Brew Your Own Beer From a Kit – Part 4 Brewing
November 30, 2009
So far, its been pretty cool trying to brew my own beer from the Coopers Home Brewing Kit for the first time. Its a learning process, and so far its been easy and fun! Granted, I have no idea what my beer is going to be like when its done, but I’m confident it will be OK!
In part three, we basically mixed all of the ingredients to make beer. We took the Coopers Beer Concentrate, sugar, hot and cold water and mixed it all up in the fermenter. We had a slight problem getting the temperature to the point where the brewer’s yeast could be added, but once we got the yeast in we sealed up the fermenter tight, inserted the airlock and crossed our fingers!
Then the waiting. Waiting for signs of life from my little science experiment on the kitchen counter was actually a little worrisome. Then, after a few hours it happened.
Glug….. Then some time, and again! Glug….
I excitedly hurried to my kitchen to see gasses pushing through the airlock greating a little glugging sound! I’ll admit, this made me really happy! (My wife rolled her eyes) The glugging sound is GOOD! It means fermentation has begun, and in short time it was glugging along at least once per minute, sometimes more! So, I’m thinking the overheated wort maybe was OK? We’ll see.
Soon enough, I saw other signs of fermentation. Condensation formed on the inside of the fermenter lid, and within a couple of days this frothy ring formed around the inside of the fermenter at the level of the beer. From what I understand, this is like the residue of the fermentation process. Microbial poo perhaps? I don’t know, but I had the three signs that my beer was going in the right direction. Happy me!
Another important thing I watched was the stick-on thermometer. From where my beer was on the kitchen counter, it stayed pretty much at the right temperature the whole time. I don’t know if the fermentation process creates its own heat, but it stayed above 72. Keep an eye on that because if the temperature drops too low I think the fermenting might stop.
On the fifth day, the glugging slowed to the point where it almost stopped. To me, this was the time to take the beer’s vital signs with the hydrometer. The hydrometer is the only way to really tell if the fermentation process has completed and this is important.
If the beer is still fermenting when you bottle it, there’s a chance the bottles might explode! (Another good reason for me to use the plastic bottles!)
The hydrometer measures the alcohol content, and the idea is to get the same reading in two consecutive days. That means the yeast has eaten all the sugar and its time to bottle! Here’s a tip. Make sure you familiarize yourself with the hydrometer before you use it. Its a scientific instrument, lots of lines and numbers, so know what you’re looking for before you measure your beer! This is my first hydrometer, but it seems like a quality instrument that you get with the Coopers kit. All glass, lots of markings and made in France. Fancy!
Coopers recommends a hydrometer reading between 1008 and 1010 if you’re using their pre-measured ingredients. I got 1011 for two days in a row which brought me to another dilemma. 1011 is a touch high, but it was 1011 for two days. Do I bottle or not? The idea is that if the reading is the same for two consecutive days, its done.
If you let the brew sit too long after it finishes fermenting, it can get messed up too. What to do?
I took a final reading later in the day and when I got 1011 again I decided to bottle. We’ll see what implications that decision has in a future post! I wasn’t thrilled that I couldn’t nail it, but I think I did the right thing. Live and learn, right?
Any home brewers out there with the right answer? Do you wait or bottle when the reading is the same for a couple days, even if the reading is a little off?
Bottling the beer was pretty easy. I ended up not using the ‘little bottler’ gizmo that Coopers sens with the kit, but the spigot on the fermenter was perfect for filling all the plastic bottles.
Each of the 730ml bottles gets two of the pre-measured carbonation drops, 
which are just pieces of sugar. This is called ‘Priming the Bottles’ and the measured sugar dose is needed for the secondary fermentation process that happens in the bottle over the next two weeks or so.
So, in go two Carbonation drops and then just like a giant cooler of Gatorade, I filled each bottle, sealed it with the provided plastic caps, turned each bottle over a few times each to mix it up a little, and into a box they went!
While my bottled home brew is sitting for two weeks doing its secondary fermentation thing, I’m also trying to keep them around the same temperature. Say 70. You don’t want them to get too warm or two cold.
