# Taking The Plunge.. First Brew



## sluggerdog (13/10/04)

Hey All, 
I have taken the plunge and went out and bought my first kit. I got the coopers microbrewery kit for the ease of everything including the bottles that came with the kit.

Now I am ready to make up my first batch, my thoughts/ingredients are as follows:

1 Can Coopers Canadian Blonde
1 kg of dextrose
15-30 Gms of Saaz Hops (How Much?)

I am on a budget and seeing it is my first brew, I do not want to it to get too difficult however I am looking for very light drinking, summer beer for BBQ's and the such.

I would like to try and get results similar to a Becks or something crisp and tasting like a pilsner..

Does anyone have any suggestions or comments on my selected ingredients?

Thankyou


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## Snow (13/10/04)

Hi Sluggerdog. Good to have another Brisbane brewer on the forum! 

For your first brew, I suggest replacing the dextrose with a kilo of dry malt extract (DME). Boil the DME in about 4L water for 10-15 mins. When you turn the heat off, chuck in about 20g Saaz hop pellets, dissolve the kit in, then put a lid on the pot and cool the wort in a sink-full of cold water before you add it to the fermenter. Another tip - instead of using the coopers yeast that comes with the kit, buy a packet of Safale and use that. It should be fresher and hopefully your brewshop has been storing it in the right conditions. Or if you want an outstanding beer, get some liquid yeast (Wyeast or Whitelabs) and use that. If you get the liquid yeast, you can make a starter and split it into different batches to reuse later, which will save you heaps of money and make your yeast last longer. Just do a search on the web for "yeast starter" or check out the relevant section in www.howtobrew.com

Good luck and let us know how it goes for you!

Cheers - Snow.


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## Hoops (13/10/04)

I would chuck the yeast and use a pack of SAFALE. Simple, no extra work.
Hoops


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## Gough (13/10/04)

Sluggerdog,

Welcome to the forum. I agree with the others, especially using the malt extract and changing the yeast. What I would add is to try and brew as cool as is practical if you want a 'crisper' brew. The hotter you brew, the 'fruitier' it will generally be. If you are using the Coopers kit yeast or the safale then try and keep it below 22 - 18-20 is best if you can manage it. Don't sweat it too much if you can't - it is all good from here  

Good luck with your first brew,

Shawn.


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## johnno (13/10/04)

Hi and welcome to brewing Sluggerdog,
It can be a bit daunting doing your first brew but I,m of the opinion that if you have purchased a Coopers kit then just do that to start with so you can get the feel of whats happening.
Just try and keep the temperature down to under 24C.
After you have used the ingredients that came with the kit maybe look at using something different with the following brews.
I'm not knocking what the other AHB'ers have posted in the previous posts. Its the best advice that they have given you. 
Just that I only started brewing about 18 months ago and I remember it being a whole new world. (I think the Mrs accused me of being more interested in the fermenting brew than in her being preggers with the third).
WIth me once the first brew was over I had so much more confidence. Try and read as much of the forums here as just about everything is covered. Stick with it and you cant go wrong.
cheers


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## sluggerdog (13/10/04)

Thanks for all your replies, the more tips I can get the better off I will be...

I will still think about it all for a bit before I make the decision on what to do with my first brew however I do have one question...

The Micro-Brewery came with a can of _Coopers larger_, I originally said I would get a _Coopers Canadian Blonde_ however I would like to know your thoughts on the differance between the 2 cans.

I will be using the *SAAZ* but I am not too sure about:
- DME or Dextrose
- Coopers Yeast or Liquid Yeast or *SAFALE* (I'm thinking this.. ATM)

My aim is to get a crisp refreshing beer, so my other question is will the use of Dextrose make it crisper or the use of DME..?

*EDIT:* One Last thing - *carbonated drops*, good? bad? or ugly? and if they are no good am I able to use the supplied brewing sugar that came with the kit somehow?

Thanks!
SD


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## Batz (13/10/04)

I am with Johonno here 100%

Do the kit and get a feel for it , then try adding a few different things , how can you tell your improving on the kit if you have not even brewed one?

You have many many brew in front of you , and the coopers kit will be better than megga swill

Welcome.. and soon you'll be telling us a thing or two

:chug: :chug: :chug:


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## jgriffin (13/10/04)

If you use the Dextrose, you will probably find that the beer ends up tasting thin and watery. Thus the comments to use DME. If you want, you can use half / half, or buy a "body brew" from the brewshop.

