Home Brand... + what...

[Jedo_03]

Recently new...
Noticed that a good few forumites recommend Home Brand kits...
These are only $6.75 at present at our local Big UU...
Cheap beer...
What do people recommend to add to Home Brand kits to smarten them up a bit and give 'em a bit of palate...
BTW - enjoying a 4 month old cider ATM...
cheers
Jedo

[Iron-Haggis]

I'd go all malt, some cracked grains steeped and a few hops for a short boil and some dry hopping. It also depends on the style of the kit to what grains and hops you use. I'd also use better quality yeast.

[Toam]

This thread should be of interest:

http://www.homebrewandbeer.com/forum/vi ... php?t=1604

[Jedo_03]

Thanks to all...
Anyone have specific recipes...
True enough - K&K is malt... some kettled - some not...
At the sale price, cheap enough to double the malt or even triple... But I reckon tweaking with cracked grains\teabag hops\LDM, WHY will enhance the brew... Just wondered if someone has already pitched an enhanced Home Brand Brew with stunning results...
cheers
Jedo

[Trough Lolly]

G'day Jedo,
Many years ago I did a Home Brand Lager as follows:

Poor Man's Hahn Premium!
1 x Home Brand Lager,
1 x Brewiser Brew Booster,
300g of Pale Crystal malt,
1 x teabag of Hallertau,
2 x sachet's of W34/70 or S-189 dry yeast.

Method:
Steep the crystal in at least 6L of cold water and slowly bring up to 70C - allow grains to steep (in a nylon bag) for at least 30 mins. Remove grains and allow to drip dry in a colander over the pot - sparge grains by drizzling 1L of hot tap water (not boiling) to remove trapped sugars in grainbag. Bring sweet liqour to boil - add hop teabag and boil for 20 mins.
(If you bought the dry yeast, You can also toss in the kit yeast - it will make good yeast nutrient!)
Whilst the boil is on, grab a clean pyrex jug add 20C water from tap - toss in both sachets of dry yeast to rehydrate in the water. By the time you've done the boil and chilled the wort, the yeast should be up and running in the pyrex jug.
After 20min boil, cool pot in sink, and add to fermenter. Toss in kit, top up with pre-boiled and chilled water until you have a starting gravity of 1.045 or 20L, whichever comes first, pitch yeast (ideally the wort should be under 12C), seal and ferment.
All of the non-kit ingredients are easily sourced....You'll soon wonder how you got by without using fresh grains!
Cheers,
TL

[rwh]

Don't you need a few more fermentables in that? I'd probably add a Coopers Brew Enhancer 1. And if it's a poor man's brew, what are you pitching two sachets of expensive dried yeast for? I mean one sacet of yeast is going to cost 2/3 as much as one of his kits!

[Jedo_03]

thanks for the recipe TL... aye fresh grains would bring it on a good bit

have to agree with what rwh says about the yeasts though... what I gather, penicillin is cheaper than some of these 'w' yeasts

Orh, but - rwh - about the CBE - nah mate, 2 pound sugar will do us...

Can't buy brewing grains up here (won't grow up here either) but off t'adelaide in july for our annual trip to the woodies show, so will stock up on a list of brewing essentials too

talking about skinflints... put on a cider brew yesterday and thought I'd use a pckt of brigalow yeast I've had in the cupboard for nigh two years usebydate - 8\2005... and keep the 'fresh' one from the kit...
Aye you guessed right - didn't go... and had to make up a starter tonight with the kit pckt I was gonna keep...
Jedo

[ryan]

what are ya gonna do?

[FazerPete]

Thanks to all...
Anyone have specific recipes...
True enough - K&K is malt... some kettled - some not...
At the sale price, cheap enough to double the malt or even triple... But I reckon tweaking with cracked grains\teabag hops\LDM, WHY will enhance the brew... Just wondered if someone has already pitched an enhanced Home Brand Brew with stunning results...
cheers
Jedo

I have one of these in the keg at the minute and it's come out very much like an English bitter and has surprised me with the depth of flavour:
1 Can Tooheys Real Ale
1 Can Farmland Lager
10g Fuggles
12g S-33 yeast

All up it cost just under $18 so it's a pretty cheap brew.

