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Brewed my WCPA on 8 June and all bubbling has stopped today (12 June). Pulled a sample and it tasted like beer. I can't help it I'm a little proud (wipes tear away). As Ben Kenobi said"...You've taken your first step into a larger world."
 
Gave my Cowboy a week longer to bottle condition. There was a lot less cider taste. And after I posted that last message, I went back and had a Miller High Life, I had never really notice how cidery that beer was. So, yeah, my new timeline, for me anyway is, 3 weeks fermenter, 3 weeks bottle condition, then into the fridge and enjoy at will. My Amber should be ready soon and I will let you know. Brewed up Mr. Beer batch number 4 on my day off on Friday.

Edit: Cracked another one of my Red Ambers last night, after 31 days in bottle, and it was much better, still a little cider taste, but what a difference, still not commerical microbrew quality, but it gives me hope that I can make something that will taste great.
 
I have a Jamaica Mon that I brewed on 5/6, and it's been sitting in the Mr. Beer keg since then because I haven't drained the bottles from my first batch! So I found some other bottles and will be giving them a wash tonight to bottle it up. I'm trusting that the additional time in the fermenter is only going to make it better. It's not been too long to risk autolysis, and I have plenty of beer in the pipeline (check my sig) to allow me to let this particular batch bottle condition for a month or more before I crack one open.

Moral of this story: Time is your friend, the Beer Gods reward the patient!
 
I learned my lesson about rushing the process with my first batch. I was so excited about seeing if this thing would really work I didn't give it the time it needed. I wasn't disappointed but realize it could have been better. The next batch I let ferment for 3 weeks and this coming Saturday, it will have carbed for 3 weeks. I'm figuring to crack one or so this weekend. Imagine that, I have given myself a little fathers day present! My third batch has been ferment all this time, so it will be ready to bottle this weekend also. Starting to get the pipeline going. I've requested a few different mixes for Father's day. If that comes thru, we're getting another going right away. This is getting fun!
 
Got the Mr. B off woot. Bought a second keg and locking spigot/bottling wand combo for both. Bought two 3 gallon water bottles from supermarket. Bought bottles, capper, caps, airlock/cap for water bottles, racking wand/tubing, iodine based sanitizer and corn sugar for priming from LHBS. 5 gallon bucket from Home Depot for sanitizing.

I have cut the cord from Mr.Beer.com

Am making very tasty basic beer for about $10 a case.

3 lbs bulk Amber UME
1/2 oz Willamette hops @ 15mins
1/2 oz Willamette hops @ 5 mins

Cool to 80 degrees
Pitch whole packet Safbrew T-58

Transfer to water bottle for 2 weeks.
Rack to Mr. B for one week.

Bottle and let sit for min. 2 weeks.

Easy, cheap, no muss - no fuss... just like me.

No hydrometers, refractometers or other fancy tech stuff - not that there's anything wrong with that. I just wanna make real good easy cheap beer.

I've played around with dried orange peel, coriander, orange zest, clear and amber Belgian candi sugar, Coopers, Muntons, vanilla extract and some other stuff, and only had bad luck with the vanilla.

But for my money and time, I'll go cheap and easy.
 
Hello everyone. I finally got around to making my first batch last week. I may have made a mistake though. When I filled my keg up to the 8.5 quart line with cold water I wasn't thinking and grabbed my pitcher of drinking water (i.e. tap water) instead of the purified bottle water I bought for this. On top of that, the water wasn't particularly cold yet, so I'm worried the mix may have been too warm when I put the yeast in. I'm going to leave it in the keg for a full 2 weeks, but are there any signs to look for to make sure I didn't kill of the yeast, or contaminate it with the tap water?
 
