Coopers, Original Dark Ale Review

Brewed this a couple of weeks ago. Starting to clear out nicely now, so will be ready to keg over the weekend hopefully :) Used 500g dark DME and 500g brewing sugar and 300g unrefined granulated sugar (would've used brewing sugar for all, but had ran out :p).

SG came out at 1.044 and current OG is 1.006 (not checked again since Monday)... So, should come out about 4.9%.

Will update after kegging and trying. Be interested in others reviews on this :)

Watching this with interest mate - my local brew shop just recommended this strongly I me today! Best of luck

This is my fave beer kit, Brewed it several times already and got another one just conditioning in a pressure barrel at the moment.

Last autumn I brewed up a keg of it for our wedding and people couldn't get enough of it, even the lager drinkers were going on about how nice it was.

I normally brew it with half Dark DME and half brewing sugar which gives it a bit more body without over doing it and also helps build a lovely dark colour.

Put this in the keg this morning.

Original taste when putting in keg, was that it tastes very green beer still, but, underlying tones are quite nice!

Fermented down to 1.006, so comes in at 4.9%. I think this is the furthest I've had a beer go down for a while! So, really pleased with how well it fermented.

Kegged this in to my king keg, and added 100g sugar. Gave it a quick force carb to get any air off the beer (and just to check that the keg wasn't leaking)... Hopefully it will vent off pressure correctly if it gets too high! Will just have to keep an eye on the keg for the next few days

Well, got home tonight, and I know this has only been in the keg for just over 24 hours, but being a bit paranoid about giving it a blast of co2 after priming, and worried about the keg splitting or anything, I wanted to release a little pressure ... what better way than to draw a quick drink from it...

So, I got a small glass (about half a pint), and drew probably about a third of the glass worth. Came out with a beautiful head on it. And watching the head come to the top of the beer after pouring was good (easily pleased aren't I :p). So, had a little drink of it ... wow! Now that has come on so much better since last when I Bottled it... Dunno whether it'd just the co2 in the beer, or whether it really has conditioned so well, so quickly... But, I am really pleased with this one! So, had to draw a bit more, to ensure that it really did taste so good!

Can't wait for about a months time to see how well this comes out then (if it lasts that long). But, I am really happy with this drink. Dunno whether it's the keg that sets it aside as a better drink, but I wouldn't think so, since others say bottling tastes better than keg! Shame Tesco didn't have any of these in store, otherwise I would've bought them whilst they were on the good sale :)

I bottled mine and was well pleased my son said it tasted like alcoholic dandelion and burdock ! but it suited me and goes down well with meat and taty pie and mushy peas....
However I do think I primed it too much ( used 2 carb drops in 500ml bottle ) and yes it is a bit fizzy, but what the heck My second brew of it is getting a bit less sugar this time in the bottle.

Anyways I like dandelion and burdock.

Hi chaps, i'm thinking of doing my kit with a 1.8kg can of dark liquid malt extract, does anyone think this is too much? The can of malt extract comes in that size so I don't want to waste it

Anyone think that I could even sling a little brewing sugar into the mix too? Say 300g or so? Would there be a danger of the fermentation stopping if you add too much sugar/fermentables?

Lots of questions but any opinions appreciated, i'd like to make the most of the kit, it seems like a brill pint by the sounds of things :)

All the best

Yoda960

yoda960 said:

Hi chaps, i'm thinking of doing my kit with a 1.8kg can of dark liquid malt extract, does anyone think this is too much? The can of malt extract comes in that size so I don't want to waste it

Anyone think that I could even sling a little brewing sugar into the mix too? Say 300g or so? Would there be a danger of the fermentation stopping if you add too much sugar/fermentables?

Lots of questions but any opinions appreciated, i'd like to make the most of the kit, it seems like a brill pint by the sounds of things :)

All the best

Yoda960

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Any views on this chaps?

Just put this on to brew tonight, i've been looking forward to this one since reading these positive reviews.

I've gone for a little extra this time and used 1kg coopers brew enhancer 2, plus 500g dark spraymalt. OG was 1.052 so hopefully I can get that down to 1.010-12, ending up around 5.5% ABV.

Updates to follow later :

yoda960 said:

yoda960 said:

Hi chaps, i'm thinking of doing my kit with a 1.8kg can of dark liquid malt extract, does anyone think this is too much? The can of malt extract comes in that size so I don't want to waste it

Anyone think that I could even sling a little brewing sugar into the mix too? Say 300g or so? Would there be a danger of the fermentation stopping if you add too much sugar/fermentables?

Lots of questions but any opinions appreciated, i'd like to make the most of the kit, it seems like a brill pint by the sounds of things :)

All the best

Yoda960

Click to expand...

Any views on this chaps?

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I would say just the lme by itself would probably be ok. Wouldn't add any further sugar tho... But I'm a newbie, and probably best to wait for others opinions...

Brewed this 6 weeks ago using 1kg of dme and short at 21 litres.
Have to say I have been drinking this for a week now from the corni and having read some of the reports on here I am very disappointed. It's the worst brew I have made out of about 20 kits so far.
It has very little taste and is like fizzy water with a very slight taste of dandelion and burdock.
Not a beer I have enjoyed and won't be brewing it again even though I really like dark beers and was hoping for something similar to hobgoblin. :cry:

Marcusp said:

Brewed this 6 weeks ago using 1kg of dme and short at 21 litres.
Have to say I have been drinking this for a week now from the corni and having read some of the reports on here I am very disappointed. It's the worst brew I have made out of about 20 kits so far.
It has very little taste and is like fizzy water with a very slight taste of dandelion and burdock.
Not a beer I have enjoyed and won't be brewing it again even though I really like dark beers and was hoping for something similar to hobgoblin. :cry:

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im of the same oppinion as you. i didnt think much of it at all and would not brew it again :nono:

This was my first brew attempt. I started fermenting 6 days ago, and it's still bubbling away. I don't have a hydrometer yet. The lhbs didn't suggest one, and I didn't have a clue and probably still don't. That and Starsan is in my purchase list. I'm looking forward to racking to secondary so I can taste it!

