Coopers Cerveza Review

[rpt]

There are some calculators linked from the top of these pages. This gives an ABV of 3.4%. You can add about 0.2% to that for the bottle conditioning.

Too much sugar can make the beer strong but lacking body. Granulated sugar is supposed to be the worst fermentable as it might lead to off flavours but I'm not sure I've seen anyone give a definitive answer to this. Some all grain recipes do include white sugar but that is as a small proportion of the overall sugar.

7 days in the bucket is fine - did you check that fermentation had actually finished? Longer allows the yeast to drop out of the beer. My last brew was about 3 weeks in the bucket due to low temperatures but any longer than that runs a greater risk of infection or off tastes from sitting on the yeast.

Golden syrup is partially inverted refiner's syrup so it's probably the nearest to what brewers use (invert sugar) if they do add sugar.

 

[Kinleycat]

There are some calculators linked from the top of these pages. This gives an ABV of 3.4%. You can add about 0.2% to that for the bottle conditioning.

Too much sugar can make the beer strong but lacking body. Granulated sugar is supposed to be the worst fermentable as it might lead to off flavours but I'm not sure I've seen anyone give a definitive answer to this. Some all grain recipes do include white sugar but that is as a small proportion of the overall sugar.

7 days in the bucket is fine - did you check that fermentation had actually finished? Longer allows the yeast to drop out of the beer. My last brew was about 3 weeks in the bucket due to low temperatures but any longer than that runs a greater risk of infection or off tastes from sitting on the yeast.

Golden syrup is partially inverted refiner's syrup so it's probably the nearest to what brewers use (invert sugar) if they do add sugar.

TBH i followed the instructions to the letter which said six days and then check for two stable readings which i did.
The foam had died right back so i think it had finished, arguably there wasnt enough syrup in 1KG (someone pointed out) is equivelant to 770g so that would explain the low gravity.
It was my first brew and i hadn't found this forum so i was a bit too keen, i have learnt so much (probably by going wrong) in this first brew that i am far more confident to do my next ones, and i will be more chilled out and more likely to go with the flow.
I made 25 ltrs - Ill brew short to 20-23 ltrs next time
The yeast went in at 23c - next time ill do it a little higher.
The sugar will be right next time
I'll give it more time in the bucket next time.
All little lessons picked up along the way, and I'm sure it will still be drinkable.
Either way I'm hooked!!!! :thumb:

 

[ScottM]

There are some calculators linked from the top of these pages. This gives an ABV of 3.4%. You can add about 0.2% to that for the bottle conditioning.

Too much sugar can make the beer strong but lacking body. Granulated sugar is supposed to be the worst fermentable as it might lead to off flavours but I'm not sure I've seen anyone give a definitive answer to this. Some all grain recipes do include white sugar but that is as a small proportion of the overall sugar.

7 days in the bucket is fine - did you check that fermentation had actually finished? Longer allows the yeast to drop out of the beer. My last brew was about 3 weeks in the bucket due to low temperatures but any longer than that runs a greater risk of infection or off tastes from sitting on the yeast.

Golden syrup is partially inverted refiner's syrup so it's probably the nearest to what brewers use (invert sugar) if they do add sugar.

TBH i followed the instructions to the letter which said six days and then check for two stable readings which i did.
The foam had died right back so i think it had finished, arguably there wasnt enough syrup in 1KG (someone pointed out) is equivelant to 770g so that would explain the low gravity.
It was my first brew and i hadn't found this forum so i was a bit too keen, i have learnt so much (probably by going wrong) in this first brew that i am far more confident to do my next ones, and i will be more chilled out and more likely to go with the flow.
I made 25 ltrs - Ill brew short to 20-23 ltrs next time
The yeast went in at 23c - next time ill do it a little higher.
The sugar will be right next time
I'll give it more time in the bucket next time.
All little lessons picked up along the way, and I'm sure it will still be drinkable.
Either way I'm hooked!!!! :thumb:

Brewing to 25 litres will be one of the main issues. You have lots of options depending what you want to do. If it were me I would go with the following...

