John Bull Beer Kit Instructions
Gather Your Equipment
Before you begin making your John Bull Beer Kit, you'll need to gather some basic home brew equipment.
You'll need a fermenting vessel, we recommend a plastic fermenter or glass carboy, along with a stopper and airlock.
You'll also need a thermometer, hydrometer, and some siphoning equipment.
For an all-in-one, bundle check out our homebrew starter kit which includes all the essential items mentioned above.
Once you have your equipment, you can choose from a variety of John Bull Beer Kits to find the perfect flavour for your taste.
Cleaning Equipment
- Before starting, thoroughly clean and sterilise all equipment that will come into contact with your brew.
- It is important to rinse well after sterilisation using clean water to avoid tainting your beer.
- Alternatively, you can opt to use a no-rinse steriliser such as Chemipro OXI or Harris Suresan.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Empty the contents of the malt extract can into a sterilised fermentation vessel & add 1kg of Brewing Sugar.
- Boil 2.25L of water, use a little boiled water to rinse the can and allow it to cool slightly, then stir into the mix until the sugar is dissolved.
- Add the balance of cold water to make up the total to 23L (40 Pints) or 18L for Stout.
Stir thoroughly - The final temperature of the mixture should be 18/24c. - Sprinkle the contents of the sachet of yeast onto the brew, stir & fit the lid.
- Place the fermenter in a warm area with a constant temperature of 18-24c & leave it to ferment for between 4-8 days.
For the colder months of the year, we recommend using a heating pad for optimum temperature control. - Check that fermentation has completely finished before proceeding.
This can be confirmed when no bubbles are rising to the surface or through the Airlock & the brew begins to clear slightly.
A Hydrometer reading of below 1.006 on two consecutive days will confirm that fermentation is complete. - Put a maximum of 1 level teaspoon of Brewing Sugar or two Carbonation Drops into each of your 1-pint or 1/2L (sterilised) bottles.
Do not exceed the recommended dosage or the beer will become too lively to serve & could result in burst bottles.
Syphon the beer from the fermentation vessel into the bottles leaving a headspace of 2" between the top of the liquid & bottle rim.
To make things easier we recommend using an auto-syphon to avoid disrupting the sediment and bottle-filling stick. - Once the beer has been successfully siphoned seal the caps on your bottles & store them out of direct sunlight and in a warm place.
Preferably at a room temperature of 20c at room & leave for roughly 4 days to allow secondary fermentation to take place. - After 4 days move the bottles to a cool place to allow the beer to clear.
Clearing will take about one week or 10 days maximum.
Once the beer is perfectly clear it is ready to drink, but will improve if left to mature for at least a minimum of two weeks. - When serving the beer be careful not to disturb the yeast sediment which will have collected at the bottom of the bottle during the secondary stage of fermentation.
We advise pouring slightly to control the dispensation of sediment. - If transferring to a pressure barrel we recommend dissolving 60g of sugar into a cupful of hot water, adding this solution to the barrel & stir well.
- Ensure the barrel is capped tightly & store in a warm place (20c preferably) for a minimum of 4 days, then leave to clear in a cool, dry place.
Important Note: Beer takes longer to clear in a barrel than in bottles & should be left for a minimum of 3 to 4 weeks in order to successfully clarify & mature.
To help assist with the clarification of the beer you may use beer finings 24hrs before you transfer to your keg. - Lastly never inject C02 into your barrel while it is still full, only inject when you are unable to draw any beer.
Safety Precautions
Observe the following rules to avoid the risk of exploding bottles or kegs:
- Use only pressure-resistant and reusable beer bottles free from scratches and cracks.
- 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.
- During the second fermentation, store bottles and kegs in a separate, closed room, with a stable temperature and preferably not in busy areas.
- Never store filled beer bottles or kegs where they are exposed to direct sunlight.
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