Jakinoz Posted November 12, 2020 Share Posted November 12, 2020 Hey all. I’m an absolute beginner and am just reaching the end of my second Coopers DIY brew. I’m about to bottle and, after tasting, reckon this brew is a bit too sweet. Any advice as to how to reduce this? Is it a simple matter of only adding one carbonation drop instead of two? Or will this just reduce its secondary fermentation and result in a less heady brew? Any advice gratefully accepted. John. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lab Cat Posted November 12, 2020 Share Posted November 12, 2020 What did you brew, and with what fermentables? Nothing you can change now, it is what it is. The carb drops don't add any sweetness. If you only add one to the 740ml bottles it will struggle to carb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aussiekraut Posted November 12, 2020 Share Posted November 12, 2020 20 hours ago, Jakinoz said: Hey all. I’m an absolute beginner and am just reaching the end of my second Coopers DIY brew. I’m about to bottle and, after tasting, reckon this brew is a bit too sweet. Any advice as to how to reduce this? Is it a simple matter of only adding one carbonation drop instead of two? Or will this just reduce its secondary fermentation and result in a less heady brew? Any advice gratefully accepted. John. Just wondering if it is actually finished or if it's stalled. What are the gravity readings? What sort of beer was it? Just a kit 'n' kilo? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jakinoz Posted November 12, 2020 Author Share Posted November 12, 2020 Yeah, just a kit. And it is the Real Ale pack. SG intial was 34 and today’s is 8 for the second day, so bottling today. Tastes fine apart from that sweetness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John E Miller Posted November 12, 2020 Share Posted November 12, 2020 7 minutes ago, Jakinoz said: Yeah, just a kit. And it is the Real Ale pack. SG intial was 34 and today’s is 8 for the second day, so bottling today. Tastes fine apart from that sweetness. It shouldn't taste too sweet at that low a final gravity. There is a possibility your hydrometer is faulty. How did the first brew taste at bottling time? It will develop a bit after a couple of weeks in the bottle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jakinoz Posted November 12, 2020 Author Share Posted November 12, 2020 First brew not as sweet as this one, but it was a different kit - it was the lager pack that came with the initial full kit. I’m gonna put the sweetness of this new brew down to simply being a different type of beer and bottle away with two carbonation drops, as per. See what happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dozer71 Posted November 12, 2020 Share Posted November 12, 2020 You said you tasted as about to bottle - so it is flat beer that hasn't conditioned. Finished SG of 8 (1.008 I assume frmo 1.034 seems fine). Bottle up with 2 carb drops to 750ml - 1 won't be enough and give it time to condition. Carbonation changes the taste a bit, and time also does, so 2 weeks to carb up, taste, but it should improve for a few weeks after that. Then make a judgment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulsbeers Posted June 13, 2023 Share Posted June 13, 2023 Hi all, reviving this one as I have just had a very similar experience. So looking for advice ! Novice and completed my first brew with a real ale kit (thought it was going to be lager, and it was date expired) didn't note down my OG, but the SG remained steady at 1.030. Bottled with two carb drops and stored for two weeks. Tried to control room/brew temperature, but at the time the weather changed and it did slightly drop in temperature, from around 22C to 18C. Slightly cooler than instructions. Chucked a couple in the fridge, for a few days and had the first beer last night. Was almost sweeter than when I tried the brew at bottling. Colour was quite dark and rich. Where did I go wrong with this? or is this a 'it is what it is' case. Thanks in advance 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kegory Posted June 13, 2023 Share Posted June 13, 2023 1.030 seems very high if that was your FG. How old was the kit, particularly the yeast? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classic Brewing Co Posted June 13, 2023 Share Posted June 13, 2023 23 minutes ago, Paulsbeers said: Hi all, reviving this one as I have just had a very similar experience. So looking for advice ! Novice and completed my first brew with a real ale kit (thought it was going to be lager, and it was date expired) didn't note down my OG, but the SG remained steady at 1.030. Bottled with two carb drops and stored for two weeks. Tried to control room/brew temperature, but at the time the weather changed and it did slightly drop in temperature, from around 22C to 18C. Slightly cooler than instructions. Chucked a couple in the fridge, for a few days and had the first beer last night. Was almost sweeter than when I tried the brew at bottling. Colour was quite dark and rich. Where did I go wrong with this? or is this a 'it is what it is' case. Thanks in advance Hi @Paulsbeers The Real Ale would have been fine at those temperatures although maintaining a constant level is recommended. Regarding sweetness, if you used the kit ingredients & the FG was around 1.012 or lower it should be OK. Did you bottle in Stubbies or Longnecks? Leave it for a bit longer & try another. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pints Posted June 13, 2023 Share Posted June 13, 2023 1 hour ago, Paulsbeers said: Hi all, reviving this one as I have just had a very similar experience. So looking for advice ! Novice and completed my first brew with a real ale kit (thought it was going to be lager, and it was date expired) didn't note down my OG, but the SG remained steady at 1.030. Bottled with two carb drops and stored for two weeks. Tried to control room/brew temperature, but at the time the weather changed and it did slightly drop in temperature, from around 22C to 18C. Slightly cooler than instructions. Chucked a couple in the fridge, for a few days and had the first beer last night. Was almost sweeter than when I tried the brew at bottling. Colour was quite dark and rich. Where did I go wrong with this? or is this a 'it is what it is' case. Thanks in advance How long did it ferment for? