'battle Of The Toucans'

[Cactus]

Would you believe i have read all 26 pages of this topic? I am some the wiser and yet no less confused, i guess the only thing for it is to throw a couple of cans in a bucket and see how we get on.

So, any hints and tips appreciated, my local hbs tends to just smile and agree with everything i say, right or wrong.

Plan is
Coopers european lager
Coopers mexican cerveza
400 (odd) g light malt powder
250 g maltodextrin
Both yeasts revived in some warm water
Into primary at 26, down to 18-20 for 1 week then racked to secondary for 2 weeks or so then bottle, into basement at 14-16, cooler as we hit autumn.


So, would it be a good idea to boil up one or both to move off some malt flavour?

I have 15 g each of hersbruker and saaz finishing hops, should i add these at primary or later in the piece?

I have plenty of maltodextrin and dextrose, surely i don't need any more fermentables for a refreshing session beer?


As always, very grateful for any hints, cheers

 

[ploto]

Cactus I wouldn't bother with the maltodextrin, you will have plenty of body from the two cans and the light malt extract. It doesn't ferment so it won't give any alcohol, so if that's what you're after use dextrose.

For the finishing hops you have a couple of options. You could boil up the 400g of lme in about 4l of water, then add all the hops and boil for about 10 minutes, this will give you a good hoppy smell to the beer and add a bit more flavour, as well as increasing the bitterness. Or you could use them as dry hops, adding them to the fermenter after it has been going for a few days, this will give mostly aroma that will fade over time as the bottles age. This is easiest and you could use one or both of the hops - maybe just use one so you can see what flavour it gives. Whichever way you go, if the hops are in a tea bag, cut it open and release the hops as you will get more out of them.

 

[craigo]

did a toucan with coopers dark ale and pale ale added galaxy and amarillo hops in a ten miniute boil fermented at 18 degrees for two weeks used both kit yeasts and half a pack of us05 i had left over tried it after two weeks in the bottle way to bitter its been about a month now and had one last night the bitterness has settled down and it wasnt to bad could be a bit cleaner but im putting that down to the yeast over all enjoyable il leave it for another month and give it another taste and see if its improved.

 

[Cloth Ears]

Made my first toucan in early December (on another thread). But I thought I'd precis it, as it's ended up being quite OK.

One can each of Coopers Real Ale and Dark Ale, two kilos of dextrose (I usually make really heavy, malty porters, so this is a change) and one of those hops 'pills'. With those sugars, it should have started life as 1078, but ended up being only 1071. Let's see what happens. Pitched 2 packets of yeast (the Real Ale and an older one that was in the fridge). Had no bubble-over problems at all.

Final measure at 1010 (a little lower than I expected, but only by 2). The Brigalow hop pill is much like using ISOhop liquid - all bitterness, but bugger-all flavour and not much nose. Matches quite well with the rest though.

The first proper taste after 2 weeks. Not fully carbonated (but getting close), but poured with a lovely (brownish) head. Smell was pretty nice, with none of the estery note I get from my Belgian yeast brews, taste was fairly bitter ale, with pretty good mouth and nicely balanced body. Around 8%, so I didn't try the second bottle that beckoned. A note on the hops pill - basically crap aside from the bitterness (that is not unpleasant), but there's no nose at all, so the bitterness can take you a bit by surprise.

After 10 weeks, only had a dozen bottles left. It's addictive stuff, and the bitterness that I wasn't sure of has become an interesting point. It's still a little overpowering, and with a lesser bodied beer would be simply overkill (like drinking bitter water), but with this beer has ended up being quite nice. On the whole, I'm happy with it - for a cheap experiment. It's refreshing, although more than one bottle and you could be a little too refreshed.

 

[Cloth Ears]

Made my first toucan in early December (on another thread). But I thought I'd precis it, as it's ended up being quite OK.

OK. Second one is now in the barrel. This one is probably weird - as it's going to be my winter beer (for watching those GP's on cold winter nights). So I thought "chillies for warmth, cloves and cinnamon for spice".
Cans of Coopers Pale Ale and European Lager, 1kg of BE2 and 1kg of dex. Boiled up the BE2 and dex with chillies, cloves and cinnamon. Removed the chillies when loading the fermenter, but left in the spices. Then the two cans, followed with cold water up to 25l and a packet of (Coopers) Dark Ale and the Pale Ale yeasts.
OG was 1067, but I'd worked it out that it should be 1073. Has anyone else had the same disconnect between the OG was/should be?
It bubbled away nicely for while and then I put in the hops (dry pitched, of course). Amarillo and Pacific Jade as well as an extra can of light liquid malt and the European lager yeast.
Told you, weird. I'm expecting a FG of 1015 (as I calculated 1017). Then a few months in the bottle with as little tasting as possible. I'll report on the weirdness as it happens...

