Easy recipe to get started

[paultparsons]

Hi all, I've been doing homebrew for about a year now. I usually just buy the coopers kits from the supermarket and brew from there.

Now I'm looking to upskill and improve the quality of my brews while still using the original coopers keg that comes with the kit.

Can anyone give me a good recipe that's not expensive and I can make reasonably expensive.

Cheers. 

[Journeyman]

What do you like?

1st hint, start using LDME instead of the brew enhancers. 

Do you have temp control? That's 2nd hint and a BIGGIE! 

3rd hint - Upgrade your yeast - I use the can yeast in a brief boil and add it to the wort before pitching the yeast - it become nutrients for the real yeast. I use a lot of Nottingham but it can depend on what style you want to make.

4th hint - temp control!

THEN you can start looking at recipes. I like the Coopers XPA & I've made it using Cooper Real Ale instead of the APA in the recipe.

Edited October 5, 2021 by Journeyman

[Pale Man]

Not meaning to be rude but theres thousands out there. But heres a link for a  good start. All ingredients available online or LHBS. 

 

Recipes (diybeer.com)

[Pale Man]

Also as @Journeyman mentioned in his post, keeping fermentation temperature under control is huge in improving beer quality.

Sanitisation is equally important.

[Stickers]

start adding a small partial mash of grain? does wonders for the body and head/head retention and it's damn cheap.

i do*

1kg of grain in 3 litres of water that has been heated to 70c using a paint strainer bag from bunnings
leave it for an hour
remove the bag, rest it on a strainer to get as much of the yummy malt liquid out as i can
add 2 more litres to the pot
boil for 30 mins
rest for 20 mins
chill for 30 mins

then tip that into the fermenter first, followed by can and any brew enhancer that i might be using, stir and top up to the required volume and pitch my yeast. the difference it makes to a standard kit and kilo is really noticeable and well worth the effort.

*normally.. out of grains at the moment and just made a couple of straight up K&Ks.

[Shamus O'Sean]

Hey @paultparsons, G'day and welcome to the Forum.  Are you in Aus?  I suggest you sign-up to received Notifications from Coopers under your profile.  You should then get the Recipe of the Month emails.  These are tried and tested recipes designed by the folks at Coopers.  They do cost a bit more than buying the bits and pieces from a brew shop, but they come with everything you need plus clear instructions to try something outside your comfort zone.  

[paultparsons]

Thanks, I'm in NZ, but I'll sign up and see what I can get here.

[Tricky Micky]

22 hours ago, paultparsons said:

Hi all, I've been doing homebrew for about a year now. I usually just buy the coopers kits from the supermarket and brew from there.

Now I'm looking to upskill and improve the quality of my brews while still using the original coopers keg that comes with the kit.

Can anyone give me a good recipe that's not expensive and I can make reasonably expensive.

Cheers. 

Hi @paultparsons,

I 2nd what the others @Journeyman, @Pale Man, @Stickers and @Shamus O'Sean have said here. 

Tell us what you have been doing exactly - recipe, temps, yeast and K&K details maybe then some one can have a better understanding of where you're at and what level of recipe to throw your way. 

[Tricky Micky]

22 hours ago, Stickers said:

start adding a small partial mash of grain? does wonders for the body and head/head retention and it's damn cheap.

i do*

1kg of grain in 3 litres of water that has been heated to 70c using a paint strainer bag from bunnings
leave it for an hour
remove the bag, rest it on a strainer to get as much of the yummy malt liquid out as i can
add 2 more litres to the pot
boil for 30 mins
rest for 20 mins
chill for 30 mins

then tip that into the fermenter first, followed by can and any brew enhancer that i might be using, stir and top up to the required volume and pitch my yeast. the difference it makes to a standard kit and kilo is really noticeable and well worth the effort.

*normally.. out of grains at the moment and just made a couple of straight up K&Ks.

Hey Stickers @Stickers, I'm doing a lot of K&K Pale and Pacific Ales of late, would a partial go well with that style? - any advice or tips muchly appreciated

[Stickers]

7 minutes ago, Mickep said:

Hey Stickers @Stickers, I'm doing a lot of K&K Pale and Pacific Ales of late, would a partial go well with that style? - any advice or tips muchly appreciated

I mostly do pales @Mickep so i think it's definitely well suited to it. look for something like 2 row or maris otter and you'll get good results. bare in mind that it significantly increases your brew day; takes me about 2.5 hours to get from the start of the mini mash to actually tipping it into the fermenter - a lot of wait time mostly but you'll want to watch the boil part.  i use the ianH spreadsheet to work out how much/little hopping needed.

definitely worth it. and make sure you ask your LHBS to mill the grain..

