Newbie homebrewing questions

Factual Questions
1

I just got hold of a basic starter kit for homebrewing beer, and have a few questions. I’ve seen a couple of brewing threads on the dope, but figured I would start a new thread as my questions are very elementary. I really just need to know two important things before I start.

First, the kit I bought contains the following:

A 25l brewing bin, a siphon, a hydrometer, a paddle stirrer, loads of bottles.

As far as the ingredients go, I’ve got 1 kg of brewing sugar, a tin labelled ‘beer kit’ which contains the raw malt material I think, plus a sachet of yeast.

I don’t have an airlock, is this required? The simple instructions on the beer kit talk about just loosely capping the brewing bin. Should I get hold of an airlock before I start? Is there anything else fundamental that I am missing?

Second, I’ve found this site for some background, it seems like boiling the wort is a big deal, done separately on the hob. The simple instructions I have on the beer kit call for simply putting the whole show in the brewing bin from the get-go, no separate ‘brew-pot’ stage. What is the SD?

I am sure there are a million things to learn, and I don’t want to run before I can walk, but it would be good to get started on the right track.

Note: The missus is very sceptical, owning four bicycles plus tools in a one-bedroom appartment sort of uses up my credit for extracurricular hobbies. A failed brew would not bode well for future homebrewing activities. What are the chances of one’s first ever brew being drinkable?

2

Not boiling the wort makes it more likely that other organims will be present and be cultured in it as well creating off tastes.

an airlock is never a bad idea for the same reason.

Make sure you allow the wort to cool before adding yeast or you will kill the yeast.

3

The can you have is malt extract, so it just need to be dissolved in hot water and boiled.

John Palmer’s site is a great one. Read Chapter one and you will gain more understanding than we can give you here.

4

a. Get an airlock.
b. Dump the sugar and get more extract.
c. Get some finishing hops while you’re at it.
d. If you decide to forego the boil, just dump everything into the fermentor, wait 24 hours, pour the whole mess down the toilet and go buy commercial beer. The boil is essential.
e. I’m guessing you are a Brit, and this is one of the standard British DIY kits.
f. Go here, young padawan.

5

I have sort of decided to forego the smaller kits. Most of the recipes are batches are for 5 gallons. The container(s) used have to be able to hold a bit more than that. Most kitchen stoves are on the margin for these amounts.

“King Kooker” (marketed for shrimp boils or frying turkey) is just one brand name of a propane burner head and hose, with a large stainless brew pot you can do full 5 gallon boils. Boiling improves the finished product by ensuring a “hot break”.

6

It depends on the type of beer you are making. Lagers brew best in airtight containers with an airlock. Bitters do best in an open bucket, loosely covered to prevent dust and insects getting in.

That describes making beer from malt extract. You have to add hops and boil to get the hop flavour into your beer.

However, you are using a kit, which already has hop extract added. No need to boil.

I am sure there are a million things to learn, and I don’t want to run before I can walk, but it would be good to get started on the right track.

I know that mine wasn’t. But each time I do it I get better results. I’m still a newbie, but I’m getting better.
Here’s one tip, the instuctions will probably tell you that it’s ready in three weeks. Ignore that. Bottle it and leave it for about 3 months before you taste it. Trust me on this.

7

Sorry, no. All beers are susceptible to contamination and bacteria. Airlock all brew. The reason your first beer was undrinkable was probably because of contamination.

See previous comment on boiling. If you don’t boil, your beer will be crap. Period.

Start by learning basic sanitation and bacteria control. Then learn some chemistry. Just a little study can improve your beer 1000%.

OK, here you’re right. Let the brew age a bit, and it will taste much better. But for Og’s sake do not brew with sugar! Replace it with more malt extract.

8

Not much more to add than the others have said, but I should back them all up.

If possible, find a good homebrew shop nearby (it’s worth a bit of a trip, especially when new), the ability to browse, and chat up the experts at the store (including other homebrewers) is worth the effort, and perhaps a bit of expense. It’s also good to know where one is, just in case you need something “on brew day.”

Dump the sugar, get another can of malt extract.
Sanitize EVERYTHING. You can never be “too clean.” Airlock everything.
Dump the yeast that came with the kit, and get a new packet. (It’s likely old, fresh yeast works best)
Boil the malt, even if for only 10 minutes or so, to sanitize, and help anything proteins to drop out, providing for a clearer beer.

www.homebrewtalk.com is a great reference for all things brewing.

Read the entire howtobrew.com article you linked to in your OP. It’s really good for all of the basics.

9

Not a brewer, but I’ve played around with wine kits for a few years now, and the processes and equipment are remarkably similar.

If you have a local brewshop, see if they have a no-rinse sanitizer. Mix up a bucket of it, and rinse everything, including your hands, spoons and syphon in it. It’s cheap, it’s easy and it keeps green stuff from growing in your beer. Don’t forget to sanitize the bottle caps also.