 

[iralosavic]

Coopers Aus Pale Ale cans x2
Coopers LDME 500gms
Brewed to 22 litres. Brewcraft calculator suggests ABV 6.5%

Cascade dried flowers 10 gms @ 15
Galaxy dried flowers 5 gms @15
Amarillo pellets 10 gms @ 15

Cascade dried flowers 10 gms @ 10
Galaxy dried flowers 5 gms @10
Amarillo pellets 10 gms @ 10

Cascade dried flowers 10 gms @ 5
Galaxy dried flowers 5 gms @ 5
Amarillo pellets 10 gms @ 5

My hop straining method went to ****- badly. Well, actually I managed to strain the hops quite well. But, the wort didn't quite make it through the pantyhoze and I ended up having to squeeze a quarter of the wort through. My pasta strainer fits perfectly in my fermenter and the pair of pantyhoze were wrapped around the bottom. Just made a hell of a mess is all and my wife was wondering why she was sticking to the floor.

That is going to be one extremely bitter brew! Being a Toucan (ie 1.6 times the typical bitterness using one can), you may want to consider dry hopping most of your additions.

I think volumetric calculation is kit IBU*1.7/final volume. The APA is 340IBU per Litre of goo, so in 22L you're looking at around 26IBU for a single can and using the 1.6 multiplier for the second can, your total BEFORE any hop additions would be around 42IBU. So if you go ahead with your hopping schedule, you will be drinking an APA with over 50IBU. More of an IPA without the body/malt base to balance it.

I kind of ruined (still drinkable, but way too bitter for the style) one of my kit beers a while back with a similar hopping schedule - and it wasn't even a toucan. Just thought I'd share the theory I've since learnt in a hope that it may prevent you from going through the same!

 

[Lance2]

Hi guys, just doing my first toucan (4th brew overall). I've bought:

2x Coopers APA
1kg LDME
Nottingham yeast

for a 23l batch. Is this a good recipe? I also have 1kg dextrose on hand, what would happen if I throw that in?


About to go to jaycar to get a tempmaster fridge controller kit anyone use these?

 

[redunderthebed]

Definately going to do a toucan soonish.

 

[Diggs]

Put down my first toucan last night:

• Cascade Choc Mahogany Porter
• Tooheys Real Ale
• 1kg DDM
• 500gm LDM
• Cascade (stepped for 10 mins)
• Brewcellar English Ale Yeast25lt

Fermenting at 18c
Tasted great, can't wait for the finished product.
Going to try racking to secondary for the first time on this one too.
Any feedback or opinions would be appreciated.

 

[mwd]

Looks great but don't rack to secondary just for something to do unless it is necessary it is one easy way to introduce an infection.

 

[Diggs]

Looks great but don't rack to secondary just for something to do unless it is necessary it is one easy way to introduce an infection.

Cheers Tropical, if all I have to gain is infection then I won't bother
That will free up the tub and fridge for another brew quicker!

 

[fiat128s]

Hey all, title is pretty self explanitory: Whats your best toucan recipe?

Two cans of anything, plus some finishing hops if you put them in - thats basically it...

Essentially, I'm curious as to the combinations that people put together and what they come out like - after all its a good cheap way to make a strong, well bodied, good-headed beer! I caved in and put down a toucan of Farmland Draught the other week...looks delicious: ruby red, great aromas, and will be ~7% AbV.

So, any recipes/combinations?

Cheers - boingk

Last toucan I put down was the basic Coopers Real Ale, nothing else added.

This made a full bodied malty brew with excellent head retention, but a little on the sweet side for my taste. Many others have decleared it their favourite.

I am planning to use the same idea again tomorrow but I will also add a boil of Super Alpha (13% AA) and some homegrown Smooth Cone (approx 8-10% AA) which I thought would give some nice bitterness to the brew and also dry hop some Hallertau Aroma pellets (8% AA) to add some nice hoppy aroma.

Any thoughts on this simple recipe?

 

[mwd]

Looks good to me but I would have thought 2 cans at 23l should be bitter enough to make a good easy drinking beer. I would make your hop additions quite late in the boil say 20 mins or shorter to avoid adding a load of extra bitterness.

