Am I doing this right?

[1stTimer]

Hi guys,

I received the kit Friday morning and set it up straight away. It’s a coopers lager. I was told by the chap on the phone to use half the brew enhancer to reduce the abv.
It came out at 1.27 I think on the hydrometer

it was quite dark at first (photo included) and I’ve taken a photo today (Monday) and it’s gone a lighter colour but no major bubbling/foaming on the top. I’ve just taken a sample and it’s reading 1.1 (another photo included) it bubbled quite a lot when it went into the sample tube and smells a lot better than it did on friday

Am I in for a decent first brew?

 

[cushyno]

The liquid in your sample tube certainly looks to have yeast in, so the yeast is working. Two days is not long for a lager yeast, I'd expect fermentation to take around two weeks when kept at the right temperature. So, I'd say it has started but there is further to go.

Is the hydrometer really reading 1.1? I would expect the kit to start around 1.035 if you've only used half the brew enhancer and for it to drop to around 1.008, maybe lower for a low ABV kit.

What was your original gravity when first put into the fermenting bucket?

Do you have an airlock for the fermenting bucket, or is the lid just placed on loose?

 

[1stTimer]

Thanks for the reply, yes I understand there’s still a long time left. I was just nervous it hadn’t started doing anything because of the lack of foam on the top

I may have my gravity readings wrong. It was at the black line when I first brewed and at the red line 72 hours later (today)

there isn’t an air lock, it’s a sealed lid

thanks

 

[cushyno]

That looks like you started on it just under 1.030 and currently just above 1.010. Gradually the gravity will drop. How far it drops depends on the yeast. Most ale/lager yeasts manage to chew through 70-75% of sugars. The yeast manufacturers sometimes publish the range of attenuation - the percentage of sugar used up.

If starting gravity was 1.030 and attenuation 75%, you'll be looking at something like 1.006-1.008 as your final gravity target, giving a 3% alcohol content

 

[1stTimer]

Perfect! Just what I was after! I didn’t want it too strong for my first batch in case it put me off brewing again. I’ll maybe try 750g of enhancer for my next run.

thanks a lot for the gravity reading help, I thought I was reading it wrong.

ill check again on Friday and maybe again Sunday? Cheers

 

[RoomWithABrew]

Wish my hydrometer was as easy to read as that, it's so busy with colours on it as well.

A stable FG for three days suggests it's finished so look out for that. Lagers always look so simple but they are quite tricky to do well. A best bitter or a dark beer is good for learning ( esp a stout as you don't see haze), if it's cloudy just use a tankard. Weaker beers are also tricky as well so you've given yourself a challenge there, but plenty to move forward with. Follow their instructions though and temperature control as best you can, sanitise +++.
Let us know how it goes, should be a picture in about 4 weeks of it in a glass with some tasting notes.

 

[1stTimer]

When I took the sample today the smell was amazing so I hope it continues. I’m going to buy some extra bottles as I’ve got the ingredients for a coopers euro lager here to go straight in after this first ones done.

 

[RoomWithABrew]

You should look up pitching onto yeast cake, if you can mix your ingredients up in a separate vessel you then pour in the mix onto the dregs ( old yeast ) left in the bottom of the bucket. But if the other kit yeast is very different then not such a good plan and sometimes walking is a good idea instead of running.
Buy a capper and collect bottles from your neighbours glass recycling or at the glass recycling bin or speak to some local pubs / bars. Glass bottles do keep the beer better long term.

 

[1stTimer]

Thanks for the advice. I was going to buy some glass bottles because I prefer drinking out of a bottle instead of a glass. I was warned off it for sediment. I’m looking into sediment catchers now so may go down the glass bottle route.

 

[RoomWithABrew]

Unless you are putting clear beer into your bottles you will get sediment. Glass bottles cope fine with it, especially once the yeast has settled and packed down. Wouldn't be a reason for me to not use a glass bottle. But I wouldn't drink out of a bottle if it was bottle conditioned ( yours will be) as you will end up stirring the yeast up and drinking it. The only real way is to pour it carefully into a glass leaving the last couple of cm behind with the yeast then you will get perfectly clear beer in a glass.
You'll want to show off your beer anyway.

 

[RoomWithABrew]

Even if you did put clear beer into the bottle, the addition of sugar to condition the beer means more yeast grows and you get sediment. If you fined and filtered the beer before bottling and then added sugar you'd get no yeast growth and have some flat beer to drink.