new to homebrew

[dowden87]

Im pretty new to homebrewing but loving every minute of it! ive only been brewing for about 3-4 months but learnt so much already. I started off with a king keg that someone give me, and if i remember rightly my first brew was a coopers larger with 1kg of sugar. That turned out a nightmare i got the brew infected and it turned out sour. I didnt waste a drop thought!

I then bought some new equipment from my local homebrew store and its got better and better. Im currently brewing a coopers ipa which have been transferred to my keg after the 1st fermentation . Ive also got some black rock stout in bottles they have carbonated lovely they have only been bottled up for a week, i tried one today to see how they were doing plenty of gas in them tastes quite good but defiantly needs a few more weeks to mature. Its turning into a good little hobby for me, my next brew is going to be strawberry and lime cider

[trucker5774]

Welcome to the club (and Jim's) Happy brewing!

[dowden87]

Got a question for you, i brewed the stout with 1kg of coopers brew enhancer, its been bottled up for a week now when i tasted the brew earlier it tasted fine but lacked real body and flavor. How long should i leave it for before it starts to mature properly?

[trucker5774]

Any time between now and six weeks it should be good. You may want to try your next one with with spray malt rather than brew enhancer. It will give a little more body to it. You will probably make lots of decent brews while you experiment and will eventually settle on what suits YOUR taste. Remember its home brew, not suit all the world brew. Enjoy what you make, it will probably be better than commercially available beer.

[dowden87]

Yeah im still learning ive just put a coopers ipa into a keg made with spray malt, look forward to tasting it when its done

[Ditch]

ive just put a coopers ipa into a keg made with spray malt

Right there's improvement ....

[Stomach]

[quote="dowden87"] That turned out a nightmare i got the brew infected and it turned out sour. I didnt waste a drop thought!
quote]

You must have had an arse like a Japanese Flag!

[dowden87]

[quote="Stomach"][quote="dowden87"] That turned out a nightmare i got the brew infected and it turned out sour. I didnt waste a drop thought!
quote]

You must have had an arse like a Japanese Flag![/quote]


Yeah it wasnt good! got me drunk though lol, got my black rock miners stout conditioning in the bottles il give it about another two weeks then have a taste see how its doing. Also ive got a coopers ipa conditioning some in bottles and some in a keg. Yesterday i bought a raspberry and lime cider kit thats fermenting should be a good one when its ready cant wait to try it! im getting addicted to homebrewing now bought another keg yesterday so i can have a continuous supply of beer

[dowden87]

Just had a sample of the Coopers IPA made with spray malt, got to say hell of a difference in taste. Its only been in the keg for about 4 days its still cloudy but wanted a sample it tastes lovely. I could start drinking it now its soo good. Really impressed with it give it a few weeks it should taste even better

[mrmojorisin]

It is a good un but for something irresistible try the Fixby Gold, I struggled not to drink it straight from the fermenter

[Ditch]

im getting addicted to homebrewing now bought another keg yesterday so i can have a continuous supply of beer

Really impressed with it give it a few weeks it should taste even better

I think ye might invest in another keg .....

[dowden87]

I already have ive got two kegs and 20 litre bottles. Had an hard day in work come home had a bottle of my stout even thought its not ready and a bottle of the ipa even though its still cloudy and not ready. Tasted great cant wait to taste it in another months time i bet it will taste amazing!

The stout is getting there alot more taste and body to it but still not quite there, and the ipa tastes amazing and keeps a nice head even though its no where near ready

[dowden87]

It is a good un but for something irresistible try the Fixby Gold, I struggled not to drink it straight from the fermenter

Thanks for that i think that was the one i almost bought the other day, is it a two can kit? that will be my next brew after the raspberry and lime cider

[houblon]

I already have

I think the suggestion is "aaaand another one" on the basis that if it takes 4 weeks to get really good, all your other stuff will be long gone!
Just start saving up every strong glass bottle you can get your hands on.