Hi from NJ

[Richard]

Hi all,

I just started brewing with a Mr Beer kit that a friend bought me, and so I thought I'd find a place to talk homebrew.

 

[RichBrewer]

Welcome to HBT.
This is a great place to learn about home brewing.
Brew with your Mr. beer kit a few times and if you enjoy it you may want to think about moving up to 5 gallon batches.
Please feel free to ask any questions you may have. The folks here are great people.

 

[Richard]

Thanks. I've posted a thread in the beginners area about my experience so far.

 

[Erbium:YAG]

Welcome aboard Rich! I'm also from NJ; the shore to be exact. I never started off with a Mr. Beer; but as RichBrewer said, try it out a couple of times and maybe you'll move into 5 gallon batches with a typical kit. I don't know where in Jersey you are; but there are a couple of decent places to scout out basic brewing kits and ingredients. There's "The Brewers Apprentice" in Freehold and up in North Jersey, off of the parkway, exit 159 I think, is Corrados. Corrados is a huge food market and their brewing supply selection in decent. Of course there are plenty of great online shops too; but you might want to visit a homebrew shop first to really get a feel for the hobby.

Here are a couple of links to the shops.

http://www.corradosmarket.com/

http://www.brewapp.com/


If you think you really want to delve deeper into brewing, this is probably the best place to start. It's called "How to Brew" by John Palmer. It's essentially his entire book online; but you'll probably want to go out and buy the printed copy, as it's updated. This is definitely the best reference for anyone just venturing into the wonderful world of home brewing.

http://www.howtobrew.com/intro.html

 

[Bobby_M]

Hi Richard,
I'm also from NJ, down near New Brunswick, and I'm always willing to show a newbie the ropes in case you want to see how 5 gallon extract batches are done.

 

[Richard]

Thanks for the help guys. I live in West Orange, and have found a place to buy supplies - The Gaslight Brewpub in South Orange. Yesterday I bought some malt extract from him and used it to brew my second batch of Mr Beer mix.

 

[Toilet Rocker]

Hey Richard, welcome. Dan makes some decent beers over at Gaslight. Never checked out his wares upstairs...You never hear/see much at his shop, so I was always skeptical how fresh they are...if you're brweing with no problems, I may have found a closer shop. Happy brewing...

 

[Richard]

Hey Richard, welcome. Dan makes some decent beers over at Gaslight. Never checked out his wares upstairs...You never hear/see much at his shop, so I was always skeptical how fresh they are...if you're brweing with no problems, I may have found a closer shop. Happy brewing...

All I bought was some DME, but the rest of his stuff looked ok. If you plan on going over there you should call in advance so he can put together whatever you are planning on buying because he seems pretty busy with the brewpub.

 

[sirsloop]

Definitely go over to Gaslight on an off peak time, talk to Dan or Vince, and get a tour of their pub! They also have a brew club that meets every couple months...

-JD
Sayreville NJ

 

[fshnne1]

welcome fairly new myself, great info here, the downside though I think I turned from a cheaper hobby to a second mortgage type hobby, Ie kegs, pots, etc. thanks guys

you will love it

 

[Toilet Rocker]

Definitely go over to Gaslight on an off peak time, talk to Dan or Vince, and get a tour of their pub! They also have a brew club that meets every couple months...

-JD
Sayreville NJ

I wasn't aware of the club. Very nice. Good reason to sample Dan's beers...I just he'd update the webpage for both the pub and the store.

 

[Richard]

The brew club sounds worthwhile.

I tried one of the current Gaslight beers while I was waiting for Dan. It was a porter that tasted almost exactly like Guiness. Not bad though.