Reccommend a cheap tasty beer kit/recipe

Lebowski · Post by **Lebowski** » Thursday Apr 14, 2005 3:06 am

I've made a few brews that were average at best.
I made the blackrock tin that came with the kit
couple of tooheys special draught
a ginger beer that refuses to carbonate
a little creatures pale ale kit recipe (from memory safale, brew enchancer pack, cascade hops) This kit got me started on using hops even though it had a sour awful aftertaste and I cant drink the ones I have left

But since then I have been making a brew with coopers pale ale tin ($10 or so from the supermarket) and the supplied yeast, coopers brew enchancer 2, 500ml honey, 15g or so of cascade hops and it has tasted excellent every time (3 times

) since I have got a bit frustrated with bad tasting brews lately I feel like sticking to a good thing.

Anyway my point is I was wondering if any of you people have a favourite cheap simple recipe. (I wouldnt mind trying to make a corona type beer if I could get a cheap-ish kit)

normell · Post by **normell** » Thursday Apr 14, 2005 6:30 am

Not Corona, but a good beer to make is a Cascade spicy ghost, with a beer improver kit

Normell

gregb · Post by **gregb** » Thursday Apr 14, 2005 7:13 am

Try a tin of Coopers Bavarian Lager, a bag of Ultrabrew (500g Light Dry Malt, 250gm Dextrose, 250gm Maltodextrin) with a 12g 'teabag' of Hallertauer hop steeped. Use the yeast as supplied.

This is a good one to brew over winter as the lager yeast laps up the cooler weather. Also the timing has the batch bottled and ready for hot summer afternoons when this style makes great drinking.

Cheers,

Greg.

normell · Post by **normell** » Thursday Apr 14, 2005 7:22 am

gregb wrote:Try a tin of Coopers Bavarian Lager, a bag of Ultrabrew (500g Light Dry Malt, 250gm Dextrose, 250gm Maltodextrin) with a 12g 'teabag' of Hallertauer hop steeped. Use the yeast as supplied.

This is a good one to brew over winter as the lager yeast laps up the cooler weather. Also the timing has the batch bottled and ready for hot summer afternoons when this style makes great drinking.

Cheers,

Greg.

I don't think it comes with a lager yeast tho, most kits from any mobs come with easier to use ale yeasts

Normell

Terry · Post by **Terry** » Thursday Apr 14, 2005 8:49 am

For a cheap and tasty can kit recipe, I can't go past my second brew - Tooheys Real Ale. I only added a kg of dextrose. At first I thought it was a bit cidery but good, after a couple of months though it is nectar. Next time will probably add about 250 maltodextrin or use a coopers BE2 for convenience.

Normell, for a run down of what Coopers kits have what yeast check out this thread
http://www.homebrewandbeer.com/forum/vi ... .php?t=571

Cheers,

Terry.

normell · Post by **normell** » Thursday Apr 14, 2005 9:18 am

Terry wrote:Normell, for a run down of what Coopers kits have what yeast check out this thread
http://www.homebrewandbeer.com/forum/vi ... .php?t=571

Cheers,

Terry.

Best way to judge if its a REAL lager yeast is to look at the brewing instructions, if its temperature range is something like 18-27*C, it aint a REAL lager yeast

Normell

Post by **Oliver** » Thursday Apr 14, 2005 10:43 am

Normell,

The Cooper's Bavarian Lager (and Pilsner) are definitely real lager yeasts.

Cheers,

Oliver

dareya · Post by **dareya** » Thursday Apr 14, 2005 1:28 pm

homebrand draft with a 2kilo of raw suger

normell · Post by **normell** » Thursday Apr 14, 2005 3:36 pm

Oliver wrote:Normell,

The Cooper's Bavarian Lager (and Pilsner) are definitely real lager yeasts.

Cheers,

Oliver

Well Oliver, why do they say on the tin, to brew between 18-25*C.
They are ale brewing temps. not lager temps

Normell

gregb · Post by **gregb** » Thursday Apr 14, 2005 3:48 pm

Last Bavarian I looked at had a special note on the paper insert under the lid - the instructions for anyone daring enough to read those.