And that’s about it. We’ll wait two weeks while my home brew ferments in the bottles and see what happens. I’m going to buy a bottle of Coopers Lager to compare my home brew to their own store-bought brew. Stay tuned to learn the results!
So do you want to brew your own beer from a kit? I haven’t destroyed anything yet, and I bet you won’t either! Why not buy a Coopers Microbrewery Kit for yourself or for a friend as a gift? Its fun! Just click on the link below now and get yourself started making beer!
Don’t forget to check back next week when we break out the beer I made and compare it to a store-bought bottle of Cooper’s Lager!
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November 30th, 2009 at 12:55 pm
It’s easy to make measurement errors with hydrometers so it’s possible your measurement was just off.
It should be fine though, 11 gravity is close enough to 10. Sounds like you bottled on the 7th day? That’s kind of early… it wouldn’t hurt to wait longer next time because even if the gravity is no longer decreasing, the yeast are still doing things to improve the beer and you can also get better beer clarity by giving them more time to settle out. 2 weeks is a pretty standard time.
November 30th, 2009 at 1:24 pm
@Patrick – OK, that’s where the instructions were not clear for me then. I understood it to be that if the measurement was the same for 2 days (once its in the range?) it should be bottled.
The instructions (to me) seemed to indicate that bottling should happen @ this point as there could be problems if it is let to sit too long after fermentation stopped (as measured by the hydrometer).
Good to know for next time that I can let it sit for a few more days and not worry about it. Thanks!
I’m wondering if this is going to have a negative impact om my beer!
Scott-TheBrewClub´s last blog ..Brewing Your Own Beer at Home – Part 3 Mixing
November 30th, 2009 at 1:48 pm
When they say that it can be bad to let it sit for too long after fermentation has stopped, they’re talking about yeast autolysis (yeast dying and giving off bad by-products). However it takes well over 4 weeks for that to be a risk of affecting the beer, and now-a-days most brewers agree no harm will come from sitting on a yeast cake for 2-4 weeks.
Since you’re bottling, if the beer is rough you can just let it sit in the bottle a little longer and that may help condition it some more.
November 30th, 2009 at 2:12 pm
@Patrick – Thanks for that info! What I think I’ll do is try one soon to see how it turned out, and if its a little funky I’ll let is sit in the bottles for longer. So I have an idea, what might an ‘unfinished’ lager taste like as compared to some that I let sit and ‘condition’ some more? Will the beer just taste weird or what? When do you know that its ready to go?
Scott-TheBrewClub´s last blog ..Brewing Beer With the Coopers Home Brew Kit-Part 2
November 30th, 2009 at 3:00 pm
It’s hard to say… “young” beers can have a number of off-flavors – while some will be just fine young, some might have minor issues like being a bit unbalanced (too hoppy most likely) or having harsh alcohol tones.
Since this is your first brew I wouldn’t worry about it. If the beer is tasty after two weeks in bottle, then you could go ahead and drink it all. If it has issues, then aging for at least 2 more weeks is likely to improve it some.
November 30th, 2009 at 4:54 pm
Couple of quick things:
Don’t rush to drink the beer. Three weeks in the bottle minimum, six would be better. Most home brewers don’t even bottle until three weeks, and then let the bottles sit for another three weeks. That method is called “1-2-3″ One week in primary, two weeks in secondary, three weeks in bottle. Obviously, with a kit like this you can’t do a secondary, and its not really necessary. But the time is. Green beer sucks.
Comparing it to Cooper’s Lager will be unfair to your beer. At the temperatures Coopers recommended you ferment at, that’s an ale kit. On top of that you didn’t go through the cold “lagering” process. “Lager” is a yeast, a process, and a type of beer. So it will be different than Cooper’s in the bottle.
I hope it all turns out well for you!
TC
November 30th, 2009 at 5:31 pm
@TC – More great tips, thanks! A lot of people have told me to give the lager more time and I’m definitely going to do that now. I wonder why they send the Lager package with the kit. Is it the cheapest, or most popular? I’m thinking Coopers should package an Ale with the kit. Might be less problems for the first-timer than the lager?
