ArizonaGoalie
Well-Known Member
Been brewing for 8 months now, with plenty of wins and my share of losses as well. Looking back, I sure was naive just starting out. So I put together these 10 tips for new brewers - things I wish I would have known then but know now. Of course, I have a lot more than 10 tips, but I shaved it down for y'all. Cheers!
(in no specific order)
1. Keep the first recipe easy! I brewed a simple Wit that turned out really good - made my friends say, "you brewed this??" Avoid trying to perfect a double IPA or and Imperial Russian stout right out of the gate. Keep it simple.
2. 1lb hops purchased online save you a lot of $$$$. I still buy my grains, malts, and specialty hops from my LHBS, but my go to yeast and hops get purchased online to save me a ton of dough.
3. Powdered yeast is great. Let me explain: I had several accomplished brewers tell me liquid is the only way to go, so it was they only way I went for months. Then I found Safale 04 and 05. For most of the styles I brew, these two powdered friends simply kick a$$. So experiment with both liquid and powder.
4. Never panic, it's hard to screw up beer. On my first batch my airlock backed up with krauzen and my friends on HBT were here to calm me down. Stuff will happen. It's beer. Relax and have fun.
5. Kits are fine, but get creative with your own recipes! If you have a LHBS with a friendly owner, he/she is just waiting to help you develop your own signature brew.
6. Get the outdoor gas burner. Best $40 I ever spent. Enough said.
7. Spend time here on HomeBrewTalk. Seems simple, I know, but some of the questions I see are easily answered by surfing a few threads. This site and the people on it are awesome.
8. Have spares of the essentials or only brew/bottle when your LHBS is open. We've broken thermometers, ran out of caps, forgotten hop bags, etc. It's key to have an extra thermometer, racking cane, hydrometer, etc. If it can go wrong eventually it will.
9. Experiment with 1 gallon batches. This is one of my big wins. Getting a 1 gallon fermenter and testing recipes small scale has been fun and I don't waste an entire 5 gallon batch on something that's mehhh.
10. Never brew 2 batches of 1 brew before you try it. Really, I made this mistake. Brewed a black IPA that I was so happy with out of the bottling bucket I brewed it again that night. Two weeks later I was shaking my head at 10 gallons of a beer that was average at best and missed the mark of where I was aiming.
Hope a few of these have helped you. Happy brewing!!!!
(in no specific order)
1. Keep the first recipe easy! I brewed a simple Wit that turned out really good - made my friends say, "you brewed this??" Avoid trying to perfect a double IPA or and Imperial Russian stout right out of the gate. Keep it simple.
2. 1lb hops purchased online save you a lot of $$$$. I still buy my grains, malts, and specialty hops from my LHBS, but my go to yeast and hops get purchased online to save me a ton of dough.
3. Powdered yeast is great. Let me explain: I had several accomplished brewers tell me liquid is the only way to go, so it was they only way I went for months. Then I found Safale 04 and 05. For most of the styles I brew, these two powdered friends simply kick a$$. So experiment with both liquid and powder.
4. Never panic, it's hard to screw up beer. On my first batch my airlock backed up with krauzen and my friends on HBT were here to calm me down. Stuff will happen. It's beer. Relax and have fun.
5. Kits are fine, but get creative with your own recipes! If you have a LHBS with a friendly owner, he/she is just waiting to help you develop your own signature brew.
6. Get the outdoor gas burner. Best $40 I ever spent. Enough said.
7. Spend time here on HomeBrewTalk. Seems simple, I know, but some of the questions I see are easily answered by surfing a few threads. This site and the people on it are awesome.
8. Have spares of the essentials or only brew/bottle when your LHBS is open. We've broken thermometers, ran out of caps, forgotten hop bags, etc. It's key to have an extra thermometer, racking cane, hydrometer, etc. If it can go wrong eventually it will.
9. Experiment with 1 gallon batches. This is one of my big wins. Getting a 1 gallon fermenter and testing recipes small scale has been fun and I don't waste an entire 5 gallon batch on something that's mehhh.
10. Never brew 2 batches of 1 brew before you try it. Really, I made this mistake. Brewed a black IPA that I was so happy with out of the bottling bucket I brewed it again that night. Two weeks later I was shaking my head at 10 gallons of a beer that was average at best and missed the mark of where I was aiming.
Hope a few of these have helped you. Happy brewing!!!!