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MT's AZ Ale Haus

MT's AZ Ale Haus

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How did you start brewing?

Did you buy a kit?
Did you have someone help you build your first brew?

Or did you take the path like myself,
I jumped in head first and created my own recipe and did full "All Grain" brew which took 9 hours from start to finish.
 
I got a kit in a can back in the 90's. Instructions said to combine with corn sugar and boiling water then ferment.
It was awful but inspired me to find a lhbs.

FF after a 15 year absence from brewing I'm just getting ready to brew my first batch and I'm stoked!
 
I am not really sure what the catalyst was but I bought an equipment kit from Northern Brewer, made 3 beers with extract on the stovetop and after that I was hooked. Now I have started brewing eBIAB and making my own recipes and I will never look back. Next up cold side control and then kegging next year hopefully.
 
I was a craft beer fan for many years before I met my wife. I had been partially introduced to brewing once early on when I was young and stupid and the idea of brewing beer just didn't intice me at that point. I was more focused on spending time out with friends being dumb kids. Fast forward to after meeting my wife, getting married, and spending more time with her and at home, she asks me what I want to do for my birthday in 2017. I said I want to take a brewing class and start brewing. We took the class and bought 3 extract kits. Fast forward to 1 year later and 20 batches of beer later, I'm hooked! The idea of being able to make beer that I like, to the flavor profile that I want, is just awesome.

I will say I slightly regret not getting into it sooner. A good friend of mine was huge into brewing when I was being young and stupid. Right when I was doing my first extract kit, he was selling his 3 stainless vessel, 5 gallon all grain brewing tower for $1,200. I passed on it and some guy in St. Louis bought it. I wish I would have jumped on that. I realize now how much of a steal that was.
 
MT's AZ Ale Haus said:
How did you start brewing?

Did you buy a kit?
Did you have someone help you build your first brew?

Or did you take the path like myself,
I jumped in head first and created my own recipe and did full "All Grain" brew which took 9 hours from start to finish.
Click to expand...
I jumped into the deep end just like you did only I spent 8 months reading books, magazines, and scratch building my elec controller and BIAB rig before I started. My first brew day was my own recipe; a Belgian saison and it took 6 hours from mash-in to pitching two strains of yeast. Still one of my best beers ever.
 
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Bubman said:
I got a kit in a can back in the 90's. Instructions said to combine with corn sugar and boiling water then ferment.
It was awful but inspired me to find a lhbs.

FF after a 15 year absence from brewing I'm just getting ready to brew my first batch and I'm stoked!
Click to expand...
AWESOME, feedback how it all turns out.
 
I bought a starter kit from Northern Brewer along w/ a kettle and the hydrometer/spoon package.

Kind of regret it at one level as MoreBeer has a much superior kit for less total money, lacking only bottles and a heat source. Includes an extract kit.

This is perhaps the only unsatisfactory part of brewing for me--I wish I hadn't bought so cheap in the beginning, but who knows what they really need and want, or even if they'll continue with brewing?
 
I am still a novice and after month of vigorous reading, podcasts and lessons learned from my first two batches.
I've tweaked my equipment, my water profile, my ingredients, etc. I'm ready to Brew my third batch and with bated breath and crossing my fingers that it turns out as well as I hope.
 
I'm just getting the hang of water chemistry; when I first started messing around with it I was just tossing in a little CaCl and Gypsum into a kettle full of distilled water to see what would happen. Then I installed an undersink RO system and using EZ water calc I can duplicate brewing water from anywhere in the world.

All you need to get started is to buy distilled/RO water from the store, pick up some acid malt, calcium chloride and gypsum from your LHBS, then raid the cabinets for baking soda and epsom salt. Find a free water calc like EZ water and play around with the additions to build your base water, then adjust pH of your mash with some acid malt depending on your specific grain bill. Brewer's friend just added water calculations and a mash pH predictor built right into the recipe builder, so I'll switch to using that.
 
Jayjay1976 said:
I'm just getting the hang of water chemistry; when I first started messing around with it I was just tossing in a little CaCl and Gypsum into a kettle full of distilled water to see what would happen. Then I installed an undersink RO system and using EZ water calc I can duplicate brewing water from anywhere in the world.

