Homebrand Toucan With 2 Kit Yeasts

[Coach_R]

Hi all did my first toucan brew last week, just to try it out. i grabbed 2 homebrand lager cans from woolies and made it up to 23 litres and added both the yeasts from the cans. I've added some steeped Herbrucker hops to it too (30g). Temperature stayed around 19 and 20 for fermentation (just assumed through lack of instructions these yeasts would be like the coopers ones.. not real lager yeast)

So i have read a bit on this and seen many people saying that it would froth like crazy out of the air lock. this didnt occur..

so my 1st question is did i just get lucky or are those homebrand yeasts a bit weaker then most??

and 2ndly cos it is with 2 cans will the hop additions have been a waste?

 

[WarmBeer]

Haven't tried the Homebrand kits, so can't talk from any experience. Most of the kit yeasts are actually pretty hardy, assuming they haven't been sitting on the shelves for 2 years or out on a dock awaiting transport in 40 deg.

Don't worry about the froth, or lack thereof. The only way to ensure fermentation is complete is by measuring your final gravity over a period of three consecutive days. You did remember to take an initial gravity reading, didn't you

As for the Hersbrucker, I think it should work in well. The kits I have made in the past haven't been big on hop aroma, so adding in a steeped "hop tea" should give a nice up-front hoppy smell that you wouldn't otherwise get.

Let us know how it goes.

 

[Coach_R]

Oh yeah took the 3 final readings (my hydrometer is my friend! haha) just didnt get unusually large amounts of froth i was expecting from what i had read.. will try in about month hopefully should be tasty

 

[Coach_R]

So just poured out my first beer of this brew, it has been in the bottle for almost 4 weeks now and im pretty impressed with it considering it was just a random try to see 1. what the homebrand lager was like and 2. what a toucan was like. it pours an almost burnt orange, rusty colour with a nice creamy head that lasts almost to the last sip. the taste is pretty bitter but not too much.. (not for my tastes anyway) was a little worried it would end up crazy bitter.. haha.

Anyway this has given me a lot of confidence and i am going to do a toucan dark ale for my next brew so it can sit for a while until the colder months (also a stout after this one).. i am thinking along the lines of something like this -

2x coopers dark ale kits
150g choc malt
150g cara aroma
500g dex
20g POR @ 20 mins
20g POR @ end
yeast not sure yet prob just both coopers yeasts..

sugestions and recipe changes are more than welcome

this will be my first time steeping grains but have read alot about this and i am pretty sure i've wrapped my head around it seems easy enough

Happy drinking :chug: