Complete rookie...

[RightatNYU]

Hi-

I'm completely new to brewing, but would like to get some advice from those who know more than I do. I wanted to give brewing a try on the small scale a few times to see if I would like it, and then see about moving up. I bought a Mr. Beer Starter Kit (I know, nothing like anything I've seen people talk about on here), and I just put made my first extract batch tonight.

I had a couple questions if anyone might be able to help.

How important is it that the fermenting process be airtight? The plastic "keg" that came with my starter kit had a small crack in the screwtop area, and water dripped out of it when I held it upside down. Will this ruin chances for the beer to ferment?

What else should I be adding that is a good simple starter? The recipes that I ordered came with beer mixes and "booster" powder, but according to the packaging, that will only yield a beer of 3.7% alcohol. If I wanted beer that low, I'd be drinking Molsen Light.

And finally, should will this kit work for a small scale production, or is it completely worthless? I don't have much space, as I'm doing this in my dorm room , but I'm open to any suggestions.

Thanks a bunch for your help.

 

[mysterio]

The other guys on here will be able to give you better answers but..

How important is it that the fermenting process be airtight? The plastic "keg" that came with my starter kit had a small crack in the screwtop area, and water dripped out of it when I held it upside down. Will this ruin chances for the beer to ferment?

Don't worry too much about that. Aslong as its covered theres no reason to worry, unless you're brewing it for more than about 10 days - the alcohol produced should be enough to keep any nasties at bay. You may want to invest in a 5 gallon glass carboy with an airlock at some point in order to get a closed fermentation.

What else should I be adding that is a good simple starter? The recipes that I ordered came with beer mixes and "booster" powder, but according to the packaging, that will only yield a beer of 3.7% alcohol. If I wanted beer that low, I'd be drinking Molsen Light

Basically speaking, the more sugar the more alcohol you'll have Corn sugar (glucose aka dextrose) is good, as is dried malt extract which you can get from a homebrew shop. The latter will lend a more malty 'beery' taste. Table sugar is a no-no. In reality anything sugary will work, even throwing in a jar of honey is good! Dont worry about booster powders and whatnot, they're just gimmicks. Try a pound or two of corn sugar along with the other stuff next time.

Good luck & happy brewing, keep an eye on these forums and you'll soon have plenty of new on ideas how to progress. I've never tried the Mr Beer kit but my guess is you'll produce better beer than most you can buy.

 

[Pumbaa]

Try a pound or two of corn sugar along with the other stuff next time

Better yet find your local home brew store (LHBS) and grab yourself a 3lbs bag of pale Dry Malt Extract (DME) and use that instead

Corn Sugar is the DEVIL . . . ok not really but I know that will get a few replys from somone

 

[The Happy Mug]

Welcome to one of the most rewarding hobbies you may ever have. I started my homebrewing with Mr Beer, as did many others here.

Booster is little more, if anything, above corn sugar. Corn sugar does not have a very good reputation around here. It's best use is as an easy, quick priming sugar for carbonation. If you can get your hands on some DME (dry malt extract) or some LME (liquid malt extract) from a homebrew store or online, you will get a much better tasting beer. You can also increase the amount of malt extract to bring your beer up to a proper alcohol level. 3 pounds of either will work well with the Mr Beer kit, as Pumbaa and mysterio said. I also recommend using a liquid yeast strain like White Labs California Yeast instead of that packet they provide.

Mr Beer recommends table sugar for priming, but this can make your beer taste like cider (as it did my first batch). Pick up some corn sugar from your local homebrew shop or online instead. It's easiest to boil 3/8 cup with a cup of water, then dump it all into the Mr Beer 'keg', give it a gentle stir (as to not stir up the yeast in the bottom) and bottle that way. That will save you the time of adding sugar to each bottle.

Mr Beer is a very well done marketting gimmick. It's the cheapest of stuff, put together to give somebody their own homebrew at the lowest cost. It provides an excellent gateway into the world of homebrewing, but you will soon outgrow it.

 

[Monk]

Hi-
How important is it that the fermenting process be airtight? The plastic "keg" that came with my starter kit had a small crack in the screwtop area, and water dripped out of it when I held it upside down. Will this ruin chances for the beer to ferment?

Welcome. I'm glad to hear you're doing this in your dorm room--that just increases the MacGyver-esque joy of homebrewing, in my opinion.

As far as the crack goes...are you sure it's really cracked? Mr. Beer Kegs (i've got one in use currently) are designed to let air out the top, so as not to require an airlock. If you turn it over, beer/water will also seep out. I wouldn't worry. I don't know how great a design idea that was, on Mr. Beer's part, but he did design it that way on purpose.

da monk

 

[Bernie Brewer]

Hi-

.

How important is it that the fermenting process be airtight? The plastic "keg" that came with my starter kit had a small crack in the screwtop area, and water dripped out of it when I held it upside down. Will this ruin chances for the beer to ferment?


.

Thanks a bunch for your help.

Hey welcome to the insanity!
As Monk said, that crack is probably there by design. As beer ferments, it gives off CO2, and if it isn't allowed to escape, you've got a big bang and a hell of a mess in your future. The CO2 is also heavier than air and will form a blanket over your beer, protecting it from infection.
I also wouldn't be surprised to see you outgrow that mr beer kit real soon. The batches are small and so is the variety of beer kits that they provide. A couple of trips to the local homebrew shop and you'll want more.

 

[gmeyers]

If you decide to upgrade, i would get a glass carboy, (or 2) and make sure that you keep everything clean.

 

[RightatNYU]

Welcome. I'm glad to hear you're doing this in your dorm room--that just increases the MacGyver-esque joy of homebrewing, in my opinion.

As far as the crack goes...are you sure it's really cracked? Mr. Beer Kegs (i've got one in use currently) are designed to let air out the top, so as not to require an airlock. If you turn it over, beer/water will also seep out. I wouldn't worry. I don't know how great a design idea that was, on Mr. Beer's part, but he did design it that way on purpose.

da monk

I just realized you're right. There is an actual crack in the screw-in portion, but there are also those holes there, so the crack isn't doing anything that the keg itself isn't already doing. Thanks a lot for all the advice everyone, it's bubbling already.

Once I get back this fall, I'm likely going to expand. I'm considering having my frat invest in some good equipment to do this more in bulk once I get a better hang of it.