Never brewed a beer before in my life, but am excited about starting!

Hello everyone,

I'm completely new to this idea but the inspiration hit me today and I'm really excited to get started. A few months back I went to a local beer festival with anywhere from 75 to 100 breweries there and I believe that's where the seeds for this got planted. I tried so many excellent beers that day and I figure if I put my mind to it, I can make something just as good.

I want my first brew to be a hoppy ale along the lines of Rogue's Dead Guy or Stone's Arrogant Bastard. Would you guys suggest getting one of these kits for a first timer? Like I said, I've never done this before and who knows if it's something I'll stick with, so I don't want to sink a lot of money into it right away, but I'll definitely give it the old college try.

What are your suggestions for a total newbie?

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Give it a shot. You will be hooked. I am brewing the Arrogant Bastard clone from Austin Homebrew tomorrow. I'm sure it would be good as they are a great supplier. If you are unsure then pick up the extract or mini-mash kit. They also sell basic brewing kits for about $75. This will get you started. Just keep reading more on this site and/or book like "How to Brew". Before you know you'll bee a pro and boring all your friend with mindless beer knowledge.

BrookdaleBrew said:

Hello everyone,

I'm completely new to this idea but the inspiration hit me today and I'm really excited to get started. A few months back I went to a local beer festival with anywhere from 75 to 100 breweries there and I believe that's where the seeds for this got planted. I tried so many excellent beers that day and I figure if I put my mind to it, I can make something just as good.

I want my first brew to be a hoppy ale along the lines of Rogue's Dead Guy or Stone's Arrogant Bastard. Would you guys suggest getting one of these kits for a first timer? Like I said, I've never done this before and who knows if it's something I'll stick with, so I don't want to sink a lot of money into it right away, but I'll definitely give it the old college try.

What are your suggestions for a total newbie?

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Click to expand...

For your first time i would not sugest a kit, kits tend to have direction flaws and even somtimes ingredant flaws, and when starting out its discouraging yo brew a completely bunk batch and in the case of a kit it can be totally not your fualt... that said, i would sugest finding out what the kit you the you want contains and the looking up a good recipe for that type of beer on the web and compareing them, then fallow the recipe at your local brew store and ask questions of the sales people there they most of the time will be helpful, or harmful... fact check everything, fact check me just to get in the mode of fact checking... After chooseing a recipe and checking it and makign sure its what your thinkin about and after youve gone to your local brew store and bought your ingredant and if you see some good deals on equipment you like then get that too, or go to walmart(or equalivlent) or your local hardwere store or resturant supply store (GFS, Cisco, Swans etc) and look at food grade (i stress that) buckets with lids and see about turning those into fermenters just as good as a possiably expensive carboy which may not get used

i would sugest a 3/4 hole in the top of the bucket lid with a, with a 3/4 in PVC sech 40 Male NPT adapter in it then at the brew shop pick up a bung(rubber cork with hole in it for airlock) which fits in the 3/4 in fitting you used, Use food grade silicone to seal around penitration in lid, and allow the silicone to dry and bingo you have a beautieful and cheap, made easily with less then 10 dallors worth of materials, which is a fraction of the cost of a glass carboy... or you can buy a plastic carboy at walmart (normally used for transporting bottled warter) for less then 8 bucks by a bung (rubber cork, with a hole in it for airlock) and then buy an airlock (which you buy at your local brew store) and insert into hole in bung... bingo a cheap and easy fermenter, with out the cost of glass and you dont have to worry about never useing it again... also i would make more then one...

After all that, fallow your recipe and wait... the forum will answer any other questions you have... good luck and welcome to the forum.

cheers

Damn - GREAT idea there, and honestly I wish I would have done the same. I got the kit and I dont regret it a bit. It pretty much has everything in it to get me started, however...

I think I am going to take your advise on the bucketing and such for my other primaries I will be running
-Me

Hi and welcome to HBT. Let us know how your first beer turns out. I think you will be pleased.