Scott-TBC´s last blog ..Brewing Beer With the Coopers Home Brew Kit-Part 2
November 30th, 2009 at 5:49 pm
Holy crap, Scott, I’m actually learning things! This has been a really good series. And the Coopers / Fisher Price “My First Brewer’s” set is the perfect way to learn the basics. By the time you’re done, you’ll have learned lots and be ready to try again, maybe with grains this time.
I can’t wait for step five, where the beers all explode. That is what happens next, right?
It’ll be fun to see how this turns out.
November 30th, 2009 at 5:51 pm
I would guess that they do the lager kit with the initial brew kit because most people starting out homebrewing are lager drinkers and it sells better that way. It’s kind of silly though since a lager is significantly harder to homebrew to style (you need an extra fridge or fermentation control chamber). If their instructions said to ferment at room temperature then it’s not really a lager, it is a steam beer – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steam_beer
For a first timer it’s not really important that the beer is authentic to style, the more important thing is that they get people to buy the kit and get into the hobby – if they can do that by marketing to lager drinkers (which are the majority of beer drinkers here and presumably in Australia, where Coopers is based) then so be it.
November 30th, 2009 at 6:53 pm
@Jim – Yes, exploding bottles would be next, except that the kit comes with plastic bottles which make for one less thing to worry about!
Glad you’re getting something out of it too. I know I am, and I already know a few things I’ll do differently next time which I’ll write about in my concluding post.
@Patrick – thanks again. Between taking on this little project and all the great comments along the way, I’m learning quite a bit – and having fun too! I think you’re right, the kits are geared toward the beginner who most likely is a lager drinker. My next batch will likely be the stout or maybe the wheat brew. We’ll see, but it won’t be the lager!
Scott-TBC´s last blog ..Brewing Beer at Home With the Coopers Homebrew Kit
November 30th, 2009 at 6:56 pm
Cool stuff Scott. Pretty soon you’ll be a master brewer! So with a terminal gravity of 11 does that translate into ABV? Can you calculate that, or manipulate it? Or do you just get what you get?
Don´s last blog ..Aging Takes Care of Everything
December 1st, 2009 at 9:02 am
@Don – I’ve a way to go before I’m a master brewer, that’s for sure! Gotta start someplace though, right? Yes, all that stuff can be calculated and manipulated if you want to – I think you vary the amount if sugar but with the kit you pretty much get what you get if you use the ingredients as instructed. I think my beer should be about 4.5% ABV.
Scott-TheBrewClub´s last blog ..How Much is too Much to Spend on Beer
January 21st, 2010 at 12:24 am
I started out with the same kit and its a good kit. Heres some recommendations. An Emily capper($15) and some crown caps(cheap) are a great investment. Some people say PET bottles make beer taste as good as glass but its a lie. Theres a reason beyond tradition that people havent accepted PET bottles for beer on the open market. Beer in glass tastes better.
The Brewers Sugar is awful, its just sucrose and gives beer a cidery taste. A good basic recipe for the Coopers cans is 500g light dry malt extract and 500g of corn sugar and 100g of maltodextrin. This stuff is cheap at brew shops.
Or there are canned malt/hop extract kits that dont require the addition of any other ingredients. Aka Muntons Gold.
These minor changes create much better beer.
January 21st, 2010 at 12:35 am
Also dont forget to get a spring loaded bottle washer and gods gift to homebrewers: star san.
The Coopers booklet recommends using diluted bleach. Which is a nightmare. Star San is a no rinse power cleaner. Which saves hours and is worth its weight in gold.
January 21st, 2010 at 9:03 am
Dude, thanks so much for the tips!
I agree, its a good kit, but some small modifications like the ones you mention above might help step it up a notch. I noted how the bottles were easy to use, but they are definitely cheezy. Glass would be an improvement in taste I’m sure, but as you mention you need a capper. (Small price to pay for better beer I think.)
I’d also second the Star San or a similar product over the bleach for cleaning. Having cleaned with bleach initially, and then again after use, there’s got to be a better way!