Cerveza kit
1kg brewing sugar
500g light DME (Dry malt extract, spraymalt)


Boil 2L of water and dissolve the brewing sugar & DME into it. Take off the heat and pour in the contents of the can (large pot required). Rinse the can out with boiling water to get the residue in. Pour into FV and add water to the 23L mark. Give a GOOD stir with a paddle, fold it over lots and make sure everything is thoroughly mixed. Check the temperature, anything under 26 degrees and falling is fine as long as it's over 20. Take note of the gravity, pitch the yeast and sit at 20 degrees for at least a fortnight. Take a reading with the hydrometer again, I would expect 1.006-1.008 for a light lager like this, it could be lower but much higher than that I would suggest it's stalled. As long as all activity has stopped, you are happy with the reading and it's consistent over a couple of days you're ready to go. Transfer into a secondary bucket and leave for a week to clear, clean out the primary fv for next use. Get the bottles etc sterilised and ready, boil a mug of water and add 150-200g of white sugar. Stir thoroughly then add to clean/sterile FV, rack from the secondary into the sugar. Give a stir with a paddle, try not to splash too much but make sure sugar is thoroughly mixed. Rack into bottles. Sit at room temp (20 degrees) for 14 days and then let them sit as cool as possible (close to zero is perfect) for at least a fortnight before sampling. If you're happy then get tucked in but always leave a few to mature for 2-3 months so that you can appreciate the difference (if there is one).

I'm definitely going to be giving the cerveza another go in the future, my last attempt was slightly disappointing but the potential is there. The above method is what I plan to do to make the most of it.

 

[mattrickl06]

This is my only brew so far that i used brewing sugar in.

I did 700g brewing sugar and 500g DME and some extra Saaz Hops.

It is definately my least favourite brew so far, it tastes very weak with a strange limey aftertaste and absolutely zero body, its also very cloudy.

I would say leave the sugar for cider and wine and stick to DME for all lagers & beers.

Incidentally the Coopers European lager with light DME & pre hopped light DME and a Saaz hop tea is far, far better.

 

[Kinleycat]

There are some calculators linked from the top of these pages. This gives an ABV of 3.4%. You can add about 0.2% to that for the bottle conditioning.

Too much sugar can make the beer strong but lacking body. Granulated sugar is supposed to be the worst fermentable as it might lead to off flavours but I'm not sure I've seen anyone give a definitive answer to this. Some all grain recipes do include white sugar but that is as a small proportion of the overall sugar.

7 days in the bucket is fine - did you check that fermentation had actually finished? Longer allows the yeast to drop out of the beer. My last brew was about 3 weeks in the bucket due to low temperatures but any longer than that runs a greater risk of infection or off tastes from sitting on the yeast.

Golden syrup is partially inverted refiner's syrup so it's probably the nearest to what brewers use (invert sugar) if they do add sugar.

TBH i followed the instructions to the letter which said six days and then check for two stable readings which i did.
The foam had died right back so i think it had finished, arguably there wasnt enough syrup in 1KG (someone pointed out) is equivelant to 770g so that would explain the low gravity.
It was my first brew and i hadn't found this forum so i was a bit too keen, i have learnt so much (probably by going wrong) in this first brew that i am far more confident to do my next ones, and i will be more chilled out and more likely to go with the flow.
I made 25 ltrs - Ill brew short to 20-23 ltrs next time
The yeast went in at 23c - next time ill do it a little higher.
The sugar will be right next time
I'll give it more time in the bucket next time.
All little lessons picked up along the way, and I'm sure it will still be drinkable.
Either way I'm hooked!!!! :thumb:

Brewing to 25 litres will be one of the main issues. You have lots of options depending what you want to do. If it were me I would go with the following...

Cerveza kit
1kg brewing sugar
500g light DME (Dry malt extract, spraymalt)


Boil 2L of water and dissolve the brewing sugar & DME into it. Take off the heat and pour in the contents of the can (large pot required). Rinse the can out with boiling water to get the residue in. Pour into FV and add water to the 23L mark. Give a GOOD stir with a paddle, fold it over lots and make sure everything is thoroughly mixed. Check the temperature, anything under 26 degrees and falling is fine as long as it's over 20. Take note of the gravity, pitch the yeast and sit at 20 degrees for at least a fortnight. Take a reading with the hydrometer again, I would expect 1.006-1.008 for a light lager like this, it could be lower but much higher than that I would suggest it's stalled. As long as all activity has stopped, you are happy with the reading and it's consistent over a couple of days you're ready to go. Transfer into a secondary bucket and leave for a week to clear, clean out the primary fv for next use. Get the bottles etc sterilised and ready, boil a mug of water and add 150-200g of white sugar. Stir thoroughly then add to clean/sterile FV, rack from the secondary into the sugar. Give a stir with a paddle, try not to splash too much but make sure sugar is thoroughly mixed. Rack into bottles. Sit at room temp (20 degrees) for 14 days and then let them sit as cool as possible (close to zero is perfect) for at least a fortnight before sampling. If you're happy then get tucked in but always leave a few to mature for 2-3 months so that you can appreciate the difference (if there is one).

