A question about a Coopers Dark Ale recipe....

[Kalthor]

Hey,

I'm about to make my 3rd brew with a Coopers Dark Ale Kit that I got the other day from BigW. I've read a few different recipes on this site and decided to try and steeping some grains for the first time. After a visit and consultation with the LHBS guy, I have the following ingredients at my disposal:

1.7kg Coopers Dark Ale
1.0kg Dark Liquid Malt Extract
500g Dark Crystal (smallest bag they sell)
15g Cascade Hops (in hop bag)
Safale US 05 yeast

Now, as I haven't used grain before, how much should I use and is there anything else that I should add/replace from the above ingredients?

Cheers!

 

[manticle]

Is the grain cracked?

I'd use half that crystal pack and another 10g or so of cascade to dry hop.

 

[Kalthor]

Is the grain cracked?

Yes, the grain is already cracked.

Also, I ran the ingredients on the "KIT & EXTRACT BEER DESIGNER" excel sheet which showed OG and FG as:

OG: 1.038
FG: 1.010

This gives me around 4.1 per bottle....

If I want to increase this to the high 4s or low 5% would it be better to add an extra ingredient (dextrose or LDME) or just making less than 23L?

 

[monkeymagik]

Yeah i'd throw in 500g of dry malt extract

 

[warra48]

Or add another tin of Pale Liquid Malt Extract.

 

[Kalthor]

Quick update on this brew....

I followed the above recipe with 300g dark crystal and also ended up dry hopping with some extra cascade.

OG: 1.042
FG: 1.009

It's been bottled for 2 weeks now and while I know that I should leave it for a while longer, I just had to have a quick try..... and it's quite a tasty drop. It's a nice mix between an Dark Ale and a Stout.

I'll definitely try this one again, maybe alter it somehow to see what difference that would make!

Great tips and suggestions on this site = Tasty Brew!

 

[maaark]

Looks like a good beer mate, great head. I made an Amber Ale last month with Cascade and it was a great balance between malt & citrus.

I'm going to brew a Coopers SMOTY toucan this month;

Pale Ale tin
Dark Ale tin
EK Goldings.

Can't wait. Enjoy!