I’m looking to try something, but have no experience, no nothing. Anyone point Me in the right starting direction???
Mark
Mark
Any Home brewers here? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter krafticus
- Start date
I’ve been home brewing four about four years. Start with something like this. Then pick out an extract kit of a beer you like. Three most important things.
1. Sanitation
2. Sanitation
3. Sanitation
You will also need a propane burner like one a turkey fryer uses. You can not brew on your stove top successfully.
Enjoy.
1. Sanitation
2. Sanitation
3. Sanitation
You will also need a propane burner like one a turkey fryer uses. You can not brew on your stove top successfully.
Enjoy.
I brewed quite a bit for 5-6 years but not at all in the last 5. I just decided I didn't need an excuse to drink more.
However, it's a lot of fun. Like PCF Homebrewtalk.com is very helpful. Do your online research. Watch a few videos. You will learn tons. Northern brewer, Austin Homebrew Supply, and Midwest brewing were the best online sources, but a local homebrew store can provide supplies AND advice.
If you are serious, I recommend kegs over bottles and All Grain over extract. That said, there's little doubt that bottling an extract brew is the place to start.
Make lots of notes on your brewing and subsequent tasting so you can figure out what works for you.
While sanitation (see above) is vital, and screwing it up will ruin your beer, controlling temps during fermentation is the key to making really good beer.
L
However, it's a lot of fun. Like PCF Homebrewtalk.com is very helpful. Do your online research. Watch a few videos. You will learn tons. Northern brewer, Austin Homebrew Supply, and Midwest brewing were the best online sources, but a local homebrew store can provide supplies AND advice.
If you are serious, I recommend kegs over bottles and All Grain over extract. That said, there's little doubt that bottling an extract brew is the place to start.
Make lots of notes on your brewing and subsequent tasting so you can figure out what works for you.
While sanitation (see above) is vital, and screwing it up will ruin your beer, controlling temps during fermentation is the key to making really good beer.
L
Mark,
Been home brewing for close to 8 years now. Started with the extract kits and have since moved to all-grain brewing. All grain isn't much harder. It just takes more time and gives you complete control over the brewing process. I only brew in the fall/winter to control my fermentation temps. If you ever want to stop by one day when I'm brewing, give me a shout. I'm just over an hour from you. I love explaining the process to new potential brewers. I've had a few guys from work over to check it out.
If I was just starting out I'd get myself a starter kit from Northern Brewer (online) or your local Homebrew shop. Let me know if you have any specific questions.
I hear you have a really nice Homebrew shop in Columbia...
https://www.mdhb.com/index.php
https://www.northernbrewer.com/
Been home brewing for close to 8 years now. Started with the extract kits and have since moved to all-grain brewing. All grain isn't much harder. It just takes more time and gives you complete control over the brewing process. I only brew in the fall/winter to control my fermentation temps. If you ever want to stop by one day when I'm brewing, give me a shout. I'm just over an hour from you. I love explaining the process to new potential brewers. I've had a few guys from work over to check it out.
If I was just starting out I'd get myself a starter kit from Northern Brewer (online) or your local Homebrew shop. Let me know if you have any specific questions.
I hear you have a really nice Homebrew shop in Columbia...
https://www.mdhb.com/index.php
https://www.northernbrewer.com/
Sanitation is huge, as mentioned. You also have to worry about contamination when you are bringing down the temperature of your sweet wert, especially if you don't have a wert chiller.
Only point in your post I slightly disagree with.
Eventually, yes, you'll want a burner. But when you're toe-dipping, it's perfectly fine to do extract brewing or small volume all-grain ("brew in a bag") on the stove top. Been there, done that successfully.
Klobberer
Full House
Here's the book that got me hooked about 30 years ago...
Charlie is the man!
The video below basically shows how I brew. I use the easy batch sparge method. I do do full boils (6.5gal), so an outdoor burner is a must. If you're working with extracts or partial boils, a stove top will work just fine. I also like to make or build my equip such as my mash tun, wort chiller, etc... It's definitely a fun and rewarding hobby.
This https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/miab-brewing-mash-in-a-bag.143320/
Is a description of the Mash in a Bag technique that I used to use.
Is a description of the Mash in a Bag technique that I used to use.
If you have a local brew shop they should be able to point you in the direction of local brew clubs. If thinking about mail order, I would go with Austin homebrew and More Beer. Northern brewer and midwest are owned by Budweiser now.
I started with extract kits that I closed some steeping grains and then eventually moved onto larger batches and tons of stainless.
I would also recommend that whatever kettle you purchase, go with stainless as they can be easily cleaned and sanitized with more beer related cleansers. Aluminum ones might save you some cash in the short term but they react negatively with some of the brewing cleansers.
Good luck, there are a ton more resources out there than when I started and it can be very intimidating. Just remember that everyone starts somewhere.