somecallmetex said:
Hello everyone. I finally got around to making my first batch last week. I may have made a mistake though. When I filled my keg up to the 8.5 quart line with cold water I wasn't thinking and grabbed my pitcher of drinking water (i.e. tap water) instead of the purified bottle water I bought for this. On top of that, the water wasn't particularly cold yet, so I'm worried the mix may have been too warm when I put the yeast in. I'm going to leave it in the keg for a full 2 weeks, but are there any signs to look for to make sure I didn't kill of the yeast, or contaminate it with the tap water?
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If your tap water isn't strongly chlorinated or under a boil order, it should do no harm as a top-off. As for the yeast, it's probably fine: it takes something over 120 degrees to kill yeast so if the water wasn't actually hot it's not a big deal. Assuming you don't have a hydrometer, it's easiest to tell fermentation is happening from the krausen forming on the surface, usually. A quick opening of the lid won't hurt but you can probably see just shining a light in the side. If you don't see that, take a shot glass of beer out of the spigot. If it's a little fizzy and is losing/has lost its initial sweetness, the yeast is working.
 
Killer_Robot said:
If your tap water isn't strongly chlorinated or under a boil order, it should do no harm as a top-off. As for the yeast, it's probably fine: it takes something over 120 degrees to kill yeast so if the water wasn't actually hot it's not a big deal. Assuming you don't have a hydrometer, it's easiest to tell fermentation is happening from the krausen forming on the surface, usually. A quick opening of the lid won't hurt but you can probably see just shining a light in the side. If you don't see that, take a shot glass of beer out of the spigot. If it's a little fizzy and is losing/has lost its initial sweetness, the yeast is working.
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Thanks. There is a small amount of foam in small clusters throughout the surface. If that's all there is supposed to be I'm fine... though I suppose if there should be more foam I am in trouble.
 
There's often very little krausen in a Mr. Beer recipe and what there is often lasts only a few days while fermentation is most active: some of why is the fermenter shape, and some the extract. If you're really worried, let some out of the spout to taste: if it's not sweet then your fermentation is mostly over and you just need to let it finish up and age. If it's been a week and still tastes like the sweet wort that went in, you have an issue, but I doubt it will be a problem.
 
All beer lovers send big hello! I love beer. It is very useful. Independence Day will be celebrated in the US this weekend. That means fireworks, barbeque and lots of beer. Check out my summertime beer suggestions. Or read up on some favorite summer beer styles – Pilsner, pale ale and wheat. Finally, if you’re going to have a cookout why not make a beer can chicken and show some imagination with the type of beer you use.
 
somecallmetex said:
Hello everyone. I finally got around to making my first batch last week. I may have made a mistake though. When I filled my keg up to the 8.5 quart line with cold water I wasn't thinking and grabbed my pitcher of drinking water (i.e. tap water) instead of the purified bottle water I bought for this. On top of that, the water wasn't particularly cold yet, so I'm worried the mix may have been too warm when I put the yeast in. I'm going to leave it in the keg for a full 2 weeks, but are there any signs to look for to make sure I didn't kill of the yeast, or contaminate it with the tap water?
Click to expand...
I've just used tap water for my batches. They have all turned out fine. What has helped more is letting the beer sit for a full 3 weeks in the keg. Then at least 3 weeks carbing in the bottle. Seems to make a big difference to me.:mug:
 
I have now tasted my 3 recipe of Mr Beer and this is my favorite. Three weeks ago, I open an Englishman's Nut-Brown w/Mellow Amber. It was OK. Not great though. It had fermented for 3 weeks and carbed for 3. Still seemed to have a little cider taste to it. That really surprised me since it had sat fermented for 3 full weeks. I've been having a few each week now and they do seem to have gotten better. They are really carbonated though.

The same day, I bottled another batch. This one is the Bewitched Red Ale w/booster. I have to say, this is the best one so far. It too brewed for 3 weeks and carbed for 3. It has a very nice flavor and not overly carbed. If you are familiar with Killian's Irish Red, this one is very similar. Real nice after taste IMO.

I am nearing the end of brewing on my fourth type. This one was a fathers day gift of Raspberry wheat. I've been on a dark beer run so thought I'd lighten up a little. Tomorrow will be 3 weeks in the keg but it still seems kind of sweet. Is that normal due to the fruit? Has anyone had an experience with the fruit wheats from Mr Beer? Do they take longer fermenting because of the fruit? I'm thinking it needs at least another week before bottling. But I really want to get it going so I can start tasting it too.

