Bottled coopers with no head

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crafty john

Bottled coopers with no head

Post by crafty john » Tue Jul 07, 2009 6:12 pm

I brew a lot of Coopers kits and I usually bottle 6 or 8 bottles and keg the rest, the kegged beer always has a lovely head but the bottles don't have any head al all, they are carbonated OK but don't seem to retain a good head.

Anyone got any suggestions :?:

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trucker5774
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Re: Bottled coopers with no head

Post by trucker5774 » Tue Jul 07, 2009 11:57 pm

I have done Coopers Mexican Cerveza and Coopers Wheat beer. Not a hint of a head on either of them. From a post I read about Coopers someone said they state to pime with 160g of sugar (about double my normal amount) Mine too have carbonated but no head. Perhaps the lorry load of sugar is the answer!!
John

Drinking/Already drunk........ Trucker's Anti-Freeze (Turbo Cider), Truckers Delight, Night Trucker, Rose wine, Truckers Hitch, Truckers Revenge, Trucker's Lay-by, Trucker's Trailer, Flower Truck, Trucker's Gearshift, Trucker's Horn, Truck Crash, Fixby Gold!

Conditioning... Doing what? Get it down your neck! ........

FV 1............
FV 2............
FV 3............
Next Brews..... Trucker's Jack Knife

mickhew

Re: Bottled coopers with no head

Post by mickhew » Wed Jul 08, 2009 7:14 am

Also, any residual detergents/cleaner/steriliser can make the head vanish. Personally I'm not bothered about beer head, as long as it's fizzy enough. I drink Stella, and that has NO head on it.

crafty john

Re: Bottled coopers with no head

Post by crafty john » Thu Jul 09, 2009 8:41 am

mickhew wrote:Also, any residual detergents/cleaner/steriliser can make the head vanish. Personally I'm not bothered about beer head, as long as it's fizzy enough. I drink Stella, and that has NO head on it.
It's strange that it's only coopers kits that have no head, when I bottle anything else I have no problem :?

crafty john

Re: Bottled coopers with no head

Post by crafty john » Fri Jul 17, 2009 9:02 am

trucker5774 wrote:I have done Coopers Mexican Cerveza and Coopers Wheat beer. Not a hint of a head on either of them. From a post I read about Coopers someone said they state to pime with 160g of sugar (about double my normal amount) Mine too have carbonated but no head. Perhaps the lorry load of sugar is the answer!!

To my last coopers bitter I added 3/4 tsp of dextrose instead of 1/2 tsp, I opened a bottle last night and there was a head :D it didn't stay for long but it was there. So I think the answer is more sugar.

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trucker5774
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Re: Bottled coopers with no head

Post by trucker5774 » Fri Jul 17, 2009 11:26 am

Temperature is also a factor. I have just binned a batch of nettle "drain cleaner" at room temperature the bottles were like fountains. No chance whatsoever of opening one. From the fridge they were no problem. My Woodfordes Wherry has a good head!
John

Drinking/Already drunk........ Trucker's Anti-Freeze (Turbo Cider), Truckers Delight, Night Trucker, Rose wine, Truckers Hitch, Truckers Revenge, Trucker's Lay-by, Trucker's Trailer, Flower Truck, Trucker's Gearshift, Trucker's Horn, Truck Crash, Fixby Gold!

Conditioning... Doing what? Get it down your neck! ........

FV 1............
FV 2............
FV 3............
Next Brews..... Trucker's Jack Knife

slayerking

Re: Bottled coopers with no head

Post by slayerking » Fri Jul 17, 2009 2:24 pm

I found my bottled coopers has a head alright but its quite small, maybe a CM high!!! Its small but persistant, its lasts through most of the drink. I find letting the drink flow in faster from the bottle and straight in to the glass gives a bigger head.
And most importantly with any beer the glass must be spotless, with no residual detergent on it. I just use hot water to clean my glasses straight after use and let them drain dry. And if theres any limescale on the glass after washing, I use a clean piece of kitchen roll to scuff it off.
trucker5774 wrote: My Woodfordes Wherry has a good head!
Out of curiosity what did you use to carbonate your Wherry and how much? I have a Wherry to bottle tomorrow and I'm wondering how much Glucose I should use. I'll prob go with about 100g (I brewed it to 21L) so that'll give me a carbonation of about 2.1-2.2.

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trucker5774
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Re: Bottled coopers with no head

Post by trucker5774 » Fri Jul 17, 2009 5:00 pm

slayerking wrote:I found my bottled coopers has a head alright but its quite small, maybe a CM high!!! Its small but persistant, its lasts through most of the drink. I find letting the drink flow in faster from the bottle and straight in to the glass gives a bigger head.
And most importantly with any beer the glass must be spotless, with no residual detergent on it. I just use hot water to clean my glasses straight after use and let them drain dry. And if theres any limescale on the glass after washing, I use a clean piece of kitchen roll to scuff it off.
trucker5774 wrote: My Woodfordes Wherry has a good head!
Out of curiosity what did you use to carbonate your Wherry and how much? I have a Wherry to bottle tomorrow and I'm wondering how much Glucose I should use. I'll prob go with about 100g (I brewed it to 21L) so that'll give me a carbonation of about 2.1-2.2.
I brewed a full 23 litres but 100g of glucose (to use it up) To bottle I disolved 80g of white household sugar in about 200 ml of water. Added to the empty bottles with a syringe. O.G 1042 F.G. 1016
John

Drinking/Already drunk........ Trucker's Anti-Freeze (Turbo Cider), Truckers Delight, Night Trucker, Rose wine, Truckers Hitch, Truckers Revenge, Trucker's Lay-by, Trucker's Trailer, Flower Truck, Trucker's Gearshift, Trucker's Horn, Truck Crash, Fixby Gold!

Conditioning... Doing what? Get it down your neck! ........

FV 1............
FV 2............
FV 3............
Next Brews..... Trucker's Jack Knife

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