I'm definitely going to be giving the cerveza another go in the future, my last attempt was slightly disappointing but the potential is there. The above method is what I plan to do to make the most of it.

Nice one Matt :thumb:
I'll give this a go with the Coopers and the Wilko later this week.
1.5KG of Sugars that sounds high, would the golden Syrum pork well (2 tins?) and what is the diff between granulated and brewing sugar?
Cheers.
:

 

[ScottM]

Nice one Matt :thumb:
I'll give this a go with the Coopers and the Wilko later this week.
1.5KG of Sugars that sounds high, would the golden Syrum pork well (2 tins?) and what is the diff between granulated and brewing sugar?
Cheers.
:

Scott even

1.5kg of sugar does sound high but it's only to combat the poorly configured ingredients that you get. Basically any single tin kit that you buy is going to underestimate the required fermentables. This goes for any of the coopers kits from my experience. They should always be brewed to approx 20L to get the best out of them. Adding the 500g of DME means that you can brew to the full 23L and get a little more body out of it.

The sugar variances all come down to the makeup of the sugar. From what I understand granulated sugar is fructose and brewing sugar is glucose. Fructose is better for creating fruity flavours, like wines and fruit beers etc. Glucose is better for creating clean flavours, like most lagers/ales/beers etc. Most people will tend to use normal sugar for wines and ciders, as the specially designed yeasts can produce potent flavours with them. Glucose is normally used in beer/lager etc as you generally dont want fruity notes.

I wouldn't recommend using syrup at all with a kit like this.

 

[ScottM]

This is my only brew so far that i used brewing sugar in.

I did 700g brewing sugar and 500g DME and some extra Saaz Hops.

It is definately my least favourite brew so far, it tastes very weak with a strange limey aftertaste and absolutely zero body, its also very cloudy.

I would say leave the sugar for cider and wine and stick to DME for all lagers & beers.

Incidentally the Coopers European lager with light DME & pre hopped light DME and a Saaz hop tea is far, far better.

Sounds like it didn't go according to plan, although the fruity lime note is exactly what it should produce (being a mexican cerveza corona clone ).

When I brewed it I did it to 23L with 1kg of brewing sugar. It had next to no body and I didn't use enough priming sugar so didn't have a lot of fizz either. Other than that it was fantastic, with my alterations I think it'll be spot on.

Mine was crystal clear too, even when just racking from the bottle bucket to the bottles it was almost crystal.

Did you use a secondary or bottling bucket? Or did you just bottle straight from the primary? It sounds like you bottled from the primary and possibly went a bit too soon?

 

[rpt]

Household white granulated sugar is sucrose. Each molecule is effectively made of one molecule of glucose and one of fructose. Before the yeast can ferment it, it has to break the bond between the glucose and fructose.

Brewing sugar is dextrose monohydrate. Every molecule of dextrose is bound to one molecule of water which is why you need to use slightly more brewing sugar than sucrose for the same amount of fermentables. As far as the yeast is concerned dextrose is the same as glucose. The yeast can ferment this without having to break any bonds first.

Both types of sugar are fully fermentable but sucrose is supposed to produce some off flavours, presumably a side effect of breaking the bond between glucose and fructose. Has anyone actually done a comparison?

 

[mattrickl06]

This is my only brew so far that i used brewing sugar in.

I did 700g brewing sugar and 500g DME and some extra Saaz Hops.

It is definately my least favourite brew so far, it tastes very weak with a strange limey aftertaste and absolutely zero body, its also very cloudy.

I would say leave the sugar for cider and wine and stick to DME for all lagers & beers.

Incidentally the Coopers European lager with light DME & pre hopped light DME and a Saaz hop tea is far, far better.

Sounds like it didn't go according to plan, although the fruity lime note is exactly what it should produce (being a mexican cerveza corona clone ).

When I brewed it I did it to 23L with 1kg of brewing sugar. It had next to no body and I didn't use enough priming sugar so didn't have a lot of fizz either. Other than that it was fantastic, with my alterations I think it'll be spot on.

