Best Beginning Starter Kit

[ekallday]

Greetings Earthlings!

I just discovered my love for home-brewing and am interested in the experts opinions on where I can purchase my best start-up equipment kit.

Money is not necessarily a concern, but I'd prefer not to spend in excess of $200 dollars. Should I be shopping online, in person, etc..? I am from the Philadelphia area, if that helps any.

I tried reading all of the information (which is immense) throughout the beginners post but some seemed to be outdated, that is why I decided to create a forum and of course to introduce myself and thank you guys for having me.

I have started by reading How to Brew by Palmer (still in the process) and while I am admittedly overwhelmed and doubting if I can even do all of this, I am still amped to try!

Thanks for any help on a beginners kit and thank you for your time of course reading my rant.!

Eric

 

[Waynep005]

I would buy online for your starter equipment. I would look at what kits some of the lage online stores such as Austin homebrew, Midwest, Northern brewer, and more beer, can compare prices and shipping rates.

 

[evrose]

Greetings Earthlings!

I just discovered my love for home-brewing and am interested in the experts opinions on where I can purchase my best start-up equipment kit.

Money is not necessarily a concern, but I'd prefer not to spend in excess of $200 dollars. Should I be shopping online, in person, etc..? I am from the Philadelphia area, if that helps any.

I tried reading all of the information (which is immense) throughout the beginners post but some seemed to be outdated, that is why I decided to create a forum and of course to introduce myself and thank you guys for having me.

I have started by reading How to Brew by Palmer (still in the process) and while I am admittedly overwhelmed and doubting if I can even do all of this, I am still amped to try!

Thanks for any help on a beginners kit and thank you for your time of course reading my rant.!

Eric

I purchased a beginner kit from Northern Brewer, along with one of their extract recipe kits for an Irish Stout. It's STUPID easy to make. The instructions that came with it are very simple to follow. If you can boil water, you can make beer. It becomes less and less intimidating the more you do it.

In addition to Northern Brewer, Midwest, and MoreBeer sell good kits. Find a local store, go in and poke around a bit. It's good to have a local place that you know, even if the starting hardware is cheaper online - eventually you're going to need something small and vital.

 

[ekallday]

Thanks guys... yea I assume it gets easier as time but reading all of this information is very very intimidating!

So seems like these would be my option in my price range..

http://www.austinhomebrew.com/product_info.php?cPath=178_33_52&products_id=12921

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/brewing-intermediate-kit-w-two-5-gallon-glass-carboys.html

http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/brewing/beer-equipment-starter-kits/deluxe-beer-starter-kit.html

http://morebeer.com/view_product/15910/102142/Personal_Home_Brewery_Kit_%232_-_Deluxe

Which of these would be my best bet. I definitely don't want to go the Mr. Beer route (no knock of course intended). Now I know that maybe some of these tools aren't necessary for a beginner, but I'm assuming eventually I would get use of them.

Is it a smart idea to buy a bucket with a spigot?

Thanks for your help and your time!

 

[twistr25]

If you're lucky, and/or patient, Midwest puts out a Groupon fairly frequently, every couple months it seems, for a $135 startup package for only $64. Where and how I got my first kit, came with an Irish Red and it was really easy to make and is delicious.

 

[solbes]

If you're lucky, and/or patient, Midwest puts out a Groupon fairly frequently, every couple months it seems, for a $135 startup package for only $64.

+1 for Midwest Groupon. Leaves you well short of $200, which you will need to buy a boil kettle (8-10 gallon preferrably, aluminum or Stainless Steel) and some bottles (or commercial beer to drink/delabel/sanitize).

 

[ekallday]

Wow, I will definitely be on the look out for this groupon!

 

[ekallday]

Should I aim for buckets or for glass ? Seems to be the glass would probably be better quality...I was looking at the intermediate kits from the companies you guys suggested, seemed pretty nice and reasonable.