Let me know if you have any thoughts.
 
I'm bottling my 10th Mr. Beer batch tomorrow, Sticky Wicket Oatmeal Stout. I usually follow the 2-2-2 method, 2weeks Fermentation, 2 weeks carbonating and 2 conditioning \ lagering, have yet to have a bad batch. Drinking my 2nd Raspberry Wheat now, incredible summer brew, eventually I hope to upgrade to 5 gall batches.
 
Roosterman said:
I have now tasted my 3 recipe of Mr Beer and this is my favorite. Three weeks ago, I open an Englishman's Nut-Brown w/Mellow Amber. It was OK. Not great though. It had fermented for 3 weeks and carbed for 3. Still seemed to have a little cider taste to it. That really surprised me since it had sat fermented for 3 full weeks. I've been having a few each week now and they do seem to have gotten better. They are really carbonated though.

The same day, I bottled another batch. This one is the Bewitched Red Ale w/booster. I have to say, this is the best one so far. It too brewed for 3 weeks and carbed for 3. It has a very nice flavor and not overly carbed. If you are familiar with Killian's Irish Red, this one is very similar. Real nice after taste IMO.

I am nearing the end of brewing on my fourth type. This one was a fathers day gift of Raspberry wheat. I've been on a dark beer run so thought I'd lighten up a little. Tomorrow will be 3 weeks in the keg but it still seems kind of sweet. Is that normal due to the fruit? Has anyone had an experience with the fruit wheats from Mr Beer? Do they take longer fermenting because of the fruit? I'm thinking it needs at least another week before bottling. But I really want to get it going so I can start tasting it too.

Let me know if you have any thoughts.
Click to expand...

Actually I prefer fruit beer, I've brewed Cherry Wheat, Raspberry Wheat (twice), Purple Daze, Spiced Lemon Wheat (favorite so far).. Just PUREE the heck out of the fruit and dn't forget to sanitize your blender. All batches were fermented 2 weeks.
 
Roosterman said:
I have now tasted my 3 recipe of Mr Beer and this is my favorite. Three weeks ago, I open an Englishman's Nut-Brown w/Mellow Amber. It was OK. Not great though. It had fermented for 3 weeks and carbed for 3. Still seemed to have a little cider taste to it. That really surprised me since it had sat fermented for 3 full weeks. I've been having a few each week now and they do seem to have gotten better. They are really carbonated though.

The same day, I bottled another batch. This one is the Bewitched Red Ale w/booster. I have to say, this is the best one so far. It too brewed for 3 weeks and carbed for 3. It has a very nice flavor and not overly carbed. If you are familiar with Killian's Irish Red, this one is very similar. Real nice after taste IMO.

I am nearing the end of brewing on my fourth type. This one was a fathers day gift of Raspberry wheat. I've been on a dark beer run so thought I'd lighten up a little. Tomorrow will be 3 weeks in the keg but it still seems kind of sweet. Is that normal due to the fruit? Has anyone had an experience with the fruit wheats from Mr Beer? Do they take longer fermenting because of the fruit? I'm thinking it needs at least another week before bottling. But I really want to get it going so I can start tasting it too.

Let me know if you have any thoughts.
Click to expand...

I was about to bottle my first batch (pale ale), but I decided to take a taste first. The good news is that it IS beer, and there is some carbination! the bad news is that it is still very cloudy... I am thinking of letting it go that third week to get a little clearer. It would also give me an opportunity to get that corn sugar instead of table sugar.... still have no idea where I can get it in Denton, and I don't want to drive to Dallas to find some.
 
As all of you I started with Mr.Beer and told myself if it is good I'll try this hobby....it was good and I am now just beginning this hobby...I have an orange wheat in the keg and a honey blond in the fermentor. looking forward to trying more recipies!!
 
