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Hi, new to all this so bear with me. Recieved a Coopers kit for christmas and made the first batch that came with it in a hurry. Temp went way up and it bubbled for about ten days before i bottled into the PET bottles. Two weeks on the bottles were nice and firm and seem to have created a nice drop even using the brewing sugar that came with the kit. Started the second, the Coopers Bitter with BE1 and took my time so that it'd be better. Weather was bloody hot here at the time but temp sat between 24 and 28. Still a bit high from what i've read but all seemed to go well and bottled after 7 days with a highish FG(wouldn't drop 3 days in a row). Not exactly sure what it was as wasn't too worried about that part just yet (roughly 1025?). Too keen on making beer. Two weeks in the bottle and they are a bit squishy, taste tested one and bugger all bubbles and not enough malt flavour. (still learning)
Will it get better with time or has the heat got to it?
Bottles were kept in a dark cupboard around 20 Deg and were primed with coopers drops. Any help appreciated.

Give them a bit more time. I did roughly the same brew. Coopers bitter and BE2. After 2 months in the bottle it has turned out to be a good beer.

Cheers, i knew it was early but it should be better than that even at such an early stage. I work night shift and am having my beer b4 bed now (not always done, it's been a while) and am having the first brew and it's bloody good. Got a Canadian Blonde ready to bottle now that seems to have turned out fine, 7 days today and Fg at 1006. Just done with BE1 again. Got a Coopers special bitter from local BS and they gave me liquid malt to put with it so hopefully it'll come out better than the basic bitter. Am really enjoying this lager that came with the kit. It works!!!

I reckon the Coopers Bitter is one of their yummier kits. Try making it with the Coopers BE2, or a kilo of Coopers Light Dry Malt Extract. I've had great success with using two sachets of the kit yeast and have thrown extra hops in as well.

The temperature seems a bit high. I think you get a better result if you can keep the temperature below 20 degrees Celsius for the duration of the fermentation. This can be hard to do in warmer weather, but is doable. Wrapping the fermenter in a wet towel helps.

People report mixed results with the Coopers drops. I think this batch will improve over time - give it another fortnight or so.

Most importantly, spend some time browsing this website (and perhaps http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum/ ) and never keep your fermenter empty for longer than you absolutely have to...

I think this forum is great!! The help i've read already you couldn't put a price on. I've noticed different reports on beers here and i spose it's the same as what i've experienced with that last batch. Need better temp and more malt by the sounds of it. Hadn't found this forum before i brewed it.

Yeah, I'd go for the BE2 instead of the BE1 because it contains malt. Either that or go all-malt. The Special Bitter with the liquid malt sounds like it will be awesome!

Just remember if going all malt you might require more hops too keep it balanced

How do I use Cascade effectively?
How much at what temp for how long?

Cascade is a finishing hop. Try boiling up your adjuncts (i.e. your brew enhancer in this case) in 2-3L of water. Then add 10-15g of Cascade, and boil for 5-10 minutes.

Generally speaking it goes something like this:

Dry Hopping (0 min): Aroma <-> Short boil (5-10 min): Flavour <-> Medium boil (20-30 min): Flavour <-> Long boil (60-90 min): Bitterness

Most of the time, if you're doing an all-extract or all-grain, you do some combination of the above.

Just wondering, was given a Coopers 500g bag of light dry malt. Do i put this with a full kilo bag of BE1 or BE2 to a 23l batch or just some of it?

500g LDM and 1Kg BE2 is fine. Maybe just add some finishing hops for a bit of perceived bitterness. The kit itself is fairly well bittered.

Have found that when brew seems to be nearly finished and have taken a FG it starts up again. Was at 1006 at 8 am this morn and bugger all activity, did a FG and was getting ready to bottle but it's bubbling away quite well at the moment (midnight) heading for day 11.

Cascade is a finishing hop. Try boiling up your adjuncts (i.e. your brew enhancer in this case) in 2-3L of water. Then add 10-15g of Cascade, and boil for 5-10 minutes.

I boil the BE#2 how long for?

The hops pellets go straight in the tank after boiling not in a baggy or anything?

You just put the water and BE2 in, bring to boil, then add the hops. Some people pour it into their fermenters through a sieve, I don't bother.

I've got a couple of Coopers Bitter cans laying about. Has anyone ever done a two can brew with Coopers Bitter? Would it be too bitter?

I reckon it would be. Its IBU is 34.5, so a two can brew would be 69(!). You'd need to have an OG of 1.100 to balance that bitterness. That's the two kits plus 3kg of DDME!

I think i'll give the two can brew a miss.

My father in-law has been at me to do a light or mid-strength. Would the coopers bitter ferment by itself or does it need some additional fermentables?

I was thinking maybe brewing the kit with 250g LDM. Anyone got an idea what alc% this would come out at?

Edit: I've already said this - and it's still only mid-morning...

I've said it before and I'll say it again - It's only mid-morning...