New brewer - how much can I get wrong?

[Foxfire]

So after a trip from Brisbane down to the Snowy mountains and back again, my wife and I finally decided to crack the bucket and dust out the brewing stuff my friend had given us last year.

After discovering the home brew shop shuts at 1pm on a Saturday (after a night where I discovered home made baileys, caramel vodka and milk, 'The Lattino', tastes fantastic) we hit up a Big W to get some Coopers kit for me to try as it's my first go and my wife is working on a mead recipe she found.

All good so far - the Big W had a couple of extra coopers recipe flyers so I decided to go with an Irish Ale. It's one of their recipes that involves the addition of golden syrup.

We got home, cleaned, washed, sanitized and got ready to start getting things together.

I had done a bit of reading, but not too much as I need to actually do things before I really start understanding them. I'd also read the Coopers instructions and watched the video on the Coopers website.

So here's where we start getting things wrong

Step 1) Didn't peel the can before soaking it in hot water. (rolls eyes at himself)

Step 2) I don't think I mixed the can of goo with the enhancer properly before pouring in the cool water to get it to 21l

It should have been properly aired as I had to pour the water in getting it up to 21l so that was a fair bit of splashing.

Step 3) Didn't have a working thermometer strip or temp gauge, so kind of had to guess that it was the right temp (it felt about room temp of 24)

Step 4) This I blame on the instructions - the Coopers instructions say to get in the yeast in asap. So I took an OG reading and pitched the yeast (not rehydrated or anything, just straight from the packet). OG reading was 1.030 which I now know is pretty darn low. I'm not sure if it actually was that low or whether I hadn't stirred/aired/temp properly. I was in a bit of a rush as the instructions were 'get the yeast in asap!!'

Step 5) So then I pitched the yeast, lidded it and put it in the spare room - I hadn't read a lot about temp control and swamp baths etc at this point, so it was more thinking the last week would be approx about 24 this time of year and that should be 'good enough' for a first try. Sunday turned out to be about 31-32 degrees and we were out of the house all day.

When we got home it was still fermenting away heavily. However when I woke up on monday morning fermentation had pretty much stopped. I took a reading in the morning and it was about 1.24 and at lunch time it was 1.22 - so I stopped in the home brew shop, grabbed some thermo strips and some stuff for the wife. The guy said as long as the SG was decreasing it should be fine.

It then got down to 1.018 on monday night and since then it's pretty much stalled. I did open it and give it a swirl with a sanitized spoon to try and stir it up as I read that in a few comments around forums (I'm not sure if that's a mistake or not). It doesn't seem to have made a lot of difference.

I'm not sure what to do from here - it'll be 6 days this evening and it's been pretty stable for the most part (I've taken pretty much daily SG readings as I've a tap on the bottom of the barrel and have been over-excited ;p) but it hasn't changed from 1.018. The coopers site says the irish ale should be about 1.012 or so.

I'm not sure where to go from here -
Do I get some more yeast to pitch and risk cross-yeast infection?
Do I swirl?
Today was apparently 30degrees again (go brisbane! /sarcasm) so it should have got a lot warmer today to see if warming it would help.
Do I bottle on the weekend? The Coopers instructions say it should be about a 7 day ferment and I like following instructions because then I know how useful or not they are later on. But I'm worried 1.018 is too high and I'm risking some bombs that way. If it was 1.020 or over I'd definitely not bottle.
Or do I go with something else?

 

[CrookedFingers]

Hi Foxfire,
pitching extra yeast can't hurt, swirling can also help but don't open the fermenter, just lift it up a little and swirl it around. That way you know you haven't upped your risk of nastys getting in.
What ever you do don't bottle yet !!!
You find out as you read more that 14 days or so is a popular amount of time used by many brewers. Myself included.
How do the sample taste ?
Stalls happen often, hope it comes down a little bit more for ya mate !
Good luck !

CF

 

[Foxfire]

Samples are tasting ok and there's been a noticeable taste difference over the days even though the SG hasn't been changing.