Mine was crystal clear too, even when just racking from the bottle bucket to the bottles it was almost crystal.

Did you use a secondary or bottling bucket? Or did you just bottle straight from the primary? It sounds like you bottled from the primary and possibly went a bit too soon?

I did secondary and cold crashed in the garage for a week before bottling so not sure quite what happened :cry:

 

[Kinleycat]

There are some calculators linked from the top of these pages. This gives an ABV of 3.4%. You can add about 0.2% to that for the bottle conditioning.

Too much sugar can make the beer strong but lacking body. Granulated sugar is supposed to be the worst fermentable as it might lead to off flavours but I'm not sure I've seen anyone give a definitive answer to this. Some all grain recipes do include white sugar but that is as a small proportion of the overall sugar.

7 days in the bucket is fine - did you check that fermentation had actually finished? Longer allows the yeast to drop out of the beer. My last brew was about 3 weeks in the bucket due to low temperatures but any longer than that runs a greater risk of infection or off tastes from sitting on the yeast.

Golden syrup is partially inverted refiner's syrup so it's probably the nearest to what brewers use (invert sugar) if they do add sugar.

TBH i followed the instructions to the letter which said six days and then check for two stable readings which i did.
The foam had died right back so i think it had finished, arguably there wasnt enough syrup in 1KG (someone pointed out) is equivelant to 770g so that would explain the low gravity.
It was my first brew and i hadn't found this forum so i was a bit too keen, i have learnt so much (probably by going wrong) in this first brew that i am far more confident to do my next ones, and i will be more chilled out and more likely to go with the flow.
I made 25 ltrs - Ill brew short to 20-23 ltrs next time
The yeast went in at 23c - next time ill do it a little higher.
The sugar will be right next time
I'll give it more time in the bucket next time.
All little lessons picked up along the way, and I'm sure it will still be drinkable.
Either way I'm hooked!!!! :thumb:

Brewing to 25 litres will be one of the main issues. You have lots of options depending what you want to do. If it were me I would go with the following...

Cerveza kit
1kg brewing sugar
500g light DME (Dry malt extract, spraymalt)


Boil 2L of water and dissolve the brewing sugar & DME into it. Take off the heat and pour in the contents of the can (large pot required). Rinse the can out with boiling water to get the residue in. Pour into FV and add water to the 23L mark. Give a GOOD stir with a paddle, fold it over lots and make sure everything is thoroughly mixed. Check the temperature, anything under 26 degrees and falling is fine as long as it's over 20. Take note of the gravity, pitch the yeast and sit at 20 degrees for at least a fortnight. Take a reading with the hydrometer again, I would expect 1.006-1.008 for a light lager like this, it could be lower but much higher than that I would suggest it's stalled. As long as all activity has stopped, you are happy with the reading and it's consistent over a couple of days you're ready to go. Transfer into a secondary bucket and leave for a week to clear, clean out the primary fv for next use. Get the bottles etc sterilised and ready, boil a mug of water and add 150-200g of white sugar. Stir thoroughly then add to clean/sterile FV, rack from the secondary into the sugar. Give a stir with a paddle, try not to splash too much but make sure sugar is thoroughly mixed. Rack into bottles. Sit at room temp (20 degrees) for 14 days and then let them sit as cool as possible (close to zero is perfect) for at least a fortnight before sampling. If you're happy then get tucked in but always leave a few to mature for 2-3 months so that you can appreciate the difference (if there is one).

I'm definitely going to be giving the cerveza another go in the future, my last attempt was slightly disappointing but the potential is there. The above method is what I plan to do to make the most of it.

Just done the Wilko Cerveza kit.
Brewed to 23ltr on 1kg Muntons Beerkit Enhancer (SD Malt Extract/SD Dextrose) and 500g Wilko Brewing Sugar (Dextrose Monohydrate) OG was 1045.
Pitched yeast (the packet that came with the kit) in at 26c
Lid on and under the stairs at a steady 20c.
:pray:

 

[ScottM]

This is my only brew so far that i used brewing sugar in.

I did 700g brewing sugar and 500g DME and some extra Saaz Hops.

It is definately my least favourite brew so far, it tastes very weak with a strange limey aftertaste and absolutely zero body, its also very cloudy.

I would say leave the sugar for cider and wine and stick to DME for all lagers & beers.

Incidentally the Coopers European lager with light DME & pre hopped light DME and a Saaz hop tea is far, far better.

