First taste of my own beer...Coopers European Lager

[Gethin79]

Well I finally gave in to temptation.

I was going to give my bottles a full 2 months in the cold before tasting, but then I figured something...how would I know what difference that storage time had made if I hadn't tasted one earlier

So I put one in the fridge for a few hours, and then cracked it open...

To be honest I was pleasantly surprised. It tastes like lager, and is carbonated. Head disappeared fairly quickly though. If I'm honest I would say that it either hasn't finished carbonating or I should have used more priming sugar. I used 125g in the 23L batch. It definitely had that taste of "something not quite right". I'm hoping that will change with time.

I've decided to keep the bottles in the warm for another week, just in case they haven't fully carbonated yet. That will have given them 3 weeks in the warm. Then I'll put them in the fridge for a couple of months.

Still, a very promising first batch, which has thrown me a few learning points. :thumb:

 

[31bb3]

Good for you I find It's good to have a cheeky bottle while it's conditioning that way you will appreciate how it will improve as it's conditioning

 

[IOMMick]

It does taste a lot different with age - they specifically tell you to give it 3 months in the instructions, which is unusual as they always under-estimate.

I've just bottled my first Coopers Euro Lager yesterday after it spent 3 weeks in the FV (2 at about 15c, 1 week at about 5c) and it tasted surprisingly good for something that young. I primed it with 180g sugar which maybe over did it, but I'm trying to make sure this is proper lager-carbed for the missus and guests to enjoy.

 

[Gethin79]

It does taste a lot different with age - they specifically tell you to give it 3 months in the instructions, which is unusual as they always under-estimate.

I've just bottled my first Coopers Euro Lager yesterday after it spent 3 weeks in the FV (2 at about 15c, 1 week at about 5c) and it tasted surprisingly good for something that young. I primed it with 180g sugar which maybe over did it, but I'm trying to make sure this is proper lager-carbed for the missus and guests to enjoy.

Yes, I saw that in the instructions, and started thinking that perhaps it wasn't the best kit for me to have made as my first, but it was bought for me! I think it definitely will improve. It still tasted good, just something missing (hard to explain). I think you should be fine with the 180g of sugar. If mine stay at the same level of carbonation, next time I will be adding around that amount. I'd be interested to know how you get on. :thumb:

 

[IOMMick]

It does taste a lot different with age - they specifically tell you to give it 3 months in the instructions, which is unusual as they always under-estimate.

I've just bottled my first Coopers Euro Lager yesterday after it spent 3 weeks in the FV (2 at about 15c, 1 week at about 5c) and it tasted surprisingly good for something that young. I primed it with 180g sugar which maybe over did it, but I'm trying to make sure this is proper lager-carbed for the missus and guests to enjoy.

Yes, I saw that in the instructions, and started thinking that perhaps it wasn't the best kit for me to have made as my first, but it was bought for me! I think it definitely will improve. It still tasted good, just something missing (hard to explain). I think you should be fine with the 180g of sugar. If mine stay at the same level of carbonation, next time I will be adding around that amount. I'd be interested to know how you get on. :thumb:

I'd suggest you get another kit on straight away to remove the temptation to open more bottles :thumb: (maybe a two can kit, which have less chance of going wrong and killing your new found hobby enthusiasm before you've had a chance to do it right). Don't worry about it carbing, my first kit took about 3 weeks in the bottle before it was fully carbed (although I made the mistake of only mixing sugar, which has left it a little watery with no head).

 

[Gethin79]

I've done exactly that. Got a Coopers Pale Ale on at the moment. It's pretty much finished fermenting, but giving it an extra week to make sure. I'm trying to build up a stock of beers for the start of summer/early spring, so I have to avoid the temptation to open them. I think for learning purposes it's OK to open a couple though!! :drink: From then I can brew to keep stocks up!

Luckily I was under no illusion when starting out about me brewing the perfect beers straight away! I know that this will come through learning from my mistakes and asking questions on here... I also used just sugar for priming. What would you recommend other than this. Could this be the reason for the lack of head on the beer?

