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I hope that you won't think too poorly of me but I used a Coopers brewing kit.
I didn't use the tin of lager in it, I picked up a tin of Coopers Dark Ale and a packet of BE2 and used them. Hopefully it will turn out OK. I'm a big fan of ales and I intend to make lots of Newcastle Brown Ale in the future once I get a bit more confident.
The Coopers starter kit is great for a beginner, so no worries there, and your first brew should turn out just fine. Plenty of tips for the future in a sticky at the top of this forum.
Welcome emo, the coopers kits are great, i swear by them even if some dont, just have fun with it and enjoy the end results, the brew your doin should be a nice tasty one for a start but after this one just browse around in here and im sure you will get lots of great ideas for future brews
Hello Emo,
Welcome to the world of brewing.
Take your time using the kits and trying different sugar mixes- you learn the differences in taste & body etc. that way.
If you have any questions do a search here or at http://www.homebrewandbeer.com/ then ask here... you will be answered
Emo wrote:I hope that you won't think too poorly of me but I used a Coopers brewing kit.
I didn't use the tin of lager in it, I picked up a tin of Coopers Dark Ale and a packet of BE2 and used them. Hopefully it will turn out OK. I'm a big fan of ales and I intend to make lots of Newcastle Brown Ale in the future once I get a bit more confident.
G'day Emo. Welcome.
I have done truckloads of Coopers and they are pretty good.
I thought the dark ale was OK, but my fave is the Pale Ale.
Good luck with it and if you have any probs, post it and I am sure that one of us will come up with the answer....that's what it is all about
A homebrew is like a fart, only the brewer thinks it's great.
Give me a flying headbutt.......
I recently brewed a coopers lager ( one that i got with the kit also) with a #60 german lager kit (brewcraft) and 12 gm hallertau hops at flame out and it was fantastic so dont be scared to brew it, they are not all that bad
OK, the brew has stopped bubbling. I'm not sure when as I had to go to a conference in Cebu last week (yeah tough I know but someones got to do it). It was bubbling away strongly when I left last Monday night and had stopped by yesterday morning when I got home. The Coopers instructions that came with the kit (Dark Ale) suggest that it will be ready after 4-7 days.
After doing a bit of reading here, I'm inclined to leave it for another week. I'd rather get it right than be in a hurry.
Yes, I tested it an it settled for the last three days at 1010.
Bottled it today. Had to have a wee sample and bugger me if it didn't taste like the Coopers Dark Ale stubby I bought yesterday. Taste and smell were pretty identical.
I'm pretty sure that I missed putting the carbo drops in one of the bottles. The dog distracted me. That might be an interesting drink.
All in all, I'm very happy with the first effort. I think that I'll be making a batch of Pale Ale tomorrow (coplete with hops) so I can alternate between Pale Ale and Dark Ale over summer.
Emo wrote:Yes, I tested it an it settled for the last three days at 1010.
Bottled it today. Had to have a wee sample and bugger me if it didn't taste like the Coopers Dark Ale stubby I bought yesterday. Taste and smell were pretty identical.
I'm pretty sure that I missed putting the carbo drops in one of the bottles. The dog distracted me. That might be an interesting drink.
All in all, I'm very happy with the first effort. I think that I'll be making a batch of Pale Ale tomorrow (coplete with hops) so I can alternate between Pale Ale and Dark Ale over summer.
Congrats Emo, welcome to the world of brewing, you will never look back now m8
