New guy rant...

I'm new to the game - so new I havent even bought my equipment yet (although it's gonna be a good weekend!)

I'm buying a kit thats got the ingredients included for my first batch (an Irish Red Ale or an amber ale...havent decided). Once I get through that one, I want to gather my own ingredients, but after reading a bunch of articles, I'm having a hard time articulating what I like in a beer...which translates into:

"How do I pick ingredients that will a produce a beer I like?"

Now I understand there is a bit of science mixed with some trial/error, but as far as taste, texture and color, there have to be some rules of thumb.

I'll be making ales first, but I think the kit I am going to get has a glass carboy as well as 2 buckets, so in the future I will be able to produce lagers... that being said, lets stick to the ales. Of course, that's difficult since all my favorite beers are lagers...

1. Sam Adams Lager - I would describe it as having a yeasty taste...not too bitter. Smooth and has a nice consistency to it. Def thicker than a Heineken, but def not a guiness.

2. Brooklyn Lager - Same as above but with a pinch more bitterness

3. Stella - I really like this lager, but its so different from Sam and Brooklyn that I dont even know how to describe it.

Can the qualities of those beers be transferred to an Ale? Not sure...I ask you pros.

Ales I have tried and like: Sierra Nevada, Pete's Wicked - which are different that - Fullers London Porter and Guiness - which I also like. As a whole, I tend to like reder/darker beers than the brighter lighter colored beers.

At the end of the day, I'll drink anything, but it would be great to make something I'll REALLY enjoy thats unique.

So can you guys process this rant and spit back some logic?

Thanks in advance,
Ivan

The simplest method at the start is to buy clone kits for the beers you like.

Making an ale that tastes like a lager. The key using a very neutral ale yeast that will ferment around 60F (like Nottingham) or using a lager yeast that ferments in the same range (California Common).

And as you get into homebrewing, often your tastes will change. I don't really care much for lagers any more, but I love IPAs. That is a total reversal of my preferences from a couple of years ago!

If you like Sierra Nevada pale ale, a clone of that is easy. If you like stout, that's easy too. I suggest doing what David_42 mentioned- go to austinhomebrew's website and look at the kits they have and find a clone of a beer you know you like, staying away from lagers for the time being.

Of course, once you gain experience, you'll be able to make any beer including lagers if you still want to!

Sam Adams is essentially just like an amber ale. I've done all-grain ale clones with great results. I'd say dive in with whatever kits you're looking at that get you close, and forget about trying to zero in on a particular commercial example. You'll be pleased at the (different) results.

IvanTheTerrible said:

... Ales I have tried and like:... Fullers London Porter and Guiness...

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I agree with everything posted above. When first time brewers ask what to brew their first time, I always recommend a Brown ale, Stout or Porter. Stouts and Porters are easy to brew and b/c of their flavor profiles, they'll hide flaws that might otherwise come through in pale ales. So, you have a better chance for success and being pleased with your results.

Austin Homebrew and Northern Brewer have good kits and I'm sure there are other online retailers I'm missing. Your local HBS might have some, too.

Good luck. Ask any questions and definitely let us know how it goes!

You could also pick up one of these books: Designing Great Beers...and Beer Clones.

I find the process of 'reverse engineering' a beer by looking at a clone recipe's ingredients helps me understand what those ingredients do for the recipe.

citrusy hops vs. cleaner hops, malty grains that lend more flavor than fermentables...etc.

I honestly haven't read either, but I have Designing Great Beers ordered and it was shipped today.

How to Brew by John Palmer is also a good resource for understanding ingredients, especially if you have any desire to go all grain someday.

Thanks guys.

So in my quest to figure out what I like, I bought a Brooklyn Brown Ale. It's drinkable, but not really my cup of tea. I'm not sure how to describe it, but I'll try.

I felt like it was fruity compared to other beers. I've never tasted anything like it before...I think it was too bitter. The Style Guide calls it medium to high bitterness... I think this was on the high side.

Is an amber Ale similar? If it is, I don't think I'm going to make it my first brew.

I really enjoyed the Fuller's London Porter, and I think I'm going to make a Porter my first brew.

Does this make sense? What do you guys think?

When I got here, I was a Budweiser Die Hard! I hated hoppy beers.

Now I consume every IPA I can get my hands on, and I don't touch any light beers! Your tastes will change, but do not be alarmed. It's just your taste buds awakening!

I recommend a clone of Anchor Porter. That's an excellent beer, and I think there are a few online shops that offer something similar.

