How many did it take

My first brew was not a disaster but it leaves a lot to be desired. Brew #2, while only 2 weeks in bottles, is not looking promising. Those 2 were both extracts/PM. #3 is an all grain and currently in primary. I have optimism for #3.

I'm not looking for pointers of how to do it better, just wondering how many brews it took you to start thinking, "I make some pretty good stuff".

Previous to my 3yr hiatus I would say #3 was my money beer. A super simple AG American IPA that ended up being my backbone of my next 3-4 recipes. I went through my 6gals (out of ten) in about 1mo by playing beerpong (water in the cups, beer in a glass method) with it.

I'm hoping the same...#3 as the charm. Of note, how #3 differs from #1 and #2:

All grain.

Cooled the wort much quicker than the first two.

Will not unnecessarily rack to secondary.

If this one doesn't turn out, try brewing an APA or IPA with lots of late kettle hops. Hoppy beers are very forgiving on the homebrew scale.

I started out using recipes from Brewing Classic Styles, as I know these are good recipes. That way you can know if it is something in your process or just a crappy recipe.

I was really excited by the results of my first brew; I know you don't want to talk about process here, but I'm sure the reason the first one turned out well was because my LHBS (actually, literally myLHBS in Virginia, www.mylhbs.com) matched the recipe to the conditions I could manage--it was the summer, and I had no temperature control, so they gave me a saison recipe and saison yeast. Good process makes good beer, that's all there is to it.

urbanmyth said:

If this one doesn't turn out, try brewing an APA or IPA with lots of late kettle hops. Hoppy beers are very forgiving on the homebrew scale.

I started out using recipes from Brewing Classic Styles, as I know these are good recipes. That way you can know if it is something in your process or just a crappy recipe.

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#2 is all Centennial IPA. May still turn out ok but it seems very unhoppy for all the late hops and dry hopping. Another week or so in the bottles and I'll know for sure.

I did probably 5-6 batches that came out sub par before finally nailing it. biggest reason was temp control. after I got a fridge with a temp controller, the beers have been much better. the important thing is to learn from each batch, and try to do better each time.

If we don't count The Beer Machine 2000, or the Cooper's sub-par canned "kits', the first real brew I made was quite drinkable.

The Beer Machine and the Cooper's were miserable failures, even though I tried them a couple of times to make sure. I think the whole pre-hopped stuff, with poor instructions and poor quality yeast, is what made them bad.

The first real brew kit I did was a Brewer's Best kit. It turned out pretty good, and that's when I realized that I could do this!

And just for the record, I'm in no way discouraged that the first brew (and likely the second) didn't turn out great. I love the process and the learning. I am almost disappointed that I'm taking the family on vacation soon because it will interrupt my brewing schedule.

And I am drinking my porter right now; still better than a Bud.

Temp control is probably not my problem at this point. I've been using forgiving yeasts and my basement is ideal ambient temp this time of year (62 -68 degrees).

#2 was good for me when I let it mature enough. It was a scottish ale extract kit and it was good, but the ones I saved for 6+ months ended up very nice. I've been pretty consistent since, just making sure to give the beer time.

My #1 was pretty decent, hoping my #2 is awesome.
I am a planner, and as a planner I read, read and then read some more.
I lurked here for weeks reading pointers, tips and advice as well as a couple other sites. After all the best way to learn from mistakes - is someone else's mistake.
What I learned most is not to make beginner mistakes, namely -
1) Too much tinkering during fermentation...relax.
2) Room temperature is too warm.
3) Impatience. Time is a friend to making beer. Yeast are wonderful little creatures, if left alone they will do what they do best.

1st was an off the shelf canned hopped extract kit. number 2-6 or 7 were AHS recipes and all turned out good. 2 was decent not really my thing (american wheat), but won my faith in homebrew. 3 (double chocolate stout) was great, and then california common, IPA, blonde ale were all good.

I took a break for about a year, and since I have come back I haven't been blown away by anything I have made. probably because I have gotten much more into commercial craft beer, especially really big beers, and I keep brewing basic porters and single IPAs expecting them to satisfy. Imperial stout in primary will hopefully change my mind

Ridire said:

And just for the record, I'm in no way discouraged that the first brew (and likely the second) didn't turn out great. I love the process and the learning. I am almost disappointed that I'm taking the family on vacation soon because it will interrupt my brewing schedule.

And I am drinking my porter right now; still better than a Bud.

Temp control is probably not my problem at this point. I've been using forgiving yeasts and my basement is ideal ambient temp this time of year (62 -68 degrees).

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You never know about #2! Just wait.

You are already showing signs of what some of my friends back in Oregon termed: BBA. Beer Brewing Addiction. One sign: removal from ones beer brewing causes sadness, depression or otherwise a lack of interest in other activities that used to instill fun and anticipation. That's a good sign you will have plenty of great brews down the line!

