First time brewer. 1 Gal Brooklyn Brew Shop

[T3X]

Well I decided to dive into brewing beer. A few friends of mine have done it and I really enjoyed the beers they had made. Thankfully, the wife heard me talk about it a few times and bought me a Brooklyn Brew Shop Bruxelles Blonde kit. It was the full kit and she bought me an auto siphon. I will attempt to attach the file of my finished batch in the fermenter before I put it in the closet. I will update you all on his it goes over the next few weeks.

Brew day was great. I followed the instructions and everything went as described in the instructions. No surprises at all. Next time, I will definitely need a bigger strainer. It almost overflowed on me a few times but I didn't let it. Other than that, it was all good.

 

[Pappers_]

Welcome to HBT and congrats on your first batch!

 

[T3X]

Thanks for the welcome Pappers. Well the first two days I had a blow off tube hooked up to the fermenter. It worked great, it was bubbling away. This morning it had definitely slowed down so I went ahead and put the airlock on. Pics will be attached.

 

[signpost]

Congrats! It's a great hobby. And this forum is a great source of information and ideas. I've been reading and participating here since I started brewing about 2 and a half years ago. It is just as useful now as it was when I started.

 

[Calichusetts]

Good lord...BBS threads make me realize how long I've been brewing. Started with them almost 4 years ago. Good luck and have fun.

 

[dmbobo]

Congrats on the first brew!

Keep the pictures coming. I like seeing how others are progressing with their beers.

 

[T3X]

Thanks for the encouragement. Not a lot has changed with it since the last picture. This weekend I will be bottling and will have some more pictures.

BBS recommends using 3 tbs of honey dissolved into 1/2 cup warm water. When you transfer your beer from the fermenter to another pot to bottle, you put in the honey water mix, then bottle. Does anyone have any experience with this? Does it carbonate well this way?

 

[teleplucker]

I found 3tbsp of honey over carbonated the kit I had (pale ale). I read somewhere that 2.5 was better. However, after using honey once, I moved to corn sugar and found 20-24 g dissolved in 1/2 cup of boiling water has provided consistent, appropriate carbonation.

 

[madscientist451]

You'll want to boil 1 or 1/2 cup of water for your priming sugar. Corn sugar works fine.
Boil it to sanitize, but let it cool down before you add it to your beer.
Northern brewer has a free priming sugar calculator on their website, shows how much to use for different styles of beer.
I bought a cheap container with a tap on it at Walmart that I use as a bottling dispenser.
Its meant to put on a shelf in your refrigerator and keep water cold. Its easier than trying to siphon into bottles. Get some star san at your brew shop and mix it up in a bucket, use it to sanitize your bottles, bottle caps, siphon, bottling dispenser and anything else that touches your beer after its cooled off from boiling. Put the capped bottles in a warm but dark location for a few weeks so the beer can carbonate.
When you think its ready chill one bottle and try it. Sometimes homebrew is better with some aging, so if you don't like it that much, let it sit a while. My first brew wasn't that good fresh, but I really liked it after 3 months.
Soon you'll be after a bigger pot and a mash tun/cooler to do bigger batches. Start a notebook and keep good notes on every batch, you'll probably go back and review some of the things you did.
You don't have to spend much money or have a complicated setup to make good beer.
Once you get your own brew going, you'll realize how much overpriced, crappy beer is being peddled these days.
Cheers!

 

[T3X]

Thanks for the advice! I will be bottling tomorrow morning!!

 

[T3X]

Bottling went great! I bough a cheap jug at my grocery store to transfer the beer and honey mixture into. I filtered it when I transferred from the carboy to the mixing pot and again to the bottling jug. Not sure why I did on the last step, but it felt like a good idea. Pic below. In two weeks I will let you all know how it turned out!

 

[T3X]

Last night a put a few bottles in the fridge, HOLY CRAP IT ROCKS!

It has a little bit of malty sweetness and its super smooth! I was looking for it be a little bit more clear, but it doesn't matter, tastes great. The carbonation is a little on the low side, but not a big deal.

I am very very please with it being my first brew. Here is a pic of the first pour.

 

[Calichusetts]

Give the rest another week or so to carb and leave the bottles in the fridge for close to a week to clear them up. Congrats. You will forever have a bigger belly and smaller wallet.

 

[PhantomBrew1111]

I'll be bottling my first Brooklyn kit this Thursday. I have to say I'm having a hard time waiting...LOL
I did a LME brew from Brew Demon/Demon Brew can never get the name right...and will be bottling that
If it's ready on Thursday or Friday. I'm excited I can brew all grain and I'm excited how easy LME brewing
Is.
Good luck with your brew!

 

[Zekk]

Very nice. I like BBS I've used their recipes several times. I made a jalapeño saison kit from BBS, it was awesome but when I bottled using their recipe (agave) all but 1 bottle gushed on me. I'll be making it again but a 5 gallon batch and with good ole corn sugar.