Toucan Virgin

[slowlearner]

It's time to have a crack.....planning a toucan using a COOPERS lager and a COOPERS stout to make a black'n'tan. As a self confessed newbie, I'm looking for the wisdom of those who have gone before me.
Other threads elsewhere suggest pitching one yeast, others suggest two. Some say use a bit of dex, which I assume will up the alc%. I'm all for a heavy but more interested in experimenting.....with flavour that is. get ya mind out of the gutter you FILTHY boy! :angry:
Am I right in assuming a kit with no dex, just yeast will produce 2.5%-3% if final volume is 23ltr.
If so, 2 kits should give 5%-6%? (thank you grade 4 maths. best 2 years of my life... :blink: )
Any other extracts readily available anyone can think of to add some interesting flavours???
Hops idea's???? Not real interested in lots of bitterness, more aroma than bitterness.
thanx in advance for any and all suggestions/advise. me + my unborn beer owe you a debt of gratitude not easily repaid.

 

[Plastic Man]

Pitch both yeasts for sure.

You say "Not real interested in lots of bitterness"

Keep in mind that 1 can is designed to give a 23l batch a specific bitterness. If you pitch 2 cans in 23l you will get a relatively high bitterness level - as 2 cans was "designed" for 46 litres. This is not necessarily a bad thing if the resulting beer remains balanced, but something to keep in mind. If you don't want too high a bitterness level it maybe better to go to your LHBS and buy a can of unhopped malt extract and use that instead.

Using some recultured coopers yeast from a few stubbies will also improve this. See WIKI for instructions. A beer and liquid yeast in the same pack. You can't go wrong !!

 

[Brewtus]

Toucan is an adventure into bitterness. Sort of like taking sides in someone else's divorce.

 

[buttersd70]

The coopers stout has a hefty whack of bitterness in the tin. If you toucan it with a lager, you will end up with 1046OG and 48IBU , which is a massively bitter 105% BU:GU.

If you do the stout with 1.5kg unhopped lme, you will get a OG of 1043, with 31IBU, giving a more reasonable 72% BUGU.

If you do 2 tins of lager together, with nothing else, you get OG 1046, 34IBU, and 75%BUGU, which is about what it should be.
(personally, I think that these 2 brews mixed post ferment would be a nice drop.)

If you want to black and tan, I would suggest brewing the cans seperately, and then blending as you drink. Or, if you want to experiment, and have 2 fermenters and a cube available, you could brew them at the same time, bottle 1/2 the lager, bottle 1/2 the stout, and mix the other 2 halves and then bottle the result.

 

[Interloper]

+1 for the high bitterness factor of toucan brews - but if you whack a toucan brew down now it will condition over time and soften up a lot.

If you're going to leave it for 4 months, or more, or even if you're brewing it for next winter then that extra bitterness will really soften off into a tasty flavour.

I have found some of my pale ale brews that I let sit for months have lost almost all their bitterness. Should have quaffed them at the 8 week mark, not the 4 month mark.

+100 for more time in the bottle. The toucan is a beast not best drunk young.

 

[Bribie G]

I did a toucan Coopers Lager with no additions at all, and have ended up with a very very nice beer, with a basic bitterness that seems to balance out the extra sweetness and maltiness. As we are moving into summer in SEQ I intend to go onto ales till next winter, but will brew the toucan now and again for a supply of "Lager". Just be careful with the froth bubbling up through the fermenter.

p.s. I just used the one yeast, handled it fine.

 

[0M39A]

personally i would say just brew them both together, and add some more malt if you want more alcohol (stay away from dextrose in a beer this bitter).

but thats just me personally, and i love strong bitter beers. I have a twocan stout (+1kg dark malt, a little bit of liquorice extract and some willamette hops) thats about 3-4 months old now and is damn nice for my taste.

if youre worried about bitterness, go for a twocan coopers lager/canadian/cerveza which are all rather low in bitterness.

horses for courses

 

[Bribie G]

I have a twocan stout (+1kg dark malt, a little bit of liquorice extract and some willamette hops) thats about 3-4 months old now and is damn nice for my taste.

if youre worried about bitterness, go for a twocan coopers lager/canadian/cerveza which are all rather low in bitterness.

horses for courses

I read OM's post about the Coopers Stout Toucan on another thread and was inspired to do something similar last week and put it away for Christmas. 2 Coopers Stout, 1kg LDME and 750g Dex. Took the lid off this morning to to top up to 24.5 L and add some fuggles pellets. Of course after giving it a stir I had a big spoonful slurp. Yum. Even at this stage I don't see it being too bitter for me. Like OM says, horses for courses.

On his other point, for a nice mild but well bodied brew the Morgans Canadian Light beats the Crapper out of the Coopers IMHO and would be a good candidate for a toucan and I'm thinking of doing one plus aroma hops as a Christmas Lager and put it away for 4 months. I did an 'improved' Morgans Canadian single can a couple of months ago with Carapils, LDME, aroma hops etc and it's turned out great so I can recommend the brand.