But i would definately use the safale, and keep the temp low. Best things you can do for your first brew.

As for the drops, a lot of people (myself included) find that it makes the beer too fizzy, like coke or schwepps etc. Most people here tend to bulk prime, but without a second fermentor it may not be possible for you.

I reckon first ever brew, do the safale, do the drops. Then you can see what we mean about lack of body, and the fizzyness. Then you can compare by doing another brew with DME, the ease of bulk priming etc.


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## GMK (13/10/04)

Dont use the Drops - crap - just prime with castor sugar - one teaspoon for the brown PET bottles.

Newbie Tips:

1/ Dont cut the can lid entirely off - leave a centimeter so that you can open the lid 180 degrees - this way the can will rest between the base and the lid at ao approx 30 degree angle when supported by the rim of the fermenter - hope this makes sense. 
This allows you to empty the can contents - hands free and leave there while it drains into the fermeter.

2/ when filling the PET bottles - squeeze the sides until the beer is level with the rim - then screw the cap on with the sides still squeezed.

Hope this helps


3/ get a second fermenter as soon as u can - needed for racking and dry hopping.


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## sluggerdog (13/10/04)

Batz and Johnno

I get ya guys 
*Baby Steps* - _You've got to learn to crawl before you can walk_

To be Honest, this will be my third brew (I did 2 about 3 years ago - Turned out no good at all, no care was given either) Now I am ready to give it ago again but still I want to start low and work my way up.

From the information I have got from you guys I will decide to go with the following:

*Ingredients:*

- Coopers Larger Can (Came with the KIT)
- 1 kg Dextrose
- 1 Packet of SAFALE 
- 20g Saaz hop pellets

*Instructions:*
- I will follow as close to as possible the video/booklet that came with the box
- Using the Saaz I will put them in some boiling water in a cup and disolve them then chuck them into the mix.
- Try to keep it as simple as possible for this first time then move onto bigger and better things.
- Also I will use the carbonated drops, I have them here, I should use them up, then I can see what the fizz is all about.

Thanks for all the information guys, I will keep you up-to-date on the progress of the batch (Will start this by the weekend)


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## Stratis (13/10/04)

Sluggerdog - a tip for the safale. Try to ferment it at about 18-21C if you can. Safale is a great yeast fermented at lower temps - but can produce *heaps* of esters (fruity by products) and fusels (undesirable alcohol molecules) at higher temps.


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## Snow (13/10/04)

Stratis is spot on. It isn't very cold in Brisbane these days, so I suggest you freeze four 2 or 3L softdrink/orange juice bottles filled with water and put 2 of these on/next to your fermenter, draped in a wet towel, to keep the temp down. replace with the other 2 morning and night. This is especially important during the first 3 days of fermentation, as this is when the brew produces the most heat and also the most by-products you don't want.

Cheers - Snow.


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## sluggerdog (13/10/04)

Snow said:


> Stratis is spot on. It isn't very cold in Brisbane these days, so I suggest you freeze four 2 or 3L softdrink/orange juice bottles filled with water and put 2 of these on/next to your fermenter, draped in a wet towel, to keep the temp down. replace with the other 2 morning and night. This is especially important during the first 3 days of fermentation, as this is when the brew produces the most heat and also the most by-products you don't want.
> 
> Cheers - Snow.


 Thanks for the tip, I will get onto this now, it was one thing I was wondering about just because of the heat in QLD


CHEERS
SD


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## JasonY (13/10/04)

Another thing you may want to try is prime some bottles with caster sugar, that way you can compare the carb drop and sugar straight away. You should then give the leftover ones to the kids for lollies


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## sluggerdog (13/10/04)

JasonY said:


> Another thing you may want to try is prime some bottles with caster sugar, that way you can compare the carb drop and sugar straight away. You should then give the leftover ones to the kids for lollies


 Good Idea, I will do that...


one teaspoon each for the brown PET bottles? correct?

What is the measures for tallies or stubbies?

Thanx


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## Snow (13/10/04)

I find that one exactly level teaspoon of white sugar per 750ml tallie is perfect for the type of beer you're making. Exactly half for a stubby.

- Snow.


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## sluggerdog (13/10/04)

I just went down the the local HB store to collect the things needed for my brew tomorrow, when I got there I asked for the saaz hops and I got asked, pellets or finishing.. I grabbed the pellets as from memory of earlier talk today that is what I needed however it got me thinking..

what is the differance between finishing hops and hop pellets

(and did I get the right choice..)

