First Brew. Im using Coopers DIY. Questions...

[Waramir]

Hello everyone

After several months of stalling, i finally went ahead and made my first brew using the Coopers DIY KIT. I got the kit like 6 months ago and the only thing i did was that i put the yeast inside a small tupperware container inside my refrigerator (remember reading somewhere that it was good to help preserve the yeast).

So i went ahead and sanitized everything with star san (looking back the only thing i forgot to sanitize was the can opener , oh well.

So i did everything according to what i've read here and seen on youtube videos (i do not have a stainless steel pot for boiling the water though , had to use a normal cookware pot, like the ones you would sue for spaghetti boiling... but i made sure to clean it. )

So i boiled the water , added the brew enhancer 1 kit , stirred , added the liquid malt extract 'coopers australian' , added cold water and added the refrigerated yeast to the wort when it was around 75 F.

took a hidrometer reading , came out as 1.037-ish moved the fermenter to a dark closet in a guest bedroom and waited.

That was this monday night 10pm , so now its been 2 1/2 days and i only see very little bubbles moving every once in a while inside the beer (see through fermenter) and the occasional bit of "i dont know what" floating inside. But i have to sit there and stare at it for minutes before i see any of that. So its very occasional.

The fermenter has been around 68 F since it started and its holding that temp.

Should i be seeing more movement? was refrigerating the yeast a big NO-NO ?

I plan to keep waiting but im kinda worried that i might have messed up with the yeast , or with not sanitizing the can opener...

any comments would be appreciated

btw, i can see a *hint* of a krausen forming , but i have no idea if it is indeed a krausen or leftover 'stuff' from all the bubbles that formed when i was stirring the wort and adding the cold water.

 

[unionrdr]

After 2.5 days,initial fermentation could be done. The krausen foam receeds back into the beer,leaving a little floating on the surface. Maybe even some yeast rafts. It'll then slowly,uneventfully ferment down to a stable FG. Usually in 2-3 weeks. Fridging the yeast to keep it viable longer is a very good thing. Most of us do that. But you have to let it come up to room temp while you're brewing before chilling the wort & pitching the yeast packet. So as long as you let it warm up first,it's fine. OG 1.037 is a hair low,but not by much. You might not have gotten the wort & top off water mixed enough for an accurate reading. I used to get 1.042-1.046 for an OG on average when I was using Cooper's cans.
So all's well with your beer so far. I hope the 68F temp is the beer temp,not room temp. Internal fermenter temp is the important one. Wait till the 2 week point to take an FG sample to see if it's done in range with recipe instructions. Ime,that should be 1.009 to 1.012...usually 1.010 more often as not. Then,when FG is reached,give it 3-7 days to clean up by products of fermentation & settle out clear or slightly misty. And Cooper's ale yeast is a high flocculation one,so it'll settle out quite clear.

 

[Waramir]

Wait till the 2 week point to take an FG sample to see if it's done in range with recipe instructions. Ime,that should be 1.009 to 1.012...usually 1.010 more often as not. Then,when FG is reached,give it 3-7 days to clean up by products of fermentation & settle out clear or slightly misty. And Cooper's ale yeast is a high flocculation one,so it'll settle out quite clear.

Not quite sure if i understand this correctly.

So , after a couple weeks , if FG is reached i should give it another 3 to 7 days to clear up IN THE FERMENTER ? and after those 3 to 7 days i bottle it?

correct?

 

[lebucheron]

meh - I just always leave mine in the fermenter for 3 weeks - I've tried to do 2 week beers and they're never ready.

 

[neo71665]

You don't like to be rushed so don't rush your beer. Those kit instructions are for college kids that want their stuff yesterday, the ones that will drink paint thinner for a buzz. Wait and you will have something you can enjoy.

 

[RM-MN]

Not quite sure if i understand this correctly.

So , after a couple weeks , if FG is reached i should give it another 3 to 7 days to clear up IN THE FERMENTER ? and after those 3 to 7 days i bottle it?

correct?

At least 7 days, 3 weeks wouldn't hurt in the fermenter, heck 3 months in the fermenter probably woundn't hurt. Longer in the fermenter gets you better beer (to a point).

 

[unionrdr]

What I meant to infer is that you check it in 2 weeks to see if it's done or close to it. I've had them ferment out in two weeks,or within a couple points of being done. 3 weeks to finish fermenting & settle out clear or slightly misty is pretty normal in my experience. Then rack to bottling bucket & bulk prime.

 

[Waramir]

thanks everyone for their tips.

My beer is now on day 18th on the fermenter. its been at around 60F pretty much all this time. I've been taking hydrometer readings and they are:

1st day OG : 1.037
Day 8: 1.019
Day14: 1.017
Day 18: 1.017

Like suggested i intend to go the full 3 weeks, but should i may as well bottle now? since my gravity hasnt moved from day 14 to day 18?, im kind of dissapointed that the FG hasnt been reached (keep reading it should be anywhere between 1.010 and 1.014 for my Coopers Australian Lager (diy kit).

any suggestions?, i know i shouldnt hurry , but i need some peace of mind, im nervous with my first brew

 

[Waramir]

Day 20: 1.017

So the readings have been stable for the last 6 days, is it safe to bottle even though its a bit high at 1.017? (im worried ill get bottle bombs though... )

The temp in the fermenter has increased to 65F (up from 60) on the last couple days and still no change in the hhydrometer readings...

