Help with first brew recipe!

So I have been wanting to start brewing for a long time now and I just finally got my whole kit together and everything i need... for a while

Now I need some help with what I should brew first. I was thinking an IPA or a flavorful Amber or Pale Ale - I enjoy a good hoppy beer. My wife really likes when I bring home a nice citrusy/grapefruity IPA so i would like to take that into consideration.

I was hoping to go extract with my first brew or possibly partial-mash - recommendations?

I look forward to hearing your suggests and recommendations. Thanks!

If you like IPAs, then you definitely have to make an IPA! I like my DFH 60 minute clone recipe for the grapefruit flavored hops.

I think that our recipe database can give you some great ideas! Some recipes are all-grain but can easily be converted to partial mash or extract. We'll be glad to help.

When I read "citrusy/grapefruity" I immediately thought of Yooper's DFH clone as well. That brew defines those qualities.

kuips said:

So I have been wanting to start brewing for a long time now and I just finally got my whole kit together and everything i need... for a while

Now I need some help with what I should brew first. I was thinking an IPA or a flavorful Amber or Pale Ale - I enjoy a good hoppy beer. My wife really likes when I bring home a nice citrusy/grapefruity IPA so i would like to take that into consideration.

I was hoping to go extract with my first brew or possibly partial-mash - recommendations?

I look forward to hearing your suggests and recommendations. Thanks!

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Yooper's got some great stuff, go for it! As far as extract versus partial mash, and so on...

Don't sweat it. If you have never brewed before, it is not a bad idea to go extract with steeped grains. I would at the MINIMUM go the steeped grain route at first though. You will want to get comfortable with many aspects of brewing before getting deeper into things like mash temp and sparging. Although these become very easy after a while, you will have a lot to get used to at first, such as boil overs, gravity readings and so on.

Just remember one key piece of advice that you will hear over and over here....HAVE FUN! No matter what you brew, it will be good unless you really screw up, which is a lot harder than you think.

The people here were a huge help to me, you will find everything you will ever need here.

Best of Brewing!

:rockin:

Hey, thanks for your responses! I think I have found two options.

1- Yooper's DFH 60 clone (it has been a really long time since I had one of these, so can't remember the taste offhand) I would need this converted to extract.

2- All Amarillo IPA - this is already an extract recipe. From what I have read Amarillo has a good grapefuit flavor. Also, this does not require dry-hopping, which seems a bit intimidating at this point.

Thoughts - recommendations? Thanks again!

For a first brew, go with whichever you feel more comfortable with. You want it to be as enjoyable and worry free as possible. Right now, it sounds like you are leaning towards the All-Amarillo IPA.

With that said, I have no doubt Yooper's DFH 60-min will make an excellent beer (it's actually on my "to-do" list) AND she has a Brewsmith file posted for an extract version of brew so no real conversion should be necessary. Just download brewsmith, install it, download her file, open the file and see what it's got.

Myrdhyn, the Amarillo seems to be a bit easier for a first brew and seems to get good reviews. But I am definitely open to the DHF even if it there is a bit more too it.

I just looked into the Brewsmith program but I am a MAC user... any chance someone can tell me the extract recipe for the DHF 60?

Thanks

kuips said:

Myrdhyn, the Amarillo seems to be a bit easier for a first brew and seems to get good reviews. But I am definitely open to the DHF even if it there is a bit more too it.

I just looked into the Brewsmith program but I am a MAC user... any chance someone can tell me the extract recipe for the DHF 60?

Thanks

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PM me your email. I'll email you a text file.

Would you like dry or liquid malt extract? What size boil?