[Tricky Micky]

51 minutes ago, Stickers said:

1 hour ago, Mickep said:

Hey Stickers @Stickers, I'm doing a lot of K&K Pale and Pacific Ales of late, would a partial go well with that style? - any advice or tips muchly appreciated

I mostly do pales @Mickep so i think it's definitely well suited to it. look for something like 2 row or maris otter and you'll get good results. bare in mind that it significantly increases your brew day; takes me about 2.5 hours to get from the start of the mini mash to actually tipping it into the fermenter - a lot of wait time mostly but you'll want to watch the boil part.  i use the ianH spreadsheet to work out how much/little hopping needed.

definitely worth it. and make sure you ask your LHBS to mill the grain..

Thanks @Stickers mate, I'll get onto this in preparation for BIAB in the not too distant future. 

[Tone boy]

Agree with @Stickers there @Mickep I do the same thing, k&k with partial mash. I usually use about 1.5 kg grain and it adds a lot to the brew. It does increase your brew day a bit as mentioned but I enjoy the process and the benefits.
It can suit any style really but I do a lot of pale ales. Maris Otter is good, Gladfield ale malt is good but I imagine any base malt will suit pales. For American pale ales add a bit of crystal, for summer ales or pacific ales add a good whack of wheat as well. 
In lagers I use pilsner malt with 200g carapils. 
@ChristinaS1gave me some excellent info on partial mashing. It’s somewhere hidden on this site, so I’ll have a bit of a dig around…

Cheers guys

Edited October 6, 2021 by Tone boy

[Tone boy]

 

@MickepRead these two posts on partial mashing by Christina. Awesome info and well explained. 

Edited October 6, 2021 by Tone boy

[Bribie G]

On 10/5/2021 at 4:58 PM, Journeyman said:

What do you like?

1st hint, start using LDME instead of the brew enhancers. 

Do you have temp control? That's 2nd hint and a BIGGIE! 

3rd hint - Upgrade your yeast - I use the can yeast in a brief boil and add it to the wort before pitching the yeast - it become nutrients for the real yeast. I use a lot of Nottingham but it can depend on what style you want to make.

4th hint - temp control!

THEN you can start looking at recipes. I like the Coopers XPA & I've made it using Cooper Real Ale instead of the APA in the recipe.

I'd beg to differ about the yeast. As far as I'm aware the yeast on Coopers cans is produced by Mauri in Toowoomba and is high quality. It's intended to be forgiving for beginners to use but nothing wrong with it basically. The ale yeast strain is excellent for dark ales and I even did well in a competition with an all grain Australian Dark Ale fermented with the yeast off a can.  Their lager yeast is good for Australian lagers as it is very clean and doesn't produce much sulphur if any.  Morgans Ale and Lager yeasts are from Mauri as well, probably identical strains as the Coopers. For particular styles of course you can branch out in to liquid yeasts or specific strains such as Mangrove Jacks or Lallemand.

When I started, my first upgrade was to do partial mashes of a couple of kilos of milled grain in a big tupperware in an esky, strained and boiled in a big stockpot then used that instead of Brew Enhancers etc. 

The Big W 20L stockpot is under $20 iirc.

 

 

Edited October 6, 2021 by Bribie G

[Journeyman]

18 minutes ago, Bribie G said:

I'd beg to differ about the yeast. As far as I'm aware the yeast on Coopers cans is produced by Mauri in Toowoomba and is high quality.

I'm not denigrating the Coopers yeast specifically. I use it as nutrient (or baker's yeast if I have no sachets left) simply because IMO Nottingham is better. It's cleaner, better att & flocc and it works well across a large range of temps.

[Bribie G]

Agreed that Notto is a brilliant yeast; I often use it myself but it's best for brewing very dry beers such as "fake lagers' and other similar styles as it tends to strip out malt and hop flavours. So it's not a really good all round yeast but is great for certain styles. For beers with a softer finish, nowt wrong with Coopers sachets if you are looking to explore different malts and hops if you are starting a brewing journey.

[Aussiekraut]

On 10/5/2021 at 3:52 PM, paultparsons said:

Hi all, I've been doing homebrew for about a year now. I usually just buy the coopers kits from the supermarket and brew from there.

Now I'm looking to upskill and improve the quality of my brews while still using the original coopers keg that comes with the kit.

Can anyone give me a good recipe that's not expensive and I can make reasonably expensive.

Cheers. 

Check out the recipe page here on the site. There should be plenty for you to find.

https://www.diybeer.com/au/recipes

 

[Cee]

On 10/5/2021 at 4:52 PM, paultparsons said:

Hi all, I've been doing homebrew for about a year now. I usually just buy the coopers kits from the supermarket and brew from there.

Now I'm looking to upskill and improve the quality of my brews while still using the original coopers keg that comes with the kit.

Can anyone give me a good recipe that's not expensive and I can make reasonably expensive.

Cheers. 

