Coopers European Lager

[warra48]

I'll happily stand corrected on the glass colour.
However, I have enough brown bottles to encapsulate over a year's supply of my consumption, so I have no need to test this theory for myself.

[Kevnlis]

If you want to debate glass, have a read of this from Basic Brewing:

http://media.libsyn.com/media/basicbrew ... unking.pdf

The podcast to go along with it can be found here:

http://media.libsyn.com/media/basicbrew ... unking.mp3

For a rather funny video of two fat old yanks getting pissed and acting a bit silly see here (btw this pertains to skuning... sort of):

http://www.basicbrewing.com/index.php?p ... nking-beer

[Trough Lolly]

I'll happily stand corrected on the glass colour.
However, I have enough brown bottles to encapsulate over a year's supply of my consumption, so I have no need to test this theory for myself.

No probs, the part that initially had me a tad concerned was as follows:

The colour brown is a mixture of red, orange and yellow wavelengths. These colours range from about 580-700nm. This means that brown beer bottles absorb the shorter wavelengths that damage beer. Brown glass is pigmented with iron oxides, among other metal oxides, and these various forms of iron absorb UV light over a wide spectrum of wavelengths. In a nutshell, brown glass absorbs the visible and UV wavelengths of light responsible for skunkiness. Brown glass is also used to store other light-sensitive products, such as medications and film developing reagents...

But on further reflection (pardon the pun!) I believe that if the glass actually absorbs the light, then it doesn't allow the wavelengths to pass through the beer and catalyse with the beer, resulting in skunkiness. If so, this confirms that brown is good. Apparently green bottles do not absorb "green light" in the range 520 to 550nm and that can lead to skunking.....this of course assumes that we allow our beer to be light affected to begin with.

Cheers,
TL

[pxpx04]

Anyone know what yeast comes with this kit?
I remember reading that the bavarian lager had saflager yeast. Is it the same for this one?

[scanman]

I believe its a SafLager s-23 I beleive.
Tell you what. I make extracts and kits only at the moment, and I am currently drinking a Coopers Euro Lager. Only thing I did to kick it up a bit was chuck a Hallerteu Hops tea bag in the fermenter while fermenting to give it some aroma. Probably the best Kit can brew I have ever made. But to make it right you need ot be patient, and age it a bit. I racked mine for a couple of weeks then cold conditioned the secondary before bottling and letting it prime, then cold conditioning the bottles again for a couple of week. The instructions recommend 12 weeks in the bottle, which is priobably right. But mine is not going to last hat long the way I am drinking this one.

A highly recommended Kit beer if you like euro style lagers, and definately the better of the Coopers kits if you ask me. I intend to go get another one tomorrow and knock up another one.

[Kevnlis]

Actually, I think it is S-189. But I have only used it twice.

[Jawaman]

The kit does use the S-189. I've just bottled my first one today. As I wasn't sure about the kit yeast I've used Saf-23. Only used 1.5 LME with Saaz (25 grm @ 20 min, 10 gms at flame out and dry hopped with 15 gms), fermented at 10 C, dyacetill rest, racked it and CC for 21 days at 2 C. Just bottled it today and it tasted fantastic alltough I think it could do with more hop flavoring and aroma but we'll see how its going to age. I'll be definetely doing this one again, Just wish I could find it again in Coles on special for $10.

[BadSeed]

I just made one using the recommended BE2, I added a Saaz tea bag boiled for 10 mins. Sitting at a nice 12 degrees now.
Looking forward to this one, I am drinking a lovely Bavarian with Hallertau as I type.

[pxpx04]

Put one of these down about a month ago. Added 1kg LDME, and Hallertau (10g at 20 mins, 10g at 5 mins and 10g at flameout). Used the kit yeast and fermented at around 12 C for 2 weeks before bottling. SG 1045, FG 1010.
I tried one last night after 2 weeks in the bottle (early i know, but i was keen to have a try) and it is a great beer. Easily the best kit that i have made, and almost as good as a fresh wort bohemian pilsner that i have done. Light colour, clean flavours, and holds a great head. Should be a cracker once it has had some more time in the bottle.
Definitely be doing one of these again.

