Recipe Critique : Cooper's Guinness "Clone"

Found this recipe on a Cooper's message board:

1.7 kg O.S. stout
1.3 kg brewer's syrup
500 g dextrose
5ml liquid smoke (hickory)
14g cooper's yeast sprinkled dry pitched @ 20C
21L water
O.G. 1.052

I don't really expect an exact copy of Guinness at this point, just something that tastes remotely there. Thinking of brewing this up Friday. Any thoughts?

Thanks!

Yes:

Liquid smoke - Yeeeeechhh... get rid of it. No smoke in any Guinness I have ever had.

Pitch lower than 20C, try 16-17 if you can. That yeast taste like fermented garbage for me usually, and fermented higher like 19+ it tastes worse. Your beer will be ok, the could improve it by doing a mini mash and mashing some flaked barley.

+1 Liquid smoke sucks big time.. even in BBQ.. can't fathom it's use in beer.. altho I've seen some discussion here.

I've had fine luck with the Coopers yeast but I've never used that size sachet.

Definitely ferment at 18-19*C despite what the instructions say. It'll be cleaner.

The smoke had me questioning it, and trying to remember if it was ever a flavour I'd remembered from Guinness.

I've never used the Cooper's yeast, and I can't keep my temps as high as they want anyway. My beers have been fermenting on on the cool end, with the sticky thermometer saying 58*-62*, then dipping below 58* after a week to 10 days. Whatever yeast I use, I'd end up re-hydrating it first. I'm also planning to bottle a Cooper's IPA that I brewed with Nottingham Wednesday. I'd like to make a slurry with that yeast cake and use it for the stout on Friday.

Just getting back to this idea. I've got the stout kit, 2*7g packs of the Cooper's yeast, 1*7g pack of the Munton's yeast and 1.3KG of LME instead of the Hi Malt glucose.

Torn on the yeast, temperature is definitely an issue. I wish I could get to some Notty more easily, or that I had faith in re-using the Notty I have in a batch I'm about to bottle.

Anyways, probably going to get this brew on the go Wednesday now.

Ive never noticed a smoky taste in guiness so I'm with the others. As far as coopers yeast I've brewed to of the extract kits before in a 6 gal primary and to say the least the yeast activity is on the aggressive side

Finally getting ready to put this on. The boss and I have reached a tentative agreement on a new spot to brew, so hopefully too cold will no longer be a problem.

Going with the following:

1.7KG Cooper's Original Stout
1.3KG light LME
2*7g packets of Cooper's ale yeast, pitched at 70*-72*.
topped up to 16L in a 5 gallon bucket

Ambient temp in the new brew room should be 62-66F, fluctuates a little depending on the outdoor temp.

Here goes nothing!

Air lock bubbling once a minute 8 hours into ferment.

SG reading of 1.019, 1 week in. temp on sticky holding between 58*-60*. Sample tasted rough, but with a "stouty/coffee/dry" finish. Yummy!

Down to 1.016 afternoon of the 11th. Might sneak it into bottles this week if it's settled.

Stayed at 1.016, so I just bottled it. Samples tasted better each day. I rushed it by a week, want it carbed for a certain day in mid March.

Just sampled one, a little early I guess, but it was pretty carbed, and quite tasty at about 53*. A little bit nutty, not very dry, but super smooth and definitely good! My best beer yet. Hope I have some left for St. Patricks day.....