Home Brewers?

[stroker]

Anybody here brewing their own beer? If so, any recommendations for somebody thinking about starting?

[Mr. Vengeance]

Don't screw around with bottles: get started with kegging. (It's gonna happen sooner or later anyway, might as well get it over with right off the hop).

Do a couple extract based recipes to get the hang of things then look into going all-grain. It's not expensive to get set up, and the beer is WAY better than from extract. (Usually :) )

If you can bake a cake you can brew good beer.

[Andrew Longman]

I haven't done it in about 20 years but I used to do it a lot. Best beer I ever had was beer I made. Also the worst.

Good advice on starting out with the extract method.

Over in Freehold there is a place where they have all the equipment and supplies and you can brew your own there. Think Build a Bear, but with beer (Build a Beer -- I made a funny :D) Friends of mine have had a lot of success there

You might look for something like that to start out, just to see how you like it before buying all the stuff. Plus good advice will be at the ready. That can be important because it takes a month to complete a batch and that's a long time to learn you made a mistake.

[KLang]

Extract and kegging! :thumbup: I sanitized bottles one time. That was enough.

Haven't made any in years but I've still got all the equipment. Probably won't have time to do it again until I retire. :irked:

[extramundane]

Hops are in fairly short supply (and expensive when available) so plan accordingly.

The only other things I can add: work clean. The best beer I ever brewed ended up with an infection that wrecked 40 of the 52 bottles. :irked:

And if you don't already have a turkey fryer, get one. :thumbup:

[Andrew Longman]

I sanitized bottles one time. That was enough.

I just loaded them in the dishwasher including the heat dry cycle. At the time that was considered OK. Was I wrong?

[KLang]

I just loaded them in the dishwasher including the heat dry cycle. At the time that was considered OK. Was I wrong?

It was likely OK. At the time I didn't want to take any chances, everything I read was clean, sanitize, clean, sanitize.....

It was also an excuse to buy more stuff for the new hobby. ;)

[Mr. Vengeance]

A couple quick pointers to get you going:

- Ferment as cool as you can. You'll likely be doing ales, so try to do your fermenting in a cool room. (Warm ferments = fruity / cidery beer). If you can dedicate an old fridge to the cause, get a cheap temperature controller and you're in business.
- Use liquid yeast if you can. Wyeast 1056 is a really versatile ale yeast. Dry yeast is pretty hit and miss.
- Don't use sugar if you're starting with a kit. Use unhopped malt extract instead.

Read John Palmer's "How To Brew" book, (online & free): http://www.howtobrew.com/

[G.]

Most important advice: Bring a keg to share with OC'ers (and maybe a few smackers) to Road America.

Anything else, you'll learn along the way.

[nrc]

Mr. Beer Home Beer Kit Premium Edition (http://woot.com) on woot.com. No idea whether it's anything that anyone should buy.

[Don Quixote]

Best beer I ever had was beer I made. Also the worst. This is very true! I stopped making beer when the cost of ingredients got to the point where I wasn't saving any money. I finally sold all the supplies at a garage sale.

[cameraman]

The only other things I can add: work clean.

It is amazing how many beer bottles get run through the laboratory glass washer & autoclave at work:D

[Methanolandbrats]

Best book http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0060531053

10-4 on don't bottle. Too much work and chance of contamination. Just buy a couple nitro kegs and if you need to take beer on the road, buy some growlers.

[extramundane]

Best book http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0060531053

10-4 on don't bottle. Too much work and chance of contamination. Just buy a couple nitro kegs and if you need to take beer on the road, buy some growlers.

If I ever start it up again, a keg setup is my first purchase. I would probably bottle up a 6er or a couple bombers, just to see how it holds up over a couple months, but I'm done with trying to keep 50+ bottles squeaky clean.

[Sean Malone]

Mr. Beer Home Beer Kit Premium Edition (http://woot.com) on woot.com. No idea whether it's anything that anyone should buy.

Dads been making beer with that kit for 10 years or so. It's ultra beginner stuff, but enough for him to get some satisfaction of having a beer he 'kinda' made. That was a good deal on woot. the mix cans alone are $15. No wonder it sold out so quick.

[devilmaster]

http://mlb.imageg.net/graphics/product_images/pMLB2-5348590dt.jpg

;)

actually, home brewing is something i've wanted to try.... thanks for the thread.... a friend makes mead and i've had many a good bender on that stuff....

[manic mechanic]

I've been brewing for almost 20 years (extract w/specialty grains), and I have NEVER kegged my beer (had a keg sitting around for a few years, never had the interest in getting all the hardware or paying for the N2 to pressurize the system). Bottling is less of a problem if you make the necessary arrangements to do it right (never sugar or extract prime the beer, use larger bottles so that you have less to clean/sanitize, get a good lever capper and use o2 inhibiting caps).

Cleaning/sanitizing is the biggest problem in homebrewing. If you have pets in the house it doubles up the effort.
If you use an industrial strength sanitizing solution, be sure to wear gloves (that stuff will burn your skin) when you work with the equipment prior to doing a batch.

BTW, hop availability this year is improving (both quality and variety) due to an increase in cultivated acreage last year and a better yield from established producers.
Pellet hops are fine for bittering and a touch of flavor, but IMHO, you can't beat whole hops for overall flavor, aroma, and dry-hopping.

There are several "truths" that come with brewing your own:

1. Once you find a recipe you like, you can "tweak" it to suit your taste (maltier, hoppier, cleaner finish, etc) pretty easily.

2. No known pathogens can survive in beer due to its acidity, so even if you make a mistake, IT WON'T KILL YOU!

3. When you make a mistake with a batch (and you inevitably will), it's usually fairly easy to correct in subsequent batches and your techniques usually improve as a result.

4. Even your worst result is 10x better than Budweiser!!! :p

Good info and recipes can be found all over the place... I consult www.byo.com when I have questions or am looking for a "replica" recipe of a favorite brew.

So there you have it; Get to it, and GO BREW IT!! :thumbup:

manic