MikeOBrien
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- Feb 18, 2015
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Hello everyone! I am new to the forum but have browsed it and read threads through the past months of frustration while trying to brew and find the best results and methods. I put this in the Beginners Beer Brewing Forum not so much as a question, but maybe a little inspiration? What may seem like a book I am about to write, this is my story from day 1 of brewing until this moment where i finally tapped my keg and had a brew that I consider one of the best ive ever had!
About me: I am a 25 year old mechanic who just happened to stumble into brewing and now it is a huge hobby for me! Got a Mr. Beer kit as a christmas present from an ex. girlfriend December 2013. This kit had an extract "light beer" kit with the liquid malt and all. Finally decided to open it and brew once i moved into my new place Sept. 2014, almost 1 year after receiving the kit. Instead of using the LME that came with the kit I went to a local homebrew store and bought some wheat LME and used it. After fermentation was done and out of the little Mr. Beer keg it fermented in, I bottled and waited. After it carbonated it tasted like complete ****! From there i knew brewing was more than just mixing sugars to water, adding yeast and waiting. Second batch was a Brewers Best Double IPA kit with all LME and the Brewers Best starter kit with fermenting bucket, bottling bucket, etc... Brewed just fine, and bottled. While waiting for that to carbonate i got a Dead Ringer IPA from Northern Brewer. Still using LME, as soon as i added the Malt to the boil something happened which I knew was a no-no... I never took the kettle off the flame and the malt hit the bottom of the kettle and burnt into black flakes. I still fermented this, straining the black burnt flakes out of the kettle when transferring to the fermenter. Bottled the dead ringer after it was done fermenting.
Both the Double IPA and Dead Ringer were very dark and also tasted very caramelized and sweet out of the bottle. They were so bad I had to pour out everything. With all the frustration and anger after opening those 2 batches i almost threw in the towel and gave up brewing for good! After doing a ton of reading during my trial and error stage i learned a lot which led me to the wonderful beer I just tapped tonight and consider one of my favorite IPA's ever!
First, I was using tap water with chlorine/chloramine in it. Im sure this didn't help any for the taste. I was adding the LME (liquid malt) while the kettle was on the flame. This is a big no! Also, I learned that doing a late addition of the LME keeps the beer from having a dark appearance and caramelized sweet taste. I believe I read on a forum that the caramelization of the sugar during the boil doesn't affect taste, just color. Let me say that both my Dead Ringer and Double IPA were caramelized and both tasted very very sweet once they were done because of this.
In conclusion, my first successful beer i have brewed is currently the one i am drinking right now! I have brewed nothing but extract, and have tasted the Kama Citra IPA from Northern Brewer that a friend brewed in all grain. I decided to try this in extract with the things I have learned about brewing with LME which led me to a wonderful beer that I am finally 100% satisfied with. First, I used ALL spring water and not tap water. When brewing, I added all the Dry Malt at the beginning and saved the Liquid Malt until the last 5 minutes of the boil, making sure to take the kettle off the flame and stirring while adding the LME. Just this alone made the wort look much lighter in color compared to my caramelized other brews. Fermentation went the same, being sure to monitor the temp as it fermented! Im sure my Mr. Beer wheat hit about high 70's during fermentation from the place I had the fermenter and not knowing how important temperature control is. Using fresh LME is also another important factor. Dry hopped an extra ounce of Citra because I was feeling cocky and had a feeling this beer would finally be the one I was trying to achieve from day 1. Patience is the #1 biggest lesson for me, and if you dont have it you probably shouldn't brew! Tonight was the night I tapped the Keg (yes i got tired of waiting for bottles to carbonate and bought a kegerator) and I finally can say I am currently, at this moment, drinking what I have been trying to achieve this entire time. Im sure I have missed a lot but I have been brewing for about 6 months, which really isn't long at all, but when you aren't getting the results you dream of and are trying to rush the process and be impatient, then 6 months feels like an eternity. Just don't get me started on the things Ive learned about kegging a homebrew, Im sure in my short time doing this Ive done some mistakes that nobody could ever even imagine
About me: I am a 25 year old mechanic who just happened to stumble into brewing and now it is a huge hobby for me! Got a Mr. Beer kit as a christmas present from an ex. girlfriend December 2013. This kit had an extract "light beer" kit with the liquid malt and all. Finally decided to open it and brew once i moved into my new place Sept. 2014, almost 1 year after receiving the kit. Instead of using the LME that came with the kit I went to a local homebrew store and bought some wheat LME and used it. After fermentation was done and out of the little Mr. Beer keg it fermented in, I bottled and waited. After it carbonated it tasted like complete ****! From there i knew brewing was more than just mixing sugars to water, adding yeast and waiting. Second batch was a Brewers Best Double IPA kit with all LME and the Brewers Best starter kit with fermenting bucket, bottling bucket, etc... Brewed just fine, and bottled. While waiting for that to carbonate i got a Dead Ringer IPA from Northern Brewer. Still using LME, as soon as i added the Malt to the boil something happened which I knew was a no-no... I never took the kettle off the flame and the malt hit the bottom of the kettle and burnt into black flakes. I still fermented this, straining the black burnt flakes out of the kettle when transferring to the fermenter. Bottled the dead ringer after it was done fermenting.
Both the Double IPA and Dead Ringer were very dark and also tasted very caramelized and sweet out of the bottle. They were so bad I had to pour out everything. With all the frustration and anger after opening those 2 batches i almost threw in the towel and gave up brewing for good! After doing a ton of reading during my trial and error stage i learned a lot which led me to the wonderful beer I just tapped tonight and consider one of my favorite IPA's ever!
First, I was using tap water with chlorine/chloramine in it. Im sure this didn't help any for the taste. I was adding the LME (liquid malt) while the kettle was on the flame. This is a big no! Also, I learned that doing a late addition of the LME keeps the beer from having a dark appearance and caramelized sweet taste. I believe I read on a forum that the caramelization of the sugar during the boil doesn't affect taste, just color. Let me say that both my Dead Ringer and Double IPA were caramelized and both tasted very very sweet once they were done because of this.
In conclusion, my first successful beer i have brewed is currently the one i am drinking right now! I have brewed nothing but extract, and have tasted the Kama Citra IPA from Northern Brewer that a friend brewed in all grain. I decided to try this in extract with the things I have learned about brewing with LME which led me to a wonderful beer that I am finally 100% satisfied with. First, I used ALL spring water and not tap water. When brewing, I added all the Dry Malt at the beginning and saved the Liquid Malt until the last 5 minutes of the boil, making sure to take the kettle off the flame and stirring while adding the LME. Just this alone made the wort look much lighter in color compared to my caramelized other brews. Fermentation went the same, being sure to monitor the temp as it fermented! Im sure my Mr. Beer wheat hit about high 70's during fermentation from the place I had the fermenter and not knowing how important temperature control is. Using fresh LME is also another important factor. Dry hopped an extra ounce of Citra because I was feeling cocky and had a feeling this beer would finally be the one I was trying to achieve from day 1. Patience is the #1 biggest lesson for me, and if you dont have it you probably shouldn't brew! Tonight was the night I tapped the Keg (yes i got tired of waiting for bottles to carbonate and bought a kegerator) and I finally can say I am currently, at this moment, drinking what I have been trying to achieve this entire time. Im sure I have missed a lot but I have been brewing for about 6 months, which really isn't long at all, but when you aren't getting the results you dream of and are trying to rush the process and be impatient, then 6 months feels like an eternity. Just don't get me started on the things Ive learned about kegging a homebrew, Im sure in my short time doing this Ive done some mistakes that nobody could ever even imagine
