Noob Brewer, need all the help I can get

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PhattieM

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Ok after doing some perusing through the forums and I think its now time to get some information down.

The kind of beer I like is pretty light.. I like Heineken and Labatt Blue. I also really enjoy the vanilla-ey, coffee-ey type beers. Nothing too dark and nothing too bitter (with the exception of Guiness).

Now, what equipment should I buy given that I have $300 to spend and I want to make a very good beginner beer?
 
Dang! $300 is nice! I would tell you what to get, but the more experienced guys around here can help you spend that much better. My whole setup is maybe $200, not counting the brewpot. I've used plastic 6.5 gal pails (cheap) and it worked well for my purposes (extract + specialty grains). I like my glass carboys better, though. I have one 6.5 gal carboy for primary, and two 5 gals for secondary. Nice and easy for 5 gal batches. You should look at any number of the pre-picked "Kits" on the big online hb supply sites. They'll give you an idea.
 
By beginner beer I assume you mean extract beer. That is to say, not an all grain batch. For an extract brewer there are plenty of kits out there that will give you everything you need, and a few that give you everything you want.
http://www.morebeer.com/browse.html?category_id=2368&keyword=&x=1&y=1
Has plenty of different kits to suit your needs. I started out with just a plastic bucket fermenter and a bottling bucket, but have recently added a 5Gal glass carboy to the mix.
You could easily blow $300 on those kits alone, but you shouldn't "need" much more than the $70 or $100 kits.

[edit] Removed html [/edit]
 
UNOmar said:
By beginner beer I assume you mean extract beer.

I honestly want the best tasting beer. By beginner I meant something thats not too advanced if there is a such thing. Id like to do the best possible beer for an entrance brewer and that extent is left up to what other people think.
 
My first beer was a Brewers Best kit with extract and specialty grains (Scotch Ale). It turned out great! It was a little more work/patience steeping the grains and adding the hops at the right time, but I felt like I actually did something rather than just "pour contents of can and sprinkle yeast"
 
PhattieM said:
I honestly want the best tasting beer. By beginner I meant something thats not too advanced if there is a such thing. Id like to do the best possible beer for an entrance brewer and that extent is left up to what other people think.

You'll probably want to do an extrat+specialty grain brew, then. All grain brewing is relatively advanced compared to extract brewing.

If you have not yet done so, it's worth your time to read through www.howtobrew.com to get an idea of the basics and equipment needed for your first attempt.

-walker
 
PhattieM said:
The kind of beer I like is pretty light.. I like Heineken and Labatt Blue. I also really enjoy the vanilla-ey, coffee-ey type beers. Nothing too dark and nothing too bitter (with the exception of Guiness).

These beers are unfortunately more difficult to get right. The ligher flavor profile cannot mask of-flavors as well as the darker and hoppier beers. They also belong to the lager family of beers which required colder fermentation, colder storage over a longer time and more attention than ales.

Kai
 
I started with a kit from my local store which consisted of
1 6.5 gal plastic bucket
1 5 gal glass carboy
1 airlock
bottle cleaning brush
carboy cleaning brush
small bottle of Iodophor sanitizer
racking hose and bottle filler
150 (roughly) bottle caps
bottle capper
ingredients for recipe of my choice (from their recipe list)
instructions

It cost about $120. To this I added an autosiphon (definitely worth it IMO) and a propane fired turkey deep-fryer which I got from Costco for about $100. The fryer came with an 8 gallon stainless kettle, which allowed me to do full-boil batches right from the start.

If light beers are your thing try this recipe

3 lb. Light liquid malt extract
2 lb. Extra Light DME
1 oz. Mt. Hood hops @ 5% AA boiled 60 min.
Wyeast #1007 German Ale yeast

I brewed this as a test to figure out a fermentation problem, and ended up with a great tasting, light colored, clean flavored beer. It was good enough that my mother in law, who loves light beers, drank half the batch in about a week, and keeps bugging me to brew another!
 
all the big mail order catalogues have good starter kits, just go to there websites, heres a few: williamsbrewing.com, grapeandgranary.com,midwestsupplies.com,northern brewer.com

you could save money on shipping if you buy a kettle at walmart or somewhere, for partial-mash you need a 3-5 gallon.
 
propane fired turkey deep-fryer which I got from Costco for about $100.
Wow must be a nice one I got the whole shebang (excluding propane tank) at Home Depot for $44

My first beer was a Brewers Best kit with extract and specialty grains (Scotch Ale). It turned out great!
You get that at Frank's?
 
