shannonc3 Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 Hey guys, New to the home brew, and new to the forums, I'm 6 days into first DYI brew, hoping for any advice or tips, or even just to watch a new brewer brew some great (hopefully) beer. Sterilzed everything before tossing in ingredients etc, stirring, have kept the fermenter pretty steadily in the 22 degree zone the entire first ferment, and took the collar off on day three when the foam subsided. Gravity at beginning was roughly 31, and after 6 days the first gravity is approx 5. My only question is, the beer itself doesn't smell as.. well.. delicious as i had hoped. I wasn't expected a perfect brew from the first batch, but i was keeping my fingers crossed. Is this smell normal for around the time its at? it does smell like beer, just not yummy beer. [roll] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregT5 Posted April 13, 2012 Share Posted April 13, 2012 Shannon, welcome to the forum. I think Coopers pack a Lager can & BE1 into the DIY kit to get people started, making a no fuss, no frills beer & give them confidence to continue on. If you trawl through these forums you will come across a wealth of helpful info & suggestions, & a lot of very helpful, experienced brewers. One piece of advice I have learnt & can pass on to you is, patience plays a big part in brewing good beers. Don't be disappointed with your first brew if it doesn't rate as the best beer you have ever tasted - it is beer you made yourself. Research a bit & you will be brewing beers your mates will be finding new excuses for to come over for a session. Enjoy the ride. [cool] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jarvo_325 Posted April 13, 2012 Share Posted April 13, 2012 Welcome mate Greg is right. If you brewed only what you got in the DIY kit, e.g. Lager Tin and BE1 then you are making probably the simplest form of beer you can make, so you can only improve. I have been there myself, but keep your chin up there is hope! Remember time heals all brews- generally a brew gets better with age. Half the fun is learning new things to try for the next brew, and anticipating your next taste test. Some simple tips I have learnt along the way is: Keep temps down and stable Increase the amount of LDM you use in the brew and lessen the amount of fermentables such as dextrose or brewing sugars. Dex and other brewing sugars impart no flavours but boost the alcohol content and some mouth feel to your brew. Using these alone can make your beer feel very thin and dry. Where as LDM is partially fermentable so it will boost your alcohol plus it will add a nice malty flavour and add mouth feel. From then you can start playing with steeping grains, adding hops, experimenting with different yeasts and different types of extract tins. The possibilities are endless in home brewing and there are a lot of good recipes on this forum you can try once you gain some knowledge and experience. I'm no expert, but there is some pretty knowledgeable ppl on here. I hope I made sense. Good luck with your home brew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shannonc3 Posted April 13, 2012 Author Share Posted April 13, 2012 thanks for the warm welcome! definitely not getting discouraged to say the least, such a fun hobby, definitely worth the wait too! the fella at my local brew-it-yourself shop mentioned that i shouldn't let the temperature drop too low, as it would take a long time to ferment, so i've been keeping it in the 21-22 range. pulled a second sample to for the hydrometer test today and its reading roughly 4 (kind of hard to tell), yesterday's was 5, so i think its almost ready for bottling. had a quick sip, not as bad as i thought! once again, thanks for the warm welcome looking forward to reading through the forums and starting a second batch as soon as these are bottled! cheers! [cool] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jarvo_325 Posted April 13, 2012 Share Posted April 13, 2012 Thats the way mate, I'm always planning my next batch!!! I have read and been told that a good temp range for most beers is 18 -20 degrees and is the range that I aim for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jarvo_325 Posted April 13, 2012 Share Posted April 13, 2012 Forgot to mention the lack of smell would probably be due to the lack of any extra Malt and Hops added to the brew, and the fact that lagers are pretty light on the nose especially the standard Coopers lager. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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