Coopers Dark Ale

[Stixor]

Hello,

I hope this hasn't been covered before but I'm useless at searching.

2 questions, about a coopers dark ale. If I fill the wort to say 21 L instead of 23 and still use 1kg of brewing sugar will this increase the alcohol content without making it too strong?

Also would adding 2-300g of lactose do anything noticeable?

Thanks.

 

[Fatgodzilla]

Hello,

I hope this hasn't been covered before but I'm useless at searching.

2 questions, about a coopers dark ale. If I fill the wort to say 21 L instead of 23 and still use 1kg of brewing sugar will this increase the alcohol content without making it too strong?

Also would adding 2-300g of lactose do anything noticeable?

Thanks.

Haven't made any calculations but using 2litres less water will increase the alcohol slightly by a few percentage points only (instead of (say) 4.8% with 23 l it would be about 5% with 21 litres. Not enough to worry.

Lactose added will do three things. Firstly it will increase your opening gravity but as it is mostly unfermentable, secondly you'll have a corresponding higher closing gravity. It will make your beer sweeter (because it won't ferment out). Do some reading on milk stout which is stout sweetened by lactose which will explain it a bit more. The sweetness offsets the bitterness of the dark (burnt) malt.

Hope that helps a bit.

 

[manticle]

Consider using 750g of brewing sugar, 500g dried malt extract and leaving out the lactose. Lactose will add body and sweetness, as will the malt. Malt will give a better result for this. When I did kits, I used to make the coopers dark with the above and it was a nice, smooth brew.

Use lactose in a rich, roasty stout.

 

[Stixor]

Consider using 750g of brewing sugar, 500g dried malt extract and leaving out the lactose. Lactose will add body and sweetness, as will the malt. Malt will give a better result for this. When I did kits, I used to make the coopers dark with the above and it was a nice, smooth brew.

Use lactose in a rich, roasty stout.

What will the alcohol % be with this recipe? Is there anyway to get it up at around 6% without sacrificing head, taste etc? I live pretty far away from any specialty store so I pretty much have to use stuff I can get at Big W and Safeway.

 

[manticle]

Should be able to find dried malt extract. Both brigalow and coopers make it (or at least distribute - no idea if brigalow manufacture their own products).

For alcohol percentage, you'll need to plug it into a recipe design spreadsheet. I know you said you're useless at searching but I'm not going to do it for you. If you use the google search function at the top of the page and search for 'ianh kit extract spreadsheet' you should find something that will help.

ABV will depend on final gravity. If you want 6+% (which won't in and of itself kill head retention), I would up the malt and brewing sugar by 25% but that's a really rough guess.

 

[Stixor]

Thanks, should be able to find something. It's mainly forums I have trouble searching, no idea why.

 

[ploto]

For alcohol percentage, you'll need to plug it into a recipe design spreadsheet. I know you said you're useless at searching but I'm not going to do it for you. If you use the google search function at the top of the page and search for 'ianh kit extract spreadsheet' you should find something that will help.

Dane has been kind enough to make the spreadsheet a sticky topic, it can now be found at the top of the Kits & Extract forum.

 

[Stixor]

Thanks, looks like it ill be very helpful.

One more thing I forgot, I want to see if I can find some peated malt beacause i'm a fan of peated whisky.

Would a smokey taste suit this beer or any other coopers kit?

 

[mosto]

I made a Coopers Dark Ale to 21 litres a while ago and used 1kg Brigalow Extra Malt Brewing Sugar. Off the hydrometer readings I calculated ABV at 6.8% and I don't think that would have bee to far wrong. I liked the malty flavour it gave but was a little more bitter that what I'd like.

 

[J Grimmer]

Thanks, looks like it ill be very helpful.

One more thing I forgot, I want to see if I can find some peated malt beacause i'm a fan of peated whisky.

Would a smokey taste suit this beer or any other coopers kit?

A smokey flavour would add a interesting aspect to this kit, peatted malt can be found at craft brewer, http://www.craftbrewer.com.au/shop/details.asp?PID=811, alternatively you could age a portion of the beer on charred barrell chips.

 

[RobboMC]

When my daughter was born and my wife worked nights and I had no time I made this 20 min 'mircale' beer.

Coopers Dark Ale
0.5 kg Morgans Roasted Black malt
1 kg Brew Enhancer 2
500g Light Dry Malt

I got my spreadsheet to calculate that if you make it to 19.5 litres
then it will be 6% abv.

For a 'dump and stir' it turned out to be really nice beer. The miracle is that I made it on the stove
while I cooked dinner for 5 kids.

If you're nowhere near a HBS I suggest mail order from one of the site sponsors,
probably Grain & Grape if you're in Victoria.

I have found that I often need stuff that's not available locally and generally they are superb people to deal with. I reckon it's worth the freight to get the right ingredients; and generally the prices aren't over the top anyway.