Thanks


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## morry (13/10/04)

Dont know what finishing hops are, but pellets are fine. Ive used them in a few of my latest brews. Let us know how you go.


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## jaytee (13/10/04)

The finishing hops will be the teabag thingy of hops - best avoided


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## sluggerdog (13/10/04)

jaytee said:


> The finishing hops will be the teabag thingy of hops - best avoided


 Cool, thanks for that.

SO to disolve the pellets can I just leave them in a cup of boiling water for a while or do I have to put them in a pot of boiling water or some otherway?


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## morry (13/10/04)

Usually, I just boil them for 5 mins then pour it into the fermenter. Depending on how hoppy you like your beers you may want to pour in the residual, or pour it through a stocking or something. I know a couple of my first brews were too hoppy and bitter. Its all about how you like your beer. 
Im sure someone will be able to give you a more comprehensive answer. Im just starting out too!


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## Batz (13/10/04)

Just put them in a mug ,pour boiling water on them , make a hoppy cup of tea , add it to the fermenter
Easy azz


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## Doc (13/10/04)

Finishing hops as your brew shop describes them are probably a tea like sachet with some hops in them.
Add to secondary for some aroma.

You didn't make a wrong decision by getting pellets, and can use them as described by the other responses. However they won't add bitterness, just aroma. Unless you use a shitload and then it will just be sensory overload  

Doc


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## sluggerdog (14/10/04)

I Have just finished this brew as described above, the current temp is 22 C so I've got the frozen water bottles around it now, just trying to lower it a little more to get it between 18 and 21 as mentioned before.

With the hops Pellets I just put them in a cup of boiling water and mixed it around, was going to strain it all but at the end decided to chuck it all in, if it's too much for me I will learn for next time.

Thanks to all who offered advice, will let you all know when I give it the true test... TASTE

One quick thing.. How long until it should start bubbling and then also how long will it last for ish (4-7 days it says in the booklet.. correct?)

Thanks Again
SD


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## Snow (14/10/04)

If you used Safale, It'll probably be bubbling in 10 hours or so, maybe longer, depending on how low you can get the temps. Don't rely too much on the bubbling, though, as fermenters often leak. 

- Snow


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## sluggerdog (14/10/04)

*UPDATE: *After about 6 hours of making the batch I have noticed lots of _'something' floating on the top of the brew_.

At first I thought it was mold and I had an infection of somekind but then I looked closer and most of it is a greeny colour, similar to the hops.

SO my question is: Does the hops float to the surface in patches *OR* could I have an infection already *OR* is this normal and nothing I should worry about?

Thanks


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## roach (14/10/04)

sluggerdog,
the green stuff would be the hop pellets. so should be fine.

cheers
roach


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## fishard (14/10/04)

sluggerdog,


Good luck with your first brew.......like you mate I am new to brewing but thanks to this site and John Palmers how to brew site I am on a steep learning curve! I have found a heaps of good hints in the fact file section of this site as well as had heaps of my ?s answered. I am upto brew No 5 now and feeling more confident about what I am doing.........I just can't wait to taste my progress :lol: 

Cheers-Russ


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## Batz (15/10/04)

sluggerdog

Your not been brewing long , you have to learn this before you go to much further

R.D.W.H.A.H.B.

Batz


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## Snow (15/10/04)

Slugger, just a warning - you will probably get a thick off-white foamy mass on top of your brew. This is not an infection, it is Krausen and is a sign of healthy fermentation. Don't do as my friend did yesterday and throw it all down the sink! He fairly freaked when I told him there was nothing wrong with his brew! :lol: 

- Snow


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## sluggerdog (15/10/04)

Snow said:


> Slugger, just a warning - you will probably get a thick off-white foamy mass on top of your brew. This is not an infection, it is Krausen and is a sign of healthy fermentation. Don't do as my friend did yesterday and throw it all down the sink! He fairly freaked when I told him there was nothing wrong with his brew! :lol:
> 
> - Snow


 *Excellent*

*Snow - *Thanks for that Snow, it has happened and I wasn't too sure, however it looked to me as though it was similar to a head on beer so I thought it must be ok...

*fishard - *Thanks mate good to see there's others out there in a similar boat to me, all the best hey.

*Batz - *R.D.W.H.A.H.B. ???

