OK, I am ready to do my first brew on Saturday and have planned it with some great advice from this site. Here is my plan, any final advice would be awsome.
Starting with Coopers Lager Kit
1. Clean all items with warm water
2. Place all items in fermentor, add ½ cup unscented bleach and fill fermenter with cool water. Sanitize lid separately and cover fermenter with lid loosly and let sit for ½ hr. Reserve some sanitizer for airlock and other uses.
2a) Boil some water to rinse above items and after ½ hour rinse.
2b) Items not used in yeast proofing leave in fermenter and cover to avoid air contact. Cover hole with saran wrap.
3. Proof yeast per below, use thermometer and spoon sanitized above.
Re-hydrating Dry Yeast
1. Put 1 cup of warm (95-105F, 35-40C) boiled water into a sanitized jar and stir in the yeast. Cover with Saran Wrap and wait 15 minutes.
2. "Proof" the yeast by adding one teaspoon of extract or sugar that has been boiled in a small amount of water. Allow the sugar solution to cool before adding it to the jar.
3. Cover and place in a warm area out of direct sunlight.
4. After 30 minutes or so the yeast should be visibly churning and/or foaming, and is ready to pitch.
4. Bring 2 litres of water to boil.
4a) Empty contents of kit can into fermenter and add 2 litres of boiling water, reserve some boiling water to rinse out kit can. Add 1 Kg DME. Stir with sanitized spoon until all dissolved.
4b) After contents dissolved fill to the 23 litre mark on the fermenter using combinations of hot/cold water until 21 degrees achieved. Add water in agitating manner to promote ogygen into wort.
4c) Take Original Gravity (pre-fermentation) reading and record (before yeast is added)
5) Pitch (add) yeast into fermenter and gently agitate to mix throughout. Ensure yeast is aprox the same temp as the wort.
6) Cover fermenter with lid tightly
6a) Wipe lid with paper towel wet with sanitizer
6b) Insert bung into lid (wet bung with sanitizer) and insert airlock into bung. Fill airlock ½ way to line with sanitizer and drop doohikee into airlock. Put top on airlock. Store fermenter in area about 21 Deg C no less.
7)After 2 weeks bottle.
7a) Boild 3/4 cup corn sugar with 2 cups water and let it cool.
7b) Add this to sanitized bottling bucket.
7c) Siphon beer into bottling bucket
7d) Fill bottles via bottling bucket spigot/hose (also sanitized) and cap
7e) Store for an additional 2 weeks minimum
Any issues here...I know long post. Whoever can take a few mins going over this would be GREATLY appretiated.
Dave
Starting with Coopers Lager Kit
1. Clean all items with warm water
2. Place all items in fermentor, add ½ cup unscented bleach and fill fermenter with cool water. Sanitize lid separately and cover fermenter with lid loosly and let sit for ½ hr. Reserve some sanitizer for airlock and other uses.
2a) Boil some water to rinse above items and after ½ hour rinse.
2b) Items not used in yeast proofing leave in fermenter and cover to avoid air contact. Cover hole with saran wrap.
3. Proof yeast per below, use thermometer and spoon sanitized above.
Re-hydrating Dry Yeast
1. Put 1 cup of warm (95-105F, 35-40C) boiled water into a sanitized jar and stir in the yeast. Cover with Saran Wrap and wait 15 minutes.
2. "Proof" the yeast by adding one teaspoon of extract or sugar that has been boiled in a small amount of water. Allow the sugar solution to cool before adding it to the jar.
3. Cover and place in a warm area out of direct sunlight.
4. After 30 minutes or so the yeast should be visibly churning and/or foaming, and is ready to pitch.
4. Bring 2 litres of water to boil.
4a) Empty contents of kit can into fermenter and add 2 litres of boiling water, reserve some boiling water to rinse out kit can. Add 1 Kg DME. Stir with sanitized spoon until all dissolved.
4b) After contents dissolved fill to the 23 litre mark on the fermenter using combinations of hot/cold water until 21 degrees achieved. Add water in agitating manner to promote ogygen into wort.
4c) Take Original Gravity (pre-fermentation) reading and record (before yeast is added)
5) Pitch (add) yeast into fermenter and gently agitate to mix throughout. Ensure yeast is aprox the same temp as the wort.
6) Cover fermenter with lid tightly
6a) Wipe lid with paper towel wet with sanitizer
6b) Insert bung into lid (wet bung with sanitizer) and insert airlock into bung. Fill airlock ½ way to line with sanitizer and drop doohikee into airlock. Put top on airlock. Store fermenter in area about 21 Deg C no less.
7)After 2 weeks bottle.
7a) Boild 3/4 cup corn sugar with 2 cups water and let it cool.
7b) Add this to sanitized bottling bucket.
7c) Siphon beer into bottling bucket
7d) Fill bottles via bottling bucket spigot/hose (also sanitized) and cap
7e) Store for an additional 2 weeks minimum
Any issues here...I know long post. Whoever can take a few mins going over this would be GREATLY appretiated.
Dave