What are you brewing?

[nzbrewer]

Since this is the most popular thread on the RealBeer.co.nz forum I thought I would start it here just to see what happens

[MrC]

Might be better off just going with a Coopers Lager kit ;-)

[Daron]

Maybe : Brewcraft Finishing Hops CL80 (40628)
A blend of Australian grown varieties. A good bittering hop, with a slightly spicy aroma.
Alpha rating 8.0 - 10.0 ? ? ? ? ? ?

[MrC]

I agree with Doublehoppy. The only thing that tastes like Pride of Ringwood is Pride of Ringwood.

[jt]

Might be better off just going with a Coopers Lager kit and The only thing that tastes like Pride of Ringwood is Pride of Ringwood

I'd agree.

Go with a Coopers kit and as much pale grain as you can mash. What equipment do you have.

Next question - yeast ...

[Daron]

After scouring the net it looks like most peeps think Galena or Cluster is a close substitue. I should really be attempting to get a yeast starter from some coopers bottles but never done it before and kinda worried I'll screw it up. Was thinking of using Safale US-05.

Only have equipment to do partial mashes at the moment.

[jt]

depends how much trouble you really want to go to.
If you want authentic then buy some POR from www.craftbrewer.com.au

Ask Mr Cherry about recultured coopers yeast - he'd have some tips

I just did a coopers lager kit with 2kg of grain mashed and kit yeast - there's a thread on it somewhere. . It's ok, I'd use two kit yeasts if I did it again.
US05 would be good too

[Daron]

Thanks. All went well today. OG is 1045 which was higher than I expected but has some promise.

Long day bottling a 21litre ale batch, racking a 20litre Witbeer batch and brewing a fresh 20 litre ale.

[Tony]

Good on you Daron, happy brewing!

[Martin Bridges]

Yet another mid-week brewnight for me. Maybe in the winter I'll get to enjoy a nice leisurely weekend brewday.

Anyway, tonight's brew is It's Grim Up North - Northern English Brown Ale. With thanks to Tony & Joseph for recipe advice.

3.35kg Maris Otter
0.45kg Crystal 60L
0.22kg Brown Malt
0.22kg Melanoidin Malt
0.1kg Chocolate Malt
0.1kg CaraPils

Mashed at 67 degrees. Aiming for an OG of 1.046

8g Target @ 60 mins
30g NZ Styrian Goldings @ 30 mins
25 IBUs

Yeast. Now there's a question. My original plan was 1768 (English Bitter), until I discovered I had none left in the fridge. So I decided to make a starter from a smackpack of 1968 (London ESB), except that hasn't started. So unless the 1968 kicks up in the next 24 hours it'll be good old S04, which should actually be fine in this kind of beer I reckon.

[Mark]

I've used SO4 in a mild, and it was surprisingly good, a bit dry for the style but very smooth

[Martin Bridges]

S04 is now bubbling away in there.

I think my 1968 starter is borked. There's a nice thick layer of yeast at the bottom of the container, but there has been no krausen activity at any point, despite several rousings. There's also a non-pleasant aroma, sort of like burnt plastic, which I recognise from a failed batch of NZPA. On that occasion I put it down to unhealthy yeast.

As I'm a Yorkshireman (aka a Scotsman with the generosity beaten out of him) I'm reluctant to tip this yeast down the drain. So my plan is to leave the starter for a few more days, chill it, pour the foul-smelling liquid off the top then pitch the resulting yeast into another starter. If this doesn't work then I will give up.

[jt]

I like the Brown in there Martin, very distinctive isn't it.
Don't know about the carapils, haven't used it for a few years, but I have used wheat in a Brownie, just to fluff it up
The chocolate is regular chocolate ? Should be a bit roasty, if it's Pale Choc it should be nice & smooth