Going to be brewing my #1 this afternoon!

[SatelliteGuy]

Hi, all!

Well, I'm finally getting started on my first batch. For my birthday, a couple weeks ago, SWMBO bought me a (very basic) equipment kit. Yesterday, I picked up a Coopers English Bitter, 1kg (2.2 lbs) of DME, and an extra packet of Coopers yeast. Today, I have to go pick up some water, and a drill bit to drill for my airlock stopper.
As an aside, should I drill for my stopper (1 3/4" hole), or just for the airlock post (I don't have a grommet)
Also, in the instructions, it recommends 500g of DME. should I make it with just the 500g, or should I use all the 1kg, or should I just save enough for priming? To prime to style, how much DME should I use to prime?

Anyways, I'll update this thread as my batch progresses, as well as asking any questions that may pop up.

YAY!

 

[pericles]

Way to go - have fun!

 

[Homercidal]

I would drill for whatever clear plastic tube you want to use for a blow-off tube, then size a bung to fit that your airlock can fit into. Bungs come in all different sizes, and you WILL want a blow-off tube. Maybe not this batch or the next, but trust me, sooner or later you will brew something very active.

You *could* prime with some leftover DME but I wouldn't. I would use table sugar or Corn Sugar for priming. You won't be adding enough of it to affect the flavor or mouthfeel. You would use a slightly different amount of each, so check for that. It's usually 3/4 cup or 5oz of Corn Sugar. I can't remember how much table sugar that is.

Good luck on this first batch, and try not to taste it before it's time

 

[tvtoms]

Is it just going to be the can of coopers hopped extract plus the DME? I'd use it all in the brew and prime with corn sugar. There's some online calculators for priming, here is one: http://kotmf.com/tools/prime.php

Enter in the relevant info and it gives options for priming.

 

[hal2814]

You're going to be brewing your #1? Gross. I guess that's better than brewing your #2.

I'll second priming with whatever sugar you have available. It's just a better use of materials than saving DME for it.

 

[businesstime]

You're going to be brewing your #1? Gross. I guess that's better than brewing your #2.

I'll second priming with whatever sugar you have available. It's just a better use of materials than saving DME for it.

Budweiser brews my #1

 

[moreyswig]

good luck, and have fun

 

[pwndabear]

Budweiser brews my #1

wait, i thought buttweiser IS #1... and not placement in a race mind you

 

[SatelliteGuy]

Well, I'm doing a 15 minute boil right now... turned out I couldn't do it in the afternoon, due to real life interfering.
Good Lord, I'd forgotten just how GOOOD wort smells!
I ended up doing a 3 1/2 gallon (approx.) boil, and used a full 2.2lbs of light DME. My extracts brought the level to about 4 gallons in the pot.
I'm about to dunk the pot in the sink, full of cold water.

 

[SatelliteGuy]

Well, it's done, and in the fermenter. I ended up with 23 liters, and an OG of 1.042. I don't remember the exact pitching temp, but it was 70-75. It's now sitting in the spare bedroom, which I've determined can hold a temp of about 65, if I keep the heat vent closed in there.

I almost regret drilling a hole for my airlock in the fermenter lid, since it seems the lid doesn't seal properly. I guess I won't be seeing airlock activity. Oh well. That's what hydrometers are for, right?

 

[SatelliteGuy]

About 18 hours in, I just checked my brew, and I'm starting to get a bit of foaming on top, from the yeast.Looks like my yeast was good, although I'd bought a backup packet just in case.

As an aside, I was checking Kijiji.ca, and found an ad for a guy who has 12 dozen Grolsh bottles, in Edmonton. If I go to Edmonton next set of days off, I might try and touch base with him, and get 4 dozen from him.

 

[SatelliteGuy]

Well, I finally got around to bottling this batch. It had been fermenting from September 10th, until October 8th. I took a gravity reading of 1.010. the sample tasted almost like beer!
Since I'm not 100% sure about my OG reading, since it might not have been mixed enough at the time, I'm not sure about the alcohol content, although I could taste the alcohol in the sample.
I ended up with 58 regular bottles, and 5 Grolsh bottles, which was 10 bottles more than I was originally prepared for. I ended up grabbing 10 more bottles out of my pantry, and cleaning/sanitizing them quick in a hurry on the fly, to finish it up.
Three of my bottles were clear pry-tops, so I decided to snap a couple pics of one of them to show the nearly done product.

I suppose I'll be sampling this batch on my next set of days off, in about two weeks, but most likely it won't be totally ready for at least another week or two after that.

Yay! Beer!

 

[Centexbear]

Looks awesome...great job!

Be sure to come back after you've done the taste test!!

Doesn't making beer just put you in a good mood? It sure does me!

 

[SatelliteGuy]

Well, I did an early taste test this evening, and, although it's still undercarbed (obviously), it's tasting quite good!
I think I'll qualify this a success!!

It's quite a bit clearer than I was expecting for an 8-day-bottled beer. I hold it up to my screen, and I can make out text through the beer.

I can't wait til next weekend, when it'll be that much closer to ready!