Coopers Stout kit first attempt..1 question before I start!

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PanchoSimon

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hiya all,
im going to attempt the Coopers stout kit this week as reviews I’ve read and watched are very good, I am intending to use 500g extra dark DME. My question is would I be better adding 500g Muscavado sugar to accompany the DME in the fermenting bin or would 500g of Demerara sugar be more suitable! would it make any difference at all!
I am intending to bottle it and was going to use the Demerara sugar to prime when bottling!
all suggestions are greatly appreciated, I really want my first batch to be perfecto
thanks all,
Simon.
 
You can add sugar if you like. The muscovado may give you a slight mollases taste. When bottling just use white sugar.
Fit a blow off tube.
 
I haven’t used muscavado sugar much in brewing but when I have, only small amounts impart a lot of flavour and I don’t like it. I’ll let others with more experience answer this question properly for you but I would say hold off adding 500g of muscavado until you’ve heard from a few people.
 
I used to use 100-120g of dark muscavado sugar and 500g of dark DME and 500g of golden syrup when I made up Coopers stout kits and they turned out fine. You can just taste the dark sugar but it doesn't overpower it at all.
And as @Clint has said you may need a blow off tube if you are brewing to 20+ litres but only with the Original Stout. The Irish stout comes with a different slower burning yeast.
I also used to brew these kits to 19 litres to concentrate the flavours and keep the Original stout in the FV, not trying to escape.
 
Hi all,
The coopers stout 1st attempt went well, its currently bubbling away nicely in the bathroom. Fermentation of this kit is quite quick by all accounts if I’m reading it right on here. Any ideas on sugar for the secondary fermentation, I’m going to put in my new Balliihoo king keg and was going to add some Demerara sugar. I’d appreciate some advice on my choice and also the quantity I’m going to need to add, it’s 20L
thanks in advance, I’ll keep you all updated!
simon.
 
I suggest you add no more than 90g of table sugar. This will be well within the limits of your PB, will initially give you a good dispensing pressure and may get you down to near the bottom of the PB before you need to reprime or add CO2.
But before you put beer into your PB it is essential that you check it over before you use it. PBs are notorious for leaks (even new ones) and a check may prevent you having grief later on. More on that here
https://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/threads/guide-to-a-standard-home-brew-pressure-barrel.67042/
 
I used to use 100-120g of dark muscavado sugar and 500g of dark DME and 500g of golden syrup when I made up Coopers stout kits and they turned out fine. You can just taste the dark sugar but it doesn't overpower it at all.
And as @Clint has said you may need a blow off tube if you are brewing to 20+ litres but only with the Original Stout. The Irish stout comes with a different slower burning yeast.
I also used to brew these kits to 19 litres to concentrate the flavours and keep the Original stout in the FV, not trying to escape.
Hi Terry,
‘I’ve just ordered the Coopers Irish stout for my next project and that combination of the DME, golden syrup and muscavado that you used is tempting me to try the same way. What does the golden syrup add to the flavour!
An update on the Coopers stout that I have fermenting at present. It was started on Monday and seems to have stopped bubbling this morning, out of interest would you leave it possibly another 7 days before priming and transferring to PB!
cheers,
Simon.
 
Hi Terry,
‘I’ve just ordered the Coopers Irish stout for my next project and that combination of the DME, golden syrup and muscavado that you used is tempting me to try the same way. What does the golden syrup add to the flavour!
An update on the Coopers stout that I have fermenting at present. It was started on Monday and seems to have stopped bubbling this morning, out of interest would you leave it possibly another 7 days before priming and transferring to PB!
cheers,
Simon.
The honest answer is I don't know how much of the GS flavour comes through in a stout from the 500g I used, since stouts are quite complex. I did use 500g of GS in a Wilko Hoppy Copper Bitter short brewed to 15 litres some time back and it was just noticeable with its caramel flavour. The ingredients I use in my kit stouts hasn't changed very much from the first one I did since it I was happy with it, working on the basis that if it ain't broke don't fix it. So all I can say is the balance of the ingredients I use works for me, nothing is stand out and they all seem to complement each other.
As far as the stout in the FV you have, if you believe its done, I would give it another 3 or 4 days with the last 2 in a cold place, then to you PB.
But as I said above I strongly recommend you check over your PB to make sure you have done what you can to ensure its as leakproof as you can get it before putting beer in it. And finally when you have put your primed beer into it draw off a small amount at about day 3 to check it is holding pressure, since by then it should be noticeably pressurised.
 
Hi Terry,
‘I’ve just ordered the Coopers Irish stout for my next project and that combination of the DME, golden syrup and muscavado that you used is tempting me to try the same way. What does the golden syrup add to the flavour!
An update on the Coopers stout that I have fermenting at present. It was started on Monday and seems to have stopped bubbling this morning, out of interest would you leave it possibly another 7 days before priming and transferring to PB!
cheers,
Simon.

From personal experience and from other posts that I have read, golden syrup does not add much to the flavour as the syrup itself is pretty much pure, basic form of sugar. I used it along with medium spray malt and a little sugar in a coopers draught can kit and it turned out alright, but wouldn't do it again,as it doesn't make any difference in my view to regular granulated sugar.

If you're doing a stout though, I would most definitely recommend a tin of black treacle. Only around 70% of the sugars are fermentable I read somewhere, and it leaves a liquorish and dark after taste which I have found mixed with the coopers Irish stout and Extra dark spray malt to be lovely.
 
Thanks for the advice all, very much appreciated!
i was in two minds to bottle or PB but it seems to suit the PB from what I’ve read on here and the pics I’ve seen of the head when drawn from a PB. I’m gonna check it’s airtight tomorrow.
so once that’s done and barrelled leave in room temp for a week or 2 and then it’s ok to transfer the barrel to a colder spot. i have checked and the barrel will fit in our fridge in the garage.
cheers all,
Simon.
 
Hello all,
the sg was 1058 when I started, it seemed to have stopped fermenting Fri night/sat morn, I took another reading today and it was showing 1. 116, does this seem about right your opinion. I drank the sample from the tube and I gotta say it tasted bloody fantastic!
 

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