Can I learn from your mistakes?

[SRBrewWorks]

My friend and I have been talking about brewing for about a year now. Today we finally broke down and got a kit from the local Adventures in Homebrewing store.

I have a primary, a secondary carboy, a priming container, an 8 gallon stainless, all the hydrometer, siphon, and tools needed to brew. My main question for you guys is what did you learn between the first batch and your last batch that you wish you had known to make every batch tasty.

Which style is the best to start with? A brown, a stout, a porter?

 

[b-boy]

Keep it simple. A Pale ale, an amber, or a Brown would be good choices. Don't look for anything fancy. Don't think about adding fruit, herbs, or anything the kit doesn't call for. Let the beer ferment longer than the instructions tell you to. Get your process down before you start experimenting.

 

[IvanTheTerribrew]

Yeah I agree. Don't go fancy or complicated. It's much better to work off a success than to get back up from a failure. Plus if you invest a decent chunk of change and don't get good results you'll feel like you blew a lot of money.

When I started a year ago, I got an amber ale, and part of the reason was that I didn't love nor hate ambers. I love IPAs. If I had brewed an IPA and let's say it wasn't fantastic... I would have been much more able to criticize it versus an amber. It turned out great, and my second beer I decided to make my own recipe.

Make little moves out of your comfort zone when you feel you have the process down. Ex: secondary with herbs/fruits/oak, lagers, partial extracts and all grain. Almost every step forward in beer brewing take a little more equipment, so it's good to take it easy. Good luck let us know what kit you pick and how it turns out.

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

Temp control during fermentation was a big improver for me. Work on keeping the yeast happy and they will make you happy.

 

[Rhumbline]

If you are doing a kit it simplifies things. For me, the three biggest helps are planning the brew day, organizing the equipment and supplies, and fanatical sterilization of anything that might touch the wort. I go so far as to turn off the AC and ceiling fans to keep from stirring up stuff needlessly.

Lay out all the ingredients in the order they'll be used, my first brew I even put a note on each one. Make a couple gallons of sanitizer and have a container to put some in to use during the brew. A spray bottle full is useful too.

Think through the whole process, even do a dry run. Pouring three gallons of liquid from a pot into a bucket can get interesting.

Good luck, don't sweat it.

 

[RM-MN]

I thought I would like an apple ale with apple juice and applesauce in it. I drank it but I really didn't enjoy it. Then I made a raspberry red ale with locally grown raspberries. I dumped the last 30 bottles because I couldn't face drinking them all because the raspberries were so sour it made the beer taste pretty bad to me. I bought a carboy (plastic) so I could secondary on fruit. I used it twice for that and twice as another primary and haven't touched it in 2 years. Wasted money there.

Then I went back to basic beers, beers of a style I would enjoy. Much better. Then I learned to control the temperature of the fermenting beer. Big improvement. With more experience, I learned that I like a lot of different styles but not all. I sample at a bar now and then when they have something on tap that sounds interesting. If I like it, I can find a clone recipe and make it for my self and have a couple cases of bottles but if I hate it, I'm out only the cost of one beer at the bar.

 

[patthebrewer]

Forget transferring into secondary fermenter, just ferment the whole time in your carboy. Transfering from one fermenter to another just add more chance that something nasty can get into your beer. Also regardless of what the instructions say don't be too quick to bottle.....even though fermentation maybe complete...you need to give your yeast time to clean up after themselves. Some people take that gravity reading and are right to bottle. Trust me your beer will improve if you leave it a week or two after ferm is complete (Ales obviously lagers require much more time, and temp control). It will be perfectly safe under it's nice Co2 blanket.

Main thing just relax and go with it. Almost everyone makes mistakes, and don't be discouraged by a bad batch or two.....and don't be afraid to try something new. Embrace your inner mad scientist

 

[spark_plug]

The one major mistake you can make, is giving up if you do actually fail. Do a lot of reading here, there is a ton of great info and the best people hands down that are always willing to help you out. And most of all welcome to the home brewing community!

 

[glick]

I suggest looking into making a swamp cooler and then using it during fermentation. Controlling the temperature will make a really big difference in the way your beer tastes. Also, don't be surprised if it doesn't taste the way you expect a beer to taste when it's fresh from the fermenter. Carbonation has a large effect on the perceived flavors of a beer. Good luck on your first batch!

 

[Paps]

Which style is the best to start with??

Start with a style you like.
IE- if you like stouts do one,if you like IPAs do one,ect,ect.

The extract kits imho are a must before doing all grain imho.
It lets you wet your feet foresay on the processes and can make some rather good beer.

As previosly mentioned let the primary go A LOT longer than what the kits say to do. Primary for A MONTH +. This is known as a diacytl rest. If you don't let your beer get its diacytl rest it will grow arms and legs,walk over to you and kick you in the balls really really hard so give your beer its diacytl rest.

