Best style for a first brew

[stansoid]

Hello everyone!

I've been at this for about 2 years now went AG from the start. Recently a friend of mine who lives on the other side of the country has asked me for advice on how to get into the hobby. Ideally I'd walk him through a brew day, but that is not possible.

I am suggesting he try an extract before going AG to see if the hobby sticks before he sinks money into an AG setup.

Advice I am looking for - What is the best and most forgiving style for a first brew using extract.

I'll give him all the help I can with process, sanitation, fermentation and tips to avoid nuisance errors, but I would love suggestions for a good and forgiving extract based beer to approach this with.

Cheers!

 

[eluterio]

Depends on what style of beers he likes. Its always easy and forgiving to make a wheat beer. A smash beer are always simple and allows them to experience hops.

 

[TexasDroughtBrewery]

Hello everyone!

I've been at this for about 2 years now went AG from the start. Recently a friend of mine who lives on the other side of the country has asked me for advice on how to get into the hobby. Ideally I'd walk him through a brew day, but that is not possible.

I am suggesting he try an extract before going AG to see if the hobby sticks before he sinks money into an AG setup.

Advice I am looking for - What is the best and most forgiving style for a first brew using extract.

I'll give him all the help I can with process, sanitation, fermentation and tips to avoid nuisance errors, but I would love suggestions for a good and forgiving extract based beer to approach this with.

Cheers!

An Ale

No, but seriously I would agree with doing an extract before going full bang bang unless he has seen the process and knows the commitment and expense. But if he is determined which he sounds like he might be I would start with a simple SMaSH recipe that you can find on here or a cream ale.

 

[Sammy86]

I would go with a nice pale ale...get you some MO or Two row add a little victory or Vienna a dash of crystal and add those hops!

Nice, easy and delicious cheers!

 

[myelo]

Porters and stouts are hard to screw up. Pales ales, wheat beers, brown ales and Kolsch would be other choices. Make sure it's style he likes to drink.

I would go with an extract recipe kit where everything is measured out and comes with good instructions.

I would stay away from lagers, bigger beers that need a yeast starter, IPAs with complicated hop schedules and dry hopping, and lighter beers where flaws would be more obvious.

 

[Sailingeric]

I would say porter/ stout as well. The roast flavor will help hid any mistakes.

 

[daveMN]

I'd suggest using a cleaner fermenting yeast; maybe a Wy1056 or something like that. And find a good place to keep the fermenter temp stable

 

[BigMack]

I would probably go a different direction than most and suggest a belgian. The biggest place new brewers mess up is in temp control during fermentation. That mostly goes out the window with many belgian styles. If he is a fan thats the route I would push him. Super simple grain/hop bill and then a nice belgian yeast of his/your choosing.

 

[ba-brewer]

All grain is not too tough if he can follow direction. If he has a fairly big pot already in his kitchen it is not too expensive to do 1 gal BIAB.

http://www.austinhomebrew.com/Beer/One-Gallon-Recipe-Kits/

Find a good tutorial video on youtube or somewhere and send him a link, if he thinks it is too much then go extract.

 

[stansoid]

Thanks everyone. He seems to be waning between a stout and a Belgian. Re the AG - He is going in on this with a friend, so they want to output like 10 gal. 1 GAL batches won't cut it

 

[madscientist451]

Skip the kits and extract and forget about 10 gallon batches until the process is done a few times and good beer is produced on a smaller scale.
A pot and a BIAB bag is all all that's needed for brewing, a bucket and airlock for fermentation. Brew a porter, pretty easy, hard to screw up.

 

[BigFloyd]

Suggest that they start off with 5 gallon batches, but get a kettle big enough to handle 10g. Do they have any clue about what it takes to quickly chill 11g of near-boiling liquid to 62*F?

Lots of good extract porter/stout mid-gravity kits out there using S-04 or similar dry yeast to choose from. They can delve into AG and liquid yeast later.

The first couple batches are an exercise in learning good process, sanitation (use StarSan) and PATIENCE. Next to proper sanitation, good pitch/fermentation temp control is essential if they want to make something they'd be proud to share with friends. coworkers and neighbors who already know what good beer tastes like.

 

[JawZziff]

sounds like your buddies have there mind made up but I always recommend to my friends to start with a kit. a local brewery makes kits that you just dump in a bucket and add your yeast. its really the easiest start imo and highest chance for success.

 

[Qhrumphf]

I'd suggest something simple and extract-only. Not many things that can be brewed that way, but you can make a passable Hefeweizen. 100% wheat extract, single noble hop bittering addition, use Wyeast 3068 (or equivalent, but I very much love that strain), and then that would actually benefit from the underpitching and underaerating of a beginner, and would be alright fermented without too much temp control (although ideally fermented good and cool would be best). Belgians I thing would be a bit tougher, as they're easy to underattenuate without very precise temperature ramping.

 

[BobOki]

In this day and age of technology you should easily be able to skype/hangout/etc video chat with him and easily walk him through his brew day. Have him setup his phone or something close in a position that you can see the brew happening so he can use both hands, and roll from there.

 

[dkevinb]

I would also suggest simple to start. An extract pale ale is hard to beat for this. A few pounds of LME and/or DME, a couple of ounces of hops and a packet of US-05 will make a fine first beer.

 

[ZmannR2]

IPA IPA IPA!!! Lol, thats all I brew

 

[brewcat]

Any extract kit would work, preferably one without secondary additions. The main thing will be fermentation temp control.

 

[stansoid]

Thanks for all the replies! My friend has been peering in and finds it all very informative. I think he he leaning towards 5 gal BIAB.. Style yet to be determined.

 

[madcowbrewing]

I am late to the game, but...... AMBER ALE. Nice easy style. You don't screw it up with hops, malt bill is easy, has a little color, when finished, it can branch you out into other styles.

 

[stansoid]

He isn't buying all his stuff for a few more days, so not late at all