 

[fiat128s]

A friend from Gosford way and I put down a toucan for her yesterday, using 2 x Coopers Real Ale kits, with both yeasts, and nothing else added.

When I did the OG test I tasted the wort in the testing tube and it was incredibly bitter, so my friend then tasted it and declared she'd never be able to drink it if the end product was like that. :angry:

Has anyone ever done a toucan like this and will the hops impact be lessened after fermenting and bottle secondary? I am really hoping that it will frankly, it will be a disastrous start to her brewing career if it is undrinkable for her and it took some talking to get her away from the idea of a can and kilo of sugar

I was also surprised to see that the OG was only 1040, does this sound right to the more experienced?

Grateful for any comments, Cheerz Wab

I just read this post after asking the same question on 18-4-12. I found the result of this recipe a great beer but if anything too sweet. At $NZ13 per kit it makes an excellent brew for less than the cost of a medium / high kit and kilo.

 

[alexfl]

i've been reading this thread for some time and i finally put down my first toucan yesterday (and 5th brew)..

1 coopers stout 1.7kg
1 coopers dark ale 1.7kg
500g dark brown molasses sugar
550g of light liquid malt extract
200g of dark or choc grain, steeped 30 mins
200g medium crystal malt, steeped 30 mins
50g NZ Styrian Goldings boiled for 10 mins
Safale S-04 yeast

OG - 1061

it was bitter as a bastard. i'm hoping it will come right.. bloody waiting game!

also, i pitched a little warm tho, 26*C, but have been lowering the temp (slowly by leaving it outside for a bit) until it is now about 21/20*C (24hrs later). i hope the temp change will not ruin the brew, what with it being early days etc. also, i wonder what FG it will end up at? does anyone have any insight or comments they'd wish to make? would be appreciated..

 

[mattyra]

i've been reading this thread for some time and i finally put down my first toucan yesterday (and 5th brew)..

1 coopers stout 1.7kg
1 coopers dark ale 1.7kg
500g dark brown molasses sugar
550g of light liquid malt extract
200g of dark or choc grain, steeped 30 mins
200g medium crystal malt, steeped 30 mins
50g NZ Styrian Goldings boiled for 10 mins
Safale S-04 yeast

OG - 1061

it was bitter as a bastard. i'm hoping it will come right.. bloody waiting game!

also, i pitched a little warm tho, 26*C, but have been lowering the temp (slowly by leaving it outside for a bit) until it is now about 21/20*C (24hrs later). i hope the temp change will not ruin the brew, what with it being early days etc. also, i wonder what FG it will end up at? does anyone have any insight or comments they'd wish to make? would be appreciated..

I make a similar beer alot. I use 1 can of Dark Ale, 1 can of Stout and 1Kg of dextrose (with all that sugar it tastes good still). I think it tastes great. Although I leave it for months before I drink it.

Also you put your brew outside. If it is in sunlight it can wreck your beer.

 

[petesbrew]

i've been reading this thread for some time and i finally put down my first toucan yesterday (and 5th brew)..

1 coopers stout 1.7kg
1 coopers dark ale 1.7kg
500g dark brown molasses sugar
550g of light liquid malt extract
200g of dark or choc grain, steeped 30 mins
200g medium crystal malt, steeped 30 mins
50g NZ Styrian Goldings boiled for 10 mins
Safale S-04 yeast

OG - 1061

it was bitter as a bastard. i'm hoping it will come right.. bloody waiting game!

also, i pitched a little warm tho, 26*C, but have been lowering the temp (slowly by leaving it outside for a bit) until it is now about 21/20*C (24hrs later). i hope the temp change will not ruin the brew, what with it being early days etc. also, i wonder what FG it will end up at? does anyone have any insight or comments they'd wish to make? would be appreciated..

That should be pretty awesome. I reckon the Molasses will be definitely contributing to the bitterness. Styrian is an awesome hop (not sure if what I've used were a NZ variety).
As per previous post, sunlight can ruin your beer.

Mine in the past have finished off around 1016 - give or take.

 

[alexfl]

thanks for the tips guys~ it was only in the light for a couple of hours yesterday. it's still foaming away, so should be sweet.
it was the first time using grains, really looking forward to the results. i'll post back once bottled & tested.
cheers!

 

[Diggs]

Just reporting in on my first Toucan, whilst it still needs a while in the bottles to mature I am very happy with this one. Sweet and syrupy and reminds me of the Miliken Black Hole Stout, definitely my best beer so far and should be fully matured for the winter!


