Morgan’s Royal Oak Amber Ale

This beer took a bit over a week for it to stop bubbling. I bottled it a few days after that. I sterilized it the usual way. First, I used boiling water to sterilize the container and the tools for brewing. I sterilized the bottles using the oven on 120 deg after rinsing them with water. I used a sugar measure for the 330ml bottles. That was enough to empty the 23 liters in the brewing container. I used the small bottles as the does not go flat, if you leave a big bottle in the fridge it will go flat after opening and I found the plastic bottles leak air through the plastic over time and I just found them not as good as the glass bottles. 

The colour of the beer looked good and was a caramel-brown colour. The taste  was as good as beer you would find in the shop. It's a smooth, full-flavoured beer with a light caramel aroma and the beer I produced was similar to the description on the concentrate container. 
The head was ok as it lasted a while but not as long as you would get from beer in the shop. 
I started brewing in April this time. The temprature was about 24 deg while brewing which was a lot cooler than the 30 deg of my previous brew.
Initial taste of the beer was clean before the bottling and there were no bad smells from the container.
This is the best brew I have done so far this year as the tempratures at this time of the year are good for brewing. 

I look foward to making more brews before the beginning of winter. I may even try to brew a larger in the middle of winter without a fridge. 
I will try to use some other brands of brewing concentrates but I have always recomended the Morgans premium range as I have had the best results with them.  I will be looking foward to the next brew.
Note: I maybe able to brew in summer with an old bar fridge and a temprature controlled thermostat plugged into the wall socket.

Brewing When It Is Hot Does Not Produce The Best Beer

So, after bottling the beer I let it sit for about two weeks. After that it was time to give it a taste test. I have to say I was a bit disappointed with the result. It was not a bad taste, but it was not as good as beer you get from the shop. I think it is because it brewed so quickly in the hot temps. Maby if I froze some ice and put a cold wet towel over it might have improved the taste. I think I will wait a few months before making the next batch.

Bottling Morgan's Blue Mountain Lager

Because of the temperature of the water this brew only took only 5 days to ferment. I would have liked it to take a bit longer at a lower temperature but it is summer so I will have to make do.

Before I started bottling I tasted a sample and I could not taste any bad flavors so I was pleased about that. 

I rinsed 60 bottles and put them in the oven on low for about 20 min then gave them an hour to cool down. 

I used the sugar measure and added sugar to each bottle. 

Then I started filling the bottles. The special tube has a seal on the bottom so you don't have to open and close the tap to fill each bottle. Also when the bottle is almost full you just move the bottle downward to close the seal and prevent spillage. 

Once this is done I capped all the bottles. (I placed the cap on each one as I filled them so they would not get contaminated).

Then I put them into a container and stored them in a cool place out of the sun.

I will try the first one in two weeks to see what it is like. (Fingers crossed).

Brewing Morgan's Blue Mountain Lager

It's my first brew for a while and I will be brewing Morgan's Blue Mountain Lager.

I have found this beer concentrate to have a clean taste and not too bitter. 
Everything was sterilised and I had the can sitting in hot water for about ten minutes. That way it's easy to pour. 

I put about 2 liters of hot water in the fermenter and added the mixture. Next I added the sugar and gave it a stir until it all dissolved.

After that I gave it a good stir and added cold water. I had to add some ice cubes in the water as it was over 30 deg. Even with the ice cubes the water was only just under 30 deg so rather than wait to freeze some more ice I just added the yeast. 

It's Time to Start Brewing

The first thing to do when starting to brew your beer is to clean and sterilise all the implements you will use during the preparation. This includes all of the sink. I always use boiling water out of the kettle and slowly pour it over everything. I have already described how to sterilise the brewing container in another post but it basically involves touching every surface inside the container with boiling water. Now that sterilisation is complete its time to start brewing.

To start with, you can put the brewing concentrate in hot water. This helps it pour most easily when you get to that stage. 
Have everything ready and nearby including the sugar etc. Have clean hands.
Pour about two kettle fills of hot water (not boiling) into the fermenting container. 
Open the brewing concentrate with a can opener and pour in the concentrate. Using a spatula can help or adding hot water can remove most of the material from the can.
If using a 1.7kg concentrate add about 1kg of sugar. (the instructions should be on the back of the can).
Give it a good stir with a long spoon until it all dissolves. 
Do not add the yeast yet as it will die. 
Add cold water to the container until you reach 23 litres. 
Check the temperature. If the temp is above 26 degrees try adding some ice cubes until it drops. If you add the yeast when it’s too hot it will work it will produce off flavours in the beer. Below 18 deg for an ale yeast is too cold and it will lay dormant. (Most beer concentrated come with an ale yeast).
Once you add the yeast give it a good stir and put the lid on and the air lock. Put it in a cool place out of the way. In a day or two you should start to hear the fermenter bubbling slowly. This should continue for a few days then slow. The main fermentation should take between one and two weeks. Without a hydrometer, it’s a bit hard to tell when to bottle your beer. A good rule of thumb is a few days without hearing the airlock bubble.

Welcome to my Home Brew Section

Welcome to my Home Brew Section. Below is a photo of the basic essentials you will need to brew your own beer.

You will need a brewing container, a bottle capper, a sugar measure, an airlock, a stirring spoon, a tube, a pipe cleaner, bottle caps and beer bottles. 

My main advice I can give to produce a nice tasting beer is keep it clean and keep it cool. Sterilize everything that touches the beer. The most important being the brewing container. I boil a kettle and pour into the bottom and drain through the tap. Then I tip on its side and pour boiling water in and rotating the container very slowly in a full circle. Before I begin to bottle I sterilize them by rinsing them first then putting them in the oven on medium heat for about twenty minutes.

To keep it cool I mean don't brew an ale yeast at 30 deg for a couple of days. This will produce off flavors in your beer. Try and brew for at least a week or two at around 18 to 20 deg. You will know when its finished when the airlock stops making noise.

When bottling the beer don't add too much sugar. A lot of sugar will make the bottle explode, if you want extra alcohol this should be done when you add sugar in the container.

Finally it takes at least two weeks for the beer to carbonate in the bottle. Any earlier and you could have a flat beer. The longer you leave it the more chance the yeast will have to work its magic. Leaving it a bit longer will also ensure your beer has a frothy head. To get a good head and retain it is difficult with lighter colour beer concentrates, you normally need bittering hops and wheat malt if you want it to keep its head until you finish drinking. Darker beers normally have a good head retention.

I hope these few tips help. I have found this method to be very useful in my brewing over the years. My last and final tip would be to find a beer concentrate you will like. Don't make a stout if you like light crisp beers. My favorite beers so far has been from the Morgans premium and international range. In winter I like the Morgans Royal Oak Amber Ale and in summer I have liked the Morgans Canadian India Pale Ale.          

Beer Brewing will be Coming Soon