help, my beer isn't very good.

[Zardez]

hey guys, I've done three batches of beer, one batch pear cider and just bottled a ginger beer. the first two beers were pretty average, the third is ok, but still not something I'm proud of, I followed the instructions (coopers homebrew kit) I'm not a beer snob, I'll drink vb so it's not me being picky, the third beer was bottled into glass, and it also had 500gms honey added at the start along with 1kg brew enhancer (coopers again)
without going all out what are some ways I can improve the taste of my brew? I'm not looking to make a super crafty super brew, I just want something that tastes a little more like a half decent beer
what can I dooooo?

 

[Pennywise]

What is it you dont like about your brews?

 

[vittorio]

easy practice makes perfect, it takes awhile to get a good beer and once you get good at crafting you will be pulling of some amazing beers man

 

[manticle]

hey guys, I've done three batches of beer, one batch pear cider and just bottled a ginger beer. the first two beers were pretty average, the third is ok, but still not something I'm proud of, I followed the instructions (coopers homebrew kit) I'm not a beer snob, I'll drink vb so it's not me being picky, the third beer was bottled into glass, and it also had 500gms honey added at the start along with 1kg brew enhancer (coopers again)
without going all out what are some ways I can improve the taste of my brew? I'm not looking to make a super crafty super brew, I just want something that tastes a little more like a half decent beer
what can I dooooo?

What was the temperature of the brew while it was fermenting?

 

[jacknohe]

Can you describe it a little better and give us some insight into your process? Recipes?

The most common first brewing problems are usually related to inadequate sanitation of equipment and/or lack of temperature control during your ferment. These will usually result in a beer that most would be unhappy with. In terms of making a simple brew, I've tried a few of my mates beers brewed from kits with basic ingredients and they've tasted fine for what they were after. But the were very zealous in cleaning and sanitising. Also, they brewed at a time of year where the temps didn't fluctuate much (they were lucky in my opinion).

So let us know some more and we will see how we can help.

 

[Zardez]

Temperatures could be one of my problems, sometimes fluctuates to as low as 16 overnight, highest I've seen is 22 I'm very particular about sanitation as well, the brews aren't infected so I don't tthink sanitation is the problem, they are not really recipes, I just follow the DVD instructions in the coopers brew kit, mix and leave for a week or so, test for fg bottle, leave for a month

Sent from my C6603 using Tapatalk

 

[manticle]

Try and ferment around 18 with cooler being better than hotter.
If you are using a kilo of sugar or brew enhancer, try using no more than 500 grams and use another 750g of dried malt extract.
Steep some fresh saaz or hallertauer hop pellets in some hot water and add that to your mix at the beginning. Maybe 10-15g?

Also once you hit FG, try leaving the brew for another week before bottling.

 

[Forever Wort]

16-22 degree fermentation temps shouldn't result in awful beer, at least not in my experience. I would focus on the other stuff mentioned by Manticle first.

 

[Newts]

One other thing that might be affecting your beer quality is the quality of your brewing water. I used tap water with no temperature control for my first 2 brews and they tasted bloody awful.

I then tried temperature control (18C has been the magic number for me with ales) and had another bad batch so I put it down to the water itself.

From that point on I started boiling all my brew water and I haven't had a bad batch since. Turns out our water is riddled with chlorine and other nasties as I'm in a remote location. Don't know your circumstances but thought I'd share my personal experience.

Newts

 

[maxim0200]

Im a newbie myself (so feel free to disregard) but ditch the dextrose if you dont need/want the extra alco because thats all its doing.
Try all malt (eitger lme or dme) and reduce your final volume to 20ishL For more body.

What yeast are you using?
From what ive heard thats one of the main factors for good beer. (along with sanisation and temp control, the 'beer triangle' if you like)

 

[JoeyJoeJoe]

Easy kit improvements in order of importance
1. Sanitation get some starsan a spray bottle and be anal. A test to see how clean you are being is to take a glass of wort just before you pitch put some glad wrap over it. Then check to see how long it takes for it to go gross 3 days+ is good less than that u need work.
2. Temp control stc1000 20 bucks + second hand chest freezer 60 bucks
3. Good yeast at a good pitch rate I like safale s05 5 bucks for 11.5 grams
4. Substitute dextrose for sugar and to step up again get some light dme
5. Leave it in the fermenter for at least 2 weeks if you have temp control drop it to 1c after 2 weeks for two more weeks.
6. I would suggest trying the Morgans blue mountain lager best kit I have done 16 bucks much better hoppy ness than other kits.
That's all I have got hope it helps.
JJJ

 

[Dan Dan]

My only advice is, don't be put off! Give it time. There's a lot to learn as a new brewer, and it's best to know what you're doing at each step. What tins did you use? There are so many available you're bound to find one you like sooner or later. When you're ready, do a bit of reading up on steeping grains, or even extract brews. There's a lot of info out there, and before you know it you'll be cranking out quality beers that your mates will be jealous of!

