My first batch

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Broomie14

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So following the instructions today is the day my my brew should be done after the 10 days in a chilled place thought i would try it its more of a beer colour than a lager colour and a very bitter taste does this mean iv went wrong some where ???i dont know If its worked but iv uploaded a pic of it in its bottle

IMG_0436.jpg
 
Did you brew a kit, exract or all grain? You say it's very bitter? I've recently had some problems with harsh bitterness in my beer so have read quite a bit on the subject recently so my be able to help (there's quite a number of reasons for beer being very bitter btw so the culprit may take a bit of tracking down)
 
Looks nice and clear tho. You mentioned larger/beer color. What do you normally drink because if you drink larger you may find proper beer of many variations tastes bitter. As already said depends on what the brew was. If it's malt extract/ kit it's hard to impart any real over battering.
 
It was a european lager kit After the fermenting finished it says to bottle it with half a tea spoon of sugar and leave it in a warm place for 2 days then move the bottles to a chilled place for 10 days.. i usual drink lager but iv never seen one that dark or taste like a bitter.. the malt (i think its a malt) in the tin from the kit was the same colour.
 
Well I've had some great largers of all colours from Europe so wouldn't worry to much about that. It will probably taste maltier than a lighter larger which I feel is a good thing, gives it more depth and taste profile. As for the bittering does it seem OK after you've had a pint or so. Also what's the abv ÷. As I said the clarity looks great tho. Always a good sign of a brew
 
Get going with your next brew and keep going until you reach "Critical Mass". i.e. enough beer to take your time deciding what to brew, brewing it and letting it carbonate and condition for at least four weeks.

If you leave the current batch somewhere nice and cool (and test a bottle every week) you will probably discover that it tastes a lot better after a few weeks.

Many of us on the Forum follow the 2+2+2 "rule" which gives 2 weeks for fermentation plus 2 weeks for carbonation plus 2 weeks for conditioning before we consider whether or not it's ready to drink.

Also, please try to not compare what you brew with the mass produced gnats pee that is available in the pubs and supermarkets. The chances are that your own brew will be far superior to 95% of the commercial beers.

Enjoy! :thumb:
 
It tasted alright by the end of the bottle just wasent what i was expecting as it tasted more like an ale type. it said it was 4%. I dont have enough room or bottles to get the next batch going but i will be trying a different lager and i will use the 2+2+2 rule see if it gives any better results... any recomendations on kits to try ??? I was quite impressed with how clear it went and was told its a sign of a good brew but im new and dont really know. Is there any pouring techniques to not disturb the seddiment in the bottle ?? Thanks for the responces
 
Is there any pouring techniques to not disturb the seddiment in the bottle ?? Thanks for the responces

Chill first. Hold glass and bottle at an angle which prevents air 'glugging' into the bottle and thus causing a ripple which disturbs the sediment. Hold both to the light whilst pouring - towards the end you will see some yeast heading toward the neck. Stop pouring just before it reaches it! Some yeasts are better than others for firm compaction. I'm thinking Notty here!
 
I agree with the Gunge technique but I never chill a beer below whatever temperature it is at when comes out of the garage.

Kits have come a long way over the last thirty years and nowadays almost all of them will make a palatable brew if it's brewed correctly and allowed to condition for a suitable amount of time.

With regard to a Lager Kit I did this Coopers kit last year:

COOPERS LAGER
Destined for long term lagering in fridge
Started 23rd August 2016 with addition of 950g Golden Syrup and 50g of Fuggles hop pellets.
Youngs lager yeast pitched at 23 degrees. Fermenting at 21 degrees in fridge.
Racked to second FV on 1st September 2016.
Lagering at 10 degrees from 1st September to 8th November.
Bottled in flip-tops 8th November 2016
OG 1.042
FG 1.010
ABV 4.2%
Kcal per Litre = 404Kcal

I started drinking it around Christmas and it was so delicious that it changed my attitude towards Lager so much that I now brew an AG version regularly.

To cut down on the lagering time, after primary fermentation is completed, I now bottle and carbonate the lager for a week at 21 degrees, cold crash the bottles down to one degree in the fridge for a week and then sit them on the shelf to condition.

Hope this helps. :thumb:
 
I use a water bath i wouldnt know how to set a fridge up. I thought the second fermentation was in the bottles with the added sugar 🤔 so maybe i have missed a stage ??? Did you use golden syrup instead of sugar or did you sugar aswell
 
Just used golden syrup as I drink a lot of beer and hate falling over! :lol:

The point of lagering is to allow the yeasts to ferment away at a low temperature for a long time. I used to rack the lager off to a second FV (after the first week of fermentation at 20-22 degrees) and let it ferment in the fridge at a much lower temperature for a much longer time (up to 12 weeks).

My taste-buds are shot so nowadays I don't bother with this technique and can honestly say that I can't taste a great deal of difference; but I do let it condition on the shelf for a long period.

At this time of year, "Cold Crashing" in a fridge isn't really necessary as the floor temperature in the unheated end of my garage seldom gets above eight degrees, so if you don't have a fridge just use what's available from nature! (The Met Office reckon that 6 degrees is today's maximum temperature in Skegness; and I believe them!) :thumb:
 
I used a water bath for ferment the water was always at 24 degrees which left inside the vessle about 21 degrees. So when u say u let it go at a lower temp am i right in thinking 18/19 degrees ??lower than that will be too cold iv been told. My lager is currently conditioning in the garage on a work top its been done out like a cinema room but still gets chilly in there. Had another bottle tonight it tasted a bit chemically but not as bitter as the last one
 
Check out this link to a Lager Yeast ...

https://www.homebrewcentre.co.uk/sa...MI6bP4rcHZ1wIVSbvtCh0FOwHeEAQYBCABEgIo7fD_BwE

... and you will see that the yeast will stay active down to 9 degrees.

The original idea behind lagering was that it was a winter process that took a long time to complete fermentation, due to winter temperatures being so low in the places that it was brewed.

Nowadays, in this age of electric heating and cooling, we can produce beers and lagers all year round but some people still regard a lager that has not been "lagered" at a low temperature as a "pseudo lager".

Personally, I use the lower temperatures of winter to condition my beers on the shelf in the garage; and it tastes just fine! :thumb:
 
Is this a better yeast than what is provided iv just bought a pilsner lager to start but might not start it till the new year
 
I recommend festivals nz pilsner. It will blow your mind and completely change your opinion of beer. You won't ever look back to lager kits again. Be brave and buy it.
 
It does look a bit dark, this is how a Coopers European should look. I've done it a few times and it always comes out looking like a lager.

What extra fermentables did you use to make up the kit: sugar, light spramalt, dark spraymalt? That may have influenced the colour.

Coopers European.jpg
 
I was mistaken it was muntons continental and only put what was in the kit in and thrn sugar in the bottle when bottling
 

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