Coopers pale ale

[sutho]

Hi guys and girls,
I've just started my first home brew in a plastic flat bottomed fermenter and I'm after some advise please. I've used an off the shelf can of coopers pale ale and 1kg of mangrove jacks brew blend #20 and an 04 yeast instead of the yeast under the lid of the can. It's fermenting at about 20-25 degree Celsius as per the instructions. One of my many questions is, the instructions say I should bottle after six days at that temp, is that too soon? Other people tell me to wait up to three weeks before I bottle. Also should I dry hop this recipe? If so when and what will it do to my beer?
I have hundreds more questions but these are the ones I'm thinking about most.

Cheers in advance.

 

[eMPTy]

I am no expert, but I will try give my 2c until more experienced guys pop in.
Bottling after 6 days IMO is likely too soon. But it is not as easy as just putting a day figure on it. Do you have a hydrometer? Ideally you should be waiting until a hydrometer reading shows the same measurement for a few consecutive days. This will indicate that fermentation has finished and you're ready (and safe) to bottle. If your fermentation is going as high as 25c that will likely increase your fermentation speed, so there is nothing to say you won't be done at that 6 day mark.

As for dry hopping, that would depend on what you want to get flavour/aroma wise i should think. If it were me, for a pale ale and keeping it simple i'd think about something like 12g of citra after the primary fermentation appears to have slowed - maybe 4-5 days in. That would add a small amount of bitterness and a citrusy, floral sort of flavour and aroma without overpowering.

 

[sutho]

Thanks for that, I do have a hydrometer and I'll do as you suggest. Also I'll try the 12g of citra and see how it goes. Thanks for the advice.

 

[TheWiggman]

Yes, learn to use a hydrometer straight off the bat. You also need to know what your expected final gravity is.
The same reading a few days in a row will give you an indication of when fermentation has stopped, but this doesn't necessarily mean it's finished. If it's a simple kit and it stopped at 1.025, then you're guaranteed to be waking up to bottle bombs. Generally the kits will finish around 1.010 (which is the 'final gravity', or FG) depending on what and how much sugar/s you add. Do a search on 'when should I bottle' and you will get lots of discussions about this.

You're using S04 which is an English ale yeast and may produce diacetyl if you bottle it too early. I rather than 3 days, give it around 5-7 after reaching FG. Better to be safe than sorry, and the extra week is nothing in the scheme of things to make good beer.

One last thing - try to keep ferments cool if you can. For S04, around 18°C. The warmer they ferment, the more undesirable flavours will develop unless you're using a special yeasts which tolerates it (like a saison).

 

[Matplat]

Yeah on top of that S-04 is a fairly slow yeast, the two brews that I have done with it have taken almost 3 weeks to reach FG.

If changing the yeast from the supplied kit yeast, ignore the kit instructions for ferment temperature. The sachet of S-04 would have had an instruction on the back to ferment between 15-20 deg.

 

[siege]

I would just stay away from S-04 altogether, there are plenty of other yeasts which are great for pale ales and bitters and don't suck like S-04
When I tried to ferment at 18, it stalled
When I tried to ferment at 22, it tasted rubbish (adequate pitching rate both times)

If you want a dry yeast (because it's cheap) and a fast yeast (because you don't have good temperature control) give Nottingham a try. it'll strip out some of your hoppage so just up the dry hopping rate a little. maybe 1-1.5g/L

Another thing about recommended fermentation times is that the kit manufacturers try to put the shortest possible time on there to make people think brewing is quick and easy, but if you give it a bit longer and have good temperature control then the yeast cleans up after itself and you have a better tasting beer.

 

[sutho]

Thanks everyone you are all great giving me heaps to think about now just to put it all into practice and see how it works out

 

[manticle]

Do the instructions really say 'bottle after 6 days'?
No caveat? ******* dangerous if it does.

 

[sutho]

They do say bottle after six days. It even says if you ferment at 27degree you can bottle after four days

 

[mitch_au83]

Just a suggestion. Maybe try your first brew without hops. Then next one add so you can see the difference it makes?

 

[manticle]

They do say bottle after six days. It even says if you ferment at 27degree you can bottle after four days

Can you take a photo and post it here?
I'd like to get in touch and ask them how on earth they believe that's safe advice.

 

[sutho]

 

[sutho]

I think I'm reading I correctly. I'm happy to be informed otherwise.

 

[manticle]

6 days then check with a hydrometer for stable readings is very different to 6 days then bottle.
Latter advice would be reprehensible.

 

[manticle]

Thanks for posting photo.