Beer Home Brewing
January 3, 2012 by
Filed under Home Brewing
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What does it take to start home beer brewing?
Several years ago my roommate bought me a “Mr. Beer” home brewing kit. What I didn’t really like about it is that it seemed “dumbed down” – for example, all the yeast, sugar and stuff was pre-measured and it all came in pre-packaged flavors. I want to experiment a bit with different ingredients. What will it take to make a beer from scratch? I’m looking for input on things like equipment, tips, and difficulty level. Another thing I would like to know is if I’m getting in over my head. Thanks in advance.
OK, some background here…I’ve been home brewing for several years, I’ve metaled in several contests and I brew at least i batch a month year round.
The first thing you need is a good kit. I recommend this one because it comes with a carboy for clarification and sanitizer*-
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/brewing-starter-kit.html
You may wish to get a book a book, How To Brew by John Palmer is the homebrewer’s bible. Beauty of it is the old edition is available only for free from John himself here –
http://www.howtobrew.com/intro.html
Get the book online or at your local book store if you become serious about brewing. I also recommend Randy Mosher’s Rasdical Brewing ( http://www.radicalbrewing.com/ ) and Ray Daniels’ Designing Great Beer ( http://www.amazon.com/Designing-Great-Beers-Ultimate-Brewing/dp/0937381500 ) if you become serious about it.
In the absence of a book you can watch Alton brew a beer and take good notes. This is how I started and I don’t regret it. The ice trick really works until you invest in a wort chiller. –
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vlv1wBy7Z5w
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HA7jQ6Wwnqk&feature=related
Next you’ll need a recipe, I recommend going partial mash your first time out. All extract tends to be bland and lifeless, all-grain is to expensive and complicated for a beginner. Make sure you know if your recipe kit comes with priming sugar for bottling and if it doesn’t you’ll need some. If your local homebrew shop doesn’t have ready made kits you can get them from Midwest Supplies also –
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/homebrewing-ingredients/recipe-kits.html
Let’s see…you’ll need a large stock pot to boil your wort in. Wort is beer before it is beer. If you don’t have one already, don’t spend a lot right now. Go to Dollar General and get a 3 gallon pot for under $20. You’ll need this for boiling you wort.
You’ll need bottles. This I highly recommend picking up locally. Shipping cost and possibility for damage are both high. If you and your friends are up to it you can save and wash and sanitize* them. You’ll need two cases and a six extra. Chances are you won’t need all six extra, but you want them just in case.
Advice for a beginner –
Start simple. Don’t go big your first time out. I did this and I wasted money and time. I brewed a stout that was undrinkable.
If your tap water is drinkable without chemical treatment it is good enough for brewing…no mater what Alton says. Just fill your bottling bucket and let it sit overnight so the chlorine can evaporate out.
Be patient. Brewing takes time, but it is rewarding.
Do a web search for home brew clubs in your area. Here in Chicago I’m a member of CBS (Chicago Beer Society). The one thing you’ll learn about brewers is we LOVE to share what we know and we love to get other people addicted to the hobby. There is also homebrewtalk.com and Beer Advocate’s forum as a home brew section.
*SANITATION IS THE MOST IMPORTANT STEP AND SHOULD NOT BE OVERLOOKED!!!!!
Imagine that last line underlined, bold, 25 point and bright red…maybe flashing.
What is the best home brewing kit I can buy online? None of this Mr. Beer junk.?
I’m looking to buy my father a home beer brewing kit for my parents’ anniversary but there are a lot of options online. What’s the best option?
I wish I was your friend when you get that
Sanitizing is definitely important! I actually just recently got into brewing my own beer as well (bout 3 months). This blog has helped me out at lot so far http://www.brewfanatics.com pretty cool site, has a lot of good content. There’s a recent post about sanitizing as well. Good luck with your first batch!
Do foundation research on the internet on just what beer is and the basic ingredients. You want to understand the influences and roles of each ingredient. Then find out more about the production procedures for brewing beer. Here you want to understand what each “department” of your home brewery has influence on the beer. You then may want to gain a deeper understanding of beer tasting/sensory analysis and the styles of beer.
Some homebrew taste good and some is horrible. But once you understand what influences a good beer and command control over those aspects you will be able to make good beer routinely. It is very easy to get started brewing your first beer.
What shops? Were you at a shop of a home brew supplier? Then that is your starting point. They will help you get started with the things you need to brew your first batch of beer.
http://www.howtobrew.com/
http://www.bjcp.org/styles04/
What is the best way to sanitize for home brewing beer?
Just getting into brewing beer at home and heard that sanitizing is really important. Any tips on how to go about it?
How do I go about getting started home brewing beer?
I was at the shops and saw all of these cans of home brew beer and was wondering how easy is it to get started in home brewing and what equipment I need. Does home brew taste any good?
Is vinegar an effective sanitizing agent for home beer brewing?
Home brew books and stores recommend using chlorine or idodine to sanitize your brew kit, but has anyone tried using plain old vinegar? Obviously I wouldn’t be using a “raw” vinegar with live cultures, but couldn’t the good old white stuff work to kill unwanted contaminants? Seems like it would be easier on the enviroment and my wallet, too. Let me know if you’ve had any experience disinfecting with vinegar. Thanks.
No, it’s not an effective sanitizer. It doesn’t kill microorganisms because it’s not a strong enough acid. Commercial vinegar is actually less acidic than what is produced by an acetobacter contamination in your beer/wine/brew of your choice. If there is any present contamination, the vinegar would be as useful as water to just rinse out what’s there…it will not sanitize.
As mentioned before, bleach is tons more cost effective. Moreso, it actually sanitizes. The vinegar may be useful to dissolve any mineral deposits, and that’s if it’s allowed to soak for a while, but it will not kill any bad bugs.