[Jedo_03]

ryan - made up the starter with 250ml out the barrel,,,
got it going...
added that to 1litre out the barrel
got that going
added that back to the barrel
this morning had more suds than persil
usual remedy for stuck ferments

fazerpete
aye - it would be the fuggles gives the english bitter flavour - most english bitters are made with fuggles... plus the two cans of malt to give you the body...
18 dollars though... man thats nearly six quid....
looks a good recipe though
thanks
jedo

[FazerPete]

ryan - made up the starter with 250ml out the barrel,,,
fazerpete
aye - it would be the fuggles gives the english bitter flavour - most english bitters are made with fuggles... plus the two cans of malt to give you the body...
18 dollars though... man thats nearly six quid....
looks a good recipe though
thanks
jedo

I know what fuggles do, that's why I put them in
I was surprised because I've done the Tooheys Ale before and it was a bit bland by itself but after 3 weeks in the keg, this one has really come on.

[wildschwein]

Ahh Farmland Lager, just $8.99 @ Coles. I added 1kg of Coopers BE2 and 500g of homemade Belgian Candi sugar made from raw sugar, lemon juice and some glucose (dextrose) and cooked to deep amber (same colour as a brown beer bottle). Added 20g of Bavarian Saaz hop pellets: boiled 10g with 2L water, BE2 and candi for 10 minutes and another 10g for 5 minutes. Strained into the fermenter with kit contents and topped up to 23L and pitched a W 34/70 Saflager yeast at about 18C. Smelt quite decent, left out in the cold laundry to ferment out. Can't wait to try it, colour is quite a deep amber. Reckon I'm gonna call it "Australian Candi Lager."

[Trough Lolly]

Don't you need a few more fermentables in that? I'd probably add a Coopers Brew Enhancer 1. And if it's a poor man's brew, what are you pitching two sachets of expensive dried yeast for? I mean one sacet of yeast is going to cost 2/3 as much as one of his kits!

Yeah good point there re the fermentables - a kilo of enhancer would be great - but so would a partial mash of Munich I but then it's no longer a poor mans beer - I thought dry W34/70 yeast was cheap?!
Cheers,
TL

[ryan]

G'day Jedo,
Many years ago I did a Home Brand Lager as follows:

Poor Man's Hahn Premium!
1 x Home Brand Lager,
300g of Pale Crystal malt,
1 x teabag of Hallertau,
2 x sachet's of W34/70 or S-189 dry yeast.

Method:
Steep the crystal in at least 6L of cold water and slowly bring up to 70C - allow grains to steep (in a nylon bag) for at least 30 mins. Remove grains and allow to drip dry in a colander over the pot - sparge grains by drizzling 1L of hot tap water (not boiling) to remove trapped sugars in grainbag. Bring sweet liqour to boil - add hop teabag and boil for 20 mins.
(If you bought the dry yeast, You can also toss in the kit yeast - it will make good yeast nutrient!)
Whilst the boil is on, grab a clean pyrex jug add 20C water from tap - toss in both sachets of dry yeast to rehydrate in the water. By the time you've done the boil and chilled the wort, the yeast should be up and running in the pyrex jug.
After 20min boil, cool pot in sink, and add to fermenter. Toss in kit, top up with pre-boiled and chilled water until you have a starting gravity of 1.045 or 20L, whichever comes first, pitch yeast (ideally the wort should be under 12C), seal and ferment.
All of the non-kit ingredients are easily sourced....You'll soon wonder how you got by without using fresh grains!
Cheers,
TL

Does anyone ever read these posts/recipes? The one above would come out at about 3.4% alc. Two 34/70 yeast packs would cost you $8 for instance. What would be the point in doing it?
Poor man my arse

[Jedo_03]

Aye... well... you get what you pay for when all's said and done...
Glad to be able to pick other's brains...
a good idea here - a shortcut there - a hint somewhere else...
as for poor man's beer... well I guess even a dollar-fifty a litre is cheap by comparison... buggur though to pay more for the yeast than you did for the kit...
bargain today in Coles...
Can of Brigalow Cider - been dropped on the floor and was dented = $1
AND still had the yeast under the cap...
now thats what I call a bargain... (hada look to see if there was any split bags of sugar on the go... there wasn't...)
Jedo

