BEFORE WE START:
BATCH SUGAR
Most kits require the addition of 1.0 kg of corn sugar (dextrose) to produce a 5% beer. Do not use table sugar – it is harder for yeast to metabolize.
You can substitute extra malt extract (about 1.2kg) to produce a more flavourful, fuller-bodied beer.
BOTTLING SUGAR
You will require 1.5 cups of dextrose (0.2 kg) to bottle your beer. Therefore, total sugar required on Day 1 is 1.0 kg + 0.2 kg = 1.2 kg
INSTRUCTIONS
Throw away the instructions that come with the kit – they’re often not very good. Use this set for all the beer kits you make (from a can).
CLEANING AND SANITIZING
As a general rule, sanitize EVERYTHING that will come in contact with your beer. It is the number one reason why batches fail. This means, on Day One, sanitize your pail, lid, spoon, etc. Even the can opener!
Chlorinated detergents (the pink stuff) will clean and sanitize in one step. Make a litre or two of solution, wash your equipment using a paper towel or clean cloth, allow it to coat for 15 minutes, and then rinse with clean water. You’re now ready!
BOXED BEER KITS
Another option now available to home brewers is the “all-grain” beer kit. These kits usually require no water addition, and having been produced from raw grain offer a very high quality, easy alternative to cans. They cost a bit more, but for those looking for extra flavour, they may be worth a look.
DAY 1
1. Place unopened can of malt extract in a sink or pail of hot water. Let sit for 10 minutes to soften the contents. (remove yeast pack from the lid first)
2. Meanwhile, sanitize your starting equipment; Rinse.
3. Add about 4 litres of hot water to your primary fermenter. Add in the required sugar (or malt) and stir well to dissolve. Open the can and pour all the malt into the pail. Dissolve really well.
4. Top up fermenter to about 22 litres with cool water. Stir really, really well.
Your Starting Specific Gravity (measured with a hydrometer) should be between 1.035 and 1.050.
5. Sprinkle yeast on top (providing mixture is below 85ºF). Do not stir, and do not pre-start the yeast in water (despite what the package might say). If your temperature is too high, you must wait until it cools, otherwise you may kill the yeast.
6. Cover your pail with a lid, insert airlock with bung into the hole, and fill the airlock half-full with water (to allow gases to escape). Keep pail in a warm place to ferment for about 3-5 days.
After 24 hours, the yeast will begin fermenting the sugars – there should be a big think head of foam on top. After 3-5 days, that foam will have disappeared, and a ring of scum will line the inside of the pail. This is normal, and indicates fermentation is (probably) finished. Wait for a hydrometer reading below 1.015 before transferring to your carboy.
DAY 5 – SECONDARY FERMENTATION
7. To siphon beer into the carboy, raise pail to a counter, insert siphon rod and suck on the end of the hose to begin the flow. Get the end of the hose into the carboy (or you’ll get a mouthful!).
Place airlock on top (half-filled with water) & let beer sit for a couple of hours before topping the carboy up with water (air is your beer’s enemy at this point).
8. When specific gravity reaches:
Light beers made with sugar: below 1.006
Light beers made with malt: below 1.010
Dark beers: below 1.014
and stays there for three consecutive days, it’s time to bottle your beer. These are guidelines… what you’re looking for is stable gravity (ie: no more fermenting) no activity & beer has cleared.
BOTTLING DAY – DAY 14
9. Now that your beer is fully fermented, and has cleared significantly (don’t worry, it’s not supposed to be crystal clear) it’s time to bottle. It should taste like beer (although it’s young, warm & flat). Here’s where the bottling sugar you set aside on Day 1 is for. Dissolve that 1½ cups of dextrose in a cup of boiling water (very important that it’s dissolved completely), and add to your empty pail.
10. Siphon the beer into the sugar; stir well to distribute that sugar evenly.
11. Fill your bottles, cap them, and leave them in a warm place for at least two weeks to carbonate.
12. Move a couple of bottles to the fridge & try one when cold. It should taste good, but the rest of the bottles will improve the longer you let them age.
Any sediment that formsis natural and chock full of vitamins and minerals (but you don’t need to drink it). It’s natural, and will harden over time; when pouring a beer, do it gently to avoid transferring it to your glass. If you wash your bottles out right away, it’ll make your cleaning job easier for the next batch.
13. You should have your next batch ready to siphon into the carboy – doesn’t make much sense to have an empty carboy, does it?
Cheers!
HOMECRAFT
Brew & Wine Supplies
Instructions
To Produce
23 Litres of
High Quality Beer
2787 Princess St
Kingston, ON
613-384-6088
A NOTE ON BOTTLES
-Glass will always be better than plastic. Plastic breathes, and your beer will have a shelf life of about three months max.
-Returnable glass bottles are fine, but they’re also kind of small. Consider using 500ml to 650ml bottles to cut down bottling time and cleaning time.
-23 litres = 67 x 341ml
-23 litres = 46 x 500ml
-23 litres = 36 x 650ml
-Grolsch™ (a Dutch beer) or EZ Cap bottles do not require a capper & caps – they have a swing top that can be capped by hand.
ALCOHOL %
Using a hydrometer, take a specific gravity reading of your beer before you start, and one before you bottle.
Subtract the ending reading from the beginning reading and multiply by 131. This is your alcohol by volume.
MAKING BREWING EASIER
Bottle fillers can be attached to the end of your siphon tube. It will start & stop the flow of beer as you place it into each bottle.
Bottle washers attach to faucet & spray high pressure water into your bottles for cleaning/rinsing.
Bottle sanitizers (called avinators) are a pump mechanism that shoots cleaner into your bottles – a great time saver!
Bottle draining “trees” are great for draining after cleaning, or simply for storing bottles.
BEER STYLES
Lagers:
Canadian Lagers – pale in colour, well carbonated; “clean” flavour, usually not to hoppy (bitter).
American Lagers – same as above, just not as good ;-) It’s a general rule that they are much lighter, but the smaller craft brews, such as Sam Adams or Sierra Nevada, are quite spectacular beers.
Light Beers – same as above, but have less fermentable sugars; closer to 4% alcohol
Canadian Pilsner – same as a lager, but slight flavour variation from use of different hops.
European Lagers, Continental Pilsner – same as a lager, but usually hoppier, sometimes quite bold bitterness.
Dry Lager – enzymes ferment out all residual sugars, lending to slightly higher alcohol, less body, and crisper flavour.
Ales:
Pale Ale – special variety of British ale that’s higher in alcohol and more bitter (strangely) than an English Bitter. Medium malt profile, fuller bodied and hoppy.
India Pale Ale – a true IPA (ie: not Keiths) has even more bitterness, flavour, aroma and alcohol than a Pale Ale.
Brown Ale – maltier, with nutty notes and creaminess.
Stouts – black ales made with roasted barley, and have high hop ratings. Available in imperial, sweet and dry.
Wheat Beer – also top fermented (ale), wheat beers (weizen, white beer) are often cloudy, pale in colour, with hints of orange, lemon, coriander.