First time brewer long time drinker!

[kgressler]

Well as the title say I have never brewed anything before besides some coffee.
I have a few friends and neighbors that have/are brewing there own stuff.So why not me too?
For some reason the other day i thought to myself why not try your own hand at since i enjoy an adult beverage from time to time. So here I am.

So i got on the Ol' interwebs and ordered me a start up kit. http://www.midwestsupplies.com/brewing-starter-kit-1.html

Since the wife loves ciders I thought it would be the easiest way to start.
I ordered some star san and some Lalvin yeast EC 1118. Any other supplies anyone may recommend please point me in the right direction.

I dont think I will have any supplies for a few days so I plan on just reading as much as I can for the next week or two before I get started so i can get my plan laid out.
Oh and I live in the small town of Maryville IL. Which is just outside St Louis Misery.

 

[kgressler]

Christmas came early everything was delivered this afternoon.

Hopefully I can get a head start on brewing Wednesday while preparing everything for turkey day with the family.
I can't lie I'm am thoroughly excited to get started asap.

 

[Schmoltsbeer]

Merry Christmas! And welcome to the last all consuming hobby you'll ever need! I wish I could help you with thew cider, but my beer experience is limited enough as is.

 

[kgressler]

I appreciate it. I plan on getting a pot so once my cider is going so I can get to trying a beer kit. Not sure what kind yet. I enjoy Ales as well as wheat's and an occasional IPA. Any recommendations?

 

[yeahfairly]

I appreciate it. I plan on getting a pot so once my cider is going so I can get to trying a beer kit. Not sure what kind yet. I enjoy Ales as well as wheat's and an occasional IPA. Any recommendations?

The Biggest tip I would give someone starting out is to be OCD when it comes to sanitizing your equipment and to make sure your wort (or must) is at an optimal pitching temp before you toss the yeast. If you control those two things you will come out way ahead! If you like Ales and plan on shopping at Mid West I highly recommend the Sierra Pale Ale extract kit as a first time brew attempt. It's delicious and very forgiving (I brewed this one my first five attempts). You will be happy with the results!

http://www.midwestsupplies.com/sierra-pale-ale-kit-sierra-nevada.html

 

[kgressler]

The Midwest kit came with a dvd so I plan on watching it a few times to get familiar with using the type of kit. Thanks for the recommendation I'll check out that particular kit.
I've watched a few YouTube videoa about sanitation before hand. And your right I really need to plan out my brew the first few times until I get a routine going. I'm sure it's easy to forget steps here or there for the first few times.
Probably need to have a written out step by step instruction to get through the first couple batches.

Thanks yeahfairly

 

[yeahfairly]

The Midwest kit came with a dvd so I plan on watching it a few times to get familiar with using the type of kit. Thanks for the recommendation I'll check out that particular kit.
I've watched a few YouTube videoa about sanitation before hand. And your right I really need to plan out my brew the first few times until I get a routine going. I'm sure it's easy to forget steps here or there for the first few times.
Probably need to have a written out step by step instruction to get through the first couple batches.

Thanks yeahfairly

Hey Brother.... Visit the site below and sign up. There are tons of great tools on there for helping you on Brew Day. The have calculators, Brew Logs and a wealth of other tools to help you along!

http://www.brewersfriend.com/