*roach -* Cool thanks, thought so


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## Doc (15/10/04)

Good tip Snow.
I tipped my second ever brew too, because there was no activity through the airlock and when I looked inside there was this big white foam with brown bits on top. And it smelt funny.
Of couse it would've been the best beer  

Doc


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## morry (15/10/04)

R.D.W.H.A.H.B = Relax, dont worry, have a home brew


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## sluggerdog (15/10/04)

morry said:


> R.D.W.H.A.H.B = Relax, dont worry, have a home brew


 Thanks Mate.. B)


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## sluggerdog (17/10/04)

GMK said:


> 3/ get a second fermenter as soon as u can - needed for racking and dry hopping.


Hey, is anyone able to help me out with this part at all?

I was at bunning yesterday and noticed they have water containers (very similar to a fermenter without the hole in the top - BTW it was $16.00 the tap was about $1.00 extra) would this be suitable or so I need to have the hole in the top for the second fermenter.

How does the second stage work and what is needed to be done?

Thanks


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## Batz (17/10/04)

Yep they'll be fine


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## sluggerdog (17/10/04)

cool, so how does the whole process work?

I can prime and also do the hops in this second stage correct?


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## JasonY (17/10/04)

Grumpy's have some good explanations of racking and bulk priming. The only point of note is when to rack, some do it early when the yeast is active (bubbles in airlock, say day 3) while other ppl rack after say a week. People sometimes have trouble with the beer not fermenting out fully if you rack early, myself I rack at one week so I don't generally have this problem. (this is assuming ales, lagers take much longer to ferment at low temps so you wouldn't rack one of these until your ferment is finished perhaps 3 - 4 weeks).

Anyway:

Racking Link

Bulk Priming Link

Have fun


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## sluggerdog (17/10/04)

Thanks JasonY - Am readin up on it all now B)


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## fishard (18/10/04)

Sluggerdog,

I bought one of the water drums and taps from Bunnings I use this as my bulk priming bucket. You need this to free up one of your fermenters when you get into racking so as to keep the brewing going! I would buy another coopers kit as the fermenter has an airlock wich you still need after racking. Plus it does not hurt to have two of everything. B) 

Cheers-Russ


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## sluggerdog (18/10/04)

fishard said:


> Sluggerdog,
> 
> I bought one of the water drums and taps from Bunnings I use this as my bulk priming bucket. You need this to free up one of your fermenters when you get into racking so as to keep the brewing going! I would buy another coopers kit as the fermenter has an airlock wich you still need after racking. Plus it does not hurt to have two of everything. B)
> 
> Cheers-Russ


 fishard - Thanks, What I have been thinking is, the drums from bunnings would be perfect for now to bulk prime into then seal the lid with the original one I have, as you only need the one air lock at the one time for each brew correct?

so...

Basic Steps

- Make the wort in the fermenter
- tranfer the wort into the bunning drum to prime
- seal the bunnings drum with the original fermenter lid and air lock
- wait out the secondary
- bottle from the bunnings drum


is this how it all works?

Also one other question, how do you get the beer from the fermenter to the drum? is it via tipping or a hose or some sort or some other way?

Thanks


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## fishard (18/10/04)

Mate to keep it basic (like me)

1 ferment for a week
2 rack to a second fermenter with an airlock (needed in case fermentation has not completed)
3 Leave for 1 to 2 weeks
4 Rack to bulk priming bucket and bottle

You will need some tubing to transfer from one to the next.

This is just a quick note as I am running late for work,keep reading it will all come together. I sure the other blokes will expand on this!

Good luck


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## Jovial_Monk (18/10/04)

I rack to a 20L foodgrade water container or "cube" for cold conditioning in the fridge, then rack back to a cleaned&sanitised fermenter for bulk priming. If the beer has spent enough time in primary, been aerated pitched with enough good yeast etc ferment is over.

I do not like this idea of racking to another fermenter--way too much headspace (oxygen) for my liking!

Jovial Monk


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## PostModern (18/10/04)

I ferment in a big fermenter for primary, say 30L. This is fine as is allows for the krausen to form without frothing thru the airlock. I then rack to a 25L fermenter for secondary - about 3 litres of headspace. If I'm concerned about O2 (which is pretty rarely, generally when I plan to keep it in secondary for a while), I stick half a cup of dextrose or malt extract (boiled in a bit of water) into the secondary before racking in the beer. As this ferments, it fills the headspace with CO2.

Ask 10 brewers, get 12 different methods.


