cheap one can kits

[Plumber79]

Hey all,
Was just wondering,if you could get a one can kit cheap enough is it worth buying two cans and brewing them together instead of one can and extra fermentables? Has anyone tried this?
:
Paul

 

[brizleciderarmy]

It would be very bitter as you will have double the amount of hop oils in your brew.

 

[wilsoa1111]

think someone posted an analysis of this, bottom line unless the style of beer u want is only available in 1 can kits (v rare) stick with the two can kits- thnk dunelm might still be selling off wherry etc silly cheap- edit yep are:
http://www.dunelm-mill.com/shop/woodfor ... kit-296153

 

[thermalhound]

Hey all,
Was just wondering,if you could get a one can kit cheap enough is it worth buying two cans and brewing them together instead of one can and extra fermentables? Has anyone tried this?
:
Paul

Some of the Coopers kits (Sparkling Ale for example) can be made up using a can of Coopers LME which effectively gives you a two can kit. However the total cost for the extract and the LME comes close to, if not exceeds, the cost of purchasing a twin can kit.

 

[winelight]

I don't think cheap one can kits are that bad, really. Yes it's not worth spending a lot of money improving them, but I've not had one that's undrinkable anyway.

 

[Plumber79]

Thanks for the replies. I'm drinking a wherry at the moment and it's a beautiful pint!
Was looking at the wilko cerveza which is cheap at £10 but some reviews have said is a bit tasteless, my mate did a wilko sweet newkie brown and that really was lacking in every department!
Will probably just get a coopers cerveza which has better reviews :

 

[winelight]

Oh yeah I think going for anything exotic like cerveza or newkie brown is not going to be good with a cheap kit. The ordinary bitters are OK. Coopers is the exception to that, they all seem to be good.

 

[artyb]

i just knocked up a brew with two cans from edme lager kits
which were out of date,
added no sugar just the two cans of extract,and water,

its came out strong tasting, similar a wheat beer and a darker amber colour.. tastes very nice, :party:

 

[Andyhull]

How about using 2 x 1 can kits and make them up to say 30lts to 35lts instead of the standard 23lts.
This would reduce the bitternes and over flavouring but give you better/more body and more beer than a 2 can premium kit would for the price of a 2 can kit!
It would be like brewing a 2 can kit short but with more brew at the end (if you know what i mean!!! :wha: )

Andy

 

[fbsf]

Andy, that would only work if you were adding the other fermentables a 1-can kit requires as well. Normally, it's the 1-can kit, and 1kg of dry sugars, or 1.5kg liquid. So if you added the two 1-can kits together with no other sugars, you would still only have enough for 23L.

If you want a fuller flavour and higher abv from a 1-can kit, either add 500g dry malt as well as the 1kg brewing sugar and brew to 23L, or 500g of each and brew it short to say 19L instead of 23.

I would probably go for the latter - 500g dme, 500g brewing sugar and brew to 19L total. I did roughly this for my Coopers 1-can cervesa, and it turned out nice.

 

[ScottM]

I recently brewed the coopers mexican cerveza. Went with 500g of light DME and 1kg of brewing sugar. OG came out to 1.048 (my hydrometer reads 3 points high) so looking good for 5%.

I brewed it a year or so ago and had good results but it lacked a lot in body and I underprimed it so improvements could be made.

Depending on my results this time my plan is to get 2 of the kits the next time they are on offer and brew them as one. Brewing 2 of the kits together without any additives should see around 4.5% without any trouble, by the time priming sugar is added it won't be a kick off of 5%.

It all depends on the kit you are making to whether 2 cans of a single would be worthwhile. With the cerveza I think it would benefit massively. Bitters and the like, as said, probably wouldn't work out well. If the style you are after comes in a 2 can variety then I would probably go down that road.

 

[fbsf]

See, I still personally wouldn't do that Scott. I'd spend the £12 on three 500g bags of dry malt extract instead - that way you are getting the hop bitterness that was designed for the brew from the single can, and the benefit of the extra mouthfeel and body. You could also dry-hop it with a little Saaz once the initial ferment is out of the way.

But of course, if you felt it was lacking in overall bitterness too, using two 1-can kits would be a good way to fix it.

 

[ScottM]

See, I still personally wouldn't do that Scott. I'd spend the £12 on three 500g bags of dry malt extract instead - that way you are getting the hop bitterness that was designed for the brew from the single can, and the benefit of the extra mouthfeel and body. You could also dry-hop it with a little Saaz once the initial ferment is out of the way.

But of course, if you felt it was lacking in overall bitterness too, using two 1-can kits would be a good way to fix it.

Yeah it was lacking in the lot lol. Tasted watered down, hence why it's recommended to brew to 18L by a lot of people.

It was one of my first brews so I followed the instructions. I didn't complain about it, it was my first "success", and the lot got drank. It was just missing a LOT.

Most of the coopers lagers range could be doing with more hops. I think they are designed for people that are used to low hop lagers, carlings and tennents and all that jazz, so they are lacking to begin with anyway :)

 

[alawlor66430]

One of our sponsors does 3kg of DME for £14 I got a couple of bags from them but can't remember who it was

 

[fbsf]

Yup, if you live close to one of them, or are ordering other stuff as well (to share the shipping) then you can get it a lot cheaper - £4 for 500g is based on Wilko's prices.

Rob @ Malt Miller does a kilo for £5ish I think or 3kg for £15, but then there is the shipping on top which takes it up to £20ish for 3kg. If you plan on buying in bulk though then it makes sense as it's only £7.50 shipping up to 30kg.

If you were going to do that, then he does 25kg of liquid malt extract for £63ish or £71ish shipped.

Even if you use 4kg a brew, that's still only £12 for a full 23L extract brew which is pretty darn good.

But I've done my usual trick and gone wayyyyyyy off topic!