hello all

40thmustanggt · Nov 7, 2007

im new here and im looking to get started in brewing my own beer ive been looking for a starters kit and found one on austin homebrew supply.. is this a good company to start with? what is the best starter kit i can buy and where can i get it?? thanks :mug:

-John

ThomasRau · Nov 7, 2007

Welcome,

AHS is a great company, you should also check around locally. If you are lucky you'll have a nearby local shop, they can be oh so convienent when you have that sudden urge to brew and discover you are missing something.

As for the best starter kit, ask ten people get ten answers. Ultimately it hinges on what type of brewing you want to do and how fancy you want to get. At the very least you will need a bottling bucket (can double as a fermentor with a lid and airlock), thermometer, big spoon or paddle, bottle filler, bottles, capper, caps (or EZ cap or even pet bottles) and some cleaning/sanitizing supplies. You will also need a big pot for boiling the wort (assuming you are not going to do no boil kits). From that bare bones minimum you can start adding things like a 6.5gal carboy for fermentation and a 5 gal carboy for secondary, a hydrometer for testing the SG, a racking cane or auto syphon.

40thmustanggt · Nov 8, 2007

ThomasRau said:
Welcome,

AHS is a great company, you should also check around locally. If you are lucky you'll have a nearby local shop, they can be oh so convienent when you have that sudden urge to brew and discover you are missing something.

As for the best starter kit, ask ten people get ten answers. Ultimately it hinges on what type of brewing you want to do and how fancy you want to get. At the very least you will need a bottling bucket (can double as a fermentor with a lid and airlock), thermometer, big spoon or paddle, bottle filler, bottles, capper, caps (or EZ cap or even pet bottles) and some cleaning/sanitizing supplies. You will also need a big pot for boiling the wort (assuming you are not going to do no boil kits). From that bare bones minimum you can start adding things like a 6.5gal carboy for fermentation and a 5 gal carboy for secondary, a hydrometer for testing the SG, a racking cane or auto syphon.

im not sure what a few of those things are but this is the kit im looking at is everything i need in it or will i need more? http://www.midwestsupplies.com/products/ProdByID.aspx?ProdID=7587 and this will make 30beers right?? im ready to start my own brew i'll be ordering the kit as soon as i get the ok.. do you guys do your own wines and liqour also??

Yooper · Nov 8, 2007

I assume that makes a 5 gallon batch, as most do. That's actually about 52 bottles of beer. It comes with 48 bottles, so you'd have just about everything you'd ever need. If you already have a pot, though, you can save some money and just get the regular kit. Bottles are easy to get but it would be convenient to have them shipped like that for you.

If I was starting out and I had the money, I'd get something like you picked out. I did it piecemeal, getting a little bit at a time, and it was a real pain!

I would also add an autosiphon to the list of must-haves. The kit doesn't seem to come with one.

Brakeman_Brewing · Nov 8, 2007

that would probably be the ideal starter kit if you got the money, also look into Midwest Supplies kits, there are alot of tasty recipes. if you do one of their kits though, i would suggest a yeast upgrade to the wyeast activator.

40thmustanggt · Nov 8, 2007

YooperBrew said:
I assume that makes a 5 gallon batch, as most do. That's actually about 52 bottles of beer. It comes with 48 bottles, so you'd have just about everything you'd ever need. If you already have a pot, though, you can save some money and just get the regular kit. Bottles are easy to get but it would be convenient to have them shipped like that for you.

If I was starting out and I had the money, I'd get something like you picked out. I did it piecemeal, getting a little bit at a time, and it was a real pain!

I would also add an autosiphon to the list of must-haves. The kit doesn't seem to come with one.

thanks i didnt notice this one comes with 48bottles the other kit only came with 24 im about to go ahead and place my order now.. whats a good beer to start out making?? i like dark beers like beamish stout and rouge also i just tried the duck rabbit and liked it anyone know what a good brew close to these are??