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## sluggerdog (18/10/04)

PostModern said:


> I ferment in a big fermenter for primary, say 30L. This is fine as is allows for the krausen to form without frothing thru the airlock. I then rack to a 25L fermenter for secondary - about 3 litres of headspace. If I'm concerned about O2 (which is pretty rarely, generally when I plan to keep it in secondary for a while), I stick half a cup of dextrose or malt extract (boiled in a bit of water) into the secondary before racking in the beer. As this ferments, it fills the headspace with CO2.
> 
> Ask 10 brewers, get 12 different methods.


 So true, I think I'll just leave it all for now and just bottle from the first fermebnter when ready to do so...

Speaking of Bottling, when is a good time to bottle and what factors does it count on? Yeast? Ingrediants? airlock bubbles? Temperature?

I have had my batch going for just over 4 days now with the temperature starting at 22 but for the last 2 days I have kept it between 18 and 20C. The bubbles have already stopped and the foam off the top has disapeared.

I'm guessing here but would it be a good time to bottle after about 10 days? I think I read on www.howtobrew.com that the longer the better and clearer the beer will be.

Also final gravity, should this be at a certain point before I bottle?

Thanx
SD


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## sluggerdog (21/10/04)

I thought I would give it a try and measure the gravity to see what is happening, it measured out at 1.005, is this a bad this? I looked on Grumpys Instructions
and down the bottom where it explains the final gravity it doesn't even include 1.005 in the scale

Final Gravity Grams (for bulk priming)
1006-1008 180
1008-1010 160 
1010-1014 140 
1014-1018 120
1019-1025 100

What does this low gravity mean and if it is bad is there anything I can do to fix it?

Thanx
SD


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## nonicman (22/10/04)

Sluggerdog 1005 is fine for a canadian blonde, what is the total volume of the brew to go into the bottles? I use a program called Promash (one of many brewing programs), which you enter the brew volume and desired carbonation level and it works out the amount of priming agent to use. Assuming you have a standard volume from a kit, try 180grams (should be well carbonated with this amount if you final volume is around 22 litres) of dextrose and see what you think.


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## sluggerdog (22/10/04)

jleske said:


> Sluggerdog 1005 is fine for a canadian blonde, what is the total volume of the brew to go into the bottles? I use a program called Promash (one of many brewing programs), which you enter the brew volume and desired carbonation level and it works out the amount of priming agent to use. Assuming you have a standard volume from a kit, try 180grams (should be well carbonated with this amount if you final volume is around 22 litres) of dextrose and see what you think.


 jleske - I just used a coopers larger can and the volume is standard so it will be about 22L.

Will give 180gms a go.

Is dextrose better to use then castor sugar? Or what about the coopers brewing suger that comes with the coopers kit?

Thanx
SD


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## nonicman (22/10/04)

Personally I would use dextrose or DME (for DME the priming amounts are different). Stopped using castor sugar when I started to bulk prime.

Edit: note some of the more experienced brewers on this forum wouldn't touch dextrose, the pros and cons of which priming agent to use are many, I find dextrose is cleaner than sugar, but that is really an opinion not a necessarily a fact.

What is coopers brewing sugar (it could be dextrose as that it what it is sometimes labelled as.)?. Haven't looked at a coopers kit for a while


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## Bobby (22/10/04)

i dont like table sugar for bulk priming, you can taste teh diff between that and dextrose in my opinion.
use dme...


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## sluggerdog (22/10/04)

Think I might go buy myself some dextrose and give that a go, will try with 180gms, this way I can see how that goes and work it out for next time.

*Coopers Brewing Sugar *= Sucrose and Maltodextrin (good/bad/better then castor sugar?)

Thanx
SD


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## sluggerdog (8/11/04)

Just a quick update (thanks to all the help I had with my first go)

I have opened a bottle (or two) tonight and the taste is..
good but surprising at the same time, pretty 
-good head
-nice colour
-Aroma smellings like the saaz hops out of the packet (very grassy)
- taste is very much like the smell of the hops.

Will post a picture once the camera get back, pretty proud of my first.

One question though with the taste, not like a pilsner but just like the smell of the saaz hops.... anyone able to help me out with this?

CHWEERS!~


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## nonicman (8/11/04)

the hops will mellow with age


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## Tim (9/3/05)

Hey Slugger,
Got any of this first batch left?? How are they tasting now?


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## sluggerdog (9/3/05)

tried one last week, still pretty grassy and average compared to my newer brews.

I have 1 bottle left which I will try in 2 months time, that will be 6 months from when they weere made!


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