Away Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 I have two cans of Coopers Pale Ale goop left and after they're gone I'll be going unhopped extracts with additional steeped grain and hops. I know that this will eventually lead me down the path of all-grain, but I am trying to avoid it.... Anyways, I plan to trick up the Pale Ale kits with some extra goodies and go out with a bang. I have hops left over from my Fruit Salad Ale experiments and was thinking of the following: 250g milled wheat steeped for 30 mins, strained, then put into boiler pot and boiled for 30 mins 250g Light Dry Malt also added for the 30 min boil 250g Light Dry Wheat Malt also added for the 30 min boil 15g Amarillo 9% at start of boil 15g Cascade 6% at start of boil 15g Amarillo at flameout 15g Fuggles 5% at flameout 15g Cascade at flameout 1 x Coopers APA Kit, 1.25kg light dry malt added to FV, with contents of boil. Cool to 18C (adding water to make total volume 23L) and add rehydrated US-05 (11.5g before reconstituting) Brew at 18.0C I'm aiming for something in the style of an American Pale Ale, just with more flora and fruity flavours and aromas, with lots of body (hence the total of 1.75kg of dry malt) and ABV around 5% - 6% I'm also going for just a smidge more bitterness than the Fruit Salad Ale I brewed last. Hopefully the addition of the wheat components will improve the reasonably poor record I have had with head retention and foam quality. I would appreciate any comments and/or suggestions. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristinaS1 Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 I have two cans of Coopers Pale Ale goop left and after they're gone I'll be going unhopped extracts with additional steeped grain and hops. I know that this will eventually lead me down the path of all-grain' date=' but I am trying to avoid it.... Anyways, I plan to trick up the Pale Ale kits with some extra goodies and go out with a bang. I have hops left over from my Fruit Salad Ale experiments and was thinking of the following: 250g milled wheat steeped for 30 mins, strained, then put into boiler pot and boiled for 30 mins 250g Light Dry Malt also added for the 30 min boil 250g Light Dry Wheat Malt also added for the 30 min boil 15g Amarillo 9% at start of boil 15g Cascade 6% at start of boil 15g Amarillo at flameout 15g Fuggles 5% at flameout 15g Cascade at flameout 1 x Coopers APA Kit, 1.25kg light dry malt added to FV, with contents of boil. Cool to 18C (adding water to make total volume 23L) and add rehydrated US-05 (11.5g before reconstituting) Brew at 18.0C I'm aiming for something in the style of an American Pale Ale, just with more flora and fruity flavours and aromas, with lots of body (hence the total of 1.75kg of dry malt) and ABV around 5% - 6% I'm also going for just a smidge more bitterness than the Fruit Salad Ale I brewed last. Hopefully the addition of the wheat components will improve the reasonably poor record I have had with head retention and foam quality. I would appreciate any comments and/or suggestions. Cheers[/quote'] Looks good. The only comment I have is that I don't often see Fuggles (a classic English hop) used together with Amarillo and Cascades (American hops). Never having used Fuggles I am not sure if that is just tradition or if the flavours clash? They say Fuggles is minty, grassy, and slightly floral, some say woody and earthy too, whereas the other two are citrusy. The interesting thing is that Willamette, an American hop (one of my favourites by-the-way) which is often touted as a Fuggles substitute, goes very well with Cascades when used in a smaller proportion than the citrusy hops, like 1:3 or 1:4. I would be tempted to leave the Fuggles out, or replace it with one of the other "C" hops like Columbus or Centennial. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerlust Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 Hi Away. Absolutely nothing wrong with your brew plan on the remaining 2 APA kits. As much as some might highlight the Fuggle being a little out of sorts in combination with the Cascade & Amarillo here, it's actually more versatile across the American vs English Ale discussion than many give it credit for. In heavier malted, higher ABV beers, I quite like it's inclusion in combination with the more citrusy hops used later in the boil. In lower malted beers, I prefer to use it more as a bittering addition due to it's earthy characteristics, & let the citrusy type hops be used in the later additions. That's just me though. The reason I mentioned using the Fuggle as an earlier addition is it should meld in well at that level with the Pride Of Ringwood from the kit. Just on your head retention issues, wheat malt extract is a good head development source when brewing purely with extract, but it is maltodextrin that provides the retention. As you move into extract + grains brewing, you'll find the specialty grain compliment in your recipe mix will provide a better head retention in your beers. Head development is one thing, retention is another. Don't rule out kit & kilo type brewing again altogether as they do make for a short easy brew day, & given the promising new kits released, you may re-think that dismissal clause eventually. Despite the lure of full AG brewing, I've resisted it for a long time now, & maintained a good quality of beer standard using an extract base with grain additions. Since Briess expanded their base malt range to include grains that were previously