I know #2 could still turn out ok but I doubt it will get hoppier.

I just followed up my porter with a Guinness (which used to be my favorite). Maybe my beer is better than I thought...

My second batch was incredible, but I think that was a fluke. I didn't start brewing consistently good beer until I'd been at it for a couple years. Everyone has their own story, but for me it was when I started controlling temperature beyond just finding the coolest place in the house. Once I did that I started brewing beer I would be proud to share with anyone.

nukebrewer said:

My second batch was incredible, but I think that was a fluke. I didn't start brewing consistently good beer until I'd been at it for a couple years. Everyone has their own story, but for me it was when I started controlling temperature beyond just finding the coolest place in the house. Once I did that I started brewing beer I would be proud to share with anyone.

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I've been giving that a lot of thought for the summer months. My basement will likely stay in the 70-75 degree range on the warmest days of summer but that is probably too warm. But since I've been brewing, temps have not been over 68 (I put a space heater near bottles conditioning) so I don't think temp control has been a factor yet. Maybe pitching too warm on the first two (maybe) but certainly not on #3 (65 deg wort temp at pitch and ambient temp around fermenter never got over 65 until krausen fell).

I spent nearly a year getting my setup together before I brewed my first batch. It turned out ok, but not great. Had to rethink a few things. And my setup still need a few tweaks.

My second batch was awesome, And the 3rd batch is aging in kegs, with 3 weeks to go. I'm hoping for the best.

3 weeks seems along way off when your waiting on beer!

pb

Give your beers time to mature, both in the fermenter and in the bottle. I've done a number of batches that tasted okay after just three weeks in primary & secondary, but those that sat for 4-6 weeks have all turned out very well. Likewise, in my experience, chances are that a brew that tastes okay after 2 weeks of bottle conditioning is going to taste far superior after 8 weeks in the bottle.

Biere_Titan said:

Give your beers time to mature, both in the fermenter and in the bottle. I've done a number of batches that tasted okay after just three weeks in primary & secondary, but those that sat for 4-6 weeks have all turned out very well. Likewise, in my experience, chances are that a brew that tastes okay after 2 weeks of bottle conditioning is going to taste far superior after 8 weeks in the bottle.

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First batch (porter) was in fermenter for 4 weeks and bottles for 5-6 weeks.

Second batch (IPA) was in fermenter 4 weeks but only 2 in bottles. I'm reserving judgement but the bottle I sampled this weekend had little hop character. I don't think that improves with time, does it?

I think it took me around 6 or so batches. I started in the summer of '08 and didn't realize the higher fermentation temperatures were so significantly affecting the flavors of the beer. After brewing that many, I also started to get the hang of selecting a good recipe to start with.

For the record, my jump to all grain and moving the brewing to my garage has revolutionized my opinions of what homebrew can be.

To follow up with this:


Can temp control really be done right without a controlled chamber. I have no problem paying for a chamber but I hate taking up space in my home. What is the best option for really controlling temperature without taking up a lot of space?

I've read all about swamp coolers and I get the idea. But that sounds clumsy and not really "control". Any other options? Even if $ is big but space is low.

My first beer I was really happy with was a Brewers Best Oktoberfest. Used Wyeast Oktoberfest strain, temp controlled fridge, and forgot about it for several months. I think it was beer #4.

Ridire said:

To follow up with this:

Can temp control really be done right without a controlled chamber. I have no problem paying for a chamber but I hate taking up space in my home. What is the best option for really controlling temperature without taking up a lot of space?

I've read all about swamp coolers and I get the idea. But that sounds clumsy and not really "control". Any other options? Even if $ is big but space is low.

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I've seen adds before in byo magazine about large zip up thermal coolers (the soft kind). There's also son of a fermentation chamber that you can find with search. I think I've seen someone make one that can be broken down.

I believe #13 was my turning point. There were a couple of good batches earlier, but, they were mixed in with bad batches.

If we learn from our mistakes, then I deserve an A+ for the mistakes part.

Lessons learned have included temperature control, yeast, hopping without calculations, water chemistry, and the effects of oxidization.

My first batch was a Belgian Wit, with grain and DME. It turned out fantastic! I drank a lot of beer when in Europe, and love the wheat and "white" beers. I expected my own to taste like garbage, but instead it tastes good enough to put up against anything I've ever drank.

I just followed the instructions, made sure everything was extra sterile, and let it sit for 3 weeks. Then bottled. Even now, less than two weeks later, over half of it is already gone

I figure it was beginner's luck; we'll see, I have a hefe-weizen, another wit beer, and a stout fermenting now.

