Brew 1: Pond Scum Golden Ale

A couple years back I had the pleasure of visiting the quaint town of Pilsen in the Czech Republic, the home of Pilsner Urquell and the birthplace of the Pilsner style. Apparently the majority of all beers worldwide are based on the Pilsner - think flavourless mass-produced lagers. "What's wrong with the beer we got? Beer drank pretty good don't it?"  Yeah righto honourable Alvin Holmes, but I don’t think anything beats the crisp, slightly spicy deliciousness of the European original.

The Coopers DIY kit comes with a Coopers Lager tin and a kilo of brew enhancer (dextrose and maltodextrin combo). From the start I made an oath to use dextrose sparingly, however, I had a kilo of the stuff, so I thought I’d try create a light easy-drinking beverage akin to the Pilsner style, albeit using the Coopers Lager kit (ale) yeast and ale fermentation temperatures!

I bought some Saaz hops and a little crystal grain for steeping.

First mistake. The crystal grain was unlabeled. I never inquired how dark it actually was. I assumed it had a Degrees Lovibond of around 20. Whereas I reckon the stuff I bought is more like 60. Hence my brew took on the appearance of pond scum in the fermenter. Definitely not a nice pale and crisp looking Pilsner! Late style/name change… let’s go with Golden Ale!

Recipe

Volume: 22 Litres

Yeast: Coopers Kit

Kit: Coopers Lager

Adjuncts: 1kg Coopers Brew Enhancer

Specialty Malts: 250gs Medium Crystal Grain

Hops: Saaz 15gs - 20min

         Saaz 10gs - 10min

         Citra 10gs - Dry

Carbonation Drops - 2 per bottle

OG: 1.040

FG: 1.012

Estimated IBU: 30
ABV: 4.2%

Procedure

• Sanitize fermenter and all equipment that will come in contact with the wort
• Prepare an ice bath for cooling the wort
• Steep the crystal grain, in a grain bag, for 30 minutes in about 1 litre of water at 60-70 degrees
• Re-hydrate the yeast in boiled water cooled to 30 degrees.
• After 30 minutes sparge/rinse the grains in another litre of 60-70 degree water 
• Pour the steeped water into the brewpot along with the brew enhancer and another 8 litres of water
• Stir and bring to the boil
• Add 15 gs of Saaz hops and boil for 10 minutes
• After 10 minutes, add a further 10 gs of Saaz hops and boil for an additional 10 minutes
• Towards the end of the boil stir in the Coopers kit
• Cool the wort to pitching temperature in the ice bath - took me about 45 minutes 
• Pour the cooled wort into fermenter
• Fill fermenter to 22 litres with cool water
• Ensure the wort is at appropriate pitching temperature - usually between 18-25 degrees - and pour in the re-hydrated yeast

That was my basic brewday procedure. It all went pretty smoothly but it was a bit of a struggle getting the wort down to pitching temperature. (I now have a copper immersion wort cooler. It works a treat. Cools a 10 litre boil to 25 degrees in about 15-20 minutes.) 

I left my brew at a pretty steady 22 degrees for 16 days, taking regular gravity readings (and samplings!). It was amazing how the taste changed in the last 5 days. It's definitely worth conditioning the brew in the fermenter for the full two weeks and then some.

After the vigorous fermentation was done and the brew had settled down (about day 4) I removed the Krausen collar and added the 10gs of Citra hops. I didn't bother with hop bags. The hops all seemed to settle to the bottom of the fermenter with all the yeast gunk after 2 weeks or so. Just be careful not to disturb the fermenter too much before you bottle.

I used the plastic Coopers bottles, which came with the kit, and left for 2-3 weeks to bottle condition.

Results & Tasting

Pond Scum is a real mongrel of a beer. Pond Scum doesn't know who his mother is. And his dad, well, some say he was a Baptist minister but in truth he was a swindler and a bounder. 

Pond Scum is a clear golden colour. Crisp. Subtle bitterness and a slight Saaz spiciness. Easy drinker.

Pond Scum Golden Ale - after two and a half weeks in the bottle

In hindsight, bloody hindsight, dry hopping with 10gs of Citra was a little pointless – I was hoping to improve aroma. But if I had added more it probably would have just overpowered the Saaz. More Saaz added in the last 10 to 5 minutes of the boil might have helped increase the punch and spiciness – and of course in this regard it would have benefited immensely from a better European style yeast strain.

My main gripe with Pond Scum is its thin “homebrew Kit and Kilo” taste which I aim to overcome in future brews. I wrongly or rightly attribute these flavours to the kit yeast and the brew enhancer. Maltier beers to come!