advice on coopers mexican cerveza please

[bigbob]

hi all,
about to start my third brew which is going to be a 40 pint coopers mexican cerveza kit. i've read alot on it already and have already decided im going to replace the ale yeast for a true lager strain of some sort and therefore ferment it for a longer period giving it a short diacetyl rest (i believe thats the right term..still a full on noob) followed by kegging in a budget keg with a co2 valve on it so that i can re-charge as ive heard these kegs arent brilliant at keeping pressure. i've also managed to blag use of the old kitchen fridge which is currently empty so i'm planning on cold conditioning for as long as possible. so i was wondering does this method sound suitable? and how long will it keep in cold condtioning given that it will hopefully turn out as a summer lager? obviously i'd like to be supping a bit fairly soon but would like to keep til june-july ish atleast? so would it benefit from the longer period of cold conditioning or should i simply knock up another batch closer to the time and sup this one fairly soon??

sorry about the long dull post and if this has been covered on here before, did search the best i could!!
bb
cheers in advance

[brysie]

hi bob

im a newby meself and have been testing a number of kits to find a good lager.

looking at the weather, you might not need the fridge you mentioned, haha.
it hasnt snowed [proper] down here in a decade.

however, from what ive gathered, the diacetyl rest you mention sort of does away with the need for a long lagering and
as such the ale yeast supplied should probably do the job fine.
ditch man has got it right really, when he says `brew as per the manufacturers instructions [hes a stout fellow and i dont mean fat]
and when youve got a few under your belt, thats the time to tinker if you feel the need.`

i stand to be corrected though cos theres some really clever folk on here sometimes.

good luck

[stevezx7r]

If your going to make a lager, in the proper sense of the word, I wouldn't recommend using a budget barrel. They can only hold pressure upto around 10psi, that's fine for an ale but it won't give you that "fizz" which you'll expect from a lager. I would suggest bottling it instead as bottles can withstand the pressure required to make a decent lager. As for the yeast, yes, get a lager yeast but check the fermentation temps on the packet and follow it. Too low and it will stop fermenting, too high and it will produce "esters" which don't go well with a nice clean flavoured lager.

Get a decent thermometer and place it in the fridge. Check it to make sure the fridge remains accurtate day and night.

To ferment at a cold temp (around 12 - 15 C iirc) it will take around 20 days, once done it needs to be bottled (unless you have a cornelius keg) and lagered away for at least a month, probably more.

[shandypants5]

I have made 3 of these now and the kit is pretty good as it is to be honest.

It makes a nice crisp pint ideal for summer guzzlin.

The only thing I do is use 1kg of light spray malt instead of the sugar, and I make a smaller amount to up the strength a little.

I usually put it in a cony keg but did do one batch in 2 litre pet bottles and it worked out just as good.

the standard yeast in the kit works fine, and settles out nicely to a thin solid white layer in the bottles that stays put when you pour it.

I would make it up as per the instructions first so that you have something to compare your next experiment with.

[bigbob]

cheers guys. all sound advice....still to make up my mind about whether to go with lager yeast and the full process or ale yeast to make life easier and just see how the kit is designed to taste but the grand cru won't be done til wednesday so i've got til at least a couple of days to make up my mind. although i'll definetely be investing in some more bottles as we cant have flat lager!!! it just won't do! anyone got an idea of a source for cheap swing top bottles?? bought 12 750mls but at £1.95 a pop is pretty hard to take, especially as they're empty. i did find some dark czech lager bottles 500mls with a swing top in a supermarket where every little may or may not help which were £2 a pop, slightly more expensive. but they do have beer in to start which can't be a bad thing.

cheers for your help guys
bob

[stevezx7r]

Sign up to freecycle (it's free) and ask if anyone in your area has any empty bottles (or other brewing gear). If you have a friendly local pub, pop round and ask if they have any empty magners bottles - these are v. handy as they're a pint in size, black and re-usable. Failing that, your local supermarket probably has a glass recycle collection point. Hang around that looking dodgy and if anyone is about to put any bottles in - grab 'em - the bottles that is They sometimes have boxes of bottles lying on the ground which lazy people leave for you to make use of

[bigbob]

cheers for the advice guys. finally got the brew going on thursday. decided not to run before i can walk and brewed as per instructions....boring but sensible methinks. also got all the lads saving bottles so i can save the environment......or just not spend money on empty bottles!! again cheers for the help. should all make for good drinking in a few weeks

[GTATTY]

Hi

Attached is a link to when I did this kit in 2007. I used lager yeast and kegged in a corny and did a few bottles

My Coopers Mexican Cerveza

Enjoy and I hope it turns out well.

Graham

[bigbob]

cheers for that. very impressed with how clear it dropped!! looks like a lovely pint indeed. hopefully mine'll come out as well as that!! would love to have a cornie but having to stick with bottles until the beer budget expands. how long did the cerveza last then? thinking about keeping some bottles of it in the fridge until summer really....hopefully they'll age rather nicely if i can keep my mitts from them. unfortunately at the moment im homebrew-less because i had a month between brewing anything except grand cru which needs to mature for 2-3months, so i'm making sure it wont happen again by always having the fv full.
cheers again for all your help guys.

bob

[brysie]

have you tried the grand cru? whats it like?

[bigbob]

no not yet. it shouldve finished secondary fermentation on thurs but i left it til saturday to go out in the cold so now ive got just under 6 tantalizing weeks until its first meant to be ready!! very frustrating indeed. i think i may have also made a tit up because its all bottled in 750 ml bottles and 750ml of 8% sounds a little dangerous.....well thinking its a good idea to open a second one and being on my arse after a litre on a half is more what im worried about. ah well....i'll shout back when its first cracked open anyways

[Benson_JV]

have you tried the grand cru? whats it like?

If you mean the Brewferm Grand Cru, it's quite a nice drink, it has a distinct flavour that some might not light, it's one of those beers that only appeals to a certain crowd, but overall i find it very enjoyable.

[bigbob]

it is indeed the brewferm grand cru, picked some up on an impulse. looks very good and have been struggling not to try it but on the grounds i've only got 11 bottles i don't want to indulge to early. very much looking forward to it. i do wish i had a brew ready for quaffing now though!! poor planning at best....

[bigbob]

finally tried the mexican cerveza a little while ago and wasn't overly impressed on first drinking, it was a little cloudy and had that homebrew twang. fast forward a week later and it had dropped beautifully clear and is essentially a perfectly drinkable lager, worth doing again me thinks. might try a lager yeast on the next one to give it a cleaner/ more crisp taste. but the present one is still good stuff.
cheers lads
bob