Hi from uk, I'm a newbie to brewing, easy first recipe anybody?!?

[The-randypan]

Hi, every1, I'm new to this site and I'm new to home brewing!!
I would love if anybody could send me a good first recipe. I have some brewing gear, like a 5 gallon barrel (English gallon, think it's slightly different to the American gallon) and a capper and bottles etc etc...

Any easy good tasting recipe would be appreciated. Thanks. Happy brewing to every1.

Ps. I am thinking of upgrading my account, just making sure first that it's a good site!! Xxx

 

[Pappers_]

Hi Randy. If you read this www.howtobrew.com you'll see that he walks you through your first brew, an American Pale Ale, which is very helpful, because the recipe is only a small part of making beer - its the whole process, especially fermentation, that's important. Cheers!

Jim

 

[Revvy]

Unless you're getting into all grain brewing and doing things like "abrew in a bag triple decoction with a step infusion and a mashout" then one recipe is no more complicated that any other, especially if you are doing any extract with steeping grains recipe. Your grain bill might be different for different recipes, but what you with them (the process) will be the same, which is something akin to "steep grains for x minutes, in y gallons of water, remove grains bring to boil, add extract and hops as directed, cool, transfer to ferment, pitch yeast and rdwhahb."

So whether you are making a porter, stout, IPA, hefeweizen of whatever whatever your beer is, it's not gonna matter, although as pappers said, the Pale Ale recipe in HTB is a good staring beer, my suggestion is pick a recipe or kit of a beer YOU want to drink..you know what you like commercially, so brew something like that. And stick to that recipe. If you want a strong beer, don't choose a normal gravity beer and decide that since you read about boosting gravity by adding more sugars to just add more sugar, choose a beet of the grav you want, just like if you wand a peach beer, don't choose a non fruit beer recipe and try to "figure out" how to add the fruit...get a kit or recipe that has everything you need in the right quantities you need. Recipes are about a BALANCE between flavors, bitterness, aromas, what have you, and until you get a few batches under your belt, and learn the fundamentals, stick with the already proven and balanced recipes. That way you don't have the extra step of trying to figure out what went wrong if the beer doesn't taste good.....if the recipe or kit already tastes good (and they would have gone through tastes tests and ALREADY before you got to them- you know they are already good, if not award winning beers, if you went with a kit or book recipe, they have been vetted) if there is something not right, you will have an easier time trying to figure out what went wrong in terms of your brewing PROCESS, not because you went off the ranch and on top of trying to actually learn to brew, you also through a bunch of crap into the equation.

 

[Kegcowboy]

Welcome. I recommend supplementing any written instructions with a search on youtube.com of "how to brew" ---if pictures are worth a thousand words then video is worth a billion.

 

[The-randypan]

Thanks pallets and kegcowboy I'll check out the sites and videos on YouTube.

Revvy, I was thinking of doing things naturally, from grains and such, iv done a couple of kit beers before and didnt really like them
I suppose I have some to learn thought first!! Lol. Thanks for the reply. I'm gonna go for the pale ale thing that peppers ( I think) recommended. I'll let u all know how it goes!!

 

[The-randypan]

Not pallets I meant peppers lol stupid iPhone!! Lol

 

[The-randypan]

Pappers even, doh again!!

 

[EdMerican]

Edworts Haus Pale Ale is a good one. It's done quickly, which is good for beginners because its a bit tough to learn patience with the first batch. I just bottled a batch after only 10 days on primary and it was tasty. Of course there's still the 3 week carbing phase, but it is pretty quick all things considered. He includes AG, partial mash and all extract versions of his recipe, and it can be found here:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f66/bee-cave-brewery-haus-pale-ale-31793/

Cheers and welcome to the addiction... I mean hobby...

 

[plonklab]

Thanks pallets and kegcowboy I'll check out the sites and videos on YouTube.

Revvy, I was thinking of doing things naturally, from grains and such, iv done a couple of kit beers before and didnt really like them
I suppose I have some to learn thought first!! Lol. Thanks for the reply. I'm gonna go for the pale ale thing that peppers ( I think) recommended. I'll let u all know how it goes!!

Of the kit beers you brewed what where they and what did you not like about them. You should be able to brew award winning beers from a fresh kit, at least something very drinkable. What styles do you like and what is available to you in the way of kits? Tin of goop / fresh wort?

I would be looking at nailing kits before moving onto all-grain. Just my opinion.

