N00b alert.......

**FSR402** · 05-31-2007, 12:49 AM

Hey all. First time poster and short time reader here.

I'm about to really get into this beer making thing. I bought a kits from Brewer's Best and it has most of all that I really need. I think. lol
I have primary fermenting bucket with lid, a bottling bucket, a glass carboy, airlock, auto siphon, floating thermometer, two handle capper, hydrometer, a "thief", siphon hose, and a bottling wand.
Will be heading out in the next week or so to get a 7 gallon stainless pot and propane burner. Then I will get started.
I have been reading for the last few days here, and on the "How to Brew" site. Man there is way more to this then I ever thought. Kind of freaking out a little. I'm not sure if I have or will have all I need to do this or if I'm doing this right.

Is there any thing I need that I don't have listed? Anything that I "should have" to make things easier or better?
Can I cool the wort with my bath tub full of water and ice? Or should I get something like one of those cool chiller thingys right now?
Don't want to spend to much right off the bat but then again I sure do love new toys..

Any help would be great...

Oh and my first will be an Irish Stout. I will be using the Brewers Best Kit for this and it uses a LME along with some steeped grains and two different hops in a pellet form if that helps.

rdwj · 05-31-2007, 12:59 AM

Sounds like you're good to go - the ice bath is a fine option until you're ready to start doing full boils. The reading can seem overwhelming at first, but just remember - Sit Back, Relax and Have a Homebrew (or something good until yours is done)

Just concentrate on the first chapter of how to brew for your first attempt; that covers the basics

dibby33 · 05-31-2007, 01:05 AM

Welcome.

I would also buy a beer tree and a jet washer. These help a lot.

clearlysuburban · 05-31-2007, 01:09 AM

Yeah man, you're all set. Having just started myself, I know what I had was more than enough, and all I had was the following:
Plastic Primary Fermenter
5 Gal Glass Carboy
Bottle Wand
Bottling Bucket

You've got a lot more, so you're all set. Relax, it's a lot easier than you're making it out to be. Just follow everything it says to do and you'll be fine.

**FSR402** · 05-31-2007, 01:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rdwj

Sounds like you're good to go - the ice bath is a fine option until you're ready to start doing full boils. The reading can seem overwhelming at first, but just remember - Sit Back, Relax and Have a Homebrew (or something good until yours is done)

Just concentrate on the first chapter of how to brew for your first attempt; that covers the basics

I was planing to boil all 5 gallons at one time. I did not really think about how hard that would be to carry into the house and into the tub without burning myself or one of the pets. Hmmm... Maybe I should look into the cooler things before I get going.

Has anyone used one of these "kits" form Brewer's Best (Ld Carlson)? I was told by my dog breader (she makes beer and wine from these people all the time) and by the LHB shop that they were good kits and makes good beer. I'm only planing to make 4 or 5 of these kits then I want to get into half grain and all grain brewing.

rdwj · 05-31-2007, 01:37 AM

I have no experience with Brewer's Best, but there are plenty of great places to get kits out there including Midwest, Northern Brewer and Austin Home Brew. As far as cooling goes, you WILL need a wort chiller of some sort if you plan on doing a full boil. An immersion chiller is probably the cheapest and easiest option.

Barley-Davidson · 05-31-2007, 02:11 AM

Does the recipe specify that you need to do a full boil?
You can make perfectly good beer doing a partial boil, which you could cool using an ice water bath.

If you keep brewing you're going to want a chiller soon so no harm in getting it now, but it isn't a necessity.

Don't let all the available info freak you out, just think it through and do it.

**DeathBrewer** · 05-31-2007, 03:06 AM

if you're using an extra kit, i would do a partial boil and cool it in the bath, or even better if you have a large sink. that's what i usually use, just change out the water when it gets a little warm and add ice about the third time and you can cool 3 gallons in about a half hour. then top off with clean water of the same temp (70-80F)

if you run into any problems, just jump on the forums and ask...you'd be surprised how fast you'll get a response. in fact, i don't think i've left this place since i joined last month

HarvInSTL · 05-31-2007, 06:00 AM

My first brew was with a brewers best kit and so far I've been happy with the results.

If you are concerned with spending money on the chiller, (also known as a wort chiller), I'd wait until you get further along in this hobby.

I'll share a method that I used to help cool my wort down quickly. The few kits that I have used only required 2- 2.5gallons of water to be boiled to create the wort. Then you would cool the wort down and pour it into your fermentation (primary) bucket and add more water to get to the 5gallon mark.

I would put my 2-3 gallons of spring water into the freezer a couple of hours before I would start.

Then as everyone else said cool your wort (in the pot you boiled it in and covered to prevent infection) in the kitchen sink with ice water.

Once my wort got down to about 100deg I would start with 2gallons of the ice cold spring water from the freezer and dump it into the fermentation bucket. Then pour your cooled wort into the fermentation bucket and add more ice cold spring water to get to the 5gallon mark.

That should get you down to pitching temps, (normally around 70-75deg).

**FSR402** · 05-31-2007, 01:46 PM

Thanks for all the info. I may or may not do a full boil. I guess that it will depend on if I want to buy a chiller right now. So I guess we will see.

Is there any advantages to doing or not doing a full boil?