unavailable in LME form, it has given me the ability to produce beer styles almost identical to style that was previously unattainable for an extract brewer, & that is great for us goop based brewers! Cheers, Lusty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Away Posted December 30, 2015 Author Share Posted December 30, 2015 Thanks for the replies. One for, one against when it comes to the Fuggles. I think I'll stick my neck out and run with them, but drop the quantity a little. The 2nd last brew will get bedded down today. I have a spare FV, but only have room in my brew fridge for one FV, so I have a bit of time to think about the last kit brew (or think about how to sneak a second brew fridge in under SWMBO's nose...) I've been looking at red ales and was wondering whether the APA kit would work as a base for one of those, along with specialty grain to achieve the colour, body etc? Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waylon Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 Its all about stepping out and having a crack Hawthorn brewery do a golden Ale with a mix of English Australian and usa hops, Its a mighty nice summer drop. So ide say fuggles, galaxy and cascade would work as a team...or sub kent goldings for fuggles Ill make up this....ALIES ALE hop boil 23 litres... 40g Fuggles @60min 25g Fuggles @15min 12.5g galaxy @5min 15g cascade FLAME OUT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristinaS1 Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 Thanks for the replies. One for' date=' one against when it comes to the Fuggles. I think I'll stick my neck out and run with them, but drop the quantity a little. The 2nd last brew will get bedded down today. I have a spare FV, but only have room in my brew fridge for one FV, so I have a bit of time to think about the last kit brew (or think about how to sneak a second brew fridge in under SWMBO's nose...) I've been looking at red ales and was wondering whether the APA kit would work as a base for one of those, along with specialty grain to achieve the colour, body etc? Cheers[/quote'] You sure could. There is one in the recipe section: http://store.coopers.com.au/recipes/index/view/id/7/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Away Posted December 30, 2015 Author Share Posted December 30, 2015 You sure could. There is one in the recipe section: http://store.coopers.com.au/recipes/index/view/id/7/ Well spotted! Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beeblebrox Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 At risk of sounding pedantic, considering your recipe Away, you moved on from K&K long ago. I consider myself a kits & bits brewer, but that recipe's more fussing about than I'd bother with. Not having a go at you, just your recipe is a long way from kit & kilo, so your second last real kit & kilo would have been before you started adding anything other than the can & a kilo of whatever sugar. Not saying, just saying, that's all I'm saying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Away Posted December 30, 2015 Author Share Posted December 30, 2015 At risk of sounding pedantic' date=' considering your recipe Away, you moved on from K&K long ago.I consider myself a kits & bits brewer, but that recipe's more fussing about than I'd bother with. Not having a go at you, just your recipe is a long way from kit & kilo, so your second last real kit & kilo would have been before you started adding anything other than the can & a kilo of whatever sugar. Not saying, just saying, that's all I'm saying.[/quote'] Lol... I take your point, but it is definitely the last kit, unless something really special comes along in kit form. And I am still using a kilo (OK, maybe a bit more than a kilo) of sugary stuff - even if it is malt. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Away Posted January 12, 2016 Author Share Posted January 12, 2016 Started cold-crashing this brew yesterday. FG was 1.011, two points lower than Ian H's spreadsheet prediction. Taste test before starting the crash tells me that this is going to be a very nice drop. In the meantime, my 3rd last brew using kits was sampled last night. It is the fruit salad ale made strictly to the Coopers recipe. At last I have cracked the bogey of head development and head retention. This drop generates a very finely bubbled head that lasts like kitten car polish. I even get lacing - something that has completely eluded me in the past. I guess that all-malt brewing has made the difference. Even better is the fact that my beer drought has now ended and I have a decent drop of my own to drink. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted January 12, 2016 Share Posted January 12, 2016 Hops also aid in lacing on the glass apparently. Certainly I've noticed an improved lacing from my IPA than I do in say, my red ale. That said, it doesn't really bother me overly much, as long as the beer tastes good and the head itself hangs around, it can lace or not all it likes on the glass wall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scottie Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 I know that this will eventually lead me down the path of all-grain' date=' but I am trying to avoid it.... [/quote'] I was once like you all I will say is that it is pointless trying to resist. The pull of the hot side is strong. Cheers & Beers Scottie Valley Brew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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