'battle Of The Toucans'

[slash22000]

Hello,
I have a Coopers English Bitter and a Coopers European Lager that I was thinking of tucanning. I have dextrose and Safale 04.
A couple of question to the knowledgeable,
!. Does this sound like a reasonable combination?
2. How long should it ferment?
3. What should the final reading be for bottling?

Thanks for any help.

Assuming you're doing a 23 litre batch and adding no fermentables aside from the two cans, you should end up with a brew ~4.5% ABV, OG 1.046, FG 1.012 with something like 68 IBU (which is quite high).

In your place, I would add an extra kilogram of light dry malt to even the bitterness out a bit. It would be a potent brew, ~6% ABV, 1.062 OG, 1.016 FG and still quite bitter, but the bitterness would not headbutt you in the face to the same degree. You don't need to do this, but if you're unaccustomed to bitter beer you might be shellshocked by 68 IBU's at 1.046 OG.

Needs to ferment as long as it needs to ferment. If you're uncertain, give it at least two weeks. Try and ferment as close to possible to 18C. In the future, you might consider adding specialty grains and some extra hops for aroma/flavour.

 

[alboot]

Assuming you're doing a 23 litre batch and adding no fermentables aside from the two cans, you should end up with a brew ~4.5% ABV, OG 1.046, FG 1.012 with something like 68 IBU (which is quite high).

In your place, I would add an extra kilogram of light dry malt to even the bitterness out a bit. It would be a potent brew, ~6% ABV, 1.062 OG, 1.016 FG and still quite bitter, but the bitterness would not headbutt you in the face to the same degree. You don't need to do this, but if you're unaccustomed to bitter beer you might be shellshocked by 68 IBU's at 1.046 OG.

Needs to ferment as long as it needs to ferment. If you're uncertain, give it at least two weeks. Try and ferment as close to possible to 18C. In the future, you might consider adding specialty grains and some extra hops for aroma/flavour.

Thank you for your information. What grains and or hops would you suggest. I would like to have a good brew first up so I may as well get it right.

 

[slash22000]

Well, what you'll be looking to do is accentuate the English characteristics. I'd think about steeping some English hops in some hot water, East Kent Goldings or Fuggles (or both!). You don't want to boil them in wort, last thing you need is more bitterness.

For grain basically any medium crystal grain would do fine, personally I use Caramunich II when I make an English Bitter but there are a lot of choices available.

 

[alboot]

Well, what you'll be looking to do is accentuate the English characteristics. I'd think about steeping some English hops in some hot water, East Kent Goldings or Fuggles (or both!). You don't want to boil them in wort, last thing you need is more bitterness.

For grain basically any medium crystal grain would do fine, personally I use Caramunich II when I make an English Bitter but there are a lot of choices available.

Thanks mate,

I will get some and give it a try. Let you know what happens.

 

[joecast]

man, been away from ahb for a looong time. also havent brewed much this year. feeling a bit inspired but short on time. so what better way to get back into it than... a toucan!!

havent done a kit in years and never a toucan. got a two year old morgans amber (which i have done before and liked) and picked up a coopers ipa today. might add some dex to help it dry out a bit and somewhere around the 25-30L depending on gravity. want it ready for christmas so might be pushing it (kegging most and bottle the rest for later). have seom nelson sauvin hops which may end up in there also.
wish me luck!!

 

[carniebrew]

man, been away from ahb for a looong time. also havent brewed much this year. feeling a bit inspired but short on time. so what better way to get back into it than... a toucan!!

havent done a kit in years and never a toucan. got a two year old morgans amber (which i have done before and liked) and picked up a coopers ipa today. might add some dex to help it dry out a bit and somewhere around the 25-30L depending on gravity. want it ready for christmas so might be pushing it (kegging most and bottle the rest for later). have seom nelson sauvin hops which may end up in there also.
wish me luck!!

Welcome back and good luck! Morgans Amber Ale + Coopers IPA + 500gm dex in 25 litres = 5.5%abv with a whopping 70 IBU's...hop monster!!

Maybe do the toucan with 1kg of dex in 30 litres for 5.3% and nearly 60 IBU?

Not sure you need the Nelson Sauvin....but might help hide the fact the Morgan's is 2 years old?? :beerbang:

 

[joecast]

Welcome back and good luck! Morgans Amber Ale + Coopers IPA + 500gm dex in 25 litres = 5.5%abv with a whopping 70 IBU's...hop monster!!

Maybe do the toucan with 1kg of dex in 30 litres for 5.3% and nearly 60 IBU?

Not sure you need the Nelson Sauvin....but might help hide the fact the Morgan's is 2 years old?? :beerbang:

Thanks carniebrew. was thinking some NS at 10 min and some at flameout. not so worried about bitterness, didnt expect that much though!

