First Brew Ever - Setup & Photos

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TwoHeadsBrewing

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I brewed my first batch up this past weekend...a nice pale ale extract kit, and documented the whole deal so thought I would post. Never posted pics so I'll just link to google pics:

I would've had a homebrew...but I'm making my first batch!
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Ah...the cascade hop aroma!
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Wort chiller in and ready to go
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Straining out the hops, racking to the primary
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More Pics from Brew Day March 08...
 
Good Deal !!!!!!!!! looks like you two are having fun. Your a brave man for not using a hop bag +1 Now its the hard part ........















Waiting to drink it!!!!!! LOL
 
Waiting is one of the most trying parts of homebrewing. I would recommend that you get a good pipeline going so that the beer has a nice time to age. If you have any more of the $2.00 Cascades I take some.:)
 
1. Brave for not using hop bag?
- I think ignorant is a more correct term...didn't even know people used those for hops, just for steeping grains. DOH!:drunk:

2. What am I going to name er?
- Well I was thinking DST Pale, but I hate daylight savings time. Still, thats the day it was brewed on so it's a bit unique. Another idea is Ben's Backyard Ale, but I'm really not sure what it will taste like. If it sucks...should I still name it???

3. More $2.00 cascades? I just picked them up at the LHBS and they seem to have plenty more. However, my LHBS was started by the founder on Sierra Nevada so maybe the current owner has a special supplier ;) . If you handle shipping, I'll send some for ya!

4. What's up next?
- I was thinking a wheat...probably the Citrus Wheat on the recipe page here, it looks mighty tasty. Plus, it's going to hit 90-100F here in another 2 months so a nice refreshing wheat would be a perfect beverage.
 
With the hot weather heading to your area you will need to plan something to keep your fermentation temps in the 60's. It really makes a difference in the taste of the beer.

PM sent on the hops.
 
I recently got a mini-fridge from a friend that I plan to use for fermentation. It's just a tad too shallow to fit my 6.5g carboy in, so I'll need to make some modifications. It's a great little fridge, I think I just need to take the door off and make an extension out of plywood and foam board insulation. And when all of that is done, I'll need to get a temp control gauge to keep the temp steady. Like I said in a previous post, I'd like to keep this batch as natural as I can for comparison later on. When I do this same recipe again, I want to keep the temp between 62-66 and see what that does to the flavor of the beer. From what people say, my yeast strain (Wyeast 1056) is clean up to 80F and should not give any off flavors until that point but I guess I'll figure that out in a couple weeks :).

I've seen a pretty cool setup where someone took all the internals out of their fridge and built a custom box. I kind of like that route, since I could not only have a place for my carboy, but also a shelf up top for bottle conditioning. However, just making a small add-on box for the fridge would enable me to keep the fridge in perfect working condition instead of destroying it in the process.

What do you guys do for fermentation temp control?
 
67coupe390 said:
Good Deal !!!!!!!!! looks like you two are having fun. Your a brave man for not using a hop bag +1 Now its the hard part ........


















Waiting to drink it!!!!!! LOL


At least whole hops are easier to strain.........
 
Looks like you guys had a great time, as you should since you did your homework;)

Congrats, and I'm sorry, because now the brewing obsession has most likely claimed another victim.
 
ma2brew said:
Looks like you guys had a great time, as you should since you did your homework;)

Congrats, and I'm sorry, because now the brewing obsession has most likely claimed another victim.

We sure did have a great time...and I'm glad I found this site before my first brew day. I've learned so much on this site from home brew vets, and also from first timers like myself and their experiences. And yes...it has claimed another victim...I keep peeking on my brew every couple hours like it's a newborn baby! In addition, I can't stop thinking about the next brew, and the next one after that, equipment...jeez, I'm hooked!
 
I just talked with my LHBS and they still have plenty of whole Cascade hops @ $1/oz. Not sure exactly how much more they have, but I asked if they can get me 24oz and they said no problem. I think I'll stock up on these due to the hop shortage, as well as any other hop varieties I can find at $1/oz!
 
I am sure that it will taste great!...but be patient. I am only 3 mos. into brewing myself and the beer just gets better!! I am still drinking er testing my first batch (bottles) and as hard as it is to wait "IT IS WORTH IT" The second batch is going to the keg, I've been sucked in and I love it!!!!!!!!!!
 
Congrats... However I am a little bitter here... I've been brewing for years already and you've got cooler toys then I have... Ex. Wort Chiller, I am just finally willing to make one. 4 years later.

Glad to meet a new brewer.
 
sittingturbo said:
Congrats... However I am a little bitter here... I've been brewing for years already and you've got cooler toys then I have... Ex. Wort Chiller, I am just finally willing to make one. 4 years later.

Glad to meet a new brewer.


HAHA, you're jealous of me??? I'm jealous of all the beer you've got going on in your primary and secondaries! I was actually very lucky; one of my co-workers was into home brewing a few years back but gave it up. He had a bottle filler, funnel and strainer, and that wort chiller, and even a bench capper. He just said to give it back if I don't end up keeping it up. But something tells me...I'm going to be holding onto that equipment!

Nice to see another California brewer on here!
 
Nice organization! Bet that helped a ton. I can't wait to get a chiller myself and a keggle and start doing 5 gallon boils.
*side note* how did you like the blue moon Lime? I wanna try it but the miller Chill makes me say no. but I know Blue moon is better than miller but wonder if the lime presence is as strong as their orange presence.
 
Organization helps a lot, and just makes the whole experience more relaxed and enjoyable. I do like Blue Moon, but I shy away from anything fruity in my beer. The only exception is with certain belgian lambics. I've had a couple of those that were suprisingly tasty, without being overpowering. Not the sam adams cherry lambic tho...had one drink and dumped it out...horrible!
 
Got some bottling pics up finally!

Also, check here for LOTS more beer pics!: http://picasaweb.google.com/benuntu

De-labeling in the bathtub...
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Racking to bottling bucket:
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First bottles, not yet capped:
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Forgot to take pics of me filling up the bottles on the dishwasher door, but I'm sure you can picture it. Using the dishwasher saves a TON of time, both for sanitizing the bottles and for the cleanup...of which there is none! :mug:
 
Yes! Almost my 1 year anniversary of brewing. I'm going to have to brew up something special...like an Anniversary Barleywine! Can't believe it's been a year already!
 

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