. It would also give me an opportunity to get that corn sugar instead of table sugar.... still have no idea where I can get it in Denton said:
Tex,
You may be able to find corn sugar at a health food store. I would call around and check it out. It also is called dextrose. I would think that you could find it in Denton, but I haven't been there is years.

Good Luck!
Click to expand...
 
It Came From Outter Space...

Nasty.jpg


This is an AG batch I brewed this afternoon. I pitched a full pack of Safale S-04 at 82f and then 10 minutes of O2 and into my 68f brew fridge. This shot was taken 3 hours later. I'm thinking I need to pitch at a much cooler temp. I am pretty sure the scum above the waterline is from the foam during oxygenation. But what about that scum! I don't know if I can call it krausen so early on.
 
hey everyone :)

i too took the plunge about 8 months ago and got a mr. beer kit. after having a few brews with a girlfriend and buddy while watching beer wars we decided to finally open the box and get it started.

so far everything is going fine (it's been 8 days in the keg). we used the american ale ingredients that came with the kit as well as adding in a cup of homemade cardamom infused orange blossom honey to boot :)

i took a small sample taste yesterday and as everyone has stated it tastes just like a flat ale and still a bit cloudy. i'm going to let it sit for a little longer and then probably bottle at the end of this week.

this will probably be the last time i use the kit as i just ordered a 5gal kit with carboy and all so i shall be taking it one step further. what an addicting hobby this is lol



has anyone tried using pure raw honey in their brews? im curious to how badly the wax would effect the fermentation process, if at all.
 
I assume you are removing the honey from the comb? I would at least centrifuge the honey to remove as much bees wax as possible. I'm not sure it will hurt the brew process but it probably will not help.

Don't give up on your Mr. Beer fermentor. I brew larger batches but always seem to have at least one Mr. Beer fermentor going. My brew fridge can only hold one 6 gallon fermentation bucket but I can fit an extra 2 Mr. Beer kegs on one of the shelves. They are great for upping production and testing recipes or techniques.
 
pilotdane said:
I assume you are removing the honey from the comb? I would at least centrifuge the honey to remove as much bees wax as possible. I'm not sure it will hurt the brew process but it probably will not help.

Don't give up on your Mr. Beer fermentor. I brew larger batches but always seem to have at least one Mr. Beer fermentor going. My brew fridge can only hold one 6 gallon fermentation bucket but I can fit an extra 2 Mr. Beer kegs on one of the shelves. They are great for upping production and testing recipes or techniques.
Click to expand...

yeah it's basically straight from the comb. no legs or anything like that though :p 100% natural and unprocessed though. i'm just curious if the wax would cause any issues... the honey tastes better in this form to me, but for brewing purposes i can see how it might not matter much.

i was probably going to give my mr. beer to my friend so he can get into brewing :) if not i would still use it for small batches :mug:

i haven't even finished this first brew and im already gathering everything i need for two more lol! doing a sierra nevada clone this friday and then hopefully going to brew the midas touch recipe posted here :rockin:
 
Well, my Raspberry wheat has carbed for 2 weeks. Threw a few in the fridge for a few hours. Gotta say, this is my favorite so far. It has a nice berry taste with out being to sweet. I was afraid it would be like Lienie's and taste like a wine cooler. Thankfully, it is not. It is very tasty.

My son has gotten into it now. He's borrowed my keg to make a strawberry/apple cider. He'll be bottling it in the next couple of days. Once he's got that carbing, I've got to figure out which to try next. I wish all of life's decisions were this tough!
 
When making a raspberry wheat I like to ferment the beer for a week without the fruit. The toss in the pureed raspberries for the second week of fermentation. Splitting the fermentation I have not had any eruptions and I think the raspberry flavor carries through a little better.
 
well i tasted my "honey" version of the west coast pale ale. it's interesting lol. very simple with the kit and actually tastes like a saison.


im going to let it condition for a while :)
 
pilotdane said:
When making a raspberry wheat I like to ferment the beer for a week without the fruit. The toss in the pureed raspberries for the second week of fermentation. Splitting the fermentation I have not had any eruptions and I think the raspberry flavor carries through a little better.
Click to expand...
I've heard of others talk about the eruption problem. I didn't experience any problems at all. I put the fruit in right away. I wonder what the difference is?
 