 

[Ivonavich]

had a go at a toucan with this IPA

"Thankyou Come Again"

1 Can Draught
1 Can Pale Ale
1kg LDME
300g Dex
1 kit yeast (as nutrient)
30g Williamette 10min
30g Cascade F/O
30g Nelson Sauvin F/O
30g Amarillo F/O

US 05 Yeast

Dry hopped day 6 with 25g ea Nelson Sauvin and Amarillo

OG. 1069
FG. 1012

Snuck a taste last night - freakin nice beer

 

[carniebrew]

Keen to hear how that goes...i've done plenty of Amarillo brews, and Cascade with NS...and later today doing an Amber with Willamette & Cascade. Have not yet mixed Amarillo with Cascade or NS though...I find Amarillo gives me a very different flavour/aroma profile that for whatever reason I like to keep on its own. But I'll mix 'em one day I'm sure.

 

[Asha05]

Just put my first toucan on. CPA & Canadian Blonde. Made to 23ltrs. Used US05 also have 50gms each of Galaxy & Saaz that i will dry hop later on...Looking foward to tasting...

 

[mwd]

A Coles shelf toucan with extras.

2 x Coopers Draught
1 Kg BE1 ( that's all they had )
500g Maltose Rice Syrup

30g Galaxy @20 mins
10g Galaxy 10g Nelson Sauvin dry hopped at 6 days

US05 and one packet of kit yeast. took off real fast but slowed right down after a week.

 

[mwd]

Bottled and tasting good. Plenty of the fruity flavours pushing through no trace of kit twang. Turned out very well with very little effort.
Next up will be Stout/Dark toucan got some black malt to use up.

 

[tricache]

Sounds good!

I just bottled my "Kick In The Teeth" Stout

Coopers Selection Irish Stout tin
Morgan's Old Ale tin
Dex/LDME mix (1kg)
Kit yeast x 2
40g of Willamette dry hopped @ 6 days

Weapon of a drink, bitter as (which I like) and dark as night :lol:

 

[carniebrew]

Would be a lot more useful if you'd post your batch sizes! Toucan with 1kg of brew enhancer in 18 litres will be a hell of a lot different to the same kits 'n bits in 23 litres....

 

[Joel Mcleod]

Coopers web site has some good tocan recipes. SMOTY Ale (23L) http://www.coopers.com.au/the-brewers-guild/how-to-brew/ale/smoty-ale
• 1.7kg Coopers Australian Pale Ale beer kit
• 1.7kg Coopers Dark Ale beer kit
• 10g East Kent Golding pellets – 15 mins
• 20g East Kent Golding pellets – steep
• Both sachets of yeast or ale yeast of your choice

I thnk I'll try this one next.

 

[tricache]

Would be a lot more useful if you'd post your batch sizes! Toucan with 1kg of brew enhancer in 18 litres will be a hell of a lot different to the same kits 'n bits in 23 litres....

23L

 

[slash22000]

Coopers web site has some good tocan recipes. SMOTY Ale (23L) http://www.coopers.com.au/the-brewers-guild/how-to-brew/ale/smoty-ale
• 1.7kg Coopers Australian Pale Ale beer kit
• 1.7kg Coopers Dark Ale beer kit
• 10g East Kent Golding pellets – 15 mins
• 20g East Kent Golding pellets – steep
• Both sachets of yeast or ale yeast of your choice

I thnk I'll try this one next.

I made this twice before, and it's quite good, but be aware that both times I made it (in the 30L plastic barrels ala the ones in the Coopers kit) to ~22 litres, there was so much krausen it shot my airlock out of the barrel and spewed unspeakable brown filth over the entire floor. Looked like Satan had the runs.

I'd advise a blowoff tube, or if you can't use a blowoff tube, use one of those 3 piece airlocks instead of the s-curve one (I had to throw mine away, it was encrusted with yeast diarrhea).

 

[Joel Mcleod]

I made this twice before, and it's quite good, but be aware that both times I made it (in the 30L plastic barrels ala the ones in the Coopers kit) to ~22 litres, there was so much krausen it shot my airlock out of the barrel and spewed unspeakable brown filth over the entire floor. Looked like Satan had the runs.

I'd advise a blowoff tube, or if you can't use a blowoff tube, use one of those 3 piece airlocks instead of the s-curve one (I had to throw mine away, it was encrusted with yeast diarrhea).

Good Advice Slash, cheers

 

[mwd]

Super Stout

1 x Muntons Export Stout
1 x Morgans Dark Ale
250g Black Malt steeped for 30mins @65C
500g LDME
1 kg BE2
20g Centenial @20mins

23>24 litres.

 

[Lionman]

I made this twice before, and it's quite good, but be aware that both times I made it (in the 30L plastic barrels ala the ones in the Coopers kit) to ~22 litres, there was so much krausen it shot my airlock out of the barrel and spewed unspeakable brown filth over the entire floor. Looked like Satan had the runs.

I'd advise a blowoff tube, or if you can't use a blowoff tube, use one of those 3 piece airlocks instead of the s-curve one (I had to throw mine away, it was encrusted with yeast diarrhea).

