Clone Recipe: Coopers Sparkling Ale

Cloning Coopers Sparkling Ale involves replicating its distinctive estery profile, firm bitterness, and high carbonation, achieved through a specific grain bill of pale malt and dextrose, a precise Pride of Ringwood hop schedule, and critical fermentation temperature control. My proven method targets an OG of 1.050, resulting in a robust 5.8% ABV beer with its characteristic cloudy appearance and refreshing, dry finish.

The Brewer’s Hook: Chasing the Sparkle

I remember my first attempt to clone Coopers Sparkling Ale. It wasn’t sparkling at all. It was… flat. And tasted more like a generic pale ale than the iconic, cloudy, estery brew I was aiming for. I learned quickly that the secret wasn’t just in the ingredients, but in the *process*—especially the fermentation profile and that characteristic secondary fermentation in the bottle. My initial mistake was treating it like any other ale, going for crystal clear and cold conditioning. Big error. Coopers Sparkling Ale thrives on its haze and bottle conditioning for that true effervescence and depth of flavor. Over two decades of brewing, I’ve dialed in the variables, wrestled with the yeast, and finally unlocked the precise methodology to get as close as possible to that classic experience right in my own brewhouse.

The Math Section: Deconstructing the Sparkle, Bit by Bit

Precision is paramount when crafting a clone, and that means diving deep into the numbers. Every gram of grain, every alpha acid unit, every degree Celsius plays a role. Here, I’ll lay out the mathematical backbone of this clone recipe.

Grain Bill Composition & Yield Calculations

The Coopers Sparkling Ale profile is built on a simple yet effective malt base, augmented by a significant dose of simple sugar. My recipe uses a calculated approach to hit the target OG of 1.050 with an assumed brewhouse efficiency of 75%.

Calculation Basis: Pale Malt typically yields around 1.036 Points per Pound per Gallon (PPG). Dextrose yields 1.040 PPG. For a 23L batch (~6 US Gallons) at 75% efficiency, my calculation adjusts for these factors. The dextrose is key for drying out the beer and boosting ABV without adding body.

Hop Schedule & IBU Calculation

Pride of Ringwood is the classic hop for this style. We’re aiming for a firm bitterness with some late character. I use the Tinseth formula as my standard for IBU calculation, accounting for wort gravity and boil time.

Note: My IBU calculations account for a typical 23L batch volume. Adjust hop amounts based on your specific hop’s alpha acid percentage and batch size to hit the IBU target.

Yeast Pitch Rate & Fermentation Management

To ensure robust fermentation and the desired ester profile, I calculate my pitch rate precisely. For an ale of 1.050 OG, I aim for approximately 0.75 million cells/mL/°P. This usually translates to about 150-200 billion cells for a 23L batch.

• Dry Yeast: Two packets (11.5g each) of a high-attenuating English ale yeast (e.g., Lallemand Nottingham, SafAle S-04, or a liquid equivalent like Wyeast 1028 London Ale or White Labs WLP002 English Ale) directly pitched after rehydration.
• Liquid Yeast: A 2L starter built over 24-48 hours ensures adequate cell count for optimal fermentation performance and ester production.

My experience has shown that underpitching leads to sluggish fermentation and potential off-flavors, while overpitching can suppress the esters that are critical to this style.

Priming Sugar for High Carbonation

Coopers Sparkling Ale is highly carbonated, typically around 2.8-3.0 volumes of CO2. For a 23L batch at a conditioning temperature of 20°C (68°F), this requires a specific amount of priming sugar. I use dextrose for a clean carbonation profile.

Manual Calculation Guide:

1. Determine residual CO2 in beer post-fermentation: Use a chart based on your maximum fermentation temperature. For 20°C, this is roughly 0.85 volumes CO2.
2. Calculate target additional CO2: Target (3.0 vol) – Residual (0.85 vol) = 2.15 volumes CO2.
3. Convert to dextrose per volume: For 23L, each volume CO2 requires approximately 4g/L of dextrose.
4. Total dextrose: 2.15 vol * 4 g/L * 23 L = 197.8 grams. I round this up to **200 grams of dextrose** for a reliably high carbonation.

Always ensure accurate measurements; too much priming sugar leads to bottle bombs, too little to flat beer.

Step-by-Step Execution: My Master Plan for the Sparkle

This is where the rubber meets the road. Follow my detailed process to build your Coopers Sparkling Ale clone.

1. Water Treatment (Day 0)

   • Start with good quality brewing water. My target profile is BrewMyBeer.online‘s ‘Balanced Pale Ale’ profile, slightly modified.
   • For 25 liters of strike water and 15 liters of sparge water:
     • Calcium Chloride (CaCl2): 3g
     • Gypsum (CaSO4): 7g
     • Epsom Salts (MgSO4): 1g
   • This usually gets my mash pH in the **5.2-5.4 range** at mash temperature, which is ideal for enzyme activity and color. I always verify with a calibrated pH meter.

