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**GreenDragon** · 03-31-2011, 02:04 PM

So my wife wanted some wheat beer for the summer. I don't normally drink wheat beer so I decided to take it easy and go with the Cooper's Wheat Beer kit. Link to it HERE

I was doing my final gravity testing and drinking the test beer in the hydro tube (as required by law!). I noticed that it's got a pretty strong sweet, almost honey like flavor to it. Now the LME was pre-hopped so I have no idea what was actually in the LME but I'm NOT a fan of flavored beer. Have others done the Cooper's Wheat Beer kit? Did it come out semi-sweet?

My brewing process is below:

Luckily I stumbled across another coopers post and realized you're NOT supposed to boil the LME so I didn't (I just heated the can in hot water like others suggested).

I did NOT use the included yeast, it scared me, one small dry packet at room temp that had been shipped in the mail. Instead I used Wyeast 3333. I made a starter for the yeast and left it on the stir plate for a good 48 hours before I pitched it.

I used Austin's Alcohol Boost. I figured if I'm gonna have to drink wheat beer it might as well have a decent alcohol content. I mixed it in while boiling like the instructions stated to do. OG was 1.058, FG was 1.010 which should be around 6.1% alcohol

I also aerated the wort for a good 40 mins after pitching. I'm not joking when I say the damn thing actively fermented for a good 12+ days. Airlock activity, gravity readings falling, everything for almost two solid weeks. I'm not sure if it was the alcohol boost that caused the long ferment or the yeast or the aeration, but by far the longest ferment of the 3 batches I've done now. I left the previous two batches in the primary for 2+ weeks for conditioning but most of the fermenting was done after 4-5 days.

Anyhow, it's pretty good for flat wheat beer. It will be better after it bottle carbs (using the coopers carb drops that came with the kit), but will the honey taste at least mellow out a bit?

edb23 · 03-31-2011, 02:15 PM

the coopers wheat kit i did was also a little on the sweet side, but i've found that bottle conditioning, chilling, and carbonation all change a beer a whole lot, so put it in the bottles and see what happens

**unionrdr** · 03-31-2011, 02:16 PM

I've had the last batch I did with my own recipe revolving around a cooper's kit take longer to finish. Took 3 solid weeks to reach FG. And that was with a starter as well! My first one (cooper's OS lager with micro brew kit) took 12 days to finish & clean up. It seems to be quite common when you're trying to get it right all the way through.
I wondered if the starter I made worked too hard for the 1st 4 days,taking longer to keep going after that? Like the yeast cells slow down their reproductive rate?...

**C-Rider** · 03-31-2011, 06:16 PM

I've got a Cooper's Wheat in the fridge chillin to drinking temps.
It was in the primary for 19 days outside under the back deck. Daytime temps between 76 & 72.
Conditioned about 2 weeks at 70*
Tasted a few along the condition way and it was good for unfinished beer, not great. Also I too noticed a little sweetness, but not over poweringly sweet.

**GreenDragon** · 03-31-2011, 06:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by C-Rider

It was in the primary for 19 days outside under the back deck. Daytime temps between 76 & 72.

Don't take this the wrong way... but I hate you

During those same 19 days here in KS we went from -20F wind chills to almost 90F!

**C-Rider** · 03-31-2011, 07:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GreenDragon

Don't take this the wrong way... but I hate you

During those same 19 days here in KS we went from -20F wind chills to almost 90F!

I grew up in Brooklyn and thought I knew about cold
Joined the navy and spent a winter at Great Lakes w/25 days in a row below 0 and the coldest was -35. Didn't talk about wind chill back in the early 60's.
Then the sent me to HAWAI`I and I never wanted to be cold again. Been here since Nov. 63 and LOVE IT.