Feeling a little stupid here but we've just made our first attempt at brewing a beer. We used a Coopers English bitter kit. We seem to have misread the instructions because we didn't add any sugar to the contents of the can when we emptied it into the fermentation bin. We have now bottled it having left it in the fermenter for 12 days. Not being the most patient of people we tasted it whilst bottling, and then realised our error. Is there anything we can do to rectify this, or should we put it down to experience, dump it and start again afresh. Thanks
Missing sugar
- Thread starter replican
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It will taste much the same as it would have done, had you added a kg of sugar. It won't get you drunk as fast, that's all.
You have made a "table" or "small" beer (not sure which), in the language from the medieval. It will be no worse to drink and I can see no reason whatsoever to dump it.
No kit based beer tastes as good at 12 days as it ultimately will, so just leave it to improve and get onto the next brew, is my advice.
cornyandy
Junior Member
Don't sweat, drink twice as much. It will taste different I would be at a guess about 2% give or take a few points either way. Chill it down it will make a nice small beer for those summer afternoons when you are gardening. A word of caution with such a low ABV it might not keep especially well. I'd give it about three weeks and then have at it. It might have a little kit tang at that age but better to drink it and suffer a little twanginess than chuck it. If you were so inclined I suppose you could stick it back in the fermenter, add a couple of spraymalts and perhaps 500g of sugar and a sachet of yeast it would up the ABV and make it more like a "normal" beer but truly I wouldn't bother, the risk of infection is too great and you might not get a good result
Hope that helps.
Hope that helps.
timcunnell
Regular.
From what I can gather, it sounds like you just forgot to add the sugar at the end of the fermentation period - is that right? Usually with these kits you just add the contents of the can(s) to water and then chuck in the yeast. That's enough to get your beer brewed, then when it comes to bottling (or kegging) your beer, you add some sugar (normally referred to as priming sugar) and it is this that gets turned into CO2 - and a bit more alcohol - as your beer conditions.
So I would say that from the sounds of it you haven't added your priming sugar - and this would just result in a lower alcohol beer with less fizz.
As has already been said, you definitely shouldn't expect it to taste any good just yet. It can take at least 3 weeks for a home brew to get anywhere near drinkable - but can take a LOT longer. It also takes a while for some fizz to build up - even if you didn't add priming sugar there is still likely to be a little fizz.
So I would say put this down to experience as I don't know if anyone makes a great brew first time. But at the same time, hang on to those bottles and give them a few weeks and you may be surprised how well they turn out. Good luck and happy brewing! :)
So I would say that from the sounds of it you haven't added your priming sugar - and this would just result in a lower alcohol beer with less fizz.
As has already been said, you definitely shouldn't expect it to taste any good just yet. It can take at least 3 weeks for a home brew to get anywhere near drinkable - but can take a LOT longer. It also takes a while for some fizz to build up - even if you didn't add priming sugar there is still likely to be a little fizz.
So I would say put this down to experience as I don't know if anyone makes a great brew first time. But at the same time, hang on to those bottles and give them a few weeks and you may be surprised how well they turn out. Good luck and happy brewing! :)
cornyandy
Junior Member
Sorry Tim the Coopers English Bitter Kit is a 1.7kg one and would require and extra kilo of fermentables. I believe that is what has been missed out so they will have a weaker beer that may not last. I agree it's one to put down to experience.
timcunnell
Regular.
Ah okay then that does make more sense! Thanks for clearing that up mate, and apologies for my duff info!
So yeah - if the OP has actually primed but just not added the original sugar I guess it could turn out alright. Just lower ABV?
cornyandy
Junior Member
Okay Tim and thanks for not taking umbrage at me for pointing it out (some would although on here I doubt it) I think it may we turn out a beer much like those cheap stubby lagers from Asda that are about a couple of percent, not particularly distinguished but very drinkable. (it's not a mistake I've made so I am guessing here) I did once make a very low gravity beer from left over extracts and a few hops. It didn't last long and we enjoyed it very much on a hot afternoon. It might be a great mistake I don't know.
timcunnell
Regular.
Not at all mate I am on here as a relative novice and hoping to learn from guys like yourself so always happy to have stuff like that pointed out!
I do know what you mean about some people on forums getting the hump when others say stuff, but actually I have been very pleasantly surprised that everyone on here doesn't seem to be like that.
I guess us brewers are a much friendlier bunch!
Thanks for all your replies. We did indeed miss out the sugar at the start. We just added the contents of the can to the water then added the yeast. We did however add a level teaspoon of sugar to each 500ml bottle.
timcunnell
Regular.
Ah well good luck with it and hopefully it'll turn out okay! Please update us and let us know what its like - but just bear in mind it might need at least 3-4 weeks conditioning. Maybe more!
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