Can anyone offer any advice? is it safe to bottle now?

thanks.

 

[Waramir]

bump.

 

[snowtires]

Normally I would say yes but in this case being the gravity was low to start with, I would say no.
I would try adding some fresh yeast and see what happens.
I have used Cooper kits in the past and with an og like that I expect to hit about 1.006. I wouldn't be worried about bottle bombs as I would be about no carbonation in case the yeast is dead. Just my opinion, Ive been wrong before.

 

[podz]

how are you taking gravity readings? i spigot some beer into a 100ml measuring cylinder and then put the hydrometer in. at that point i need to wait at least half an hour for the carbonation / bubbles to disappear. bubbles make a hydrometer float more than it should, i.e. it might float at 1.017 due to bubbles when the gravity is actually 1.014.

 

[unionrdr]

You just spin the hydrometer to release the bubbles on the bottom for a more accurate reading. But read it quickly when it stops spinning.

 

[Waramir]

The way i take the reading is, i take a low and wide tupperware that fits under the spiggot (so i dont move the fermenter at all) dump some beer in the tupperware , then using a funnel i dump it on the hydrometer, i do get bubbles , even some foam at the top which i remove with a piece of napkin, drop the hydrometer, I spin it , several times actually before taling the reading. Last night i also let it sit for like an hour just in case it changed but no. Stayed firm at 1.1016-17

I dont understand what went wrong (the temps while fermenting were lower than i'd liked so maybe that was a factor 60F for most of the 3 weeks, 65F at most.

Dont know what to do, i've got no more yeast (only got what came with the kit) so adding more would mean ordering online and waiting for a week to get it.

 

[podz]

Even if you did hit 1.010, with a starting gravity of 1.037 you would only have 3.5% ABV beer. As it stands, you only have about 2.5% ABV.

If I were you, I'd chalk this first one up to experience and just fill your glass up from the spigot every half an hour or so until it's empty. After all, tis the season to be jolly.

You should use an ABV calculator to get an idea of what your alcohol level will be:

http://www.brewersfriend.com/abv-calculator/


I use Cooper's kits myself and here are a few tips:

1. Don't top up to 24 litres like the kit instructs. 20-22 litres is quite enough.

2. Add a 500g package of Munton's spray malt (light spray malt in your case).

3. Add 1 kg of syrup/molasses (light colored syrup in your case)


That will produce about 5.5% ABV beer.

There is an even simpler technique called "Toucan", that is 2 cans of the kit beer into 24 litres of water. That will produce a nicely strong beer, but the problem is that because they are prehopped then the hop flavour will be double as well. In Finland, we call this "Tuplahumala" which means roughly both "double hopped" and "double drunk".

 

[snowtires]

If your in a pinch the grocery store carries coopers kits and yeast where I live (Canada) wine kit places usually sell beer kits and beer yeast. (There's practically one on every corner here) and the u brew beer places should be able to sell you some yeast no problem

 

[budonze]

You don't like to be rushed so don't rush your beer. Those kit instructions are for college kids that want their stuff yesterday, the ones that will drink paint thinner for a buzz. Wait and you will have something you can enjoy.

Well put!!!

 

[budonze]

I had the same issue on my fist brew which was Coopers IPA. When I was all finished (let it go 1 month) my final gravity was about the same. I believe my mistake was adding to much water. I was using a pail as my primary and and I filled with too much water. The pail was from a wine making kit and had demarcation for the standard wine kits (and not beer). I think I damn near filled the pail to the top. I had a crazy low abv like 2% which is near practically near beer. It tasted like crap so i didn't even bother bottling. Needless to say, I didn't figure this out until the 3rd kit that I messed up! Doh!

Now I make sure that a know what volumes I am adding to my pail. Do not trust the lines on the outside. Measure for yourself.

 

[Waramir]

went ahead and bottled it. I used the coopers PET plastic bottles so if i get bombs at least i wont get glass all over the place.

I tasted it while i was bottling the flavor was 'ok' , not horrible at least.

I just hope the yeast aint dead and i get some carbonation during the next couple weeks. It was my first ever batch, if it aint perfect so be it. at least i've learnt quite a few things and next batch should be even better.

the last 2 bottles were VERY cloudy , i guess i got some of the sediment through when i had to tilt the fermenter to get the last of it out, are those safe to drink?

 

[unionrdr]

Yeah,they'll settle out in a few days. By the time they're carbed & in the fridge 5-7 days,they'll be easier to pour off more beer,as the sediment will be compacted in the lugs on the bottom of the Cooper's PET bottles. @podz- And the Cooper's kits are 23L,not 24L. 23L equals 6.072 USG.