Junior Home brewer

[ElliotCH]

Hi!


I have decided to keep ithe brew an extra week in the vessel because I need to find a camping cooking gas stove to complete my material and make the next batch properly since I have also some hops and special yeast nutriments this time.

Thanks NCBrewer for the warning regarding the risks of the bottles explosion and how securing them.
I will only bottle about a half gallon.

AZCoolerBrewer, your clarifications regarding the reading of the densimeter/hydrometer values are much appreciated.
Will be able to make it properly in the best practice with my next brew.

For the next brew, I'll try to hermetically sealed the vessel and will leave it alone for three weeks, I was a bit also exited about the first brew and have maybe too much aired it without probably respecting the best practice by adding diueted sugar after the second week.


Merry Christmas you all!

Elliot

 

[ncbrewer]

ElliotCH - Please see my edit on Post #26.

 

[ElliotCH]

Hi ncbrewer!

Do you mean the "Opinions on Extract Brewing"?
I am figuring out the best recipe for my upcoming batch,
The first brew has turned yellowish and clear so I'll be ready bottling some of it this weekend.

My other worries are about the malt extract and sugar and priming the first brew:

Should I mix the Blond malt extract with white sugar to boost the alcool level up?
(I am affraid it will stress the yeast but I want to have a not as much biter taste that I had with the first batch)

Regarding the priming, I think that the addition of dilueted brown sugar has kind of killed the yeast due to the sulfure smell,
I think about extending a bit the fermentation by adding some extra yeast and leave it an additional week to finish the remaining sugars.
How would that go if I do so? I am a bit suspicious that it will blow up the bottles during the second fermentation.

Is there a way that I can cut a bit the biter taste of the first brew?


Cheers.

Elliot

 

[ncbrewer]

See my comments within your quoted post below:

Hi ncbrewer!

Do you mean the "Opinions on Extract Brewing"?
>> I was pointing out my error in post #26. It showed the wrong amount of sugar originally. The correction is now in the post as an edit.
I am figuring out the best recipe for my upcoming batch,
The first brew has turned yellowish and clear so I'll be ready bottling some of it this weekend.

My other worries are about the malt extract and sugar and priming the first brew:

Should I mix the Blond malt extract with white sugar to boost the alcool level up?
(I am affraid it will stress the yeast but I want to have a not as much biter taste that I had with the first batch)
>> Sugar is sometimes added to increase the alcohol - normally keep it to no more than 15% of the fermentables if you're doing it just for that purpose. But I'd advise not adding sugar until you've done several batches without. Then you can see the effect of adding sugar. It tends to lighten the flavor. When I've added sugar (table sugar), I added at flameout and stirred well - then let it stand covered for 10 minutes to pasteurize.

Regarding the priming, I think that the addition of dilueted brown sugar has kind of killed the yeast due to the sulfure smell,
I think about extending a bit the fermentation by adding some extra yeast and leave it an additional week to finish the remaining sugars.
How would that go if I do so? I am a bit suspicious that it will blow up the bottles during the second fermentation.
>> If you've already added the needed sugar to the bottles, I wouldn't add more. As you mentioned, you could get bottle bombs. How long has it been bottled? I'd give it 3 weeks in bottles before getting worried about not carbonating. The sulfur smell shouldn't hurt the yeast. (Note: Bottle bombs are bad. You don't want them.)

Is there a way that I can cut a bit the biter taste of the first brew?
>> Reduce the amount of boiling hops. If it's the same recipe as the first brew, just reduce by the percentage that you think you would like. You can figure the IBUs to quantify it. See this website: http://realbeer.com/hops/research.html. There are other formulas - all are just best estimates.


Cheers.

Elliot

 

[Andyjaa]

Hi Elliot
Fairly new to the forum myself but have been brewing for lots of years.
I think maybe your brew is fermenting but you don't see evidence of it without liquid in the bubbler.
You just need to put a couple of teaspoons of water in and maybe a quarter of a Camden tablet to get the gas escaping through the bubbler so you can follow the progress.
It may have fermented out OK but it's always good to have the liquid in the airlock as a trap to stop any wild yeast or nasties.
I guess vodka will do the trick but at the very least a drop of water.
It gets cold here in the UK lake District but most lager brews will eventually Ferment out given time.
Good luck with your brew and don't be disheartened if it doesn't turn out like Carlesberg or Grolch!

 

[Andyjaa]

I do a lot of test brews in 5 litre water bottles.
Just pierce the blue top and push your airlock in.
Remember, it's just sugar malt and hops.
You can even use the water in the bottle too!!!

 

[bracconiere]

Hi!

I have started with a 30L vessel and a Cooper Pilsner malt extract for 20L.

The malt extract has been diluted and heated up to 70C and cooled down to 22C before adding the yeast.
The yeast used was the one furnished with and has been just spread over the top without shaking or stirring.
No sugar and brewing enhancer has been added to the brew.

It is stored in a celar where the temperature varies between 5C and 13C.

I noticed that there is some activity going on but the bubbler don't seems to work as expected.

Please check the following pictures and let me know what you think

https://ibb.co/VThn43J
https://ibb.co/Q8f5R9f
https://ibb.co/55TvYFM

Cheers.

(the uploader won't take them since they are too large)

i don't know if someone else covered this.....But you did boil it with hops right? sounds like you just pasteurized it, with no hops addition...

 

[ElliotCH]

hi Bracconiere!

For the first batch I just have used the Cooper's pilsner kit without any sugars and hops.
My main goal was to get the proper brewing material, appropriate location and get the best practices skills.
I have already bottled just about 5L and will start over with the good sides ingredients.

For my upcoming batch that I will brew during this week, I have got some blond malt extract and hops with a 6.5L pot to boil all that in a proper way. I also have got special lager yeast and nutriments to balance the bitterness.

Thanks for your remark, it seems indeed that I had just pasteurized the concentrate lol.

Cheers,
Elliot

 

[AZCoolerBrewer]

i don't know if someone else covered this.....But you did boil it with hops right? sounds like you just pasteurized it, with no hops addition...

I had assumed that the extract was already hopped. If not though, congrats Elliot on your first True Beer[emoji769]️

 

[ElliotCH]

hi! Just a little question since I have bottled a few litters of the first batch.
I have read in some other topics that the Cooper's lagers should stand 12 weeks in bottle before drinking, is that also the case for pilsner beer? I thought it was just two-three weeks of carbonation.

 

[bracconiere]

I had assumed that the extract was already hopped. If not though, congrats Elliot on your first True Beer[emoji769]️

lol!

 

[AZCoolerBrewer]

hi! Just a little question since I have bottled a few litters of the first batch.
I have read in some other topics that the Cooper's lagers should stand 12 weeks in bottle before drinking, is that also the case for pilsner beer? I thought it was just two-three weeks of carbonation.

Since it’s a lager, you may want to lager it for some period of time. First you would let it carbonate at room temp for 3 weeks in the capped bottles and then after it was carbonated you would put it in a cool place. I say below 40 degrees. When I lagered my Barleywine it was in the regular refrigerator. You can lager it as long as you want the idea being that any yeast in suspension will drop out giving you a crisp bright lager. 12 weeks sounds like a really long time to me, but whatever you want to do, this is your beer.