 

I have not yet gotten too complex with recipes - I have reasons - but at the same time I have found a delicious bunch of beers that are "easy" yet also a huge step up from the basic kit recipes

 

If you have said what you enjoy drinking, I have missed it, so here are some that are a good variety (from my subjective opinion and limited experience)

 

PALE MOZZIE - Aussie Pale Ale is a great tin to use as a base to try out different hops. However, after making this one I stopped experimenting and keep coming back to tweaking this.  In Fermenter A right now: 1 Tin Coopers Australian Pale Ale, 1 x Packet Coopers BE2, The yeast that comes with the tin (7.5 grams), plus 1 packet of Safale Sa-04 Yeast 11grams (cheap and easy to find). Day 5-ish in the fermenter I put hop pellets into a hop sock and drop them in - in this case Mosaic hops, hence the name "Mozzie"

Then I just let it brew, test the SG as usual until done

 

MIDDIES

I like the idea of creating a middy I actually love to drink, so I tried making mid-strengths of the Real Ale tin (kinda malty in the end) and the English Bitter (deliciously fruity but waaaay too bitter for my belly) and even the Lawnmower Lager - but adjusting the sugars I added was a good way to experiment with the tins. This one is a work in progress. I will be trying different hops and maybe even some different yeasts with the Real Ale middy.

I want to experiment this way with the Lawnmower Lager and Cerveza too - but the Cerveza tin was just too thin as a Middy for me. Tasted like a Tun. I want to try maybe fruity hops in that one one day when I am bored.

And to keep it very simple, I am Dry Hopping. Pellets in a bag, bag into the fermenter.

 

DARK GALACTIC ALE

1 Tin Coopers Dark Ale tin, 1 x Packet Coopers BE3, The yeast that comes with the tin (7.5 grams) plus 1 packet of Safale Sa-05 Yeast 11grams (cheap and easy to find). Day 5-ish in the fermenter I put hop pellets into a hop sock and drop them in - in this case Galaxy hops

Then I just let it brew, test the SG as usual until done

 

May I also recommend some of the Thomas Cooprs range - I discovered I love Porter after trying the Devil's Half-Acre recipe. These are often not really more advanced than the basic recipes and open up a whole other range to try

 

 

 

 

[zxcvvbk]

Sure, I can help you with that! Here's a simple recipe for a 5-gallon batch that uses a Coopers kit as a base:

Ingredients:

• 1 Coopers kit (e.g., Australian Pale Ale)
• 2 lbs of dry malt extract (DME)
• 1 oz of hops (e.g., Cascade)
• 1 packet of yeast (e.g., Safale US-05)
• 5 gallons of water
• Priming sugar for carbonation

Instructions:

1. Begin by sanitizing all your equipment to ensure cleanliness and prevent contamination.
2. Heat 2 gallons of water to 155°F and steep the specialty grains for 20 minutes (optional step).
3. Remove the grains and bring the water to a boil.
4. Add the Coopers kit, DME, and hops to the pot.
5. Boil the mixture for 60 minutes, stirring occasionally.
6. Remove from heat and cool the wort to around 70°F.
7. Pour the wort into the fermenter and top up with cold water to reach 5 gallons.
8. Pitch the yeast and seal the fermenter with an airlock.
9. Ferment for 7-10 days at a temperature between 65-75°F.
10. Once fermentation is complete, transfer the beer to the Coopers keg and add priming sugar for carbonation.
11. Allow the beer to carbonate for 1-2 weeks at room temperature before refrigerating and serving.

 

[iBooz2]

DO NOT BOIL THE COOPERS KIT or DME.  Yes, boil the grain steep liquid with the hops but not the other.

[Uhtred Of Beddanburg]

2 minutes ago, iBooz2 said:

DO NOT BOIL THE COOPERS KIT or DME.  Yes, boil the grain steep liquid with the hops but not the other.

Why not DME? yes it darkens the brew but are plenty of coopers recepie with DME boils.

[Oldbloke]

On 10/5/2021 at 4:58 PM, Journeyman said:

What do you like?

1st hint, start using LDME instead of the brew enhancers. 

Do you have temp control? That's 2nd hint and a BIGGIE! 

3rd hint - Upgrade your yeast - I use the can yeast in a brief boil and add it to the wort before pitching the yeast - it become nutrients for the real yeast. I use a lot of Nottingham but it can depend on what style you want to make.

4th hint - temp control!

THEN you can start looking at recipes. I like the Coopers XPA & I've made it using Cooper Real Ale instead of the APA in the recipe.

I just use kit yeast but yes LDME, or any malt really and some reasonable temperature control. Like many here I now use an inkbird about $55 if you look around on ebay. But there is more than one way to skin a cat.

Kits with bits and bobs make very nice grog and it's bloody easy.

And I'll also second the local recipes.

https://www.diybeer.com/au/recipes

 

[Oldbloke]

HEY  hang on. This thread is over 1 year old. Where is Paul. Lol

[jennyss]

Yes, I boo booed too; and started replying or liking one year old posts! Note to self: check dates. And I think Paul is in New Zealand.