Once you get around to doing all grain batches so what they call "S.M.A.S.H." brews.....Do LOTS of them....
Why?
It lets you discover what each seperate ingredient `brings to the table` as far as your beer flavors go.
S.M.A.S.H. = Single Malt And Single Hop

Don't let you pets eat your hops,they are DEADLY to animals.

Get a keg set-up ASAP.......bottling kinda blows goats.....
Get enough fermentors to ALLWAYS have a batch going.
-
hope this helps.

 

[JimRausch]

Recommendations:
Sanitation, Sanitation, Sanitation
Temp. control, Temp control, Temp control
And a post I read quite awhile ago(don't remember who from):
"Brewers make wort. Yeast make Beer."
Love the yeast, pamper the yeast.

 

[SRBrewWorks]

Get a keg set-up ASAP.......bottling kinda blows goats.....
.

When it does comes to bottling since I will be starting off with that as I have dropped a good penny to get started and can't really move into a keg system yet, would it be more wise to go with a capping bottle or swing top? And also how do you feel about large capacity bottles such as growlers?

 

[insanim8er]

Since I don't make mistakes, you can't learn off me.

 

[MaxStout]

In addition to what others in this thread have said, I think getting a few extra pieces of equipment is important once you've done a few batches and have decided you're in the hobby for the long-haul. Things like immersion chillers, good thermometers and hydrometers, auto-siphons, extra funnels, yeast starter gear, etc., make the brewing experience better. This hobby can be a big money-suck, but you can make smart choices for gear. People here will help when you have questions about it.

 

[Rhumbline]

When it does comes to bottling since I will be starting off with that as I have dropped a good penny to get started and can't really move into a keg system yet, would it be more wise to go with a capping bottle or swing top? And also how do you feel about large capacity bottles such as growlers?

I still bottle and I don't plan on changing that. I typically use the 24 oz bottles, or the corked 750 ml Belgian style.

I've never used a swing top so I can't comment on those. If you go with a capper, there's a ton of free bottles out there.

 

[Ridire]

I wish I understood the importance of not pitching the yeast into wort that was too warm and of maintaining proper fermentation temperature when I did my first batch. I also wish I didn't follow the instructions about how long to bottle condition (they said only one week) and I wish I had measured out the priming sugar instead of just using the whole bag that came with the kit.

 

[BrewChem]

It's been said already but I'll repeat... do not skimp on sanitation...! Once you turn the heat off at the end of the boil and cool the wort, it's succeptable to infection..!

Read through the forums ... especially the stickies in the beginners forums...

I'd reccomend pitching dry yeast at first... easier to get the amount you'll need without messing with starters (learn about that later... while your first batch is fermenting..!)

The best bang for the buck I've invested in was a $5 plastic tub for a swamp-cooler... helped me get my ferment temperature under control and made quite a jump in the quality of the beer I've made...

 

[davekippen]

The biggest thing I learned is to just relax. There is not a lot you can do to screw it up. If you can cook a little bit, you can brew.

The biggest things I have learned that make my beer BETTER now than that first batch are 1) Rig up a temperature controlled fermentation chamber. 2) Understand your water (you dont need to get all scientific, but know if you should at least cut your water with some distilled) 3) simple recipies are often better

cheers!

 

[RM-MN]

When it does comes to bottling since I will be starting off with that as I have dropped a good penny to get started and can't really move into a keg system yet, would it be more wise to go with a capping bottle or swing top? And also how do you feel about large capacity bottles such as growlers?

I've used the crown cap bottle since I started and have capped well over 1000 bottles. Don't let the keggers talk you into kegging unless you are ready for that and are prepared to drop a chunk of change only to be severly limited. Limited? Sure, how many taps can you afford, how many kegs? I have 14 varieties of beer in bottles and can choose from among them for the kind of beer I want to drink. Can you afford that many taps?

 

[eric19312]

Learn difference between cleaning and sanitizing, and when they need to be done ( you can only sanitize something that is clean), and how to do it.

Get a no rinse sanitizer. I like star San but there are other good choices,

Learn difference between controlling temperature of fermenting beer and ambient temperature of the room the beer is fermenting in.

Have fun!

 

[Dontdropthebeer]

I'm kind of a mid level brewer. Been at it for the last two years semi heavily (20+ batches now maybe?)

I agree with so much of what was said. Start simple. Get extract or partial mash kits and focus on what you know/like. When I started I was really only interested in IPAs so I focused on those. I knew what they should taste like so it was easy to see if I was close.

Brewing has made me branch out so much and learn about other obscure (to me) styles.

Sanitation is key but also remember beers were made for thousands of years without an understanding of sanitation. Pay attention to it but do t freak out.

Sometimes the instructions that come with kits are more confusing than they need to be or take for granted things that are "known" once you've been at it for a while. This board had been such a resource for me. If you have a question it's probably been asked before. Use google and this board. Don't be shy about asking your homebrew shop or even emailing whoever you buy from if online.