Cascade Chocolate Mahogany Porter
Tooheys Real Ale
1kg Dark Dry Malt
500gms Light Dry Malt
12 gms Cascade Hops - steeped for 10 mins
1.5 packets BrewCellar English Ale Yeast
20 lt batch

 

[simplefisherman]

Hi all just wondering if anyones tried a toucan with
Coopers dark ale
Coopers English bitter
.5 kg of be2
Maybe some hop additions?
Not sure if it may be too bitter.
Also would this be better put in bottles (pet) rather than keg incase it needs more aging?

 

[hbg]

2 x Thomas Coopers Light Liquid Malt (or Morgans 1.5kg Lager Malt)
American Ale / US 05 yeast
12-15 g of hops.
Eg:
Amarillo
Citra
Cascade
Willamette

 

[adniels3n]

Also would this be better put in bottles (pet) rather than keg incase it needs more aging?

I've had PET bottles lose pressure after about 6 months. Glass if you plan on aging longer I reckon. More experienced bottlers might chime in.
Drinking a Coopers Stout + Dark Ale + 1kg Dex as I type. Old faithful doesn't disappoint.

 

[kalbarluke]

This is my first toucan attempt and so far the results seem promising:

1 x Morgans Golden Pilsner
1 x Morgans Blue Mountain Lager
100g crystal
50g choc malt
20g fuggles @ 5 min
20g willamette @ 5 min
S-04 yeast

OG - 1.050

I usually only make my beer to about 19L but I made this out to about 23L. After 2 days the SG is 1.030 and it tastes like it will be a nice English ale, which is what I am aiming for.
I must say I was a bit sceptical about the toucan concept but I think I may be a convert. Will try the same base for an APA but use citra/cascade combo or cascade/galaxy combo and US-05. Am also keen to try some of the many stout recipes on this thread.

 

[Cloth Ears]

Cans each of Coopers Pale Ale and European Lager, can of light liquid malt, 1kg of BE2 and 1kg of dex, along with chillies, cloves and cinnamon. Dry hopped Amarillo and Pacific Jade.

Well, this one has been tasted a bit and it's only been in the bottle for 2 months. My excuse, I had to bottle about 5 PET bottles as I didn't have enough glass (I'll use that next time also).

OK, despite the large amount of fermentable sugars, it's a lovely light brew. Lovely light floral, grassy and almost 'pot-like' nose, along with hints of clove (but no cinnamon). I used 5 Habanero chillies in the boil and left one in the fermenter - this has left it with quite a chilli hit. It's not initially hot, but it grows on you. I love it, but I'd be hesitant in offering it to somone who doesn't like chilli at all. I'll have to alter the chilli/clove/cinnamon balance for the next one, but it's a success as far as i'm concerned.

 

[tricache]

I think my next batch will be a toucan for sure!!

I only bottled my last batch Saturday and I'm already looking to what to brew next haha

 

[Rob S]

Can't get to the grain shop until next week so going to put down this for ***** & giggles

Coopers Lager
Coopers Draught
Recultured Chimay yeast (1L starter)
350g DME (all that's left)
350g sugar

Hoping for a reasonably high gravity. Ferment at 17 and I'll probably throw some more sugar in on day 5.

Some help with some aroma hop additions with this one? Any point doing this with a toucan? For a white Chimay clone, google suggests 5 min boil of hallertau hersbrucker (8g 1.2aa) and EKG (15g 5.8aa).

No idea what to expect. Beer probably.

 

[tricache]

Just threw this down tonight
1 x Thomas Coopers Collection Stout
1 x Coopers Dark Ale
1kg of malt/dex combo
20g fuggles @ 10 min

Also moved fermenter to a tiled area :lol:

 

[Ivan Other One]

SWMBO picked up some Coopers stout cans on special so the at the start of this month this was kegged,


2 x cans Stout

300g lLDM

300g Dex

150 g Saunders liquid malt

Thomas coopers Stout yeast

Made to 25 litres.

Hmmm, geting close to testing time.

 

[mwd]

another stout toucan

2x Coopers Irish Stout
1kg Dark dry extract
250g Black Malt Thomas Fawcett
500g Rice Malt Syrup
Nottingham yeast harvested from bottom of fermenter.


Should be a roasty brew Do I need more sugar to bring it into headbanger territory?

 

[Ivan Other One]

another stout toucan



Should be a roasty brew Do I need more sugar to bring it into headbanger territory?

Sounds like a nice mix Troppo.
Final wort volume????
If it's around 23litres, another half kilo of dex wouldn't hurt, or even a half kilo of ldm for a more creamier head.