 

[Nizmoose]

Not sure I have any suggestions on how to improve this batch but there are a few things I can tell you based on my experience as I am just starting out as well. There are some things you mentioned that are good things to get right and should always be done however from my experience hasn't effected the end result to the point of it tasting bad, perhaps just not as good as it could have. For example not making a yeast starter. I've simply sprinkled the yeast on top of the foam in the fermenter at about room temp and then folded it in a bit and fermentation was fine, done the label thing as well, from what I've experienced getting the little things right will turn an okay beer into a good beer, but when starting out as long as you don't make massive temp, infection and ingredient errors you should be pleased enough with the result

 

[Liam_snorkel]

check your hydrometer in 20deg water (if you don't have a thermometer - brissy tap water should be close enough) - should read 1.000

also, if you give us the full recipe we can estimate the finishing gravity. Or you could have a crack at plugging it into this spreadsheet: http://aussiehomebrewer.com/topic/29655-kit-and-extract-beer-spreadsheet/

 

[gsouth82]

Just looked up my notes on the Irish Ale I brewed as per the Coopers website back in Oct 2012. I haven't made it again since because it didn't offer a lot of flavour. Perfectly drinkable but not very exciting...anyway I digress.

heres my notes:
- boil 2L water on stove. turn off and add golden syrup
- Add BE1 to fermenter and add hot water. Stir
- add draught tin. stir
- top up with tap water to 21L
- OG 1.049
- pitch rehydrated yeast at 19 degrees
- day 6 1.020
- day 9 1.018
- day 10 1.016. Kegged

I was using temperature control so my ferment will have been a little slower than yours.
I probably kegged early but didn't have to worry about exploding bottles. I was obviously impatient/thirsty.

My recommendation based on my experience would be to leave it for another week and you could very well hit 1.012. An extra pack of yeast could help.

 

[Blitzer]

Please read this and also Liam Snorkel's advice.. your hydrometer. If it's from the coopers kit is bound to be wrong..

Test cold tap water, it should be 1.000 if it's not please adjust your reading based on if it's high or low. As if it's reading like 1.006 in tap water then technically you are already at 1.012.

If would underline and bold this advice, definitely before pitching yeast, shaking your fermenter, making it hotter or any such thing.

 

[Foxfire]

Just looked up my notes on the Irish Ale I brewed as per the Coopers website back in Oct 2012. I haven't made it again since because it didn't offer a lot of flavour. Perfectly drinkable but not very exciting...anyway I digress.

heres my notes:
- boil 2L water on stove. turn off and add golden syrup
- Add BE1 to fermenter and add hot water. Stir
- add draught tin. stir
- top up with tap water to 21L
- OG 1.049
- pitch rehydrated yeast at 19 degrees
- day 6 1.020
- day 9 1.018
- day 10 1.016. Kegged

I was using temperature control so my ferment will have been a little slower than yours.
I probably kegged early but didn't have to worry about exploding bottles. I was obviously impatient/thirsty.

My recommendation based on my experience would be to leave it for another week and you could very well hit 1.012. An extra pack of yeast could help.

That's it. I picked it as there wasn't a lot on offer (I hadn't checked their website to see the different varieties and I didn't like the straight can options. I'm more of an IPA fan these days. I just wanted something drinkable to start with.

The hydrometer came from the stuff from the friend, I didn't actually buy a coopers kit, just the can and brew enhancer. I tested it the other day in brissie tap water and it came out 1.000. So I think it's ok for the beer at the moment.

 

[donttouchstevesbeer]

My coopers plastic hydrometer was out by heaps. I ended up cutting the red bit down and getting it spot on. I used it all the time cos it could handle getting dropped but it eventually died

 

[poppa joe]

Throw the Coopers instructions away........And learn from here ..
Coopers Instructions are way out of wack..
PJ

 

[Foxfire]

Throw the Coopers instructions away........And learn from here ..
Coopers Instructions are way out of wack..
PJ

I'll agree with that - after having done it and then read up on things. I can't believe how many things could be sorted with just a simple Do's and Don'ts page on their intructions, or video. It's pretty stressful on the first batch when you aren't sure whether things are going right or wrong.

If the Coopers come with plastic hydrometers, then mine is definitely not from there as it's a glass one.

 

[Hoppers]

there is a wealth if information to be had here, Also talk to your LHBS who will be able to point you in the right direction

my issue when starting out was paitence. Waiting for fermentation to end, waiting for bottles to carbonate and mature.........

