And for my next kit....

[jonewer]

A Coopers IPA!

The wherry I found quite sweet and cloying. Very underhopped.

And I lurve dem hops! In fact, Harviestour's Bitter & Twisted is a favourite of mine. Only its not got enough hops in it.

I know Coop's IPA is a half kit and needs bulking out. Can anyone recommend a good recipe?

Also, I want to up-hop it. How do I do that? What hops are recommended?

Also, I saw a place that sold hops in 25g rather than 100g quantities. Does anyone know what this place is called? I cant find it anymore?

[OldSpeckledBadger]

TBH, I think you'd better off forgetting kits and going over to either extract or full-mash brewing the you can make your beer as hoppy as you want.

[jonewer]

Hmmm... Ok... maybe up for the challenge...

Extract though... cant justify the expense of all grain just yet....

[KevP]

Hmmm... Ok... maybe up for the challenge...

Extract though... cant justify the expense of all grain just yet....

erm you'll find extract is not ag or vice versa, any more questions?

[jonewer]

Hmmm... Ok... maybe up for the challenge...

Extract though... cant justify the expense of all grain just yet....

erm you'll find extract is not ag or vice versa, any more questions?

Might do if I understood your answer.....

[pauljmuk]

I think the respondent mis-read your response as saying Extract - can't go with cost, as opposed to what I think you meant - ie - you will try Extract, but not all grain as that is too costly.

[PureGuiness]

Extract brewing isn't exactly cheap. You will need a pot big enough to boil the wort in. I use an 11ltr pot (which I had to buy) which is only just big enough to get fairly decent results. You'll find that the extract is quite pricey as well.

It is possible to go AG with minimal equipment. You can use a boiler as a mash tun using a mashing bag and the ingredients are much cheaper for each brew.

In the long run it's cheaper to jump straight into AG - especially if you'd need to buy a boiler / pot for extract brewing anyway!

[OldSpeckledBadger]

Extract brews cost about the same per pint as kits but the quality is incomparably superior. It's perfectly possible to make a 5 gallon extract brew with a 10 litre stock if you know what you're doing and you understand brewing.

Full-mash does offer a cost advantage over extract but it may take many brews to claw back the cost of the extra equipment. It also uses a lot more electricity/gas/water. And it takes a lot longer so may not be suitable for people with busy family lives who can't afford to dedicate most of a day to brewing for the sake of saving a few pence per pint. Kit, extract and full-mash each have their pros and cons.

[Manx Guy]

Well said OSB...

They all have pro's and con's... You need to decide what works best for you time/cost/equipment wise versus the results you can/want to acheive...

I tried my first extract bew the other day, and its fermenting well but the proof is in the tasting... until I taste it I cant be sure this is the way for me (did I manage to cock up? lol)

It is possible to add hops to a kit (and I've done it with some success), but extract or Ag give more room for adaptation and there are other reasons too...

I'm new to this and so far have made 2 very drinkable beers form kits and one 'almost there' (which is improving with age)

If you do want to try adapting/ adding hops to a kit then look at the various threads on Kit Q&A's... e.g. Adapted kit recipes and adding hops to kits...

Good luck!

Slainte!

[mercilessrich]

If you're after a better tasting been on a budget why not try using a budget kit and jazzing it up with a few hops (or a lot) and a bit of crystal malt? It vastly improves the beer in my opinion and you don't need the extra outlay of ag or extract brewing!

Check out some threads on budget kits and modified kits!

Rich

[jonewer]

Thanks for all the replies.

I'm going to do a bit of a kit bash using extract and grains, should be good experience if nought else.

Fermentables:
1x Coopers IPA kit
1kg Light DME
500g Crystal malt, crushed

Plan on steeping and then boiling the crystal (I have a big old pan that should scrub up). Add the DME and kit syrup at flame-out.

Hops -

50g Amarillo for 60 mins
25g Amarillo for 15 mins
25g Goldings for 0 mins, just before adding the DME and syrup.

How does this sound to you guys?

[OldSpeckledBadger]

50g Amarillo for 60 mins
25g Amarillo for 15 mins
25g Goldings for 0 mins, just before adding the DME and syrup.

How does this sound to you guys?

It sounds like you're not a very experienced brewer is how it sounds to me.

Forget the yankee weeds. Just make up a hop tea by boiling 10-15 grams of Goldings for 10 minutes in a litre or two of water and use that.

[jonewer]

It sounds like you're not a very experienced brewer is how it sounds to me.

Forget the yankee weeds. Just make up a hop tea by boiling 10-15 grams of Goldings for 10 minutes in a litre or two of water and use that.

Well, you're right about that! But I have been and gorn and ordered 100g of said weeds! Gotta do summink with them.

Seriously though, whats up with amarillo, apart from the fact that they dont know how to eat with a knife and fork properly?

[OldSpeckledBadger]

Well, you're right about that! But I have been and gorn and ordered 100g of said weeds! Gotta do summink with them.

Compost them.

Seriously though, whats up with amarillo, apart from the fact that they dont know how to eat with a knife and fork properly?

Their problem with the knife and fork is that they don't know when to put them down.

They know nothing about beer either. Plus IPA should be made with traditional British hop varieties.

[Manx Guy]

Hi,

When I add hops to my kits I tend to use a (very clean) 1.8l Cafetiere, as it is ideal for making the 'hop tea' that OSB mentions in his post...

If you dont have one it might be worth buying one cheap from somewhere like wilko's or TKMax, they really are almost ideal for the job- made of pyrex and having an inbuilt filter (designed for coffee grinds which are alot finer than hops).

Mine is large enough to add 30g of hops at once and still have room for more than 1.2l of hot water.... I removed the small plastic 'fine' filter as I found it made it hard to press down to get the last of the 'tea' out...

It helps to keep the hops (especialy the flowers, if you use whole hops) out of your beer when you transfer the 'tea' to the FV.

Just remember to put a small amount of hot (not boiling) water in it while you weigh out your hops-stops the glass from cracking & pre-heats the pot so the hop tea stays hot for longer...

I usually add 15-25g of hops (depending on type or the hopiness I'm after)to 1-1.5l of hot water, stir with a sanitised spoon then put the lid/filter on but dont press down (YET)

Cover with a clean hand towel to keep it warm & leave for 20 mins (depending on how strong you want your hop tea)

Press the filter down after the required amount of time and add to either the empty kit can (to rinse) or directly to the FV and brew your beer in the usual way.

I find this particular way is good for adding Saaz hops to Lager kits... There may be better ways but I find this quick, clean and reliable.


Slainte!