Generally, it sounds like you need to branch out a little and experiment with some commercially available ales. Buy a bunch of microbrews that sound good, and give 'em a try. Brew clones or styles similar to those you find that you enjoy.

Can you guys reccomend some ales are the arent very fruity and bitter so I can go out and buy them?

Yuri_Rage said:

I recommend a clone of Anchor Porter. That's an excellent beer, and I think there are a few online shops that offer something similar.

Generally, it sounds like you need to branch out a little and experiment with some commercially available ales. Buy a bunch of microbrews that sound good, and give 'em a try. Brew clones or styles similar to those you find that you enjoy.

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Ditto. Anchor Porter is good stuff. Austin Homebrew Supply sells a lot of good clone brews in extract, Partial mash, and All Grain.

Like Yuri said, try some different micros. I make a trip to the liqour store every friday to replenish the beer fridge (yes, I have a fridge dedicated to beer). Every time, I try to grab a xouple sixers of 22oz bottles of something I have not tried before. It's a good way to get your "Experience Points" up by trying many different beers. Your palate will sharpen.

Best of Luck!

Theres this chart on Palmer's site:
http://www.howtobrew.com/images/f111.jpg

I think if you guys can tell me where the beer I have tasted fall into the chart, I will have a much better understanding. Right now, I am lost...and the last thing I want to do is brew 50 beers that I'm not going to like.

Let's limit it to 5:
Sam Adams
Fullers London Porter
Brooklyn Brown Ale
Sierra Nevada
Stella

Thanks guys,
-I

talleymonster said:

When I got here, I was a Budweiser Die Hard! I hated hoppy beers.

Now I consume every IPA I can get my hands on, and I don't touch any light beers! Your tastes will change, but do not be alarmed. It's just your taste buds awakening!

Click to expand...

I'd have to agree. When my friend introduced me to homebrewing, he said "just to warn you, it's an expensive hobby." I asked what he meant, because it costs pretty much the same to brew as it is to buy a case of beer. He then said "no, it's expensive because you'll only drink good beers from now on."

So true, so true. I now tend to stick with microbrews.

Got my gear except for a stock pot. If I can pick one up tonight, I'll be brewing tomorrow night - FINALLY!

After drinking Sierra Nevada for a few days, I decided to go with the Pale Ale for my first brew... plan to make a porter second!

-Ivan

Practice, practice, practice! It's tough, but you'll have to drink a lot of beers. Here's what I like to do:

Read the label.

Seriously, many beers will list the ingredients and hops used and what flavors they bring out in the beer. You get your sweetness / grainyness from malt and your bitter / citrus from hops. Read up on a beer, then taste the beer - let it sit on your tongue. Learn what the flavors taste like and let your tongue reverse engineer the beer. Seperate the hops from the malt, then seperate the bitter from the flavor and aroma hops.

Practice man! Practice like you've never practiced before. You'll need the following items to help:

1. Wireless laptop to cruise HomeBrewTalk
2. Larger belt
3. Wider pants
4. Nachos
5. Chili
6. Declining sex drive (brewers get laid less than any other hobbyists)
7. Recliner
8. HDTV
9. ESPN, Comedy Central, Cooking Channel, Discovery, Etc.
10. Someone who won't make fun of you for passing out in front of the computer.

If you can get your act together, you'll become a real brewing legend.

Cheesefood said:

6. Declining sex drive (brewers get laid less than any other hobbyists)

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Hence the motivation behind my "SWMBO Slayer Belgian Blonde"

par383 said:

it's expensive because you'll only drink good beers from now on."

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I've found this to be very true...initially the excuse was that I needed to drink good beers to collect the bottles. But I've found that it continues. I can still drink macrobrews, but the problem is that once you get the taste in your head of what all these beers are like-you don't just think, "hmm, I feel like a beer right now" you think "hmm, I really feel like a Weyerbacher all Simcoe IIPA right now".

Also, you realize that there are not only a host of different styles that need to be tried, but a host of different breweries who make those styles. It gets pricey, but it is more enjoyable. A 4 pack of Belgians costs about the same as a 12 pack of Bud...you can easily argue that the former is 3x as tasty as the latter-so it balances out I guess.

I never really drank Bud... I always had a more expensive taste in beers, and I love to experiement so I'm totally used to it. The 6-Pack of Fullers London Porter cost 10 bucks and change... and Sam Adams and Brooklyns cost 7-8 bucks a pop. Almost as much as a 12 pack of bud... but well worth it.

I'm going to have to buy beers for the next few weeks until my brew is ready. I want to try Anchor Porter, like someone recommended, and I want to try an IPA.

-I