OK, now that I have space in a shed in my garden, I have decided that I would very much like to try and brew my own beer at home. I have been told that it is not particularly difficult.
However, I am an absolute beginner when it comes to this, so I wanted to ask around here to see what people who have brewed their own beer can tell me.
Is it really as easy as I have been told?
What kind of beer would you recommend for someone who is just beginning to try his hand on?
Any suggestions about equipment, etc?
Pitfalls I should be aware of? Troubles I am likely to find?
Any advice and comment you may have will be welcome Thanks! Of course, if you have any questions for me, I will answer them to the best of my ability!
Oh, and just in case it helps – I live in the Netherlands.
I’ve made a ton of wine over the years. Been wanting to try beer, so I’ll be reading. At least with wine, temperature control is important. You want the yeast to be working at a predictable rate.
If you want to try brewing something a bit more forgiving than most beers and want something delicious look up the recipe for Skeeter Pee (No, seriously.) It’s a lemon wine or true hard lemonade.
It is straightforward JoseB, depending on your disposition. I used John Palmer’s site to get started - a good step by step there that will show you the basics.
Cleanliness and sanitation is key. This has always seemed simple to me - some people are just programmed to cut corners though and it shows in their ale.
PM me. I’ve been brewing for over 25 years and have awards/ribbons in every category recognized by the ABA. Recipes on request. But first read Charlie’s book.
I’ve heard of place in MA where you rent space in a temp controlled environment and brew your beer there. They sell all the supplies. Don’t know anything more, except that I know several people who brew at home. I don’t like beer so I can’t tell you if what they produce is any good.
Your best bet is to see if there is a brewing supply store near you and stop in. They tend to be staffed with other homebrew enthusiasts who will more than likely be happy to talk to you about what you need, startup cost, recipes, etc. You’ll want to start with an ale because lagers require a cooler fermentation temp, cool enough that you’ll need refrigeration equipment. As mentioned above, there are some great brew books our there that explain the science and steps to brewing your own beer.
For equipment many brewers use a two-stage process that requires two vessels, commonly a food-grade, sealable, plastic bucket, and a glass carboy. You will also need a large kettle to boil your ingredients. It’s not a particularly difficult process but it doesn’t happen overnight and there are ways you can easily screw it up, contamination being the biggest. Here’s a quick rundown of the process:
Gather ingredients. You need grain and/or malt extract (powder or liquid), yeast (lots of types to choose from), hops (lots of types to choose from), and water.
Get about 3 gallons of water boiling and add the grain or malt extract. You’ll boil this for around an hour, but the time varies with the recipe. You can add hops during the boil or at the end.
Cool your wort. Faster is better and you can buy or make a wort chiller which speeds this process.
At this point I will strain the wort into my primary fermentation vessel; the plastic bucket. This also helps aerate the wort (the yeast need oxygen).
Pitch yeast.
Cover bucket and insert air lock. Within a couple days you should see the airlock bubble as the yeast releases CO2. You may notice foam at the top and a layer of sludge at the bottom.
I usually let it go in the primary for a week or so but it depends on the recipe. At that point you transfer it over the secondary fermentation vessel; the glass carboy using a sterilized hose. Insert air lock and wait some more. Again the time depends on the recipe and the specific gravity you’re aiming for.
Prime your beer and then bottle or keg. Wait for it to carbonate.
Enjoy.
Again, this is pretty simplified and a good homebrew book will tell you everything you need to know.
The one I’ve used is Incredibrew up in Nashua, NH, one of the first in the US. They are very easy to use, clean, efficient, and produce excellent beers. The main reason is that they do all the cleaning and sterilizing, makes for consistent successful batches. In several years and a dozen sessions with 2-3 batches of beer each time we never had a bad batch.
My first piece of advice whenever this topic comes up is not to heed purists or snobs. Brew a basic recipe first. The minimal recipe produces a good beer, and it’s best to worry about technique – sanitizing, timing, having what you need laid out, etc. Observe the goodness of that basic recipe before you start trying to imitate styles or add other complications. Subsequently, don’t mind anybody telling you how things ought to be done. Advice is one thing, but as in many fields of endeavor, homebrewers often fret that they may lose status if they don’t seem picky enough about their ingredients. Explore, listen to advice, but don’t worry about being judged.
Locate and go to your LHBS (local homebrew store). Tell them you’re just starting out, and they’ll get you set up with the equipment you need for your first batch (basically a 5-gallon bucket, a hydrometer, some plastic tubing, airlocks, bottle capper and caps, some sanitizer, etc). It’ll probably run about $100. Then get an extract beer kit (basically the ingredients for one batch of beer), they’ll have dozens to choose from but they’ll be able to recommend a few that are relatively fool-proof. The kit will come with instructions, follow them to the T and in 3-4 weeks you’ll crack open a simple but delicious beer that you made yourself.
Like so many things, you learn most by doing. I recommend brewing a simple all-extract batch first, before diving into the literature. You don’t need to be stressing about whether you should use a yeast starter, or how much you should aerate your wort, or whether you need some fancy wort chiller or fermentation chamber when you make your first batch. Just do it, then when you take your first sip and say “Hmm, this is okay, how could I make it better?” you can hit the books. But for that very first batch, you’ll be better served by the face-to-face advice available to you at your LHBS. The first time you walk out of the store, you’ll be equipped to go home, fire up the stove, and churn out that first batch.
Wow, lots of interesting advice and comments. Thanks a lot, everybody! Be assured that I am taking good note of everything
I think there are some places around here that count as “your friendly neighbourhood LHBS”. I will definitely go there and ask! Also, the ABC (Alien Brewing Company) in The Hague has “brewing demonstrations” regularly. I think I will try my best to go and see one! (and no, the ABC doesn’t use organic acid in their beer )
Again, thanks a lot… And keep the advice coming! I promise that, after I make my first batch of beer, I will let you know how it went
Yep. Start with that book. I didn’t find it until a few months into my homebrewing hobby, but it’s absolutely perfect.
Yes, making beer is easy, especially if you start with extracts or extracts-and-steeped grain. All-grain or partial mash is a bit trickier, but you’ll get to it eventually.
Main thing is keep things clean. You’ll want to start with a basic ale, or a stout. The main ways to screw it up is by not keeping everything clinically clean (OK, I’m exaggerating a little–you can be a little sloppy and still likely get good beer, but contamination is the #1 source of problems) or pitching the yeast when the wort is still too warm (you should bring it down to 65-70 before pitching. I sometimes pitch a little higher when I’m rushed, but you will kill your yeast if the temps are too high (something in the low 110-120s, I think.) Also, you’ll want to ferment at around 65-72 for ales. If you go much higher, you tend to develop yeasty off-flavors. The cooler side of that range (you can get away with 60F, even) tends to produce “cleaner” flavors. The higher side more yeasty flavors, which can be good, depending on style.
A buddy and I have been brewing for about a year now and the biggest lesson we have learned…temperature control. Second would be…temperature control. And then third wold be … temperature control.
Relax have a homebrew. I just wanted to pipe in and say making beer is pretty easy and agree that the linked book is well worth it. I agree with pulykamell starting with malt extracts instead of malted grain will make it easier to get the hang of things then you can move onto fancier stuff.
Thanks! Of course, if you have any questions for me, I will answer them to the best of my ability!
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