Ridire said:

To follow up with this:


Can temp control really be done right without a controlled chamber. I have no problem paying for a chamber but I hate taking up space in my home. What is the best option for really controlling temperature without taking up a lot of space?

I've read all about swamp coolers and I get the idea. But that sounds clumsy and not really "control". Any other options? Even if $ is big but space is low.

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Putting the fermenter in a water bath helps a lot. This is a great Brew Strong episode on temperature control, takes you through the various options.

The "Son of Fermentation Chiller" is also a space-saving, low-cost, popular option. Here is a link, but I think there is a link in the DIY sticky as well.

Anything you can do will be a big help. Temperature control is the most important money and space investment you can make, after your initial setup.

My first batch was drinkable, my second batch was delicious. My third batch im hoping to be incredible.

When my friends started home brewing and I tasted their stuff. Sorry friends.

I like this thread. I just put my second batch a hoppy amber) in the bucket today and I've got some high hopes. My first elicited a "Wow! I expected this to be much worse." From all my friends who tried it. I'm not quite where I want to be but I can see the next steps to improving, and I already enjoy drinking it. Between now and batch #3, I'm going to build the temp controller.

I think I've just had a revelation. I am relying on "good fermentation temperature" based on temp of wort at pitch + ambient temperature, without thinking about beer temp inside of fermenter. Next batch will include a swamp cooler for the heavy ferm, regardless of what the room temp is.

Honestly, my first beer was delicious(All grain) and even won best damn beer at our local brew club monthly competitions. I had been around it for awhile though so it wasn't like I was brand new to the process.

My second was great. It has been hit or miss along the way (9 to 1). I also moved and didn't realize brewing with a water from a softener was bad (until five batches later).

Follow up. I still have some of my first brew (5-6 weeks in bottles). I made this thread after tasting one that had been in the fridge 24 hours. I am now tasting one that has been in the fridge for 72 hours. A world better. I thought 24 hours in fridge wound be fine but the difference is pretty significant after 72 hours. Maybe I should show some restraint and leave them for a week in the fridge? Maybe try same with my IPA (I put a bottle in there today and won't touch it for at least 4 days).

Ridire said:

Follow up. I still have some of my first brew (5-6 weeks in bottles). I made this thread after tasting one that had been in the fridge 24 hours. I am now tasting one that has been in the fridge for 72 hours. A world better. I thought 24 hours in fridge wound be fine but the difference is pretty significant after 72 hours. Maybe I should show some restraint and leave them for a week in the fridge? Maybe try same with my IPA (I put a bottle in there today and won't touch it for at least 4 days).

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It's been stated many times, many ways,... patience, patience, patience. Aging is good,... rushing things is bad.

pb

plumber_bob said:

It's been stated many times, many ways,... patience, patience, patience. Aging is good,... rushing things is bad.

pb

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I get it but I thought aging at room temp was important but didn't realize fridge time, beyond just getting them cold, would make that much of a difference.

Ridire said:

I get it but I thought aging at room temp was important but didn't realize fridge time, beyond just getting them cold, would make that much of a difference.

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I never would've thought it true either until you posted your findings. But that kicked in the lesson I've been learning about patience. The main thing to remember, I reckon, is to try different times with different types of aging. Heck brewing is still in the experimental stages in some ways. And we are all scientists at different levels.

The good side of your learning is that you are posting it for others to use in their quest for fan****ingtastic beer, and in turn they will hopefully post their findings and results, good, bad, ugly, or great. Then we all grow and learn.

pb --- can you tell I'm doing my exercises? 25oz curls

Not sure if my first batch has "ugly baby syndrome", since I made it and really like it. Not sure why I picked a ESB clone as my first but since I haven't had a commercial English bitters in many years I can't really compare it to anything. But since it's mine, I like it.

My second brew, a Racer 5 clone (IPA) just went to bottle yesterday and tasted great. I can't wait to see how it is when it's carbed up. I messed up my calculations and did close to a full boil as opposed to the 3 gal it called for.

My third is a Moose Drool clone and has been in the primary for a week. I thought I really had things down going into this but seemed to have the most "issues" with this brew. This maybe because I now know a lot more than when I brewed my first batch. I also did a late extract addition with this one and reduced my bittering hops by 20 percent. We'll see how this one comes out...

For my fourth, I'm going to do a BIAB partial mash. Not sure what style to do, any ideas that are a good choice for a first time partial mash?

For me it was #5 of my own recipes. Are you using recipe kits or are you creating your own recipes? All of the kits I've made have been pretty good.

I took a 3 year hiatus and I have made 4 batches since Jan 1st and the 2nd was good, the 3rd will hopefully be better, and the 4th will be better than that one. Just got to wait it out for bottle conditioning.