2nd Brew—what to brew??

[ncoutroulis]

I want to do my second brew and would love some suggestions...

Nothing too complicated, obviously.

First brew was a martial mash kit, not too complicated. Had all the instructions and everything I needed. (Belgian Pale Ale) from Brooklyn HomeBrew.

Was looking for a Brekle's Brown clone or maybe another brown ale.

any thoughts on what and where to get it would be much appreciated.

Cheers

 

[solbes]

Irish red, Porter, Brown Ale, or Pale Ale's are all excellent brews to make in the first few kits. Either some color/flavor from darker malts and/or hop flavor will help mask some of the off flavors that are ineveitable when we all first start out.

I buy my supplies from Midwest Supplies or Northern Brewer as I can go to the store (both really large online brewshops), but definitely check into the local shops too.

 

[JimRausch]

One of the beauties of this hobby is that you can brew what you want. I do recommend for the 1st couple that you use a recipe kit- either from an online retailer, or a LHBS. That way you'll know it should be balanced and a decent brew(bad recipes don't stick around very long). But soon you'll want to branch out. There's a great recipe database on this forum- check it out. Also check out J.P.'s 'How to Brew' and Papa Charlie's 'The Joy of Homebrewing'. They are older books but have some good basic recipes to help you start. Then there are several newer books once you get fully hooked into the obsession.
Good luck and welcome!

 

[mrgrimm101]

I started having my LHBS put together recipes for me. A lot of people start with extract only recipes, but I started doing extract w/ specialty grains and found it to be really easy. Then I started trying simple recipes in whatever style I wanted at the time..then I started finding clone recipes to clone commercial brews. After that I started making adjustments to ingredients and then creating my own recipes. I can always call up to my LHBS and have them gather and crush the grains ahead of time so I can pick up and go. There are many good recipe databases and resources to be found online.

I recommend doing some research and trying to clone a commercial brew that you like. A quick google search usually yields great results..most of them lead back to HBT. Try typing "Brekle's Brown extract clone" and seeing what you get for results.