1 gallon batches can be good to start with but most all instructions are specifically for 5 gallons so converting can be tricky. But 1-3 gallon batches can be good to start with so you may only have 10 beers that are subpar instead of 50.

Definitely be patient with fermenting and especially bottling. You may be dying to try that beer you bottled 2 weeks ago after fermenting for a month but give it more time and you'll understand.

Try to also pay attention to and focus on numbers. And what they mean. Recipe kits will usually be on the mark but when you start making your own recipes you'll understand what happens or why your gravity was low

Also as far as growlers - as far as I understand it you won't be able to properly bottle condition in them. Stick with 12oz and 22oz. Swingtips are cool but after buying 12 grolsch beers I was sick of drinking it.

Also HAVE FUN

 

[MaxStout]

Learn difference between controlling temperature of fermenting beer and ambient temperature of the room the beer is fermenting in.

This. It took a few batches for me to realize that my room temp didn't guarantee the same temp in fermentation. There's a lot of heat being generated inside that fermenter, especially during the first few days. It can be several degrees warmer inside. Temp control is absolutely necessary during the warmer summer months (unless you're brewing saisons).

I built a quick & dirty swamp cooler from a plastic 15-gallon drum cut in half. Set the fermenter in it and fill the swamper with cold water. I freeze water in 16oz. plastic pop bottles and drop 3 or 4 in.

 

[kaconga]

Temp control is a must. Pitch enough healthy yeast and aerate the wort as much as you can. Give yourself plenty of time, don't brew with a deadline. The number one thing though, relax and don't get frantic. No matter what happens, don't freak out. Think about things calmly before you react and be adaptive to the situation.

 

[Riot]

Figure out what temperature you can reasonably keep your fermenter at and pick a yeast that is happy in that range. It's kind of a hassle trying to keep anything more than 5-10 F away from ambient and any kind of stable.

 

[GySgtLynn]

Don't wear flip flops during the boil.. Boil overs can hurt...

 

[Jaybird]

I am going to agree with just about everything they have already said.
K.I.S.S keep it STUPID simple
Keep everything in a no rinse sanitizer.
Did I mention the K.I.S.S system..LOL

Cheers
Jay

 

[MuddyCreek]

You're going to have a great time, learn a great deal and become a demi-God in the eyes of your friends.

You'll probably have more sex and it will be wilder and much more fantastic than that of the aforementioned friends.

Ultimately, the best advice that can be given to a new brewer...

RDWAHAHB

The meaning of the above is only truly appreciated when you figure it out yourself.

 

[elatowski]

I suggest looking into making a swamp cooler and then using it during fermentation. Controlling the temperature will make a really big difference in the way your beer tastes. Also, don't be surprised if it doesn't taste the way you expect a beer to taste when it's fresh from the fermenter. Carbonation has a large effect on the perceived flavors of a beer. Good luck on your first batch!

^ This. My first five batches fermented without a swamp cooler and suffered because of too high ferm temps. My most recent beer came out clean and without any "house flavor" that my previous attempts all had.

 

[SRBrewWorks]

Hey everyone thanks so much for the advice. I am including a picture of my rig so everyone can see. I have actually built a swamp cooler out of a new trash can cut in half and equipped it with a drain hose and a pipcock valve for drainage. It isn't in the photo as I built it about two hours ago 10 P.M. EDT.

I am looking forward to getting my first batch together on saturday. I have the Better Brew Irish Stout kit. (I happen to enjoy stout's so that is the reason I went that route.)

I'll be keeping accurate records of my brews so I will keep everyone posted.

 

[Paps]

When it does comes to bottling since I will be starting off with that as I have dropped a good penny to get started and can't really move into a keg system yet, would it be more wise to go with a capping bottle or swing top? And also how do you feel about large capacity bottles such as growlers?

Swing tops are pretty costly.
Capped bottles are cheaper.
When i bought my cappers i got mine for around $2 a bottle AND they came pre-filled with Guinness.
Many bars will be glad to save you some bottles and can amass them quickly.
I personally.......just drank a lot of Guinness.
I did bottle condition in one gallon glass jugs before because i was too lazy to sanitize 53 bottles.Worked ok but you pretty much HAD to drink the whole gallon in one sitting due to it going flat after opening.

The guy on here who said keg owners were limited apparently hasn't given any thought to the fact that keg owners can still bottle 14 beers if THEY CHOOSE to do so.So there's no limitations by kegging and i enjoy not having to sanitze 53 bottles every batch nor do i ever have to worry about bottle bombs. I personally bottle from the keg sometimes to give out samples to people.Kegging > bottling any day imho.But it will drop you $400 or more so best to hold out on that until you do decide that you will be homebrewing for a long time.