Leaning through Fail and a Coopers kit

[robharper]

So I began my beermaking adventures a few months ago with a Caxton real ale kit that went pretty well despite me kegging it too early and it turning my inherited (and valveless) budget barrel into something that looked like a beachball with a tap on. The beer was good enough to be a serious encouragement (and in fact, better than a few bottled ales I've had of late!).

Anyway, I recently got a few more bits of equipment and a Coopers IPA kit, and then some DME and glucose to go with it, and dutifully made it up (thinking that the Coopers instructions aren't the best for a beginner!) and noted a lower OG than I would have expected for an IPA (1.034). Ah well, I thought, It was probably due to all the clumping of that I experienced when I added the DME -- a hand blender broke most of that up, but there were still a few smaller clumps floating around, which I figured may have made a difference. It all kicked off fermenting nicely, so I didn't worry about it too much -- after all, what was going to happen other than I end up with a weaker than planned ale? No big deal.

It was about this time that I discovered Jim's and have been reading various topics with great interest until I found something talking about adding the necessary LME to a Coopers kit and musing about switching it for DME. An alarm bell started ringing in my head and I looked over the kit instructions again and there was indeed a requirement for LME which, if I remember correctly, I interpreted as meaning the kit's main can. I figured at this point that my low OG was due to there being some 1.5kg too little malt in the brew and with a beer that was always going to be very bitter, being thin and weak might not be much of a virtue. D'oh!

In my last homebrew kit order I had bought a couple of spare bags of spraymalt (one light and one medium), and I figured this would cover most of the defecit. So a week after fermentation (which was still going, slowly) started I drew off a litre or so of the beer (which tasted, as predicted, very thin and bitter, though otherwise OK), mixed it with the spraymalt, boiled it up, cooled it, added it to the FV (an airlocked 5 gal plastic wine fermenter) and crossed my fingers.

A few hours later I had a vigorous fermentation going again and all is looking well.

Now, after that lengthy story, what are the chances that this will work out OK? By the time we are done, the beer will have sat on sediment for at least 2 weeks. Is this likely to have imparted any unpleasant taste to the brew? I'll have my own answer eventually anyway (though patience is always a problem waiting for a first batch to be ready!), but I'd be interested if anyone could use their experience to make a prediction.

[FlourPower]

As long as you kept everything sterile (you probably have so don't worry. It will be fine!

You did sacrifice to the Gods right?

[brysie]

id second that.
if youre worried, carefully [no splashing] siphon off into a sanitised second bucket /barrel and let it run its course in there.

[robharper]

Thanks for the reassurance, guys. I did my best to keep everything sanitised, so I guess I just have to wait and see.

At least this is all an opportunity to experiment a bit and learn to improvise and adapt. I'm hoping soon to make up a few batches of beer modifying the same kit in slightly different ways (e.g. pale malt added to one, medium to another, dry hopping into a third, and so on). I want to develop a feel for what impact different ingredients have. Later, I want to try varying the type of hops too. Any suggestions for good things to try?

[Ditch]

..... a requirement for LME which, if I remember correctly, I interpreted as meaning the kit's main can. I figured at this point that my low OG was due to there being some 1.5kg too little malt in the brew .....

Hang about! Rob; Am I reading this correctly? Ye mean to say ye actually knocked up a kit, without using ... well, for lack of a better expression: " The Kit ", really! That's Priceless!!! LMFAO! Good god, I can't wait to tell people about that one!

What in gods name were ye thinking of? 'Oh. So, I have this F' Off great tin. Sachet of yeast ....? Right. Dump the big tin for a start.' Brilliant!

Seriously, mate. That's the funniest HB story I've ever heard.

[robharper]

Hi Ditch!

Oh, I wish it was that -- I'd have been well happy to be the source of a real comedy brewing anecdote like that. Actually, on second thoughts, go for it and tell people that I made up a kit without the kit -- never let the facts get in the way of a good story.

What I did was read the recommended ingredients, which were: a can of LME, some DME and some sugar. I made the assumption that the LME was the can that came with the kit, when I should have got another can to add in as well. This is something that I have learned about Coopers kits (and probably plenty of other brands too): there can be quite a lot to add over and above the provided ingredients, and this can easil trip up the unwary newb like me. The only kit I had made up previously had required the provided ingredients and a heap of sugar. Easy. It hadn't occurred to me that I would need to buy more cans of malt.

Live and learn.

[FlourPower]

I've seen worse.

I've seen someone add a kilo of spraymalt to a two can kit (no extra fermentables required)

I've added a kilo of sugar to prime (when I needed 300g)

Not putting sugar in is the better side of the coin. Believe me.

[Ditch]

Curiouser and curiouser ... So; Ye saying Coopers sell their IPA as a sort of 'Half Kit' ? That's not funny. That's just plain Weird!

I mean, it's honestly been so long since I read the actual instructions with a Coopers Stout kit, I wouldn't know What they're suggesting. I just do it my way. But, I'm sure I never noticed the kits instructions telling me to go back to the HBS for some more Malt Extract.

Granted; I believe they recommend using sugar? Obviously, I use DSM. (Medium DSM). Only, their man in UK recently, kindly, sent me one of their Irish Stout kits to try out. From their full on 'Brewmaster' range. And he slung in a box of Coopers 'Beer Enhancer' too. Which leaves me yet in a bit of a quandary, actually:

I'm never likely to start buying up Coopers Beer Enhancer ~ I don't even believe I Can source it here. So it might queer my pitch if I present the Irish Stout, made with that. I could, practically, never repeat that brew, see?

No. I can see me using this CBE as an additive to an otherwise 'straight' " Ditches Stout ". One more interesting variant to concoct for the planned CooperFest

[KevP]

Its easily done mate! I once, many moons ago, added 2kg of Dextrose to a two can kit!! I went on and brewed it but bugger me it was strong, a proper toe curler.

[robharper]

Curiouser and curiouser ... So; Ye saying Coopers sell their IPA as a sort of 'Half Kit' ? That's not funny. That's just plain Weird!

To be honest, Ditch, I'm getting more confused as I go along. I don't have the instructions to hand at the moment, but it does seem weird that you need to add more LME, and now I poke around online most descriptions I find of the kit would suggest that it isn't needed. However, an IPA should be a fairly strong ale and an OG ~1.034 just isn't enough. So, for better or for worse I've added some extra malt, so at least I should end up with something of decent strength.

Either way, at the moment it's all about learning (and hopefully having something drinkable at the end).

[Mogwyth]

Having done the Coopers IPA, the recommendation in the instructions is to add 500g Light Dry Malt and 300g Dextrose. Should have a OG of around 1040 and FG of 1006 giving about 4.5% abv.

Cheers

Bill

[robharper]

Thanks for the clarification, Mogwyth. I think I must have tied myself up in knots somewhere along the line. Anyway, I've now added the extra malt and fermentation has just about finished, so I guess I just end up with a slightly stronger brew -- which I reckon for an IPA isn't necessarily a bad thing. I had a crafty taste while checking SG yesterday and it tastes promising -- far better than before I added the extra sugars.

[robharper]

So I bottled a few days ago (half into bottles and half into a polypin I had lying about) and had a sneaky taste last night. I'm amazed at how quickly this brew is clearing (it's nearly there!) and how decent it tastes given all my faffing about. I don't know what the OG was but I bottled at around 1012, and the brew is probably an India Fairly Pale Ale given the medium spraymalt I added, but it looks like I have a moderate success here. I'll try to keep my paws off it for another week or two before really getting into it, and we'll see how a bit more conditioning affects things.