I started with extract kits that I closed some steeping grains and then eventually moved onto larger batches and tons of stainless.
I would also recommend that whatever kettle you purchase, go with stainless as they can be easily cleaned and sanitized with more beer related cleansers. Aluminum ones might save you some cash in the short term but they react negatively with some of the brewing cleansers.
Good luck, there are a ton more resources out there than when I started and it can be very intimidating. Just remember that everyone starts somewhere.
All you need is a bathtub.
OK, a clean bathtub.
OK, a clean bathtub.
Best single piece of advice? Find a friend who is real good at brewing beer - and just drink his.
I was referring to a 5 gallon batch. It would take half a day to bring it to a boil.
cwebb
Two Pair
All grain is the way to go. Brew with an experienced brewer first, this will help avoid so much trouble.
Old State
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My Father bought me a brewing kit for my 21st birthday and my buddy and I made beer for my entire senior year of college. I was way into it and read everything I could. We did extract because I couldn’t afford an all grain set up.
Immediately after graduation I got a job brewing at JohnHarvards brew pub in PA and did that for 3 years. I never had the desire to home-brew after and sold all my stuff.
Here is my advise considering my personal experience...
-Read a lot of stuff. Charlie Ps book is a classic but I also had a more technical book by David Miller. There is WAY more info out there now.
-Don’t go cheap, buy the best equipment you can afford, and go right to “all grain”. Extract tastes like shit no matter what anyone tells you.
-Go tour several brewpubs and talk to the brewers. Most will probably give you a tour if you go in mid afternoon after lunch. Do this to fully see and understand the brewing entire process and approach home brewing as if you are trying to recreate a little brewpub in your house. I can’t overemphasize how understanding how a small commercial brewery worked would have helped my home brewing.
-Get a kegging system and beermeister (or make it). Cleanliness on the cold side of the “brewery” is critical and cleaning and filling bottles sucks.
-I haven’t looked at homebrew equipment in 20 years but if they make cone bottom fermenters that allow you to blow out the yeast from the bottom, that would be really nice.
Most important- don’t think you are going to make beer that tastes better than high quality commercial beer...at least on a regular basis..if ever. It is extremely difficult and expensive to have the same control on temps, cleanliness, etc at home vs a brewery.
I hate to be blunt but it’s the truth. I’m sure many home brewers will disagree but 99% of homebrew is not really that good and tastes...well like home brew. Same as homemade wine. We used to try to image what we made in college was good but it really wasn’t. This is the main reason I never was interested in getting back into it. The “juice wasn’t worth the squeeze”.
IF I ever was to get back into it (which I probably never would) I would need to have a large area of the house dedicated to it and would probably commit to spending several thousand on a setup. I just don’t have the patience for plastic buckets and bottle cappers.
Immediately after graduation I got a job brewing at JohnHarvards brew pub in PA and did that for 3 years. I never had the desire to home-brew after and sold all my stuff.
Here is my advise considering my personal experience...
-Read a lot of stuff. Charlie Ps book is a classic but I also had a more technical book by David Miller. There is WAY more info out there now.
-Don’t go cheap, buy the best equipment you can afford, and go right to “all grain”. Extract tastes like shit no matter what anyone tells you.
-Go tour several brewpubs and talk to the brewers. Most will probably give you a tour if you go in mid afternoon after lunch. Do this to fully see and understand the brewing entire process and approach home brewing as if you are trying to recreate a little brewpub in your house. I can’t overemphasize how understanding how a small commercial brewery worked would have helped my home brewing.
-Get a kegging system and beermeister (or make it). Cleanliness on the cold side of the “brewery” is critical and cleaning and filling bottles sucks.
-I haven’t looked at homebrew equipment in 20 years but if they make cone bottom fermenters that allow you to blow out the yeast from the bottom, that would be really nice.
Most important- don’t think you are going to make beer that tastes better than high quality commercial beer...at least on a regular basis..if ever. It is extremely difficult and expensive to have the same control on temps, cleanliness, etc at home vs a brewery.
I hate to be blunt but it’s the truth. I’m sure many home brewers will disagree but 99% of homebrew is not really that good and tastes...well like home brew. Same as homemade wine. We used to try to image what we made in college was good but it really wasn’t. This is the main reason I never was interested in getting back into it. The “juice wasn’t worth the squeeze”.
IF I ever was to get back into it (which I probably never would) I would need to have a large area of the house dedicated to it and would probably commit to spending several thousand on a setup. I just don’t have the patience for plastic buckets and bottle cappers.
While I agree with a lot of the post above, I don't think this is necessarily true. If you pay attention to detail and if you control fermentation temps, you can brew very good beer at home. You may never be able to brew a good Coors clone (Light American Lager). Surprisingly, bland American beer is one of the trickier styles to brew, but why would you want to? Nice IPAs, APAs, Porters and Bitters are all very achievable.