All you need to get started is to buy distilled/RO water from the store, pick up some acid malt, calcium chloride and gypsum from your LHBS, then raid the cabinets for baking soda and epsom salt. Find a free water calc like EZ water and play around with the additions to build your base water, then adjust pH of your mash with some acid malt depending on your specific grain bill. Brewer's friend just added water calculations and a mash pH predictor built right into the recipe builder, so I'll switch to using that.
Click to expand...
I will get into water chemistry down the road, but for my next 2 batches, I'm going to try "Beer Dust" and see how it changes my Brew.

I know it's expensive...
 
MT's AZ Ale Haus said:
I will get into water chemistry down the road, but for my next 2 batches, I'm going to try "Beer Dust" and see how it changes my Brew.

I know it's expensive...
Click to expand...
That's a good way to get started and cheap compared to what you'll spend on the grain bill and yeast. Though the adjusting salts themselves are very cheap, you need a very precise digital scale with 0.1g resolution to measure them accurately. They aren't too expensive but you definitely need one to do adjustments yourself. I should have included that in my 'get started' list above.
 
Jayjay1976 said:
That's a good way to get started and cheap compared to what you'll spend on the grain bill and yeast. Though the adjusting salts themselves are very cheap, you need a very precise digital scale with 0.1g resolution to measure them accurately. They aren't too expensive but you definitely need one to do adjustments yourself. I should have included that in my 'get started' list above.
Click to expand...
I plan on delving into all the minutiae of proper Brewing but I will have to do it in baby steps
 
MT's AZ Ale Haus said:
I will get into water chemistry down the road, but for my next 2 batches, I'm going to try "Beer Dust" and see how it changes my Brew.
Click to expand...

This is why this forum rocks!

I would have never thought to look for something like this, easy way to see just how chemistry can change your beer.

Otoh, If I keep reading posts here I'm sure I'll end up going broke LOL.

But at least I will be drinking good beer!
 
When my wonderful wife said to me, just do it! your not getting any younger, I took her advice. I spent 2 months reading everything I could get my hands on. Including here and watching YouTube videos. Another month or so building my brewery. Then jumped straight into an all grain 2xIPA as my first batch an never looked back.
I have 25 brews under my belt in 18 months and have been making awsom beer. I started using distilled water on batch #2 with adjustments as I know my tap water is just nasty.
I have always been a go big or go home sort of guy so when I got into brewing I wanted to start all grain. I wanted the challenge of doing the entire process myself. I quickly moved into fermentation temp control and that has helped me make great beer early in my brewing hobby. I have been yeast ranching, buying bulk grains and bulk hops to keep my costs down for over a year.
I knew going in that this was a hobby that I was going to enjoy doing for a long time so I didn't care if I needed to invest some money for equipment. I enjoy a challenge and this hobby continues to challenge me to make the best beer possible.
I never had the opportunity to watch or help someone do a brew day so I was on my own from day one. I spent hours writing out a step by step brew day plan so I didn't forget something. Then did a "wet run" with my system with just water to practice moving fluid through my system. Made brew day #1 go off without any major problems.
 
I didn't start it ... my wife did. I blame her.

The fun began after receiving a Coopers lager kit for Christmas.
The pre-hopped kit sat for about two or three weeks and became a tap water amber pale ale instead. I swapped out the Coopers yeast for S-05, bought extra Cascade hops, and added some extra honey for an ABV boost. The beer wasn't great, but wasn't bad, either, but it was just fuel for the obsession.

Back in the '90's I actually bought my first brewing book but because of my job, I was never able to fully take advantage of sitting down and accumulating the stuff needed to do my first beer. Just too many deployments and money-making opportunities. Now that I get to go home and sleep in my own bed every night brewing can become a real hobby, not just a daydream.
 
I started with all grain brewing, didnt even have all the right equipment, I thought i could just brew in one kettle empty out the liquid and add water at 170F mix it around abit and that would be good enough, My mass thickness was off my tempatures were all over the place, I didnt know anything about alpha beta enzymes or protein, Using city water without treating it "potassium metabisulfite" so right there the flavors were already heading to the gross taste then my carboy had so much tannins husk in the bottom its overall volume effected the taste. I was woundering why my efficiency was so low after taking hydrometer readings so the next batch i added sugar not realising that it was my grain bill and bad efficiency well 20% sugar with city water makes something terrible i dumped 5gals of undrinkable which gave me a headache thats how bad it was so i went back to the fourms did abit more research and realise making good tasting beer is serious cant just wing it. It took me 4 batches to make something that was half decent but im also happy to say my last Ipa and porter was acceptable to my standards and now im only improving. I just build a new three tier system, I have the right water grains chemicals cleaners carboy keg etc have good general understanding and just need to put out some data i simply cant drink all the beer i want to brew so this will be the next problem going forward all brews should be on par.
 
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Jayjay1976 said:
That's a good way to get started and cheap compared to what you'll spend on the grain bill and yeast. Though the adjusting salts themselves are very cheap, you need a very precise digital scale with 0.1g resolution to measure them accurately. They aren't too expensive but you definitely need one to do adjustments yourself. I should have included that in my 'get started' list above.
Click to expand...

You don't need a super precise digital scale. Just use measuring spoons. 1 teaspoon = 4g. 1/4 tsp = 1g. They get as small as 1/8 teaspoon. It's measuring volume, not weight, but its close enough. The biggest thing with brewing is just consistency, not measuring your salts within .1g. If you use the same processes/tools you'll master your system and be able to nail recipes.
 
My sister in law had a boyfriend in college who brewed (I suspect he’s probably in this community somewhere), I did a brew with him once and bought be the complete joy of homebrewing. I then spent probably 5-7 years getting educated and piecing together a 2 tier all grain system before doing my own. I had a desire but never really made the time, when I changed jobs I had 2 weeks off and decided I was finally going to do it. That was exactly 3 years and about 250 gallons ago.
 
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VirginiaHops1 said:
You don't need a super precise digital scale. Just use measuring spoons. 1 teaspoon = 4g. 1/4 tsp = 1g. They get as small as 1/8 teaspoon. It's measuring volume, not weight, but its close enough. The biggest thing with brewing is just consistency, not measuring your salts within .1g. If you use the same processes/tools you'll master your system and be able to nail recipes.
Click to expand...
I already have an ultra precise German made digital scale from my pot growing days, so I'll stick with that thanks. Being able to make gerolsteiner mineral water from scratch has been an incredible ancillary benefit of learning water chemistry; at $3/bottle my whole setup has already paid for itself probably twice over. We do love our mineral water!
 
I started on wines and ciders and a few of my friends did beers. Sometimes we would hang out on brew days where I sorta learned the basics. A larger group of us meet up several times a year for a beer-themed camping trip, complete with kegs on tap.

When I decided to start brewing, I had must of the basic equipment and the background from my brewmates. When I decided to brew, I couldn't find a kit for what I wanted. So I started reading and thinking (and drinking:cask:) and made up my own recipe. Decided to just do that as I brew. I don't blindly put **** together, I research recipes, see whats available and make a decision based on a style. Essentially just put together my own kits.
 
This is kinda in reverse but I inherited my initial brew gear from my son. He studied something like "international studies" at university. This included a course on brewing beer. When he graduated, he gave me his stuff.
 
I went to store in September last year. I bought 2 Saisons from very big brewery.
On the front label I read that this beer was brew with open fermentation technique. I started to read about open fermentation and was very curious how beer is made so I wrote on youtube search 'warzenie piwa' which means 'beer brewing' - I was looking for some movie that big brewery shows how they brew beer. Fortunatelly first movie was about home brewing :D
My friend's dad brew beer for a long time but I taste his beer once and it was dark, strong and didn't taste good. Since that time I always thought that at home you can only brew a bad beer.
This move that I found was about brewing a APA and I taste APA some time before and was surprised how beer can taste.
So I started to think about it and 2 months later I was standing in front of my pot and mash APA :D
 
I like the fact that everyone has their own story that leads to the same place. I received an extract kit as a gift and it piqued my interest, I started reading everything I could find on it and researched in my free time at work. I didn't have high hopes for the extract kit, but I gave it a go and went from there. I stuck with partial mash kits for a while and have begun my BIAB adventure. Each batch teaches me something new and all the varying opinions on here give me ideas to try. Loving it, cheers
 
I began by helping a friend brew from a kit a few times with a very simple rig. Then made 3 beers from the same kits myself before reading several books and numerous articles and jumping into all grain. That was some 500 plus beers ago. Fortunately, I have several friends and a wife who appreciate a decent beer and I end up brewing 1-2 brews a week on average as well as keeping our 6 tap Keezer filled...
 
I was fortunate enough to get a full starter kit (one of those Mangrove Jack's kits) from a person I consider to be a friend, complete with two full extract kits for free. Both the kits were severely expired, but I brewed them anyway. One came out REALLY good (Bavarian Wheat) and the other was used to feed the brown spots on my lawn after giving it way more time than it deserved.

