Want a clone for Vex coolers ? (fruit coolers)

My wife and her friends really like these fruit coolers. They are made with vodka, but could I get close with a really light malt and almost no hops ? Anyone done something like these ?

http://www.bcliquorstores.com/en/products/31807

Oh, and the other "beer" they like is Corona... should I dare ask... *laughs

brewman ! said:

My wife and her friends really like these fruit coolers. They are made with vodka, but could I get close with a really light malt and almost no hops ? Anyone done something like these ?

http://www.bcliquorstores.com/en/products/31807

Oh, and the other "beer" they like is Corona... should I dare ask... *laughs

Click to expand...

Are you sure its made with vodka? Surprisingly, most of those types of drinks are actually a malt liquor. They use rice as the fermentable, which gives you a minimal amount of flavor and is a good base for adding whatever flavors and artificial colorings you want.

So could you make something like it? Sure! Maybe use some light malt, but I'd say focus on rice syrup and corn sugar. Ideally, you will use campden tablets to kill the yeast so that you can add sugar to make the concoction sweet. Then carb it with CO2. Make a couple gallons, and then divide it up into 20 batches and try a bunch of flavorings. Here are some of my silly suggestions:

Frozen or pureed fruit (kind of like a lambic, but without the pesky beer flavor)
or Just add lemonade mix
Other Kool-Aid mixes
RootBeer extract (yum!)

Good ideas, Toot ! Thanks.

7kg of sugar, 23l water, 1 pack of turbo yeast, ferment for one week.
Filter with active carbon, clear. Poor through filter paper.

You'll have a 14% syrup that you can add to fruit juice and then bottle to carbonate or add to a soda 50/50 and serve.

Is it really that simple ?

Why do you filter it ?

The turbo yeast works really hard and chucks out allsorts of stuff that a 6% yeast doesn't.

You can get away without the carbon and filter but I think the flavour will be cleaner and there maybe less hangovers if you go the extra step and you should end up with a cleaner better product.

I have one on the go now. I've had 250g of active carbon in there, I've just racked it after 5 days in the carbon and have added the finnings.

You add activated carbon to the fermentation ? Tell me more ! I've got a filter setup, so filtering is not a problem.

While we are at it, what is turbo yeast ?

I've read that people add it in when pitching yeast but I like to give the yeast a clear run at the sugar so go the secondary route and add it after primary fermentation. The carbon I add is already mixed in a paste. I add it , mix and wait till the majority has settled. Then rack to a clearing tank along with a large pack of finnings.

OK, I brewed up 3 1.5L fermentors of this stuff tonight. We'll see what happens.

One thing though, 7kg of sugar in 23L is way too much ! Thats 660g per L. I measured out my water and sugar and boiled and cooled and filled the fermentors and then checked the SG. OMG 1.150 !

According to Winemaking (Anderson), page 236, that amount of sugar is good for about 21% alcohol if it ferments dry ! I say about because their table only goes to 1.135, so I am guessing.

The correct amount of sugar for 14% alcohol bv would be 306 g/L, which would give a starting gravity of 1.100.

So either this stuff will ferment dry and I'll have a really strong base for the coolers or it will stop and I'll have a sweet base for the coolers. As long as the yeast don't conk out from sugar overload !

I guess I will know for next time.

Depending which yeast you use then you can do as you say, have it dry and strong or sweet and not as strong.

Mine should be cleared now. I may look after.

This sounds like a fun experiment! What about using the bottled sugar free beverage syrups? I don't know if the preservatives in the syrup would kill the yeast, but if one has the ability to force carbonate maybe it wouldn't be an issue.

I've tried brewing soda with splenda and/or stevia and haven't gotten ANY fermentation. Leave the artificial sweeteners out and it worked just fine.

Mines cleered like a dream. I have a use for quite a bit of it that should not be disscused on a respectable place like this.

But some of it is now in the freezer chilling with coconut essence in it.
It's dry and not sweet due to the fermentation. Obviously adding sugar may start refermentation so I intend to make some sugar syrup and mix the two at the time of serving.

Off to try it now. I'll report back.

Well that was quick and easy.

700ml of fermented liqour. (We need a name for this)
250ml barman's syrup (sugar dissolved in warm water)
1 bottle of coconut essence.
Mixed in the bottle.

Serve on the rocks.

The wife's words. "mmmmmm malibu"

Malibu costs $24 a bottle.
This stuff is legal to make and costs <$2 a bottle
If you forgo the carbon you can reduce the price by $10

RESULT

http://www.liqueurweb.com/essences.htm

PS. Brewman, the Turbo yeast can handle 21% it takes around 10 days instead of 4 to ferment it though.

Bad news on my fermentation. The yeast started a bit, slowly and have now died or at least they are dormant. No visible signs of fermentation ! I think the sugar mixture is too strong. I'll give it a couple more days.

What yeast are you using?

What you could do is make a batch with half the sugar and add the rest of the sugar day by day. All most like adding the wort to a starter instead of the starter to yhe wort.

I am using EC1118 a champagne yeast.

So I redid the recipe this weekend, cutting the sugar (sucrose) back to 187 grams per litre, for a og of 1.070. I pitched the yeast and it fermented slowly. I added some yeast nutrient and its fermenting pretty good. The problem with the previous fermentation could have been a lack of yeast nutrient, not the sugar level.

If it ferments dry, it should be 9.2% alcohol.

The idea is to ferment the sugar water to alcohol, stabilize it with Potassium Sorbate and then mix with frozen fruit juice concentrates to get the desired cooler taste.

I am doing 3 1.5L jars of the stuff, so there will be some experimentation.