 

[lael]

Easy kit improvements in order of importance
1. Sanitation get some starsan a spray bottle and be anal. A test to see how clean you are being is to take a glass of wort just before you pitch put some glad wrap over it. Then check to see how long it takes for it to go gross 3 days+ is good less than that u need work.
2. Temp control stc1000 20 bucks + second hand chest freezer 60 bucks
3. Good yeast at a good pitch rate I like safale s05 5 bucks for 11.5 grams
4. Substitute dextrose for sugar and to step up again get some light dme
5. Leave it in the fermenter for at least 2 weeks if you have temp control drop it to 1c after 2 weeks for two more weeks.
6. I would suggest trying the Morgans blue mountain lager best kit I have done 16 bucks much better hoppy ness than other kits.
That's all I have got hope it helps.
JJJ

like suggestion #1 - might try that next brew.

 

[Alex.Tas]

Easy kit improvements in order of importance
1. Sanitation get some starsan a spray bottle and be anal. A test to see how clean you are being is to take a glass of wort just before you pitch put some glad wrap over it. Then check to see how long it takes for it to go gross 3 days+ is good less than that u need work.

Never done this but great suggestion. Will try this for sure next brew. How did you come up with three days JJJ?


Zardez, making your beer better also depends on what sort of beer you like. I found that when I was starting out good beers to go with are hoppy beers such as american pale ales. The reason being is that the extra hops could cover up mistakes i had made/continue to make.
Shoot down to your local bottle-o and get yourself a selection of beers and decide what sort you like best (if you aren't sure already). Get a few pale ales or india pale ales. These are hop focused beers. To make one of these you can buy form your local home brew store hops in pellet, plug or flower form. then you can boil them up on your stove with your beer, and you can get extra bitterness and great flavour from them. If you want a suggestion for a recipe let me know, happy to help.

All of the suggestions everybody has made here are very valid. any combination will make your beer better. but the best advice is what Dan Dan says, dont be put off! everyone was starting out once.

 

[Byran]

Easy kit improvements in order of importance
1. Sanitation get some starsan a spray bottle and be anal. A test to see how clean you are being is to take a glass of wort just before you pitch put some glad wrap over it. Then check to see how long it takes for it to go gross 3 days+ is good less than that u need work.
2. Temp control stc1000 20 bucks + second hand chest freezer 60 bucks
3. Good yeast at a good pitch rate I like safale s05 5 bucks for 11.5 grams
4. Substitute dextrose for sugar and to step up again get some light dme
5. Leave it in the fermenter for at least 2 weeks if you have temp control drop it to 1c after 2 weeks for two more weeks.
6. I would suggest trying the Morgans blue mountain lager best kit I have done 16 bucks much better hoppy ness than other kits.
That's all I have got hope it helps.
JJJ

All this stuff

 

[NewtownClown]

I don't get it...
You haven't brewed three "beers". You brewed two Ciders and a Ginger Beer. No wonder they don't measure up to your beloved VB

 

[Bribie G]

I think he meant three batches of beer plus the other brews. However I honestly wouldn't be mucking about with adding honey or suchlike until you have the basic beer sorted. Every honey beer I've ever tried reminds me of the old blue toilet blocks they used to have in the urninals in country pubs.

I'd go right back to basics, get a fairly inoffensive Coopers Kit such as their Lager. Then chuck the kit yeast (it's Mauribrew which isn't too bad for what it is, but you can do a bit better) and get a packet of US-05 yeast. Use Coopers Brew Enhancer 2 (not 1) and try to keep the fermentation below 20.

See how you go with that and by all means chuck in some aroma hops, Home brew shops sell "teabags" that are good to try although a bit expensive for regular use.

 

[Impy]

4. Substitute dextrose for sugar and to step up again get some light dme

Really? I thought Dex was an improvement over table sugar?

 

[NewtownClown]

I don't get it...
You haven't brewed three "beers". You brewed two Ciders and a Ginger Beer. No wonder they don't measure up to your beloved VB

My bad. Must remember to consume a 3rd cup of coffee before I can expect comprehension to kick in.
3 Beers plus the Cider and GB...

My kit brews improved substantially when I discovered the recipes on the coopers website...
I still throw one together every now and then for a quick-to-brew keg filler...

 

[Impy]

My bad. Must remember to consume a 3rd cup of coffee before I can expect comprehension to kick in.
3 Beers plus the Cider and GB...

My kit brews improved substantially when I discovered the recipes on the coopers website...
I still throw one together every now and then for a quick-to-brew keg filler...

From what i've heard the kit Ginger Beer isn't very nice anyway (it has lots of artificial sweetener in it) so don't be put off by that one.