2. Mashing (Day 1)

   • Heat your strike water to achieve a mash-in temperature of **66°C (151°F)** for a 60-minute single infusion mash. My target mash volume is 1.25 L/kg.
   • Dough in your crushed pale malt slowly, stirring to avoid dough balls. Ensure full hydration.
   • Maintain **66°C (151°F)** for the full 60 minutes. This temperature promotes a good balance of fermentable sugars for attenuation.
   • After 60 minutes, perform a mash-out by raising the temperature to **77°C (170°F)** for 10 minutes. This halts enzymatic activity and reduces wort viscosity.

3. Sparging

   • Recirculate until the runnings are clear, then begin lautering.
   • Sparge with water heated to **77°C (170°F)** until you collect 26-27 liters of pre-boil wort. My experience indicates a target pre-boil gravity of around 1.044 at this stage.

4. Boil

   • Bring the wort to a vigorous boil.
   • **60 minutes:** Add 40g of Pride of Ringwood hops (9.0% AA).
   • **10 minutes:** Add 20g of Pride of Ringwood hops (9.0% AA).
   • **10 minutes:** Add 1 tsp Irish Moss or 1/2 tablet Whirlfloc for clarity (ironic, given the desired haze, but helps with protein coagulation that can lead to permanent haze).
   • **Flameout:** Add 0.8 kg of Dextrose directly into the hot wort, stirring until fully dissolved.
   • Total boil time: **60 minutes**.

5. Cooling & Pitching

   • Rapidly cool the wort to **20°C (68°F)** using an immersion chiller or plate chiller. This minimizes hot-side aeration and reduces DMS precursors.
   • Transfer the cooled wort to a sanitized fermenter, ensuring adequate oxygenation (e.g., by splashing during transfer or using an aeration stone for 60 seconds).
   • Pitch your prepared yeast starter or rehydrated dry yeast. Ensure the yeast is at a similar temperature to the wort to prevent shock.

6. Fermentation

   • Maintain fermentation temperature at **20°C (68°F)** for the first 3 days to encourage ester production.
   • After 3 days, allow the temperature to free rise to **22°C (72°F)** for the remainder of primary fermentation. This ensures full attenuation and helps clean up any diacetyl.
   • Fermentation typically takes 7-10 days. Monitor gravity with a hydrometer. Once gravity stabilizes at or near 1.008 for two consecutive days, primary fermentation is complete.

7. Conditioning & Packaging

   • Rack the beer off the yeast cake into a bottling bucket, being careful to leave as much yeast sediment behind as possible while still ensuring some yeast carry-over for bottle conditioning. I skip cold crashing for this style to preserve the characteristic haze.
   • Gently stir in **200 grams of dextrose**, dissolved in a small amount of boiled, cooled water.
   • Bottle the beer, leaving sufficient headspace (about 2-3 cm from the top).
   • Store bottles at **20-22°C (68-72°F)** for at least 2-3 weeks for proper bottle conditioning and carbonation. I find 4 weeks yields the best results.

Troubleshooting: What Can Go Wrong (My Past Pitfalls)

Even with decades of experience, brewing can throw curveballs. Here are the common issues I’ve encountered with this clone and how I’ve learned to mitigate them.

• Lack of Carbonation / “Flat Beer”: This was my first major failure. The common culprits are insufficient priming sugar (recheck your calculations!), leaky bottle caps, or insufficient time/temperature for bottle conditioning. Always give it **at least 3 weeks at room temperature**. If it’s still flat, try moving it to a warmer spot (25°C / 77°F) for another week.
• Too Clear / Not Cloudy Enough: If your beer is too clear, you might have cold crashed too aggressively or used fining agents like gelatin. Remember, the natural haze is part of the style! Skip finings and avoid a long cold crash if you’re aiming for authenticity. The yeast in the bottle contributes to this turbidity.
• Undesirable Esters (Acetaldehyde, Diacetyl):
  • Acetaldehyde (Green Apple): Often a sign of prematurely stopping fermentation or not allowing a proper diacetyl rest. Ensure your FG is stable and allow the temperature to rise to 22°C (72°F) for the last few days of primary.
  • Diacetyl (Butterscotch/Buttery): Another common issue from insufficient diacetyl rest or unhealthy yeast. My elevated fermentation temperature (22°C / 72°F) at the end of primary is specifically designed to prevent this. Ensure you’re pitching healthy, adequate yeast.
• Insufficient Hop Character: If the beer lacks the characteristic earthy/spicy note, check your hop freshness and storage. Hops degrade over time. Also, verify your alpha acid percentages; they can vary significantly between batches.
• “Homebrew Taste” / Off-Flavors: Most often a sanitation issue. I cannot stress this enough: **sanitize EVERYTHING that touches your cooled wort.** My most frustrating brews were almost always traced back to a forgotten piece of un-sanitized equipment. Trust me, it’s worth the extra effort.

