First Brew Day....a little late

Ok.....I just figured out how to post pictures. I thought I'd share a little of my first brew day experience. It was a Nut Brown Ale from Midwest and it was a 20 minute boil kit. I thought it sounded perfect and easy for my first attempt.




I'll keep all directions and notes in this notebook. Sadly, this is as organized as I get.




The one thing I won't forget next time is the towels to put down on the floor.








Spent 9 days here. OG was 1.046 and when I racked to secondary it was 1.014. I have noticed it bubbling here and there since.

Next weekend I'll start on my second batch. Honey Bee Ale from Midwest. 60 minute boil with steeping grains and 3 lbs. of honey.

Nicely done! Good call on getting some towels for the floor. I'll have to try and remember that tip for my first go around...

Jay

No pictures of your kitchen in shambles after the brew day?! just kidding. nice work documenting your first brew day though. definitely something you want to remember!

Way to go! Welcome to the happy obsession.

John

No no....the kitchen was in shambles before I started I cleaned the heck out of it to make sure I was working in a clean environment.

Stormrider51 said:

Way to go! Welcome to the happy obsession.

John

Click to expand...

Thanks.....and glad to be here.

Towels on the floor FTW.
I have bar towels with one stripe for cleaning, two stripes for sanitizer and misc POS towels for the floor and inevitable spills.

The really funny thing is this.........a 7.5 gallon turkey frying pot is pretty tall. I'm pretty short at about 5'6 or 5'7. I almost had to be on my tiptoes to see into that pot when it was on the stove.........

Great job! I see in the pictures that you have an immersion chiller and a 7.5 gal stock pot, so go get a propane burner and make the move to full boils! You also won't have any troubles seeing over the edge since the burner will be on the floor.

I have a burner. I'll be making the move outside when the weather improves. I'm still pretty green and am worried about making too many mistakes when I'm also worried about the cold.

I'm also a little worried about the change I'll need to make in hops for a full boil. I'll need to check out beersmith or something to help with that.

Good advice and I'm looking forward to brewing outside

Get some Fermcap before you do your 1st full boil. With the 7.5 gal pot and boiling 6+ gallons... well my 1st batch I didn't have it and I boiled over. My 2nd batch I had Fermcap and it got close to boilover but all stayed in the pot. Makes for an exciting afternoon of watching boiling wort!

Again...good advice. I have some fermcap too. I was anticipating doing full boils, so picked some up. I really didn't want to experience the dreaded boil over. I suppose it's kind of a rite of passage, but I don't feel like cleaning it up

Everyone on this forum is correct. Waiting IS the hardest part.