Complete newbie!

[wesbray]

Hey guys, i've just received a beer brewing kit from Spagnols, and I can't wait to brew my first batch. I got the "Complete Homebrewing Book" from Amazon and it seems pretty complete, I just wanted to know whether anyone has an incredibly simple, near fool proof method for my first brew? I'm sure this question has been asked a million times before but any help would be appreciated!

Here is the kit I have http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hpho...403/311610_10151173152196551_1934979835_n.jpg Anyone used this before? Any extra components I need other than the obvious stuff?

 

[wesbray]

Apologies for the double post but here's the kit I got. Anyone used these before/anything essential missing before I start brewing? http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hpho...403/311610_10151173152196551_1934979835_n.jpg

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

First off, welcome!! You've turned to the right place!

Second, assuming your kit is to make 5 gal batches, look into an extract with steeping grains kit from a place like Midwest Supplies or Austin Homebrew. Or peruse the recipe section here, there's tons of good ones.
Find something pretty straight forward and to your liking, style wise. Brew the kit according to the instructions, cool, pitch yeast and try to keep the fermenter coolish, below 70 degrees F is good, 64-68 is ideal for most ales. Regardless of the instructions, ferment in primary for 2-3 weeks, secondary is optional. (you can read up on the option of a secondary fermenter here on HBT) Bottle with the proper amount of priming sugar, usually corn sugar that comes with the ingredient kits, and let them sit at room temp for ~3 weeks. Then fridge one or two bottles overnight, two or three days would be better. At that point, you will have a batch of beer ready to go. (bottle conditioning sometimes takes longer than ~3 weeks, if they're not fully carbed after 3, give them another week or so at room temp).
That's it. That and read the stickies in the beginners forum, and the fermentation and yeast forum here. I find that the more you brew and get into it, the more you'll want to learn about all the how's and why's. Enjoy!

 

[wesbray]

Yeah its a 5 gallon carboy. This is the kit. It consists of:
5 gallon carboy, air lock and rubber bung
Primary fermenter
Hydrometer
Spoon
Thermometer
Beer thief

Anything else I could need for BASIC brewing, other than possibly a secondary fermenter?

Has anyone ever used this book? As I say, it seems pretty complete.. The Complete Homebrew Beer Book