5 gallon carboy, Coopers 3.75# can of Irish Stout Extract

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TBrady26

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Instructions say to fill fermenter (my carboy) with 20 liters of water, add extract mixture and top off to 23 liters. My carboy only holds (to the neck) about 19 liters. Can I use the whole can with my 2# of Briess Light Unhopped Malt Extract, Willamette hops, US-05 yeast and 3/4 cup of Hersey's Cocoa? Or should I calculate the percentages and only use the percentage of extract that it takes to fill to 18.88 liters (5 gallons)?

I usually use Mr. Beer recipes, but they are restructuring since Coopers bought them out. That's why I went to my LHBS and got this self built recipe.

I just don't know if I've got enough volume in this 5 gallon carboy.

Chime in with any helpful information.
 
Went by the brew shop to pick my new (to me) glass 5 gallon carboy. Talked to the dudes in there and they assured me I had the classic freak out. Ignore the 23 liters instruction and just fill my carboy up to the base of the neck and put the airlock on it and walk away.

Brew time set for Saturday evening.
 
If you are filling your carboy all the way up to the top, you will need a blow-off tube. Did the dudes at local brew shop tell you that?
 
This also sounds like you're not boiling or adding any hops at all. You aren't just dumping all of this into the carboy are you?
 
This also sounds like you're not boiling or adding any hops at all. You aren't just dumping all of this into the carboy are you?

It's a coopers prehopped kit with extras, just dumping it in is SOP.

head space and blow offs are the only issue.
 
I already have blow off.

Yes I am adding hops. Willamette.

3.75# can of Coopers Irish stout HME
2# of Briess Light Dry UME
Willamette Hops
Fermentis US-05 dry yeast

This being my first 5 gallon batch, I have been doing some pretty extensive research. I bought my recipe before I found that steeping extra grains makes a better tasting beer, but I didn't do that with my original Triple Chocolate Stout, I made with the MR Beer kit.

Only thing I gotta do now is cook it up, poor it in and modify my cooling system to accommodate my 5 gallon carboy.
 
If you are filling your carboy all the way up to the top, you will need a blow-off tube. Did the dudes at local brew shop tell you that?

You must not have read my post. I referenced my blow off. I call it an airlock. Not sure why, that's just what I heard it referred to when asking about something to control the possible spew on my smaller fermenter.
 
Just a heads up - those Coopers Stout kits ferment like crazy. Just keep and eye on it for over flows!

Got it in the carboy last night. Finished up around 10:45. Got up to go to work at 4:40 and checked the carboy at 5:00. It was yeasting like crazy. Awesome to see it.

I screwed up on the Briess UDME boil. I found out what the hop boil is all about when using a carboy instead of a Mr. Beer LBK. You put the hop sack into the LBK when you set it for fermenting. You only boil the hops for 5 minutes with Mr. Beer's recipes. I kept the hop sack in the wort till I got it in the carboy with the measuring cup, I was using to transfer the wort from the pot to the carboy. I squeezed it pretty good to get the liquid out of it. Then poured the rest of the wort into the carboy via the pot thru the funnel. After I got about 14 liters of liquid into the carboy, I realized that I forgot to boil the UDME. So, I dissolved it into the cocoa slurry and about 2 liters of water. Then transferred it into the carboy.

I made a 1 hour job turn into a 3 hour ordeal. I did get the whole recipe into the carboy, but I made it hard on myself to get it cooled for yeast pitch. I use frozen 20 oz. water bottles for my Mr. Beer batches and had to use all 12 of them to cool this wort down to temp to pitch the yeast. It was a chore, but it got done.


What do you guys use to stir the contents of the carboy once they are filled with their liquid. I used my racking cane to stir it. I have my carboy in a large, plastic storage thing. Plenty tall enough to house my carboy plus airlock (blow off). I froze some milk jugs full of water and there is room enough in it for 3 milk jugs. Stuck one on top of the carboy and the temp, this morning, was 72 degrees. On the way down to 65 degrees. One milk jug every 12 or so hours. Oh, I wrapped the storage thing with two really thick blankets. I usually use a fairly large styrofoam cooler for my Mr. Beer LBK and chill it with 1/2 gallon juice jugs, filled with water and frozen.

Ok. I think I've rambled on long enough about last night'e experience.

New techniques=New CHALLENGES!
 
BTW, it turned out ok. Didn't add enough cocoa. Used conditioning tablets instead of sugar. Didn't carbonate like I wanted it to. It doesn't have good head retention. Tastes kinda like a Guinness. Kinda flat and stouty.
 
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