[ryan]

Aye... well... you get what you pay for when all's said and done...
Glad to be able to pick other's brains...
a good idea here - a shortcut there - a hint somewhere else...
as for poor man's beer... well I guess even a dollar-fifty a litre is cheap by comparison... buggur though to pay more for the yeast than you did for the kit...
bargain today in Coles...
Can of Brigalow Cider - been dropped on the floor and was dented = $1
AND still had the yeast under the cap...
now thats what I call a bargain... (hada look to see if there was any split bags of sugar on the go... there wasn't...)

Jedo

Congrats. on the Brigalow cider-you`ll love it.
Too bad about the sugar

[mobydick]

Listen I've a great idea. Can all you blokes go round the supermarkets and swipe all the home brew kits onto the ground, then point it out to the manager.

I'll be round (with Boonie obviously) to pick up all the discounted stock later in the week.

[Trough Lolly]

G'day Jedo,
Many years ago I did a Home Brand Lager as follows:

Poor Man's Hahn Premium!
1 x Home Brand Lager,
300g of Pale Crystal malt,
1 x teabag of Hallertau,
2 x sachet's of W34/70 or S-189 dry yeast.

Method:
Steep the crystal in at least 6L of cold water and slowly bring up to 70C - allow grains to steep (in a nylon bag) for at least 30 mins. Remove grains and allow to drip dry in a colander over the pot - sparge grains by drizzling 1L of hot tap water (not boiling) to remove trapped sugars in grainbag. Bring sweet liqour to boil - add hop teabag and boil for 20 mins.
(If you bought the dry yeast, You can also toss in the kit yeast - it will make good yeast nutrient!)
Whilst the boil is on, grab a clean pyrex jug add 20C water from tap - toss in both sachets of dry yeast to rehydrate in the water. By the time you've done the boil and chilled the wort, the yeast should be up and running in the pyrex jug.
After 20min boil, cool pot in sink, and add to fermenter. Toss in kit, top up with pre-boiled and chilled water until you have a starting gravity of 1.045 or 20L, whichever comes first, pitch yeast (ideally the wort should be under 12C), seal and ferment.
All of the non-kit ingredients are easily sourced....You'll soon wonder how you got by without using fresh grains!
Cheers,
TL

Does anyone ever read these posts/recipes? The one above would come out at about 3.4% alc. Two 34/70 yeast packs would cost you $8 for instance. What would be the point in doing it?
Poor man my arse

Point taken ryan - and if the extra $8 is a back breaker when you're making a couple of slabs of beer, then use the kit yeast!

And as ryan and rwh have pointed out, my recipe was incorrect - I finally found my old brewing recipe book this weekend and when I did this brew in August 03 it had a "Brewiser Brew Booster" in the recipe - I can't remember what these boosters have in them. My notes aren't specific but I presumably added it to the fermenter before pouring in the chilled wort extract from the crystal.

There's another reason why I used 2 x W34/70 sachets - apart from a much better finish to the beer's flavour profile compared to the kit yeast, I specifically did this brew as a buildup batch for the following brew - a Bavarian Lager that was pitched directly onto the yeast cake and took off almost immediately. So yes, I spent $8 or so on yeast for two brews and kept some slurry for future batches - which makes the purchase a lot more economical when you look at the bigger picture and plan your brews...

Cheers,
TL

[rwh]

Aaaah now it all makes sense.

I repitched onto a yeast cake (WYeast 1056) for the first time yesterday. Pitched before dinner, and when I got back afterwards and it was going mental. Shortest lag time ever.

One thing it does bring up tho is my habit of chucking absolutely everything into the fermenter. The hot and cold breaks as well as the hop debris would really build up after a few AG APAs!

[Boonie]

Listen I've a great idea. Can all you blokes go round the supermarkets and swipe all the home brew kits onto the ground, then point it out to the manager.

I'll be round (with Boonie obviously) to pick up all the discounted stock later in the week.

I'll be there

Just give me the signal........when I hear, security to Aisle 4, I know what it will be