first post

Hello All. So I have talked myself into starting My friends and I love to get together and try new beers, so why not brew them? I would love any suggestions on a good place to order a starter kit and what should I use to boil the wort?Also maybe some suggestions on a kit that would be simple for my first brew. Thanks.

Midwest, Brewmasters Warehouse, Austin Homebrew, Northern Brewer, MoreBeer -

these places carry what you need: Equipment to brew and kits to brew. You can move onto creating your own recipes, but starting with an extract kit is probably easiest. Suggestions for kits - what kinds of beer do you like? Belgian wheats? Smoked Porters? IPAs? there are kits for every style of beer out there.

Welcome to HBT!

I see you're from St. Louis. There's a great homebrew shop out in Chesterfield just off 141 -- St. Louis Wine and Beer. Dave, the owner, is extremely helpful and can certainly help you get going in the right direction.

In terms of kit suggestions, I would start off with a beer that's fairly simple and something you like drinking. A basic pale ale is a great beer to cut your teeth on.

Thanks. I really like pale ales and stouts. i was'nt sure if a certain type of beer was easier? I will stick with an extract kit.

greenleer said:

I see you're from St. Louis. There's a great homebrew shop out in Chesterfield just off 141 -- St. Louis Wine and Beer. Dave, the owner, is extremely helpful and can certainly help you get going in the right direction.

In terms of kit suggestions, I would start off with a beer that's fairly simple and something you like drinking. A basic pale ale is a great beer to cut your teeth on.

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In St. Louis there is also Friar Tuck in Crestwood or Fenton. They sell homebrewing stuff a lot cheaper and have an amazing selection of beer on hand for inspiration

A little light reading might be good too:
click here for John Palmer's book online.

I didn't realize Friar Tuck's sold homebrew stuff. I'll have to stop in and check it out. Thanks for the heads up.

thanks so much everyone.

I'm invested. I just purchased:

Brewing Starter Equipment Kit List: Instructional Homebrewing Video or DVD • 71 page instructional book • 5 Gallon Better Bottle • 6.5 Gallon Plastic Fermenter with Lid 6.5 Gallon Bottling Bucket with Spigot • 8 Oz. of Easy Clean No-Rinse Cleanser • Drilled Universal Carboy Bung Airlock (Keeps air out of the fermenter) • Hydrometer (Determines alcohol content) • Bottle Brush • Carboy Brush • Twin Lever Red Baron Bottle Capper • Bottle Caps • Liquid Crystal Thermometer • Bottle Filler • Fermtech AutoSiphon upgrade • Siphon Tubing • shutoff clamp

5 gallon stainless pot
recipes: both extract kits (oatmeal stout and a porter)

I realize now I need bottles still. Can you recycle used ones?

yes, absolutely recycle your glass bottles - the ones with pry-off caps. Twist-offs don't work so well. Drink beer you like, keep the bottles, refill with YOUR beer! it's a great cycle!

Bottles - soak labels off in Oxyclean. Soak painted bottles (Stone...) in StarSan, mixed a tad stronger than normal.

wife just called and fedex just left i feel like a kid again.

cshort4 said:

wife just called and fedex just left i feel like a kid again.

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Haha nice. I know what you feel like, I just started as well, got my stuff yesterday and working on a starter this afternoon.

Have fun, do lots of reading, palmers online book is quite good.

I don't know about where you are, but in NY where we have a deposit law, I can go to our local beer store and buy returned bottles for 5 cents a piece. Just need to wash them out really well.