What temp was it at?

 

[slash22000]

Made that back before I had temp control, so probably 24 - 26 degrees. Still came out perfectly drinkable, mind you, aside from the explosion.

 

[mwd]

A Coles shelf toucan with extras.

2 x Coopers Draught
1 Kg BE1 ( that's all they had )
500g Maltose Rice Syrup

30g Galaxy @20 mins
10g Galaxy 10g Nelson Sauvin dry hopped at 6 days

US05 and one packet of kit yeast. took off real fast but slowed right down after a week.

One of the best kit beers I have every made highly recommended and of course the last bottle tasted way better than the first.

 

[aamcle]

May I ask for a toucan recipe suggestion please?

I have two cans of Bitter (made by Muntons I think) that came with a Tap-a-Draft, each tin makes up 20 pints. Their "use by date" is June so I could do with using them up but :-

• Just right now I don't need 40 pints of bitter
• I'm afraid they may be past there best.

so if I put them together to make a 20 pint kit what hops/grains/adjuncts/yeast would I need to add to get something really good from them?

Would it be possible to use them for the basis of a stout or..........?



Many Thanks aamcle

 

[Tiprat]

I use Coopers kits almost exclusively. For a good, cheap ale base, try using two cans of Coopers Original Series Lager. It has the least bitterness and colour and actually comes with an ale yeast. Two of them together should come out around 58 IBU's which is quite bitter.

For a bigger flavour, use two cans of Coopers Original Series Draught. Slightly higher bitterness, darker colour. More "oomph".

I actually have a brew in the keg at the moment that was made from 1 can of Original Series Draught + 1 can Original Series Real Ale. The Real Ale has much higher bitterness/colour than the Draught/Lager though (>30% greater bitterness) so you want to make sure you want it that bitter.

Nice one bro, i will try this...

 

[billyben]

3rd brew first toucan...

23L
2 x coopers lager
1kg light spray malt
both yeasts

bubbling away like a beast at 18-20C. I'll let it go two weeks...

Brew calc predicts 6.5% ABV in bottle and 42.3 IBU's

 

[Stove]

I reckon the best beers I have brewed to date are Toucans.
Should get into BIAB or something to progress in the craft, but who's got time? :

Anyway- the one I am drinking now is going down a real treat.

1x Home Brands Lager
1x Home Brands Draught
15g Cascade dry hopped after 3 days
10g Galaxy dry hopped a week before kegging.
Took a while to brew (Winter and all), and I only used the can yeasts, but tastes the deal.
Lots of mates who've tried it reckon "Fat Yak", but as it has no Sauvin, I don't get that.

Next one will be same base, but hopped with Sauvin and Galaxy?, plus a proper yeast.

 

[LiquidGold]

Just chucked this on last night

1x Coopers Pale Ale
1x Coopers Dark Ale
250g Carapils Steeped at 65 for an hour
150g DME (dregs from a previously opened pack)
13g POR (also just leftovers) @ 15
Half a pack of 1056 Wyeast

23L
OG 1.060

Question is will half a liquid yeast pack be enough for that high a gravity or should i be chucking in a sachet of kit yeast

 

[slcmorro]

http://www.mrmalty.com/calc/calc.html

 

[menoetes]

After reading this massive thread I finally got my first toucan on, it's pretty simple but to amateur me it's also pretty exciting. Here's what I went with:

1 x can of Coopers Australian Pale Ale (boiled in 2 Lt of water for 30min to try and reduce some of the bitterness)
1 x can of Coopers Canadian Blonde
1 x sachet of US-05 yeast

Filled to 25Lt and pitched dry yeast at 22'c after a little time in an iced water bath to get the temps down. Used my hydrometer and got an OG of 1039, tastes pretty bitter straight from the tap but that can change. Then I stuck the whole thing in my new brew fridge and now I am eagerly awaiting the results with baited breath. I just hope I didn't mess about with it too much.

 

[Takasonfletcher]

Hi all

I'm a first time brewer (hard to get any work done as I spend all day on this site at work tsk), I have my first batch fermenting away on day 3 (kept it real simple with the Lager kit (Coopers Kit) with 1 kg of Beer Enhancer, followed the instructions on the tin before I looked here so its been at around 22-24 degrees, still exciting not too fussed about how it turn out for my first.

I recently went to a Home Brew Store and got 3 cans of Tooheys Dark Ale on sale 3 cans for $20, I've been drinking Russian Imperial Stouts and Guinness extra Stout this winter in the lead up to this so I'm happy with a full bodied dark ale. Was hoping to get some tips on what else to add to a Tooheys Dark Ale Toucan before (A friend was kind enough to give me his homebrew kit so I now have 2 sets of everything I figured I might as well get a Toucan going so I can do it over a longer period of time and drink whatever the product of my first attempt is in the meantime (I figure this toucan will need to ferment for a while and age for sometime to get the best results)

any tips or suggestions please!!!

Cheers