In addition the presence of Lager yeast in the Bavarian kit has been confirmed by a nice fellow at the Coopers Brewery.

Greg.

Lebowski · Post by **Lebowski** » Thursday Apr 14, 2005 3:56 pm

seeing the pale ale is a mix of ale and lager yeasts what is the ideal fermenting temp? Ive usualy done it around 24 I think and it tastes fine.

Post by **Oliver** » Thursday Apr 14, 2005 4:21 pm

I'd brew the pale at 18-20. Not sure why they do a blend. Perhaps it's to get the flavour profile from the yeast just right.

For why I think they recommend the higher range for their lagers, see:

http://www.homebrewandbeer.com/forum/vi ... 8&start=20

As gregb says, a bloke from Cooper's on the lame Cooper's Club forum has confirmed the Pilsner and Bavarian Lager come with a lager yeast (not a blend).

Oliver

r.magnay · Post by **r.magnay** » Thursday Apr 14, 2005 9:55 pm

lame Coopers club forum! what an understatement limp would be closer, I still log on from time to time, but I think Oliver, you are about the only bloke with anything top say on there. (My alias is No5 on that site) but I have found little to comment on for some time now!

gregb · Post by **gregb** » Friday Apr 15, 2005 2:33 pm

Anyhoo, back to the thread - send forth your cheap/simple kit recipies.

Lebowski,
My second offering is my favourite stout:
1x Can Coopers Stout,
1x Can Coopers Old Dark Ale
water to 23 ltrs
Yeast as supplied (and I dont give a rats arse if it is Ale, Lager or breadmaking yeast)

Brew on the kitchen bench at ambient temperatures - niether heat nor cool the wort. I know the rules, I just stopped caring.

Watch out for it bubbling out the airlock - this one tends to rip right along.

The Old Dark is in place of other fermentables, no need to add sugar, dextrose, malt etc. (unless you want to.

)

You could also try this with equivalent brew tins from other manufacturers, I use the Coopers for this because they can be had on supermarket special sometimes under $8.

Cheers and happy brewing and more happy drinking,

Greg.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Saturday Apr 16, 2005 8:57 pm

Decided to try the coopers bavarian lager mainly because I havent done a lager before and it is cheap. (Not a big fan of stout... tho I havent tried any in a while.. taste buds might have changed)

Got the brew enchancer 2 and used the original yeast, stuck it down in my dads cellar that was 15c during the day. If it drops to 10c or so at night will the yeast still ferment?

Post by **Oliver** » Saturday Apr 16, 2005 9:56 pm

Wrap a blanket or quilt around it to keep the temperature more even as the ambient temperature fluctuates.

If it drops to 10C the yeast will stop working, then start again as the temperature rises. This is not an ideal situation.

Oliver

kitkat · Post by **kitkat** » Saturday Apr 16, 2005 11:07 pm

isn't the yeast provided with the bavarian lager a real lager yeast? It shouldn't have problems at 10 degrees, should it? I thought recommended temps for lagers were in the 10(8?)-14 range.

Post by **Oliver** » Saturday Apr 16, 2005 11:42 pm

Just testing

This is what the DCL site says about the S-23 lager yeast (which I think is the one supplied with the Bavarian Lager):

Recommended temperature range: 9ÂºC-15ÂºC (ideally 12ÂºC).

Some say it will go lower, perhaps to 7C.

In any case, the Guest would be best without the temperature fluctuations he/she described.

Cheers,

Oliver

kitkat · Post by **kitkat** » Sunday Apr 17, 2005 12:29 pm

The thing is that a few brewers (me and guest included) don't have the ability to have a controlled environment, so we have to live with varying temperatures. I don't think temperature variations between 10 and 15 degrees would affect a lager that much - of course if it was 30 to 15, yeah, maybe, but a cellar like guest uses should be fine. He might have problems doing ales, though

Lebowski · Post by **Lebowski** » Sunday Apr 17, 2005 8:06 pm

Sorry guest was me, was at gf's house and forgot to log in