Introduction
Brewing beer with Brewferm® beer kits is one of the easiest ways to get you started in brewing your own delicious tasting beer. The process is easy to follow and it will give you great satisfaction to share your very own craft beer with friends and family.
Below we share the easy steps to follow in creating your very own Belgian liquid gold!
What you will need to get started
- Fermenter with airlock
- Paddle/Spoon
- Thermometer
- Hydrometer
- Siphon
- Beer bottles and crown caps
Cleanse your equipment
It is essential that you clean and sanitise all your equipment that will come into contact with your brew extract liquid.
Get Stuck In
The preparation process is essentially the same for all extract beer types, but the amounts of sugar and water are different for each of the various types of beer.
The amounts for each type of beer are shown in the WATER & SUGAR CHART on your brewing instruction included with your tin.
1. Remove the lid and the yeast.
2. Open the can and place it in vessel filled with warm water (+/- 40°C) so that the malt extract takes on a more fluid consistency.
3. Wash and sanitise your fermentation bucket with AcidiSan. Discard the AcidiSan liquid, but do not rinse out your fermentation bucket with water as it is now sanitised. Pour the contents of the can into your clean fermentation bucket.
4. Rinse the can well with 1 litre of warm water and add to the fermenter.
5. Dissolve the amount of SUGAR 1 needed (refer to instruction leaflet) in 2 litres of warm water and add
(if SUGAR 1 = 0 grams on your instruction leaflet, just add 2 litres of warm water).
6. Mix everything thoroughly with a clean paddle or spoon.SG
7. Add cold WATER 1 (refer to instruction leaflet) and mix everything again.
8. Let the mixture cool down to approximately 20-25°C.
9. Measure the Specific Gravity (SG) using the hydrometer. If you would like more info on using your hydrometer go check out our Blog article here. Using your Hydrometer. This will help you determine your Alcohol By Volume (ABV) when fermentation is complete. The ideal value is shown on the Brewferm® beer kit label and your instruction leaflet (Original Gravity).
10. Open the yeast and pour the contents of the packet out over the liquid.
Fermentation
11. Close the fermentation bucket and place the airlock on it. The airlock must be filled with sanitised water to approximately halfway.
12. Set the bucket in a warm place that has as stable a temperature as
possible (18–23°C) and leave to ferment for 7-10 days. Use a jacket or blanket to wrap the fermentation bucket in if the fermentation temperature is too cold or place it in an ice bucket if too hot. The airlock water will start bubbling gradually within 12 hours and increase for up to 3 days. It will then start tapering off and eventually stop.
Bottling
-
7 days have passed and there is no more activity in the fermentation bucket
-
The measured SG is more or less equal to the expected SG
The next step in the bottling process is to add priming sugar to give the beer its characteristic bubbles. The sugar can be added either into a secondary bucket or directly into the bottles.
14. To keep it easy, and if you don't have a second bucket, add 3x 1/4 teaspoons of sugar directly to the 440ml bottles and continue to step 17. If you prefer to use another bucket continue from step 15.15. Siphon the beer from your fermentation bucket into a clean secondary bucket without stirring up the sediment. Add 7 grams of sugar per litre to the beer.
16. Mix well. TIP: Dissolve the sugar in a little warm water and let it cool to room temperature before adding to the beer.
17. Fill the bottles – leaving a bit of room as per store bought beers. After filling, seal the bottles with a crown cap and keep at room temperature (18-23°C) to get the second fermentation started.
18. After two weeks the beer would have matured will be effervescent.
19. Open your beer, pour it and enjoy!
20. Cheers!
Tips
- Do not rely solely on a fixed fermentation time or the bubbling of the airlock. Always measure the initial and final density of the beer.
- Never add too much sugar when bottling, otherwise you will end up with a bottle bomb!
• During the second fermentation, store bottles in a separate, closed room, with a stable temperature.
• Never store filled beer bottles where they are exposed to direct sunlight.
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