Am I becomming a Beer Snob?

I have done a few Partial mashes, 1 extract, 1 All grain and 2 Coopers kits. I have to say that all of the beers that I have made have been excellent. My wife won't drink anything but Dos XX so I made her the Coopers Cerveza as a cheap brew, it was ok and even better a few months later. So I decide to brew a Coopers Stout as a quick way to replenish a B3 Stout Extract that I ran out of. I keep reading that I shouldn't throw any beer out, but its been sitting in the Keg for 2 months now, and I just can't stomach it. It really taste bland , not like there's anything wrong with it, just not a stout. It taste like a dark sweet Coopers Cerveza. I guess it doesnt help that it finished carbing just as my first All grain AHS Fat Tire Clone was done. The All grain Fat Tire clone is spot on and all I can say is that its wonderful, I won't even tell anyone about it for fear that they will want some. So is it just in my head (snob) or do all of these Coopers kits taste the same , they have this awkward after taste. The Cerveza kit taste great... with some lime I guess. It's just that i've heard many brewers on this forum say they have made some great beer with these kits... I just dont seem how. The B3 Stout extract kit I made had steeping grains and I just found a bottle of it in the cooler... that beer was great. I guess its all in the extra steeping grains and hops that made it great. I really dont want to be a snob...I was really hoping those Coopers Kits could have lived up to the reviews i read.

Steeping grains adds more dimension and depth of flavor than simple extract only recipes; your palate is becoming more sophisticated and you are becoming more discerning in what you like. Nothing wrong with that!

Yeah I'm sure that's it, but that still leaves me with wut to do with the 5 gallons of stout i have sitting in the cooler. I guess I could cook or marinate with it.

jesserc said:

I guess I could cook or marinate with it.

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Excellent idea! Stout works great in stews.

flyangler18 said:

Excellent idea! Stout works great in stews.

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5 Gallons??

You could always add a hop tea, or steep some grains and then force carb it again. Or, give it to someone who is not a beer snob.

You know I have really thought about doing just that. Has anyone ever done this before with success. What exactly would I add and how much. It looks pretty light in color for a stout.

Am I becoming a Beer Snob?

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If you have to ask.... then.... no.

Nothing wrong with not enjoying a particular type of brew or a specific brew. I think perhaps if you were to judge others based on the kinds of beer they enjoyed or don't enjoy then you might be a beer snob. But just not enjoying one yourself shouldn't make you a snob.

No I dont judge others, but I am a little skeptical of trying another Coopers kit. I mean there's not a whole lot of room for error on those kits. I bought the AHS add pack kit with it. Maybe its just the stout kit that has issues. Anyone ever have good results with Coopers Stout?

I instantly judge anyone who enjoys the following beers and I won't apologize for it:

Coors Light (and they call it a silver bullet)
Keystone Light (isn't this coors' sloppy seconds?)
Natural Light
Camo XXX 40's (tastes like macaroni and cheese with a hint of rusty barbed wire)

I instantly judge everyone I come in contact with. It's in the job description.

Have you ever heard of a black and tan? They even make a special doohickey for making it. I am given to understand it is basically a mix of a stout and a pale ale. Well not really mixed but together in the same glass. Of course if you don't like the stout you would probably be just ruining a pale ale.

Beer makes good fertilizer too. Water the rhododendron with it. I fertilize the shrubbery out in the yard pretty regularly with mine. After properly filtered of course.

The AHS clones I've done have been excellent. They have one for Dos Equis, but I have no idea how good it is. It hasn't been reviewed on their site either.

jesserc said:

I was really hoping those Coopers Kits could have lived up to the reviews i read.

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Was it the Original Series Coopers Stout that you made? What were the additional fermentables and the procedures that you used to make the beer? The Coopers Brewmaster Selection Series Irish Stout may have been more what you were looking for in a stout. It uses an English Ale yeast strain and comes out dryer. Also, there are aroma hops added. The Original Series Stout uses the original Coopers yeast.

I did buy the Coopers Brewmaster Selection: Irish Stout from AHS with the add pack. I did however add .75 lbs of lactose because I wanted it a bit sweeter. The instructions say it makes 6 gallons, however I did 5.5. I did not add any other fermenatable other than the AHS add pack. I never did reach a good final gravity. It got stuck at 1.020, OG was 1.05. After 10 days I added another pack of nottingham, but after 3 weeks it still did not drop, I know the lactose adds a few gravity points that wont ferment out, but I thought I could get it lower. I think I'll just let it sit , maybe I'll make an AHS AG stout and mix some of it with it. I really like doing AG, but when I am in a pinch for time , I was hoping these kits could atleast tie me over till I can do an AG brew. Its hard to get a good stout in the stores these days. I am looking for something a bit comparable to a Bridgeport Stout, they used to carry it at my local HEB, but no more. I'm hoping AHS has something comparable.

Talloak said:

I instantly judge anyone who enjoys the following beers and I won't apologize for it:

Coors Light (and they call it a silver bullet)
Keystone Light (isn't this coors' sloppy seconds?)
Natural Light
Camo XXX 40's (tastes like macaroni and cheese with a hint of rusty barbed wire)

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I only judge people who drink michelob ultra, and they are not worthy of an explanation let alone an apology.

I actually don't mind Coors Light. I don't love it or anything, but I like it better than all the other mass produced domestic offerings. I will drink anything, though. Except Heineken.

The problem is I am starting to judge myself everytime I take a sip of that Coopers Stout.

I do not approve of this thread

I am new so ignore me when I am off-base...
I have the Coopers fermenter.
My first batch I changed up the fermentables.
The beer kit comes with a can of lager and 'brewing sugar'.
They also sell 'brew enhancer 1' and 'brew enhancer 2' as well as DME and LME (I believe). I made my first batch with the Australian Pale Ale (can) extract, the (box) brew enhancer 2 and I added (prolly too much and prolly too early) 2oz. of cascade hops (pellets) from AHS after 5 days fermenting (dry hopping). I wanted a crisper finish with 'enhanced' mouth-feel.
I guess my point is that I believe the kits will come out far different depending on what you do to them before/during/after.
I intend on trying (THIS recipe) for 'Cascading Coopers Pale Ale' by Brewtopia Homebrew Supplies.
I believe it will work out great although I messed up and ordered too much dark malt so I will have to decide what I am going to do with it (mixed and milled all grains together).
That's a topic for a different thread though.

Thanks for your advice on adding additional adjuncts to the kit, but if I am going to go to the trouble of boiling, I might as well do a mini mash or all grain recipe, I was really just looking at the kits for something quick and easy. I was using AHS add pack and just using hot water to dilute and mix the can then topping off with cold water. It was ridiculously easy but the taste was just not there.

I did the mini-mash kit for the AHS Blue Moon Belguim White. A little more work but not so much so that I wouldn't do it again. I can see doing a steep/boil. Not sure a full AG is in my future though. Seems like a lot of work for the same results as a mini-mash (to ME) as I do not have a 30qt. kettle and 2.5 gallons seems doable but I like making the 'concentrate' and topping off with water.

A couple of years ago, I got into a discussion about beer snobbery that went downhill very fast.

Myself and a couple of others began equating beer snob with beer facist. It was ugly.

Personally, I live my life according to the "to each their own" philosophy. But whatever.