From there it just kept going. Brilliant hobby, and a massive plus is that it carries the wife's approval.
 
norsk said:
I began by helping a friend brew from a kit a few times with a very simple rig. Then made 3 beers from the same kits myself before reading several books and numerous articles and jumping into all grain. That was some 500 plus beers ago. Fortunately, I have several friends and a wife who appreciate a decent beer and I end up brewing 1-2 brews a week on average as well as keeping our 6 tap Keezer filled...
Click to expand...

Holy crap! 1-2 times per week????? I'm envious, my friend. I'm approx 1-2 a month. Admittedly, it's not enough though. I keep running into empty kegs as my wife and I both drink it. We only have a 2 tap kegerator though...
 
My wife bought me a 1 gallon Brooklyn Brew Shop kit that i used for my first batch. After that i did a few partial mash brews. Took a few years off and bave gotten back into brewing after getting a gift certificate to the LHBS.
 
Back in 91 my buddy was brewing and we did one together. I remember it was a porter but it was so long ago i dont remember the details.
What I do find interesting is that my friend inspired me to brew. Then a different friend of mine brewed with me about 7 years ago and now he is in the hobby too. Its like a family tree that i get to watch grow :)
 
From what I read, my beer making progression seems very typical.
Started with a couple of extract kits. Did everything wrong but made beer.
Went to modified coolers with gravity feeds.
Then got old and didn't want to hoist 175* sparge water over my head.
Now a very comfortable brew day with a 3 kettle electric setup.:)
 
Bought a one gallon starter kit from Northern Brewer. Brewed several one gallon kits. Moved up to five gallon extract kits soon after. My quality made a huge leap forward when I went to BIAB and began using additives to the water profile. Added an induction burner a few batches ago and don't plan on returning to propane. Saving my nickels for a deep freeze to control ferm temps. The rabbit hole is deep!
 
I’ve always wanted to brew but always had false starts. In fact, I came back from Germany in 2001 convinced I was going to open a great Colorado beer garden! Man, I wish I would have done that!!

Anyway, fast forward to around 2015...my wife bought me a Groupon for a local “brew on site” place, which I let expire.

That year my daughter bought me a gift card for Christmas from the same place. I finally got around to schedule my session in March, brewed a partial extract (Pliny clone) on a Friday and went in and bought my initial starter kit the next day!

I did about 4 partial extract brews before going AG BIAB.
 
Jayjay1976 said:
Being able to make gerolsteiner mineral water from scratch has been an incredible ancillary benefit of learning water chemistry; at $3/bottle my whole setup has already paid for itself probably twice over. We do love our mineral water!
Click to expand...

I'm sure it's good, but can't drink heavy mineral water on a regular basis. Kidney stones can be a b*tch.
It's why I do low SRM lagers and ales almost exclusively because they require soft water for the most part. Today I was pricing the Berkey water filters as an alternative to an RO setup. I like it because of the portability.
 
I'd always loved beer, but actually started my first brewing projects with cider and mead.
My wife is a tee-totaller but likes to use cooking wines and the 14% ABV JOAM mead I made for marinating chicken, seafood, and other stuff. Her coconut shrimp is awesome and she will typically sear the peeled shrimp beforehand in the mead. My taste runs toward session strength drinks, so anything less boozy than a Belgian tripel usually ends up in my mug and not on her stovetop.
 
my journey started about 6 years ago. My wife and I had just got back from the Renfair and I couldnt find any local places to get a decent mead without paying an arm and leg for shipping. at the time we were broke and to the point were a 6 pack of cheap beer was a treat. I started looking into how to make mead. about 6 months later my wife bought some wine/beer making supplies from a facebook group as a birthday present. fast forward 5 years to this past summer and we are in a house and finally had the time and money to get the back room of the basement were i ferment at cleaned up and set up. I have since brewed 4 gallons of mead and 1 5 gallon amber ale from a brewers best kit
 
EricKCooper said:
I just started with a kit from Brewer’s Best. Just bottled my first batch, saison, and have two more in secondary fermenters.
Click to expand...
Saison is a great style to start out with, sophisticated and delicious in flavor yet super forgiving, especially when it comes to pitching rate and fermentation temps which are two aspects that most beginners are likely to struggle with.
 

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