I agree with avoiding extract brewing. I was never happy with any of the (two, I think) beers that I brewed with extract. Also, buy quality and avoid bottles if you can.
There's a reason that there are over 6000 microbreweries in the US and most brew beer that is at least pretty good. Brewing isn't really that complicated. Even if you never brew beer that is as good as Three Floyds or Treehouse, you can still learn a ton about beer and have lots of fun doing it.
Old State
Full House
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Interesting to hear someone say this. It’s 100% correct. The brewer in charge of Miller is exponentially more experienced and educated in brewing than any microbrewery brewer. Most have PhDs even.
As for home brew taste, Ive tased a lot and not once did I get one that didn’t taste like home brew. I can’t describe the taste but once you know it you can taste it...especially extracts. I dread being given one to try. It’s very difficult and expensive for a home brewer to control fermentation temps and that is probably the route of most problems. We had glycol jacketed fermentation and conditioning tanks and could control temps and even stop fermentation. That would be very hard/expensive to replicate at home.
Again, if I was to get back into it I’d budget several thousand dollars or it wouldn’t be worth the effort for me....which it isn’t.
Same, as I said for wine. I had a buddy that made wine and used to give me bottles. I used them all to cook with.
detroitdad
Royal Flush
You really need to find better home brewers.
Marc Hedrick
3 of a Kind
My tip would be to find someone who does it and contract it out 
My attitude towards homebrewing is that I know it would take time and effort away from my free time and discretionary poker income. (And I know I'm not that good at brewing)
My homebrewer friend's attitude towards poker is that it takes time and effort away from his free time and brewing money. (And he knows he's not that good at poker)
I can get you in contact with him though if you would like. He would be happy to discuss it and give you tips.
My attitude towards homebrewing is that I know it would take time and effort away from my free time and discretionary poker income. (And I know I'm not that good at brewing)
My homebrewer friend's attitude towards poker is that it takes time and effort away from his free time and brewing money. (And he knows he's not that good at poker)
I can get you in contact with him though if you would like. He would be happy to discuss it and give you tips.
Old State
Full House
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Haha. Bring them on. I guarantee I could pick almost all of them out...though it’s much harder now than 20 years ago. 1) home brewing has undoubtedly gotten better and 2) there is a lot of crappy brew pub and craft brews out there.
Mix in homebrew and commercial pale ales and or pilsners...or even white ales and I’d put substantial money down I could pick them out.
Any donkey can dump a shit ton of malt and hops into a recipe and cover most of their flaws.
OP
OP
So, I’m reading it will cost a ton, it will suck, and it’s not worth it??
I totally agree there are crappy brews out there, but an experienced homebrewer can still knock one out of the park. My buddy is one of those guys. His Oktoberfest and his Porter are two of those beers. Does he have an off batch every now and then? sure. But in a blind taste test, you'd be surprised how often his is picked over a commercially available beer of the same style.
Yup!
Sparty
Flush
Klobberer
Full House
I brew with dry malt extract (DME) all the time and have had great results. Is it worth it? You don't save any money, but it is very satisfying serving something hand crafted. Like any hobby, it's about the journey not the destination...
Brewing decent beer costs money for sure. You will have some sub-par batches, especially at first. But it is fun and educational AND you can drink your mistakes/successes. It will not suck if you do a little research and take care when brewing. A truly experienced palate may be able to tell it's homebrew, but that doesn't mean that you and your friends won't enjoy it.
I'm glad I did it, and I might do it again in the future.
It's not expensive compared to poker chips. It does have endless gadgets that you can get, but that's a lot of the fun of a hobby anyway. If you are interested, I say go for it.
L
You can get a basic brew kit in the ballpark of $100-150. Think of it like a set of China clays: it's good enough to get started, but if you get serious you'll want better.
Same thing with extract brewing. I think it can be a useful stepping stone for learning techniques, it's a less expensive way to get started, and if you get fresh extracts from a reputable supplier, you can make some very drinkable beers right off the bat.
To gain more control and improve quality, you'll have to learn how to brew all grain and invest in better equipment. But if you just want to try it out and see if it's something you might enjoy, I don't see anything wrong starting with extract recipes.
Same thing with extract brewing. I think it can be a useful stepping stone for learning techniques, it's a less expensive way to get started, and if you get fresh extracts from a reputable supplier, you can make some very drinkable beers right off the bat.
To gain more control and improve quality, you'll have to learn how to brew all grain and invest in better equipment. But if you just want to try it out and see if it's something you might enjoy, I don't see anything wrong starting with extract recipes.
OP
OP
I think I’m going to try and get an “unpaid internship” at one of the local breweries...
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