 

[Foxfire]

my issue when starting out was paitence. Waiting for fermentation to end, waiting for bottles to carbonate and mature.........

This. This so many times!

 

[Scooby Tha Newbie]

Plastic bottles?

 

[Foxfire]

Don't have plastic ones at the moment - have a bunch of freebie - tallie, stubbie, champagne bottles.

Also with beer and mead, when do you read the hydrometer?
As soon as it stops? do you let it float for 10secs? let it float for minutes? I ask because I'm not sure if it's bubbles or adjusting to the sugar content. I had a reading this evening that was 1.015 - however after about 5-10secs it floated up a bit higher to 1.018 and then after a few minutes settled on about 1.020 or so.

 

[TheWiggman]

Kygnvcngf

 

[mr_wibble]

Also with beer and mead, when do you read the hydrometer?

You can spin it, all the bubbles come off.
If carbonation is a real problem, just let it set there until it goes flat.

But I usually let mine only set for a few seconds, until it stops bobbing - but I *do* check for bubbles attached to it before reading.

Could the reading be changing because of temperature changes?
Is there a significant temperature difference between room and wort.

Hydrometers are calibrated at a certain temperature (since Specific Gravity is temperature dependant (think warm honey Vs cold honey)).
AFAIK most (all?) of them are calibrated to 20C.
Your hydrometer may have come with a table, but you can also use online calculators ~ http://www.brewersfriend.com/hydrometer-temp/
Differences around ambient temperatures aren't so much though.

I know it's fun to peek and prod, but try to be patient and leave it alone.
I rarely touch my beer before it's been fermenting for 2 weeks, and I'm not saying this is ideal for all beers, but it's an OK rule of thumb when you're beginning.

 

[TheWiggman]

Kygnvcngf

I'd like to apologise for my 3 year old son hijacking this thread on my smartphone while I made the kids' breakfast.

Re: stalled fermentation. If you bottle and the temp's been high, I can't see you creating bottle bombs. The yeast in suspension will do its work on the additional sugar/carb drops and should stop once that's been fermented. I've done many kit brews from back in the days with less 'to the book' methods and have never had an explosion. Anyone who knows better please step in.

On a more related note, it's looks like you've done everything right that a new brewer could. If you don't have fermentation control then the temp will be what it will be, and if there's anything you could do to improve your scenerio it would be to ferment at lower temps.
The best advice I would offer is -

1. Be patient
2. Be prepared to make mistakes
3. Learn from others' mistakes as well

Done! Coopers kits have a lot of margin for error. As you've probably learnt from the thousands of threads on this forum, if making good beer was as easy as the instructions say then why would this forum exist? It's as much an art as a science.

Give it as much time as it needs, wait until you get the same SG a few days in a row, then bottle. Wait at least 2 weeks, set up your favourite deck chair on the back porch, and watch the sunset fall as you enjoy the first drop of alcohol that you can honestly say you made yourself.

 

[Foxfire]

I'd like to apologise for my 3 year old son hijacking this thread on my smartphone while I made the kids' breakfast.

Haha I was wondering, wasn't sure if it was you just being un-intelligible with rage due to my errors.

To tide away the time I made the Brewsmiths Hoppy heart IPA on Friday night. The errors continue! I was so excited about it (and maybe a little beered) that I forgot to take an OG reading.

Having said that, I really like the smaller 5litre kits. They seem a lot more fun to experiment with. The Wife made their chocolate paradise porter.

Then I threw together a Hoegaarden clone from a Morgans kit that I picked up from a brew shop on saturday.

Apparently I'm quite impatient and to fill the time till OTBD (Open The Bottle Day) I'm mixing up as much as possible. We've had swamp baths for the brewsmith stuff and the Hoegaarden to keep the temp as close to 21 as we can manage and so far it's working pretty well. Much better than just crossing my fingers and praying anyway.

Is there a good place to get 5 litre recipes from? I haven't really found any so far and I've no idea what I'm doing with starting from scratch and no kit yet, but I like the idea of having about 4 x 5litre demijohns going with different varieties, as opposed to 1 x 21litre drum of the same stuff.

 

[toncils]

Sounds an awful lot like you're worried! First batches are usually a bit shite, but you learn from everything.

Don't worry, relax, have a home brew! (or a commercial, if it's your first batch)