G'day from Melbourne

[peekaboo_jones]

Hi there,

Just thought I'd drop in and say G'day.
I'm a keen beer enthusiast and enjoy a decent drop like most do.

Have been pondering brewing beer for few years now and it's about time I had a crack.

Haven't got any gear yet but will drop into my closest local home brew shop this weekend and have a gander.

I love most beers and can't wait to get started.
Wish I'd thought about it seriously months ago so I could have saved up long necks, oh well I guess I'll have to drink some more commercial coopers pale ale!

Cheers!

 

[Yob]

Hay.. another eastern burbs lad just round the corner

Get into it mate.. hope you have a shed.. youll need it eventually :drinks:

 

[Crouch]

Welcome ... get yourself a simple coopers kit and jump in! If you're anything like me though, hobbies get out of control REAL quick! Have fun, have a beer and be jolly.

Cheers

 

[peekaboo_jones]

Thanks Yob and Crouch.
Yep I'm in Whitehorse and also have a good sized shed and a bar upstairs

Dropping into Brewers Den on Saturday, a friend recommend to go there.
and he's offered to help out too, given some great info already.

 

[Crouch]

... have a good sized shed and a bar upstairs

Yep, things are gonna get out of control quick!

Pictures once its setup please

 

[peekaboo_jones]

Yep, things are gonna get out of control quick!

Pictures once its setup please

haha will get out of control for sure!
I'll get some pictures up when it's cranked, hopefully Sunday

First question, lager or ale for my first?
Lager seems to be the right brew for this season?

 

[Yob]

First question, lager or ale for my first?
Lager seems to be the right brew for this season?

Ale.. you dont wanna have to wait man..

You going Kits or AG brewing?

 

[peekaboo_jones]

Ale.. you dont wanna have to wait man..

You going Kits or AG brewing?

Good point, ale would take a good 3-4 weeks or less before I should drink?
Was going to start with a can kit and use light DME instead of the brewers sugar.

Will have to read up a bit more on all graining.

 

[Yob]

Definitely a good start, brewing sugar is to be used sparingly, tempting as it is
. Also look into a specialized yeast, not the one that comes with the kit, makes a hell of a difference, check out the wikki articles for ways to keep ya brew at the good temps.

Won't be long, you'll have that bar stocked.

 

[peekaboo_jones]

Sweet as, thanks yob!

 

[Crouch]

Ales, yep its cold right now but unless you can control that temperature ales will be more forgiving. +1 to using yeasts other then the 7g packets that come with your kits.

 

[peekaboo_jones]

It has begun!
Brewers Den in Boronia is quite good, plenty of stock and helpful information. It was very busy too.
Got the super deluxe kit, which includes all the regular basics but also has immersion heater & bench bottle capper.

Kit includes one aussie range kit so I got the Coopers Pale Ale kit, and using the shops own blend of beer improver.
Sorry guys but I did use Coopers kit yeast :blink: but will see how it goes... shop was busy...forgot to ask for different yeast and hops.

Might grab some hops (25g maybe) this week from a home brew shop near work and chuck them in by the end of the week.
Cascade, Amarillo?

I've had a bit of a search in this forum and wider, heaps of info out there, the more i read the harder to know what to do.

Dry hopping is just adding hop pellets towards the end of fermentation?

Cheers!

 

[Crouch]

Dry hopping is just adding hop pellets towards the end of fermentation?

Pretty much, I usually put them in a hop sock - tie a lose knot and wrap some un-flavoured floss around the knot and 'hang' it into the wort, as you close the lid the floss will be tightened into place and wont fall into the fermenter. This makes it easy to get the hops out after x number of days of dry hopping.

Edit: that room looks like an awesome place for a bar/lounge - very cabin'esque

 

[peekaboo_jones]

Thanks, will check it out.
Just looked through the lid of the fermenter, the immersion heater isn't sitting straight down it's lying on top for the wort.
Should I open the lid and try to sit it better or just leave?

Yes the room is very cabin style, very warm looks and has a good atmosphere.
Beer on tap would be cool one day.

Edit:
Pulled out the cable plug and lifted the heater and dropped it back down - didnt make a difference, it just popped back up and lay horizontal but under about 10mm of wort.

Do you think there could be any harm with this?
temp is set to 20 deg C.

I should have did as per the instructions say and do a trial run, oh well

 

[boybrewer]

Just leave it . Try and keep the temp around 18*C . You may not need the heater if where the fermenter is sitting may be warm enough .

 

[Camo6]

Hey peekaboo, welcome aboard.

Sounds like the cable for your heater is too long past the bung or your wort level is too high. Can you post a pic? I had two of those heaters and wouldn't rely on them heavily. I keep one now to maintain a temp in my yeast starter fridge (don't worry, you'll have one of these down the track!). Don't stress too much unless it blows a breaker.

Pete was my go-to guy when I got into brewing and he'll talk beer all day if you catch him when the shop's quiet. I'd recommend the ESB brand cans which come with a Fermentis yeast.

If you think this is a hobby you'll enjoy I'd recommend you buy hops in larger quantities from a number of suppliers on AHB. Only illegal substances come in 25 grams.

 

[peekaboo_jones]

Thanks Cam, I can certainly see me increasing my consumption too!
There is more to home brewing than I ever imagined.

Yeah it's certainly way too long, I quickly tried to slide the bung down the cable but its glued in position.
I don't have a blank bung or spare lid so just had to make do.

It should be ok. Temp at the moment is 20 deg C.

You can tell by the pic that its way too long

 

[peekaboo_jones]

Hey guys, brew is fermenting nicely at the moment. temp is stable around 20 deg C - I think it must have taken a while to warm up and regulate maybe.

Foam is certainly formed and it seems that the immersion heater has relaxed and dropped into the wort adequately.

I managed to find 80L of bottle storage on eBay for $10 so looks like i'll be busy cleaning next week...

I haven't got any expectations of the taste for this brew but I'm pretty excited to try in a months time.
Can't wait to get another one going but need to see how this one turns out.

Peter did mention the ESB cans and said to try it next.

Does anyone have any experience with halving the can kits to make two different batches at once (obviously two fermenters) or two weeks apart?
I'm wondering if I could use the same can for two brews but one with LDME and other with DDME and experimenting with slightly different hops etc.

Haven't asked the question to Peter yet but will next time I'm there.

 

[peekaboo_jones]

Hey brewer's,
I Picked up some 750mL bottles from our wedding venue during Melb cup week, all 140 of them for free!
Mostly vb and Carlton draught but there are a few pure blonde's.
I remembered at our wedding a few years agm they served them and thought it's worth a phone call

 

[peekaboo_jones]

Also made this Irish stout Wednesday night