Sounds like it didn't go according to plan, although the fruity lime note is exactly what it should produce (being a mexican cerveza corona clone ).

When I brewed it I did it to 23L with 1kg of brewing sugar. It had next to no body and I didn't use enough priming sugar so didn't have a lot of fizz either. Other than that it was fantastic, with my alterations I think it'll be spot on.

Mine was crystal clear too, even when just racking from the bottle bucket to the bottles it was almost crystal.

Did you use a secondary or bottling bucket? Or did you just bottle straight from the primary? It sounds like you bottled from the primary and possibly went a bit too soon?

I did secondary and cold crashed in the garage for a week before bottling so not sure quite what happened :cry:

Hmm, that's a strange one. All I did with that particular kit was syphon into a secondary for a couple of days, and it was only at room temp.

I'll keep an eye on my next batch and see what happens with it. I've got an extract brew to do and an OTR cider kit, after that I'll definitely give the ole cerveza a go for round 2 :)

 

[ScottM]

Just done the Wilko Cerveza kit.
Brewed to 23ltr on 1kg Muntons Beerkit Enhancer (SD Malt Extract/SD Dextrose) and 500g Wilko Brewing Sugar (Dextrose Monohydrate) OG was 1045.
Pitched yeast (the packet that came with the kit) in at 26c
Lid on and under the stairs at a steady 20c.
:pray:

That's a little higher than the coopers kits IIRC, sounds even better though

If it ferments out as it should you'll be somewhere in the region of 4.5-5%....... lovely :drink:

Good luck with it :)

 

[Kinleycat]

Just done the Wilko Cerveza kit.
Brewed to 23ltr on 1kg Muntons Beerkit Enhancer (SD Malt Extract/SD Dextrose) and 500g Wilko Brewing Sugar (Dextrose Monohydrate) OG was 1045.
Pitched yeast (the packet that came with the kit) in at 26c
Lid on and under the stairs at a steady 20c.
:pray:

That's a little higher than the coopers kits IIRC, sounds even better though

If it ferments out as it should you'll be somewhere in the region of 4.5-5%....... lovely :drink:

Good luck with it :)

With the higher sugar content used, should I still prime the litre bottles with a teaspoon of sugar or less?

 

[rpt]

As long as the primary fermentation has finished (gravity constant for a few days) then you will still need priming sugar.

 

[ScottM]

Just done the Wilko Cerveza kit.
Brewed to 23ltr on 1kg Muntons Beerkit Enhancer (SD Malt Extract/SD Dextrose) and 500g Wilko Brewing Sugar (Dextrose Monohydrate) OG was 1045.
Pitched yeast (the packet that came with the kit) in at 26c
Lid on and under the stairs at a steady 20c.
:pray:

That's a little higher than the coopers kits IIRC, sounds even better though

If it ferments out as it should you'll be somewhere in the region of 4.5-5%....... lovely :drink:

Good luck with it :)

With the higher sugar content used, should I still prime the litre bottles with a teaspoon of sugar or less?

Higher sugar content in the primary won't make any difference as there won't be any left when it's fermented out. Just go with whatever you determine enough for your level of carbonation.

It may be worth noting that in a lager I use 1tsp per 500ml though. You may end up with a bit of a flat pint only using 1tsp per L on a cerveza.

The best way to prime your beer is to use the method I described above, via a bottling bucket.

 

[Kinleycat]

Back in at tesco online £9.97, free delivery to your local tesco shop. :thumb:

 

[ScottM]

Back in at tesco online £9.97, free delivery to your local tesco shop. :thumb:

Says unavailable for me?

 

[Kinleycat]

Back in at tesco online £9.97, free delivery to your local tesco shop. :thumb:

Says unavailable for me?

Looks like its all gone.
The website is pretty flakey sometimes it brings it up sometimes it doesn't.
I've gone in through my order though direct to the item and it is saying un available.
I thinks they must just get a small amount and it goes like lightning.

 

[Kinleycat]

Thinking of adding some chillies to some of the bottles of cerveza.
Would i have to treat them in any way or just give them a good wash? i don't want to infect the brew!!!
KC :thumb:

 

[BigDDunc]

Finally kicked this off this evening :

Brewed it short to 20L, and used the recommended Cooper Brew Enhancer 2. Will let you know how I get on, but after my success with the Coopers European Lager I have very high hopes for this.