I am trying my first bottle later this week. The instructions say to put it in the fridge for two days prior to drinking. Anyone know the reason for this, and if two days is the right amount of time (the kit tends to tell you to do things for shorter amounts of time than you typically should wait).
 
I like to cold condition my beer for 2 weeks. All grain recipes can be consumed sooner and some extract recipes take longer than the 2 weeks to mellow, but 2 weeks is a good starting point. If you are brewing the basic Mr. Beer recipes that use 1 can of extract and booster they seem to really benefit from more time in the fridge.

It is a fun learning experience to drink one beer after chilling 1 day then another at 1 week, 2 weeks... You really get an idea of what conditioning does for flavor and clarity.

In general I tell everyone with a Mr. Beer to throw the instructions away and ferment for 2 weeks, carbonate for 2 weeks and cold condition for 2 weeks.
 
ok first run and all seemed to be going good ..... till i made a booboo :(
when i filled the bottles( 1 liter ones) I put 2 1/2 tbsp of sugar not tsp :drunk: 1 bottle blew the bottom off are the rest going to blow and is the beer junk now ?
 
SWAMPER said:
ok first run and all seemed to be going good ..... till i made a booboo :(
when i filled the bottles( 1 liter ones) I put 2 1/2 tbsp of sugar not tsp :drunk: 1 bottle blew the bottom off are the rest going to blow and is the beer junk now ?
Click to expand...

Wow, sounds like a bummer. I would think the others have a chances to blow also. Maybe you could move them to the basement where it is cooler. Might slow down the carbing process and keep them from blowing. Just a guess but good luck.
 
In general I tell everyone with a Mr. Beer to throw the instructions away and ferment for 2 weeks, carbonate for 2 weeks and cold condition for 2 weeks.
Click to expand...
I fermented for 3 weeks and let them carbonate for 2.5 weeks. I am going to try one Thursday, but I may put all of them in the fridge at this point.

For putting in too much sugar, I almost did the same thing but caught myself. I would try unscrewing the lids (carefully) to let out some of the carbonation. worst case senario is that the beer is flat. better than a big mess and pile of exploded bottles.
 
Cracking open the top will releive the pressure but you have no control. Your beers may be over/under carbed and you will not know until the end of the process. The only way to have control of the carbonation is to start over with the bottling process but first you must get back to beer that has consumed all the fermentables.

How long has it been since you bottled. If it was yesterday and you know for certain that you F'd up the priming sugar in each bottle I would sanitize your keg and the outside of the overprimed bottles. Open the overprimed bottles and gently pour them into the fermentation keg. Pour the liquid down the side of the fermentor so it does not bubble or splash. You do not want to oxygenate the beer. Once all the bottles are in the keg screw on the lid and let it ferment for 3 or 4 days to insure all the priming sugar has been consumed. Then I would re-bottle (priming properly this time :) ).

If you bottled 2 or 3 days ago you can still dump and re-bottle thought I would add some boiled/sanitized sugar water to get fermentation started again to put a layer of CO2 on top of the beer in the fermentor. The amount of sugar is not critical. I would do maybe 3-4oz. Then re-bottle.

If this all sounds too complicated let them carbonate at room temp until they feel rock hard (if using PET bottles) and then put them in the fridge inside another container or plastic bag that will not leak (to catch the mess in case they blow). Get them cold and start drinking. You've still got beer so enjoy.


