odours and in general crap beer. Boost it with malts or 80 percent fermentables so you can keep some body. Balance with hops.

Dogger

[Isaac]

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%.

[Oliver]

Corey,

I think everything has been covered, except point 2, about temps for brewing. Yes, we tend to brew lagers in winter and ales in spring and autumn, but to do this you've got to make sure you're brewing lagers with a true lager yeast.

Most of the "lager" kits that you buy come with ale yeast, which pretty much stops working below 17C or so. Cooper's Pilsner, Cooper's Bavarian Lager and Goldrush Pilsner are three kits I know of that come with a true lager yeast, although the Goldrush yeast sachet is so small as to be ridiculous, and fermentation took ages to get going for me.

So, if you don't want to heat your brew, either make sure it's a true lager yeast you're using, or if you're not sure, turf the yeast that comes with the kit and buy a pack of lager yeast. Saflager is a beauty, and is what comes with the Cooper's kits I mentioned above.

Cheers,

Oliver

[Corey]

Thanks everyone for your tips, just cracked open my 1st bottle.... & 2nd.... & 3rd... he he

Tastes great, but hydro showed that it came out at about 2-3%...

Thanks again, off yeast shopping now...

Cheers,


Corey