[scanman]

Agree there, its the best kit beer I have done as well, and like the can says, gets beter with age. Bit low on the hops aroma if you ask me, but for many people that is not an issue. I prefer to add a hallertau tea bag to the primary to help this. I have made four of these now. Done and drunk 2, I have one in the keg lagering in the fridge, and another which has finished brewing, but a recent hospital stay means its been neglected a bit. It needs to be racked now then lagered. This one I made a bit different. I used 1kg of brewcraft enchancer no60, which is the german lager mix, and 250gms of the brewcraft no62 pilsener enchancer. These enchancers contain small amounts of hops which should add to the flavour a bit. Add a hallertau tea bag as well and you will have a nice hoppy Euro lager ( I hope!!! ).
Thing is, this is a great kit beer and when experimenting with it, you know that it will come out great, even if it did not come out like you expect. You don't get stuck drinking a crap beer you are not happy with.

[Boonie]

I finished mine from the Keg a while back and I had a few longies left over.

Drank a couple of these last weekend and i would have to admit, it is one of the best I have had..........right up there with a Morgans Kit...

Cheers

Boonie

[Biernut]

Tried his and I found it tasted pretty well the same as the rest of the coopers products. In my view kit beers all taste the same (beer). I have switched to grain brewing to get some sort of control on taste and flavour. I particularly like the european flavour but have not been able to emulate this with kit beers. At least with AG it will give me a wider choice to experiment with, (hopefully). Any comments on this view.

[rwh]

Yeah, agreed mate. All Extract is a step above kits as well, but nothing beats a good AG recipe. Incidentally, if you want that real European flavour, give decoctions a go.

[scanman]

Well that goes wihtout saying really.
But this thread was abot a Kit beer after all.
And probably one of the best kit beers Coopers have ever made if you ask me!

[Hopmeister]

I must concur that i'm drinking this beer at the moment, after about 6 weeks in the bottle, and its a winner.

[Liz E]

Have to agree with the positive reviews on the Coopers European Lager. For the K&K home brewers it's a winner. Initially, I had the impression that it would simply be a rebranded Coopers Bavarian Lager but it actually does taste a little superior. For those constrained by budget or attracted to the comparative simplicity of K&K brewing (with the malt & hop extra's) then this is quite a nice drop.

[Trough Lolly]

I feel a wave of nostalgia coming over me! I'm at home on, um, sick leave at the moment...and I might give this kit a go - haven't done a kit in years so I'd like to see how they've improved. I have a kilo of Tettnang flowers and some Saaz laying around so I thought a kilo of DME with plenty of tett for flavouring and a late large addition of Saaz would be the go.

Is the kit pale? Would it benefit from some Caraaroma or Caramunich? Is a kilo of DME enough?

Over to the kit gurus for some tips!

Cheers,
TL

[rwh]

I just did a Coopers Bavarian with a kilo of LDME and two Saaz addtions (15g at 20 and 15g at 5). Although I reckon it'll probably be good, I certainly would have gone with some caramunich if I had some. Say 150g? And perhaps 100g of carapils to perk up the head retention a bit.

Anyhoo, I've got a Coopers European Lager in the cupboard as well; it's going to be treated exactly the same as the Bav so I can see what the difference is.

[Trough Lolly]

No probs - some CM II and Carapils (hang on, I've got a bag of maltodextrin that I've been meaning to ditch!) with lashings of Saaz early in the boil and some Tettnanger with 5 mins to go.

[scanman]

Thing I like about this Euro Lager kit is its simple to make different tasting and experimental brews with it as a base. Great for making up unusual Euro lager flavours.
I am going to put this down today:-

Coopers Euro Lager
1kg Brewcraft Czech Pilsener no#62 brew enchancer.
500gms of wheat malt
Dry Hopper with 18gm of Hursbucker
Kit yeast.

Should make a nice flavoursome lager. Might bottle this one ( then again I might buy another keg by then! ) and store till the warmer months before cillig and drinking.

An thoughts?