Also got a Orange WOW and Pineapple WOW on the go for SWMBO. Have to keep her interested or my life starts to get difficult :lol:

Got a Wherry waiting and 30 bottle rose kit as well. Should keep me busy!

 

[IOMMick]

I've done exactly that. Got a Coopers Pale Ale on at the moment. It's pretty much finished fermenting, but giving it an extra week to make sure. I'm trying to build up a stock of beers for the start of summer/early spring, so I have to avoid the temptation to open them. I think for learning purposes it's OK to open a couple though!! :drink: From then I can brew to keep stocks up!

Luckily I was under no illusion when starting out about me brewing the perfect beers straight away! I know that this will come through learning from my mistakes and asking questions on here... I also used just sugar for priming. What would you recommend other than this. Could this be the reason for the lack of head on the beer?

Also got a Orange WOW and Pineapple WOW on the go for SWMBO. Have to keep her interested or my life starts to get difficult :lol:

Got a Wherry waiting and 30 bottle rose kit as well. Should keep me busy!

Sorry I meant that my mistake was that I only used sugar (dextrose) as additional fermentables rather than a beer kit enhancer or LSM - I just use normal sugar for priming.

I'm trying to build up a stock as well, with about 20 gallons bottled at the minute. The problem now is getting enough bottles to store it all in.

 

[Gethin79]

Ah! Thanks for that! :thumb:

I bought loads of bottles to start with, but have now started getting into drinking ales so have been collecting the bottles...trouble is I'm having to drink more to keep up with demand

Good excuse though! :drink:

 

[Gethin79]

Just cracked open another bottle...purely for educational purposes you understand! :whistle:

The bottles have had nearly 3 weeks in the warm now to carbonate. Put them in the fridge 2 days ago.

The taste is nice, can't fault that, if it improves up until the recommended 12 weeks then that's a bonus. The only trouble is it just looks flat. The feel of the lager when drinking is fine, but it definitely needed more priming sugar than the 130g I gave it. There is no head at all, except for when first poured for a few seconds.

I'm disappointed in one respect, but taking it as a learning point and going to add more priming sugar next time. Should this help with the lack of head, or should I use something other than the brew enhancer prior to fermentation?

 

[Redsnapper]

Just add a dash of lemonade to make it a lager tops!!! I await a deluge of tsk ing!!!

 

[oldbloke]

Lager likes a bit more fizz than ale, I do my ciders (which are broadly similar in this respect, I believe) at 5g/500ml so that'd be 230g for your 23l batch.
I've just bottled a mild at 5g/l, hope it's enough. It finished a bit high so there may be other sugar in there that'll help anyway.

 

[Gethin79]

That probably confirms my first thoughts then...definitely not enough priming sugar

Oh well...best I get on with another one then!!! :thumb:

As for the lemonade...I'm sure SWMBO will drink it happily as a shandy!!

 

[Bernie]

That probably confirms my first thoughts then...definitely not enough priming sugar

Be careful. Make sure that the final SG was low enough not to have left too many fermenatbles.
There are priming criteria and tables or calculators are available e.g.
http://www.brewersfriend.com/beer-primi ... lator/vels
This depends on temperatures etc and there's not a huge difference between between ales and lagers.
http://byo.com/resources/carbonation

Also, it may not be a lack of fermentables but the yeast may have become dormant or inactive at the end of fermentation
http://www.braukaiser.com/wiki/index.ph ... ing_Lagers
Lagers were brewed in winter to be drunk in summer so as the temperature rises in spring the yeast could start up, like carbonation in bubbly wine.

oldbloke
"230 g in 5 gal" Did you mean 130 g in 5 gals?

 

[clibit]

Yes be careful, I don't think you were short of priming sugar. If you use too much you will find out what happens, another part of the learning curve! I have had beers that took two or three months to carb, and one that never got a head on it. But it was correctly primed. Sometimes a beer just doesn't form a head, and there's another reason. And some kits are not great. Perhaps keep yours in the warm for longer, it may just be a long slow one, with a shortage of yeast activity.