hello from England.

I'm as green as grass to home brewing, but come from a long line of ardent homebrewers, father, grandfathers etc and now i finally have my own place with enough room to do it. I've spent a few hours reading this site and it's the best I've come across. I'm beginning with a standard shop bought kit, and hope to use these as a basis to experiment with various types of hops etc and expand my experience as I purchase additional equipt. I current have purchased the basic ferm. bins, syphon tubes, airlocks etc and a thermo controlled refrigerator so hope to pretty much jump in with both feet. Hope I can become a keen, if naive, member of a knowledgable and friendly community.

Welcome to the site! It's always nice to hear from our neighbors across the pond.

Sounds like you are off to a great start with the equipment. What kind of beer did you want to brew first? Brew what you like and you will be very happy with the results.

You definitely came to the right site. There is a wealth of information here and some of the most knowledgeable brewers are here as well.

Im starting with a german Pilsner kit, and will then concentrate on traditional English type ales, strong bitters, mild, IPA's etc. I'm starting with the kits to get into the actual 'organic' reality of fermentation. I feel like an expert at flight simulators who's just decided to take his first real flying lesson. Eager, child like excited, with just a hint of nervousness.

That's a great feeling, isn't it? I still get that before I brew.... especially now that I've moved onto all grain.

What kind of kit are you using? Is it a Coopers, Brewers Best? Or is it a store made kit from your local home brew shop?

EDME. I did a bit research on line on some of the UK sites and they seemed to have a good reputation for basic starter kits. I'm particularly interested in trying partial mash, but would you recommend a steady transition from kits, to extract to PM then AG?

It really depends. Some people never feel the desire to move to all grain and are happy with extract. I guess it depends on the person. Personally, I like the challenge and the freedom to experiment with different recipes, so I knew that I would end up doing all grain brewing. I did two extracts and jumped right in, I skipped the partial mash mainly because it is kind of difficult to convert recipes to partial mashing.

I think the kit--->extract--->partial mash---> all grain is a good, logical progression. You learn a lot with each step and gradually you will know how to do it all. If, however, after your first couple extract batches you decide to go to all grain, don't feel like you HAVE to do partial mashing first. They are very similar in the way they are done.

Have you read How to Brew by John Palmer? If not, you can read pretty much the whole thing for free on his website http://www.howtobrew.com The information he gives is invaluable to a beginning brewer and it helped me make the transition from extract brewer to all grain brewer.

Yeah, I've had a quick skim read and have to say the cost element will probably be the deciding factor in my progression. The only thing holding me back now is that in my spending frenzy I forgot to buy a thermometer of all things, so cant start until tomorrow lol.

Welcome to HBT!
I progressed straight from extract to all grain within a few months of my first batch. It is entirely up to each brewer how to progress. Some folks don't want to have a 5 or 6 hour brew session so they stick to extract brewing. I simply LOVE brewing so I don't mind at all. I also like having more control over my beers and AG brewing is just the ticket for me.
Enjoy a few brews and see how you like it. Don't say you haven't been warned though! This hobby is very addictive!

Much like the delightful end product itself. Oh I dream of the day I'll be proficient enough to be brewing my own seasonal beers, hoppy, light almost effervescent summer ales and heavy winter warmers. God Bless ale.

(he is hooked already)

Welcome!

You'll love this hobby. Its so gratifying to make your own beer. You'll be impressed when you get a buzz off your first batch.

This hobby will teach patience & sharing. Two good virtues to have.

I'm an AG'r. Extract is fun and easy to do. I still continue to do all three. For me AG is a seasonal thing since I have to do it outside and the weather gets bitter cold in Iowa during the winter. I will do partial mashes or steeped extracts in the winter. I would suggest trying a partial mash (PM) at least once to get your mind around the mashing process. A PM really is for getting flavor, color and some fermentables. The balance come from the remaining DME & LME.

My first AG was slight catastrophe. I had low mash efficiency and did not have any extract to make up for my poor mash. I made John Palmer's Brown Ale. (http://www.howtobrew.com/section3/chapter18-2.html) I was able to add brown sugar to raise the gravity. My advice to you is when you go to AG have a few pounds of dry malt extract at the ready. If you don't need it you can use it for making starters.

Again, welcome to HBT!!!

Welcome aboard!