PhattieM said:
Ok after doing some perusing through the forums and I think its now time to get some information down.

The kind of beer I like is pretty light.. I like Heineken and Labatt Blue. I also really enjoy the vanilla-ey, coffee-ey type beers. Nothing too dark and nothing too bitter (with the exception of Guiness).

Now, what equipment should I buy given that I have $300 to spend and I want to make a very good beginner beer?

Go get yourself a good glass starter kit (2 glass carboys and a bucket) from your LHBS or Homebrew heaven or someplace

Go get yourself a turkey fryer and a bottle of propane. If you can find a fryer with a drain valve at the bottom get that, it will save you in the long run if you ever go to all grains.

Dont forget the little stuff
  • hops/grain bag
  • hydrometer
  • wine thief
  • thermoeter stips for you carboys
  • thermoeter to see temp of stuff in kettle
  • BIG ASS LONG spoon
  • Oxyclean and a sanatizing agent
  • a big rubber maid type thing to store your stuff in
  • extra bag of DME for priming
  • bottles AND caps and capper if one didnt come with your kit
  • a extra 5 gallon pail to clean your stuff in
  • extra hose and stuff if need be, including raking cane . . . I tend to break mine more then I would like
  • and stock in your LHBS and/or hardware store :p

Making lagers isnt any harder then making ales, BUT lagers do need to be lagered . . . which means you need cold storage for them and that can be a pita. You may want to start with something like a pale ale or a blonde ale if you like the lighter beers. DO NOT be afraid to start out with extract and steeping grains. If you can make tea you can make beer from extracts and steeping grains
 
budbo said:
Wow must be a nice one I got the whole shebang (excluding propane tank) at Home Depot for $44

Mine is an 8 gallon stainless kettle with lid and thermometer. The burner is 58,000 BTU's with a regulator, and a stand which supports the kettle at the bottom and half way up. Yes, it is a nice set-up, well worth the cash, IMO.
 
Check out Morebeer.com they have great starter kits and include shipping free for orders over $50. Check out the following kit Bottling Super Deluxe Starter System it runs $315 but comes with free shipping and has a light ale ingredient kit included. I has all the things you will eventually need except a propane burner which you can get at HD for $50. If i was starting and knew what I know now and had your money this is what I would buy.

The best equipment you can get right now would be a BIG brewpot with a valve assembly and a propnae burner.

Good luck and keep posting.:ban:
The Future's Bright. The Future's Homebrew.
 
Glass primary and secondary.. and either carboy caps (to siphon using a pressure differential) or an auto siphon. Get some no rinse sanitizer - star san is a must have. You'll want a hydrometer as well. Get a good sized pot.. preferably 5 gallons (larger if you plan to do all grain in the near future). You'll also need the small stuff like bottles, caps, capper, tubing, drilled bungs and airlocks, carboy brush.

While a turkey fryer is not really necessary since you'll be doing concentrated boils using extract (and maybe steeping some specialty grains) you don't really need the fyer. Now, if you get a turkey fryer you're very well off on your way to all grain brewing which will make the best (and cheapest) beer. The only other thing you'd really need is a cooler and a coopper manifold and you could go all grain... oh, you'd need a chiller too.

Read the "how to brew" link - it really is a great read for beginners and experts a like... www.howtobrew.com
 
I'd probably skip the propane cooker if you're going to do extract brews. A kitchen stove works fine. I didn't buy a propane cooker until I decided to try all grain brewing. I went El Cheapo and bought the $44.00 turkey fryer. It came with a large aluminum pot that is nowhere near as nice as a SS pot. The guy who bought the $100.00 turkey fryer may hav got the better deal. They say you get what you pay for.
I would buy a wort cooler for about $35.00

David
 
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