Marcusp said:

I really like dark beers and was hoping for something similar to hobgoblin. :cry:

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If you want Hobgoblin, then many people seem to compare that and St Peters Ruby Red very favourably. Otherwise, have a look on the Coopers website (it's down presently for reconstruction otherwise I'd post the direct link) for a recipe called Hop Gobbler which uses the Dark Ale kit, some crystal malts and hops to achieve something much closer to Hobgoblin.

After my first batch was in the bottle for a week I decided to pop one open and taste it. There was almost no carbonation, and the flavor was a little weak or maybe too sweet. Today marks the second week in the bottle, and all I can say is what a difference a week makes. It poured with a much better head, and the flavor was much better. I hope it will be ready in another week.

This was my 'virgin' home brew kit which I got with my 'newbies' equipment - chosen because I like em dark and nutty (..and I like my beer that way too! boom boom! )!!!

Just brewed with the kit and the 1kg of brewing sugar supplied - instructions followed to the letter. Instructions were to rack off when fermentation had finished which they suggested might be 4-6 days (...really?), but left for 9 days before bottling using Coopers own carbonation lozenges. Had a sneaky 'research' bottle after a further 2 weeks conditioning and the head was good, taste still a bit 'twangy' but still very drinkable -so drink it I did!!! A further month later and with half dozen or so bottles left, the flavour is absolutely fantastic!!! No twang, nice and smooth/malty.

Having done a St Peters Ruby (pretty good so far), a Wherry (not exactly shaping up to be my personal cup of tea) and a Festival Golden Stag (in primary for summer consumption!) since, I now have another of the Coopers Dark Ales waiting for the FV to empty!!!

I've got the recommended Coopers beer enhancer to go with it this time. Will leave in FV two weeks irrespective of gravitystability and will be batch priming with brewing sugar this time. Will desperately try not to touch it for 6 weeks (aaaaargh, the agony!). I'll report back when done for comparison with original lot!

I like a bit of variety, but I suspect I shall be doing this one every third batch I liked it so much.

If you want more flavour and to make it hoppier, try this:
viewtopic.php?f=21&t=52297

Hello all, been brewing this since last Thursday and seems to be doing well. Sugars added: 1kg Dextrose + 500g dark Muscovado sugar.
Brewed short to 21l. The O.G read as 1.052. I have a good feeling about this one...

Started this on 22/03/14.

1 x Coopers Dark Ale
1kg Dark Spray Malt
500g Light Spray Malt
1/2 tsp Yeast Nutrient
23 Litres
20c
SG 1.051
FG 1.008
5.6%
9 Days to finish
Batch primed 115g Golden Sugar
Bottled

Looked at this on Monday evening and it had blown the lid of the FV off. Went everywhere in my Brew Box. After that it was still a vigorous fermentation.

Anyway, tried a sneaky bottle after about 5 weeks and tasted quite sweet. Carbonation OK but a bit bland. After another couple of weeks, the sweetness had subsided a bit but still bland tasting. Tried another one today and I am really disappointed. There is just no taste or aroma to it, bearing in mind this came out at about 5.6%. It looks OK with a nice head on it.
I plan on just leaving this tucked away in the garage and hope it improves with age, maybe I'm being too hasty,but after 13 brews all the others were far better at this stage.

POSTED THIS IN THE WRONG FORUM!

FV 1: Coopers Stout
FV 2: Empty
Drinking, Coopers Stout x 2 kits, Coopers English Bitter x 3 kits, Coopers Wheat, Wherry, Wilkos Delicate Pilsner.
Conditioning, Coopers English Bitter, Australian Lager, Stout and a Wherry.

proost said:

Started this on 22/03/14.

1 x Coopers Dark Ale
1kg Dark Spray Malt
500g Light Spray Malt
1/2 tsp Yeast Nutrient
23 Litres
20c
SG 1.051
FG 1.008
5.6%
9 Days to finish
Batch primed 115g Golden Sugar
Bottled

Looked at this on Monday evening and it had blown the lid of the FV off. Went everywhere in my Brew Box. After that it was still a vigorous fermentation.

Anyway, tried a sneaky bottle after about 5 weeks and tasted quite sweet. Carbonation OK but a bit bland. After another couple of weeks, the sweetness had subsided a bit but still bland tasting. Tried another one today and I am really disappointed. There is just no taste or aroma to it, bearing in mind this came out at about 5.6%. It looks OK with a nice head on it.
I plan on just leaving this tucked away in the garage and hope it improves with age, maybe I'm being too hasty,but after 13 brews all the others were far better at this stage.



FV 1: Coopers Stout
FV 2: Empty
Drinking, Coopers Stout x 2 kits, Coopers English Bitter x 3 kits, Coopers Wheat, Wherry, Wilkos Delicate Pilsner.
Conditioning, Coopers English Bitter, Australian Lager, Stout and a Wherry.

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Well, tried this again tonight and I have to say this just tastes bland. No character at all, sweet and er'..... thats about it.
The worse kit Iv'e done so far (17 kits)