newbie:york brew stone wall tips please

[THE EMBALMER]

just checked the gravity and after a bit of scratching of the beard i think it is sitting at 1020.is that ok after 4days should i give it a stir?
it smells fine and tastes ok no nasty tastes had a quick swill and spit.
inside the fv there is plenty of scum on top some of it must be the remains of the hop pellets.
very brown and cloudy as i would have thought will leave a good while longer me thinks.
after seeing the scum on top i am definately going to regret not fitting tap on the fv first
all in all fingers crossed should come out ok i hope cheers glyn

[daveyk]

The method I used was a mixture between the instructions supplied, the method for a Brupaks kit and a couple of questions answered / tips offered on the forum…. Here goes.

I WILL TRY AND ANSWER THE SPECIFIC QUESTIONS WHEN I HAVE A MOMENT.

It goes without saying EVERYTHING that comes into contact with ANY ingredient needs to be sterilised.

All water I used was el cheapo from Sainburys… Caladonian spring.

Stand can in hot water to soften the contents. (for at least 5 mins approx).

Rehydrate yeast in about 150 – 200ml of water. Check the temp of this water BEFORE adding the yeast, it should be in the temp range stated for the yeast to ferment. (apparently too hot or too cold and the yeast will die). After about 15 mins the yeast should be puffed up and milky.

In the mean time, open the can and tip the contents into the fermenting vessel (FV).

Add the hop pellets to the can and top up with boiling water…. Leave for 15 mins.

Add another kettle full of boiling water to the FV… stir to dissolve the liquid extract.

After the 15mins in the can, add the water from the can into the FV. (careful it’s very hot to pick up!) I strained the hops with a sieve so they don’t actually go in the brew….. the flavour should be in the water.

Stir up the contents of the FV to make sure it is all mixed in. Start adding the bottled water to make upto the 25 litres.

My method was to fill the FV to approx two thirds, then start adding the spray malt. (this keeps the temp down)

This is a bit of a chew on…. Tips are, big spoon in one hand, pint of the last brew on hand, CD if required then stir like mad, slowly adding the spray malt. Keep going until the bag is empty and all the lumps are gone. I always end up with a good head on the brew… apparently this is good to aid the fermentation but bad for seeing if the lumps are gone.

Top up to the required volume.

Check the temp and pitch the yeast.

Ferment as normal.

I’ve done this brew twice…. Not sure what the starting gravity was the first time but it was 1038 the second. It finished fermenting at 1013 after 15 days the first time and 1015 after 10days the second.

AND NOW FOR THE HONEY!!! I managed to find a local bee keeper for some local made honey.... therefore boiling is necessary.

Once you are happy the fermenting has finished it is time for bottling. For the full 40pt brew, I added 448g (nearly 1 jar) of honey to a saucepan, added as little water as possible to make a solution, (100ml or so) and boiled for 3-5mins. Ensuring this is dissolved, added to a second FV.

Drain off beer from 1st FV into second then bottle, add caps.

Keep beer in warm, (room temp) place for 1week to 10 days.

Move to garage for 4weeks min…. was best after 8 weeks.

[THE EMBALMER]

wow cheers davey very comprehensive instructions i have done it a bit different with my lack of knowledge .i followed the instructions on the yeast packet and just put straight in with out rehydration. i dont think i stired it vigourously enough or checked for lumps .and threw the hops in the fv but straining sounds like a plan for next time.
time wise i was hoping to bottle after about 7 days and drink at xmas , i understand that longer the better for it to mature ,i think if its drinkable i will try some but after bottling will try and leave for as long as possible.will have to buy some ale for crimbo .then i will get another brew on the go i guess the idea is to have some ready to drink, while some is conditioning ,while some is fermenting .. might try coopers stout next sounds good from what i have read on here.
would love to do a badgers golden glory copy i love that stuff. i was wondering if there is a kit similar and add some elderflowers to it . but i guess its a bit more complicated than that !!
cheers davey for the advise will take heed on my next brew glyn

[THE EMBALMER]

hi all you bear lovers,just checked the gravity now after 7 days it is down to 1016 and looking very healthy nice and clear tastes good apart from flat yeasty taste, it says in instructions to get it down to 1012 or when stop bubbling. i think i might check sunday evening and if the same bottle the beast.
i have some malt that you get from shop to eat i put some in my xmas cake .was thinking maybe some of that and demorara to prime . priming wise was thinking of putting into fv give it a gentle stir leave for a bit then straight into bottles,is this ok to do???
viva la ale!!!

[THE EMBALMER]

i have bottled the brew tonight after 11 days in the fv ,now its fingers crossed its ok.as its a good to learn by a few mistakes most of what could go wrong i think i managed most .but it was a crimbo present from possibly 2 years ago so i will be suprised if its any good .having said that it smells ok and looks ok apart from hop bits ect ,i just popped twe tea spoons of demorara sugar into the 2 litre bottles i got about 9 and a half bottles out of it.well i will crack one open in a couple of weeks for a taste .now i think i will have a go at the coopers stout and try and get it right this time ha ,cheers for all the advise guys will let you know how it tastes after a few weeks cheers glyn

[THE EMBALMER]

happy new year all,bottled this brew then put it outside for a week bit cold now so brought it in now and put by the front door (coldest place in the house) i have cracked one not too tasty i think its either not matured long enough or a bit of oxidisation from a botched syphoning job!! got tap for fv now ha.will leave a few more weeks before trying another one .
when i eventually get my coopers stout on the go i will try and do a better job of it got a book for xmas brewing for dummies ,very good book.perfectly titled for moi

[THE EMBALMER]

had a little try of this brew tonight it does not taste too hot i think its for the sink

[RichardG]

Patience Glyn, Patience. Give it a little more time (say, a couple of weeks), it may yet be okay. Of course, it may equally be a style you just don't like. However, if I understood one of your earlier posts, wasn't this kit a couple of years old?

[stevezx7r]

If it tastes a bit "chemically" it could be down to the water you used. Didn't it say it had added chlorine? If so I doubt you can do much about it now. But, give it more time and maybe it will mature enough to be fine. You'd be surprised how many beers I've made that start off tasing fine then taste horrid and then taste excellent. It usually takes about 6 weeks from the day you've bottled/kegged it before it's at it's best.

[THE EMBALMER]

cheers i will give it a good while to see what happens, i used bottled water so should be ok there.i did not do a good job of syphoning so that could be the problem, put a tap on the fv now.
i could not make out the date it was either 06 or 08 .i will put up in the loft and forget about it for a few months and drink my coopers stout which tastes ok after 5 days in fv ,which will be get kegged ,thanks all glyn.

[THE EMBALMER]

has gone down the sink ah well first time blues but making up for it with good old coopers kits . g"day

[KevP]

has gone down the sink ah well first time blues but making up for it with good old coopers kits . g"day

Ah well its no big deal Glyn, you live and learn.