Craft brew enthusiast turned newbie homebrewer

[NearbyStars]

Greetings all,

I just joined the forum, after lurking for a bit. I got introduced to craft beer about 8 years ago and it's been downhill ever since ;-) I'd hazard a guess that Belgian styles were the ones that turned me on to craft beer, but I have yet to find a style I hate (though I haven't quite developed an affinity to smoked beers yet).

My wife bought me a home brew kit from Brooklyn Brew Shop a couple years ago. It sat unused for about a year. I brewed it, and it turned out awful. Over-carbonated and with off-flavors. I'd guess a combination of old ingredients and poor beginner's technique. It was gingerbread ale, by the way, which in hindsight was probably a too complicated recipe for a first brew.

I just brewed another Brooklyn Brew Shop kit, since I've got the gear. I brewed the Jalapeno Saison. Fermented for a little over 2 weeks, and it's been 2 weeks conditioning in the bottles. I opened one last night and the carbonation was perfect, and while the overall flavor was terrific, it still tasted a little "green" to me, so I'm going to let the bottles sit for a while more.

I've got two more 1-gal kits ordered, both from Northern Brewer. They're extract kits this time - Sierra Madre Pale Ale and Dead Ringer IPA. I'm excited to try these. I'll be out of the country for a little over a month soon, so I plan to brew these, put them in the basement, and let them sit in the fermenter for a month before bottling. I'm hoping that will eliminate some of the green flavors I got with the first two brews from BBS. I also figured I should have started with more basic recipes first, so it was time for a PA and IPA.

I watch a lot of Brewing TV and Chop & Brew on YouTube, both of which inspired me to keep trying my hand at homebrewing. Hopefully, I'll get successful enough with these 1-gal brews to scale up to 5-gallons.

Anyway, that's a basic intro to me.

NbS

PS - Just checked. Here's what I've got in the fridge:
Schneider Weisse Original (Tap 7), Lost Coast 8-Ball Stout, Great Divide Yeti, Dale's Pale Ale, and a John Crabbie & Co Ginger Beer.

 

[MedicMang]

Welcome to the forum. I did most of my learning from here, reading. Don't let your first couple beers get you down. My first was also horrible, but now I'm all-grain and loving everything that I have made. A lot has to do with how you treat the yeast. Starter? Correct ferm temps? Sanitation? All things to look into. Research any questions and ask what you can't find. This site is a wealth of information. PROST!

 

[NearbyStars]

Thanks! I'm paying more attention to the finer details now - temperature, sanitation, etc. One the 2nd batch, I was careful with cleaning and sanitation, but temperature may have been an issue - it's hard to maintain a low enough temperature during a New York heat wave, though for a saison I think the yeast like a warmer temp.

Just checked the mid-day temp of the apartment building's basement today - 78 deg. Hrm. Might be too warm for a month-long hands-off ferment.

NbS

 

[Cyclman]

Welcome to the group, from CO. The forum stickies and the site wiki are great free information. Books are also helpful. Ask lots of questions, just reading the interesting posts I have learned so much.

If you like podcasts the Basic Brewing ones are awesome.

A keg bucket with frozen water bottles makes for an amazingly efficient fermentation chamber.

 

[NearbyStars]

Welcome to the group, from CO. The forum stickies and the site wiki are great free information. Books are also helpful. Ask lots of questions, just reading the interesting posts I have learned so much.

If you like podcasts the Basic Brewing ones are awesome.

A keg bucket with frozen water bottles makes for an amazingly efficient fermentation chamber.

Thanks for the heads up on Basic Brewing! I've been listening to them pretty much constantly for the past month. Good stuff.

I just discovered a nice cooling setup for my 1-gal fermentor: a 12-can igloo cooler. Gallon carboy sits nicely inside, and accommodates water and ice packs. The insulation keeps it cool! I only have to change the ice packs once a day to keep the water in the 60-65 range.