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulsbeers Posted June 13, 2023 Share Posted June 13, 2023 It was 8 days in the end 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulsbeers Posted June 13, 2023 Share Posted June 13, 2023 3 hours ago, Classic Brewing Co said: Hi @Paulsbeers The Real Ale would have been fine at those temperatures although maintaining a constant level is recommended. Regarding sweetness, if you used the kit ingredients & the FG was around 1.012 or lower it should be OK. Did you bottle in Stubbies or Longnecks? Leave it for a bit longer & try another. It was the plastic 740ml long necks. I'll leave them another week or two and see how it is then. Thanks for the advice 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kegory Posted June 13, 2023 Share Posted June 13, 2023 4 minutes ago, Paulsbeers said: It was 8 days in the end What was 8 days? The past expiry date, the fermentation time, the conditioning time? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classic Brewing Co Posted June 13, 2023 Share Posted June 13, 2023 Just now, Paulsbeers said: It was the plastic 740ml long necks. I'll leave them another week or two and see how it is then. Thanks for the advice You will probably find each week it will improve, for what it's worth I only ever used white sugar for priming & I had much better results over carb drops - a teaspoon is about 4.1gms. Glass bottles are much better than the PET's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pints Posted June 13, 2023 Share Posted June 13, 2023 20 minutes ago, Paulsbeers said: It was 8 days in the end Ok, 1030 seems a bit high for a FG. Hopefully it works out with more age. But if u say its very sweet, prob wasn't done fermenting. What yeast did u use? Expired kit yeast? 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malter White Posted June 13, 2023 Share Posted June 13, 2023 (edited) 4 hours ago, Paulsbeers said: Hi all, reviving this one as I have just had a very similar experience. So looking for advice ! Novice and completed my first brew with a real ale kit (thought it was going to be lager, and it was date expired) didn't note down my OG, but the SG remained steady at 1.030. Bottled with two carb drops and stored for two weeks. Tried to control room/brew temperature, but at the time the weather changed and it did slightly drop in temperature, from around 22C to 18C. Slightly cooler than instructions. Chucked a couple in the fridge, for a few days and had the first beer last night. Was almost sweeter than when I tried the brew at bottling. Colour was quite dark and rich. Where did I go wrong with this? or is this a 'it is what it is' case. Thanks in advance It sounds like a stalled brew. If it tastes sweet and your FG is 1.030 it probably means the yeast hasn't consumed all the sugars. If that's the case it's a good thing you used PET bottles. If the yeast wakes up again and it was in glass you could end up with exploding bottles. Depending on the type of brew, most will finish in the 1.000 to 1.012 range. The out of date tin shouldn't be a problem but the yeast life is much shorter and could be the reason for the stalled ferment. Edited June 13, 2023 by Malter White 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pints Posted June 13, 2023 Share Posted June 13, 2023 33 minutes ago, Paulsbeers said: It was 8 days in the end Another thing, you will prob get gushers in a few more weeks, so open the bottles slowly, place them in the empty sink when opening. I remember in my early days I opened one at my table literally shot out 3 quarters of the beer in my face amd all over the table i was im shock haha. It's all part of the learning phase mate and will only make you more knowledgeable next time around. If u so buy an expired kit again, maybe pick up a fresh pack of yeast to throw in, and give it a few more days fermentation time. I try to leave it 14 days most times before bottle 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChairmanDrew Posted June 13, 2023 Share Posted June 13, 2023 5 hours ago, Paulsbeers said: Novice and completed my first brew with a real ale kit (thought it was going to be lager, and it was date expired) Just curious, what was the date on it? How far past BB? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malter White Posted June 13, 2023 Share Posted June 13, 2023 1 hour ago, Pints said: Another thing, you will prob get gushers in a few more weeks, so open the bottles slowly, place them in the empty sink when opening. I remember in my early days I opened one at my table literally shot out 3 quarters of the beer in my face amd all over the table i was im shock haha. I Was this before or after you became a bukkake fetishist, Pints? 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pints Posted June 13, 2023 Share Posted June 13, 2023 40 minutes ago, Malter White said: Was this before or after you became a bukkake fetishist, Pints? Shhhhh 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kegory Posted June 13, 2023 Share Posted June 13, 2023 58 minutes ago, Malter White said: Was this before or after you became a bukkake fetishist, Pints? A couple of minutes before. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulsbeers Posted June 14, 2023 Share Posted June 14, 2023 On 6/13/2023 at 3:50 PM, Kegory said: What was 8 days? The past expiry date, the fermentation time, the conditioning time? Ah it was a few months past expiry date. The 8 days was the time brewing 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulsbeers Posted June 14, 2023 Share Posted June 14, 2023 On 6/13/2023 at 4:06 PM, Pints said: Ok, 1030 seems a bit high for a FG. Hopefully it works out with more age. But if u say its very sweet, prob wasn't done fermenting. What yeast did u use? Expired kit yeast? Yes the expired kit yeast. Reason - thought I'd do one by the book before I buy in some yeast 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulsbeers Posted June 14, 2023 Share Posted June 14, 2023 On 6/13/2023 at 4:08 PM, Malter White said: It sounds like a stalled brew. If it tastes sweet and your FG is 1.030 it probably means the yeast hasn't consumed all the sugars. If that's the case it's a good thing you used PET bottles. If the yeast wakes up again and it was in glass you could end up with exploding bottles. Depending on the type of brew, most will finish in the 1.000 to 1.012 range. The out of date tin shouldn't be a problem but the yeast life is much shorter and could be the reason for the stalled ferment. That sounds a good explanation. Next move will be to buy in a good quality yeast. Thanks 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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