This gets me up on my pedestal to preach the wonders of batch priming. Use another Mr. Beer fermentation keg or a 2 gallon Rubbermaid water dispenser jug from WalMart. I boil the priming sugar (usually I use 2 1/4oz cane sugar for a Mr. Beer sized batch) in a bit of water and pour it into the sanitized secondary. Using a piece of tubing on the fermentor spigot drain the beer down into the secondary. Let it set for 20-30 minutes to distribute the sugar and then bottle. You can put the beer into any sized container without worrying about how much sugar to add.
 
well i let a tad out of the other bottles and seem to be doing ok, it's been a week so i'm going to ride it out, and yes when they go in the fridge they will be in some kind of bag ot tub with a lid, on the good side the beer smelled good and wanted to drink the beer in the bottom of the tub, but the tub was not clean so i passed :drunk:
 
Was going through Target near the house and saw a Mr. Beer, how long are the kits that come in the packages they sell in stores like this good for ?

Also when it comes to the yeast getting some better stuff is of course suggested but my question is can one use the Wyeast smack pack safely or would that be to much. Going this route seems the best for me right now versus going full five gallon batches.

Speaking of that can one get say a brewers best kit and just cut it in half with this item? OR would that be a bad thing ?:rockin:
 
nianticcardplayer said:
Was going through Target near the house and saw a Mr. Beer, how long are the kits that come in the packages they sell in stores like this good for ?

Also when it comes to the yeast getting some better stuff is of course suggested but my question is can one use the Wyeast smack pack safely or would that be to much. Going this route seems the best for me right now versus going full five gallon batches.

Speaking of that can one get say a brewers best kit and just cut it in half with this item? OR would that be a bad thing ?:rockin:
Click to expand...

I think the expiration dates on most of the cans I've purchased were a year or more out. Of course, fresher is always better.

I don't see any reason you can't use a smack pack.

Also, no reason why a five gallon kit couldn't be cut down. However, you'll have half your ingredients just kind of sitting around afterwards.
 
Yes, you can use the yeast packs intended for 5 gallon batches. I have also known people to split the pack to make two Mr. Beer batches. I have avoided using the expensive liquid yeasts on Mr. Beer batches because I could not bring myself to use $6 of yeast to only make 2 gallons of beer (I'm cheap). As a comprimise I have used the Fermentis 11.5g dry yeasts (Safale S-04 and S-05) quite a bit with good results.

Yes ingredient kits for larger batches may be cut down. If splitting a liquid malt extract cover the unused portion with some sanitized aluminum foil and store in the freezer.
 
Well, of course he whowaits loses when when I was at Target they had Mr. Beer on clearance two or three kits left that were normally 49.99 at xmas time marked down after xmas it appeared to 39.99, and when I saw them they were marked down even further to 19.99 (20 bucks) coulda picked up two that way could just use both kegs for a five gallon kit, or as I have just found out from a neighbor who uses his Mr. Beer a lot (I didn't even know there was any one else near me interested in brewing let alone doing it) goes over to springfield and gets ingriedents put together specifically for Mr. Beer sized batch, go figure even more.....but NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO stupid me has to go home let the Mrs. know this stuff is there has a crappy kit in it that if we want we can write off and go from there.

She's like if that's what you want to get go ahead so I go back and they are GONE.....I could have let a NOOOOOOOOOOO in the middle of the store like a kid who just dropped his ice cream cone on the street.....Oh welll I will be brewing at some point with either a Mr. Beer or some other incarnation of a brewing kit.....:tank::rockin:
 
I have several fraternity brothers that make wine which was the initial spark to what I'm sure will be new hobby. I decided to home brew beer because, unlike those guys, I will spend the extra money to play beer pong with Abita or some other quality beer that I want for the night. Sorry about the long intro, now down to business. I bought a Mr. Beer kit today. I finished up making the first batch a couple hours ago and got online to try to figure out where to go next and ended up here. I read through page 9 and gave up on the rest. In those pages, everyone said to ferment for 2 weeks, carbonate for a week, and condition for 2 weeks. Is there any other advice for the first batch? Also, where do I go next? I have a feeling I will want to dive head first into the deep end with this, but I want to do as much as I possibly can with Mr. Beer until I have the disposable income to upgrade.
 

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