Yesterday, I awoke and decided it was time to check the specific gravity of my homebrewed bitter.  It was 1.011 so bottling time was at hand.  Using the Alcohol by Volume formula:

OG-FG/0.00738+(carbonation) 0.5 = % alcohol

Where:
OG-Original Gravity
FG- Final Gravity

Therefore, 1.038-1.011=.027 then .027/0.00738=3.7 then 3.7+0.5=4.19% alcohol. Slightly high for a bitter, which usually runs ~3.5-4% ABV.  I probably used just a little too much brewing sugar.  Still, I don’t think it will be ruined or anything…

As always, I tasted the specific gravity sample from the fermenter to see if there were any untoward flavors or odors.  It tasted pretty good.  I can see the hoppy bitter taste is there and the rest of the brew will mature over the next month or two in the nice cool dark basement.

coopers homebrewed bitter aging in recycled bottles

About the bottles themselves, they are dark amber with a non-twist off top. I had collected them used over the last 6 months or so.  I was sure to use all the same type and size of bottle (Sierra Nevada IPA) so I didn’t have to change the bottle capper around during the middle of a bottling run.  I soaked and scrubbed each bottle using a bottle brush, then placed them in a tub of sanitizing fluid (6 gallons of water to 3/4 cup ordinary household bleach) and let them sit for a week.  Yesterday morning, just before I was ready to fill, I rinsed them all out with cooled boiled water.  It has been said many many times that when making beer, it is important to be as clean as possible.

The Super Agata bottle capper works really well.  I used oxygen barrier caps, they were only a little more expensive than the regular caps, so I figured why not.  I filled each bottle almost to the top with the bottle filling tube.  Once I removed the bottle, the beer was down to the correct level and I put the priming sugar in.  I waited about 30 seconds to cap each bottle so the carbon dioxide that bubbled up after adding the priming sugar would force all the oxygen out of the bottle.  I used 64 12 oz bottles and 2 24 oz bottles, although the last bottle may be a little questionable.

I have to say, the Coopers Microbrew kits are an excellent way to get started as a homebrewer.  I am going to do one more coopers kit brew, a stout.  After that, I feel that I have learned just enough of the basics by brewing a few no boil wort batches that l can branch out and do some extract brewing with different recipes.  Perhaps a good oatmeal stout for the cold winter months, we shall see.

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