Sensory Analysis: A Brewer’s Dissection of My Sparkling Ale Clone

This is where the magic of brewing culminates – in the glass. When I pour my Coopers Sparkling Ale clone, I’m looking for specific characteristics that tell me I’ve hit the mark.

• Appearance

  I expect a vibrant, pale golden hue. Crucially, it should present with a characteristic, natural haze – not crystal clear, but beautifully turbid from the suspended yeast. A generous, rocky white head should form upon pouring, showing excellent retention and lacing down the glass. This isn’t a filtered beer, and its appearance proudly reflects that.

• Aroma

  The first sniff should be greeted by a complex array of fruit esters – often notes of ripe pear, red apple, and sometimes a hint of apricot, all products of the specific yeast and warmer fermentation. Underlying this, I detect a subtle, bready or biscuity malt sweetness, balanced by the earthy, slightly spicy, and herbaceous aroma from the Pride of Ringwood hops. It should smell invitingly fruity and authentically ale-like, without any harshness.

• Mouthfeel

  This is where the “sparkling” truly comes alive. The mouthfeel is medium-bodied, neither thin nor syrupy, but defined by its exceptionally high carbonation. It’s lively and effervescent on the tongue, contributing to a crisp and refreshing sensation. The finish is notably dry, leaving the palate clean and eager for the next sip, a testament to the dextrose and highly attenuating yeast.

• Flavor

  The flavor delivers on the promise of the aroma. The fruity esters are prominent, echoing the pear and apple notes, melding seamlessly with a gentle, slightly biscuity malt backbone. The Pride of Ringwood hops provide a firm, clean bitterness that is balanced, not aggressive, cutting through the malt sweetness and dryness. There’s a subtle earthy or slightly woody hop flavor that lingers, adding complexity. The overall impression is incredibly refreshing, highly quaffable, and distinctly unique. It finishes very dry, further enhancing its drinkability, encouraging another glass. It’s that perfect balance of fruit, malt, and bitterness that makes this clone so satisfying for me.

FAQs: Your Burning Questions Answered

What is the best yeast substitute for Coopers commercial yeast?

While the actual Coopers yeast strain is proprietary, I’ve had excellent results with high-attenuating English ale yeasts. My top recommendations are **Lallemand Nottingham** or **SafAle S-04** for dry yeast. If you prefer liquid, **Wyeast 1028 London Ale** or **White Labs WLP002 English Ale** are fantastic choices. All these strains ferment well at slightly warmer temperatures and produce the desired ester profile and high attenuation needed for this style. The critical thing is to pitch enough healthy yeast and manage your fermentation temperatures as I’ve outlined.

Why is my clone not cloudy like the original?

The signature haze of Coopers Sparkling Ale comes from a combination of yeast in suspension and specific protein-polyphenol complexes, often exacerbated by the lack of filtration and colder conditioning. If your clone is too clear, consider these factors:

1. **Skipping Cold Crash:** I intentionally avoid extensive cold crashing with this clone. Rack carefully to leave *some* yeast, but not too much, in the fermenter.
2. **No Fining Agents:** Do not use Irish Moss, Whirlfloc (beyond the small amount during the boil), or gelatin for this style.
3. **Bottle Conditioning:** The secondary fermentation in the bottle contributes significantly to the haze and character. Don’t skip it, and gently pour your beer to rouse some of that yeast from the bottle bottom.

Some turbidity is inherent to the process and desired aesthetic.

Can I keg this Coopers Sparkling Ale clone instead of bottling?

Absolutely, you can keg it! However, you’ll need to make some adjustments to achieve that signature high carbonation and characteristic haze. For carbonation, set your keg regulator to achieve 2.8-3.0 volumes of CO2 (this typically means higher pressure for longer periods, often around 12-15 PSI for 7-10 days at 4°C/39°F, or force carbonating more rapidly). To replicate the haze, you might consider adding a very small amount of a neutral, highly attenuating yeast at kegging, though this can be tricky to manage. My personal preference is still bottle conditioning for the most authentic experience, as the yeast activity in each bottle helps build that unique character and haze. For more advanced kegging techniques, visit BrewMyBeer.online for detailed guides.

How long should I bottle condition this beer for optimal flavor and carbonation?

Patience is a virtue in brewing, especially with bottle conditioning. For my Coopers Sparkling Ale clone, I recommend a minimum of **2-3 weeks at a consistent temperature of 20-22°C (68-72°F)**. This allows the yeast to consume the priming sugar and fully carbonate the beer. However, my experience shows that the beer truly hits its stride after **4 weeks**, where the flavors meld, the carbonation integrates, and the ester profile fully develops. Some brewers even prefer to age it for 6-8 weeks, finding it softens and rounds out even further. Store your bottles upright in a dark place and resist the urge to open them too early!