Air-lock - Ideally, you want one. But I’m guessing it’s going to depend on the equipment that came with your kit. I make wine in a large bucket, with a lid that seals, and has a small hole in the top, to fit the airlock. If your lid doesn’t have a similar set up, then it’s up to you if it is worth the time/expense to do it.

10

I’m not sure what brewing sugar is. Is that anything like DME? If so, I usually add in a pound to my brews. Gives it a bit more kick.

Yes on the airlock, and absolutely on sanitation. The most important ingredient is bleach.

Also agreed on getting fresh yeast, with one caveat – bread yeast != beer yeast.

11

Okay, I’ll defer to brewers with more experience than me. But fermenting bins like this one are common - no airlock, a lid but not airtight. Are you saying that I shouldn’t use this sort?

And if you use an airlocked bin like this one don’t you have to keep opening it anyway, to remove the froth from the top every day or so, and take hydrometer readings?

Actually, my first attempt was red wine, not beer, and I fermented in an airlocked jar. And, yes, I did steralise it first. It was sour and fizzy. Not nice at all. But it wasn’t the airlock that was wrong.

12

How do you know that has no airlock and is not airtight? I saw nothing in that link to indicate that.

But yeah, I wouldn’t use what you describe. Too much risk of contamination.

And when the airlock stops bubbling, you’ll have to take the lid off, sure. But there’s a big difference between having it off for 10 minutes, and having it off 24/7.

13

Why would you keep opening the bucket? Removing froth is totally unnecessary, and you can monitor the airlock to get a rough read on your specific gravity. Hydrometers are vastly over-rated. When the bubbling slows to maybe one bubble every few minutes, rack your beer to a secondary fermenter and let it finish for a week or so. Then prime and bottle.

14

I agree with most of what has been said so far - get rid of the sugar and use more malt, get an airlock, absolutely boil your wort, and keep as sanitary as possible. Avoid the use of bleach, if at all possible. Any residual bleach that isn’t rinsed away can add phenolic flavors to the brew, which is not desirable. I switched over to Iodophor several batches ago and now I’ll only use bleach to soak the labels off commercial bottle I plan on reusing.

I just put batch #25 in to the keg yesterday. Hooray!

15

Brewing sugar is dextrose, aka corn sugar. It’s the same stuff that many use to prime (carbonate) their beer. I often use DME instead of the sugar at bottling.

You can replace (or add to the total fermentables) small amounts of DME/LME with sugar. It will increase the alcohol content, without making the beer heavier to the malt side of flavor. You generally don’t want to replace more than 10-20% of your malts though. In a standard 6-6.6# DME/LME recipe, this is generally about a pound. More than this, and you can develop some off flavors (tends towards cidery). It’d still be drinkable, but it’s better if you go with malt rather than sugar.

16

It is true that certain fairly large breweries still use an open fermentation. But, they have been brewing in the same building for several hundred years, so it’s not like any foreign yeasties could even get a toe-hold. Hefe-weissens are still done this way, and they swear it’s a better product that closed-fermentation.

But for starting out - an airlock of some kind is a good idea. You’ll be a lot happier if you have all the right gear from the git go. (Your spousal unit may think otherwise, this really cannot be left out! But that is another issue /s) The trick is to have a sterile wort and containers, utensils. The yeast that is pitched is the “contamination” insofar as there are wild yeasts floating around - a very specific strain of beer yeast for the type of beer you are making.

The smaller no-boil kits w/ cans of extract are just teasers and make too many compromises. And making 2 gallons is just as messy as making 10, maybe more. Once you get the hang of it, you’ll be a pro in no time, with your own methods and rituals. Cheers!!

17

The rules of homebrewing:

  1. Relax, have a homebrew (a bit difficult on your first batch, tho).
  2. Sanitize.
  3. Sanitize.
  4. Sanitize.
  5. Relax, have a homebrew.

There are others that have been covered upthread, but these will get you going. I use one-step sanitizer. Iodophor tends to stain.

18

Thanks everyone for the advice. Glad I started the thread - this beer in a tin bollocks that I picked up in the starter kit doesn’t sound very confidence-inspiring. I’m off to the homebrew shop later this week to pick up some proper beer ingredients, ditching the sugar in favour of malt, getting an airlock and GAME ON!

19

If you let us know WHAT you want to brew, we might have some suggestions for recipes that are appropriate to a beginner…

I promise I won’t let them suggest Oreo beer… :slight_smile:

20

So I gather those kits are not very good? I am a beginner brewer, on my 2nd batch right now. Both times I used a kit for an IPA beer, one that is suppose to taste like Alexander Keiths. The first batch was more then just drinkable, after about 6 weeks it was actually good!

However, say I didn’t want to use these kits, any good recipe sites out there?