 

[ekallday]

Theres also a local shop around Philadelphia, which is turning into a great beer town.

http://www.homesweethomebrew.com/beer-store.htm

thats the URL... i could save on shipping by just heading over there and grabbing stuff... any good?

 

[Waynep005]

I would recomend the better botlle carboys over the glass. They do not weigh as much and will not break as easily as glass. I also think buckets are great for primary fermentaion but a 5 gallon carboy is great if you have a beer you want to let age in secondary.

 

[solbes]

I like plastic buckets for primary ferments (easy to clean). Just soak in oxyclean free for 24 hours and rinse out.

I like glass carboys over plastic carboys for secondary ferments since they are more rigid and block all O2 permeation. Just have to be careful with them to avoid shatters/cuts.

BTW, this crowd will probably be split 50/50 on glass vs plastic carboys. Just go with what you think would work better.

 

[HeadyKilowatt]

The $100 Brewing Starter Kit from Midwest is a damn good deal and is what I recommended to a buddy of mine who just got into the hobby. He's done a couple of brews with it already and seems to be quite happy with it. Probably gonna be cheaper to go this route than to buy your kit locally, and it gives you a plastic bucket fermenter, plus a glass carboy for secondary, which is the setup I prefer (for what it's worth). Might as well order an ingredient kit too as long as you're already going to be paying to ship a decent amount of stuff. It won't cost that much more to have them go ahead and send you the ingredients for your first brew, and I always recommend doing kits for your first couple of brews before you start doing recipes and assembling ingredients yourself- it just makes it easier for your first brew or two if you can focus more on your process- timing, how you use your brewspace, etc.- and not have to worry about measuring and prepping ingredients.

Also, since you're in the Philly area (where I just moved from), you have access to three good shops that I know of. As you know, Home Sweet Homebrew is a good shop downtown, and George is more than happy to share his vast brewing knowledge. Barry's in North Philly, near Temple U., is also good and they usually have some brews on tap you can sip while you shop. And if you're more toward the Montgomeryville/Lansdale area, Keystone Homebrew Supply has a large selection of beer and winemaking stuff.

Welcome to your new obsession!

 

[rifraf]

Be patient and you can get that Midwest kit for 60 on groupon

 

[EvilDeadAsh]

Also, since you're in the Philly area (where I just moved from), you have access to three good shops that I know of. As ekallday stated, Home Sweet Homebrew is a good shop downtown, and George is more than happy to share his vast brewing knowledge. Barry's in North Philly, near Temple U., is also good and they usually have some brews on tap you can sip while you shop. And if you're more toward the Montgomeryville/Lansdale area, Keystone Homebrew Supply has a large selection of beer and winemaking stuff.

Welcome to your new obsession!

I live in Philly as well, I bought my kit at HomeSweetHomebrew. He sells a "beginners" kit as well as an upgraded kit which gives you a glass carboy. The kits are $60 and $90 respectively.

Info about the kits on their website:
http://homesweethomebrew.com/beer-store.htm

Its at 20th and Sansom, right next to Shake Shack, he also sells ingredient kits so you can get started right away (provided you have a pot).

You will need to buy sanitizer as well, as it is not included in George's kit.

Barry's is nice too, but it is in a bad part of town. It's north of Girard, by Temple. Go there during the day. That being said, the guys running the place are cool, they have offered me a beer every time I go in there

Barry's sells a kit as well, but having purchased mine at HSH, I can't speak to it. Barry's site:

http://www.barryshomebrew.com/

 

[ekallday]

Be patient and you can get that Midwest kit for 60 on groupon

Will do..!

 

[danielbt]

You can also look at what equipment is the kits talked about above, and then search craigslist for what you need. I've seen tons of brewing gear for cheap there.

 

[DerCribben]

Be patient and you can get that Midwest kit for 60 on groupon

Thats the kit I got, it comes with an ingredient kit, AND, a $25 gift certificate for your next batch. Wich almost makes the shipping cost they use worth it lol, but still, great deal on that kit and i bet you can just search Groupon from other cities and get the deal now.