hi
welcome...yeah at first it can be daunting ...don't stress
okay you got a tin of coopers pale ale...you haven't said if you have any sugar (light dried malt ,dextrose,maltodextrin...etc...)to put with it ...have you any finishing hops...
also you forgot to tell us what type of beer you like to drink (xxxx,vb....or maybe something nice like coopers pale ale or coopers sparkling ale....english bitters....little creature pale ale...hell your brew probably won't end up tasting exactly like it ...or even close to it at all ...but it gives us a starting point...)
okay that said never mind...
heres a foolproof recipe....dead easy...without the hops i've mentioned and the yeast the beer will be pretty bland say as bland as xxxx or vb but still its a start ...then after this one maybe you'll feel confident to move onto some other stuff)
recipe as follows...you need these things if you don't have go to the local home brew store and get em or try the supermarket but the home brew store is better ....they'll give you advice as well as have hops....
you need
1 x can coopers pale ale
1x 500 g light dried malt *
1x 250 g dextrose *
1 x 250 g maltodextrin (also called corn syrup) *
okay the thing (sugars )with the astrix<*> ...you should be able to buy pre mixed in a 1 kg bag ask you local home brew store dude for them ...while your at it buy an additional 500 g bag of light dried malt...
1 x 50 g bag hops try willamette hops if you like (optional)
1x packet of safale-04 (yeast) (again optional)
sanatise everything ....enough said...
1...now take can of pale ale ....unopened and sit it in a pot of recently boiled water...leave it and follow other steps...(DO NOT BOIL) just pour the hot water and walk away from it
2...in another pot put 2-3 litres of water and heat until its hot not boiling but hot...
3...now put 250 grams of light dried malt to your pot in step (2) stir in well till dissolved...
4....heat it until it just begins to boil...stir when needed don't walk away from the pot at this stage...it may boil over...when it just begins to boil turn down the heat until its just a rolling boil (as in it just ticks over slowly ...but is still visibly moving)
5... add 15 g of your hops now for 10 minutes ....(that is if you are using willamette hops )
6... 5 mins after you have added your hops dissolve the sugars following into the boil...1x 500 g light dried malt *, 1 x 250 g dextrose *,1 x 250 g maltodextrin (also called corn syrup) *...stir well do not let suagrs stick to bottom of pot ...
7..10 minutes after you added your hops turn off heat to pot ..(if using an electric stove remove from element altoghter ) drop in 10 g more of willamette hops...PUT ON LID >>>DO NOT LIFT LID
8...fill a container ...sink bath ...what ever with cold water before you start any of this and put in it frozen water bottles to chill it down...do a trial run first and make sure that the level of chilled water won't flow into your brew pot when you sit it in there ...the water bottles your using to cool it down may as well be used to part fill your fermenter later so try to be santary with it all okay..
9...sit brew pot in water bath leave to cool down...change water in bath if nessacary you want the liquid in the brew pot fairly cool ....DO NOT LIFT THE LID TO SEE >>>feel the outside of the pot if you must...
10...when your brew pot is fairly cool ...you can now open your now pretty hot tin of coopers pale ale ....
dump it into your fermenter...add a little hot water maybe a litre or so....just to mix it a bit...
now add your brew pot contents...mix well ...really well ...a bit off froth won't hurt
11...now add cold water till your at the 20 to 23 litres mark off your fermenter....****what i do is have on hand at least
5 x 2 litres frozen bottles of water that ive allowed to melt some what ...partially frozen is even better....
its from these that i fill my fermenter...you want the liquid in your fermenter to be about 18- 22 /c when you have her filled to the desired level ...(so you can pitch your yeast at a good temp...)
12...cut open your yeast packet ...sprinkle on top of liquid in fermenter ...stir it if you like...i don't but many do...close lid...move to where your going to ferment it ...put in airlock...
13..read these threads ...your going to try and ferment this under 22/c ....18-20 /c is ideal ....
threads as follows for frementation temp...if you can't get a 100 can cooler use your inmagination...large cardboard box from havry norman ...old fridge what ever ...if temps where you are are cold then try a search for keeping it warm ...just try and stick to the fermentation of 18-20/c if you can >>>BUT DO NOT STRESS
http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum/inde...showtopic=13615
EDIT found a thread on ways to heat fermenter when cold as below
thread for heating fermenter
http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum/inde...=15561&st=0
also heres a thread to another post i did ...its got heaps of links to ....well just about every bloody thing i've ever read ...
thread to every bloody thing ....mine is post # 5
http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum/inde...showtopic=14202
14...your done ....ferment out and bottle and enjoy....fermentation temp is critical okay ....not over 22/c
15...good luck
16...don't give up ...you'll get it just have fun and try ...do not stress ...
17...read heaps ....
18 cheers simpletotoro ...pm me if you want clarification on anything i've written ok ..
anyone else feel free to disagree ....let me now okay...i'm still learning to ...
okay the recipe you maybe just made would look like this ...
1x tin cooper pale ale
750 g light dried malt
250 g dextrose
250 g maltodextrin
hops willamette
15 g willamtte @ 10 mins
10 g willamette @ flame out
yeast safale-04 (hopefully pitched at 18-20/c
fermented at 18- 20/c
goodluck ...try it its not that hard....