 

[Revvy]

Plonklab is right, I hate it but it more than likely NOT the kit's fault the beer turned out bad. Even the cheapest kit has been vetted and created by brewers BEFORE it became a commercial that a company is going to stake their name on assets on. It is more likely that you rushed the process, didn't pitch enough yeast, didn't watch your temps, didn't condition or bottle condition long enough, or a million other tiny tips that new brewer just don't know, and crappy instructions on beginner kits, don't state.

It really isn't the kit, or the method that makes great beer, it's the brewer and his process that makes great beer. In the right hands, even the cheapest, barest bones ingredient kits, can be transcended into really great beer.

That is attested to the fact that every now and then on here, a Mr Beer kit recipe ends up beating several hundred other beers in a comp.

So please don't allow yourself to fall into that trap. What you really need to do for a few brews is to stick with a good kit or two, and not deviate from the recipe, but use the tips and tricks throughout here to make that beer great.

Too many new brewers fall into the early trap of blaming the extract or the whatever for the fact that their initial beers may suck....rather than realizing that it's their beginner process that sucks....we all start out not knowing and understanding stuff, and each time we pick up a new idea, method, tip, trick, etc...THAT is what makes our beers improve....not the fact that we used this or that extract or skipped to all grain....all that might matter, in the hands of a good brewer, but an inexperienced brewer is gonna just as likely f- it up......

Read this old blog of mine for perspective Why can't we all just get along?

 

[DeafSmith]

Welcome, randypan. You'll find tons of useful info here. As for the difference between US gallons and English (Imperial) gallons, the US gallons are smaller.
5 Imperial gallons = 6 US gallons (if that's not exact, it is very nearly so).

 

[The-randypan]

Hi to plonklab and revvy.

I used the tin of gloop kits, just cos they were pretty cheap and that's all I knew at the time, I made several maybe even 5 or so but they all tasted a bit funny to me!! I think ur right in what u were saying maybe I just did it wrong they all had a what I can only describe as a dirty taste not clean and crisp. Iv got a feeling that I maybe didn't keep the temperature right and it was dropping at night then warming back up in the day!!

Anyways iv taken on board what u both said and I'm gonna start again using the gloopy kits in the tins and see where I get to start with.

Just a funny story I thought I would add, last year I decieded to make a alcoholic Ginger beer, anyways I made it and bottled it then a week or 2 later one of the bottles exploded and smashed through all the other bottles I had about 40 and was left with about 5 and a flooded Ginger beer floor!! Haha lucky it was in the kitchen on the Lino and not on the carpet! I was gutted!

Anyways thanks again, I'll let u both know how I go on!!

I'll read what u wanted me to read too revvy. Thanks. Andy.

 

[The-randypan]

Thanks to deafsmith too!!

 

[The-randypan]

Thanks to edmerican!!

 

[Doghouse-gav]

Hi randypan. I'm new Uk brewer too! Been into it for a few months. If your using the extract kits I can recommend the st peters ruby ale! Very very nice and easy to drink! To easy!!! I also really loved the John bull brown ale. It's like Newcastle brown ale if that's your bag.

Sent from my iPhone using HB Talk

 

[The-randypan]

Hi doghouse, don't know if u will read this but I have not upgraded to full membership and my inbox is full and even though iv been trying to delete some messages I cant for some reason!! I don't think I'll be able to until I upgrade which I'm thinking about not doing now as this site is pissing me off not letting me do stuff, I was gonna upgrade too but I am skint at the moment!! Anyways iv not gotten any of ur other messages if u wanna text me about brewing my number is07584128629 names Andy cheers mate.

 

[EricT]

Hi Randypan,

if you are converting recipes to Imperial gallons and such from US gallons you may want to use some sort of brewing software to make sure your beer comes out the way its suppose to. A descent free beer recipe calculator is here http://beercalculus.hopville.com/recipe#

Also, I would suggest reading How to Brew or maybe even The Joy of home Brewing. Welcome to HBT and Cheers.

 

[Brewsday]

Hi Randy,
You and I are in similar situations...I think I'm a couple months ahead. Plus I did manage to turn out a couple decent beers about 20 years ago. This forum, online stores and perhaps the huge variety of liquid yeast (altho I haven't used one yet) appear to be the big great changes since 1991! OK bottling buckets are cool too!
After much forum lurking on HBT, I got lucky and decided to make my first batch an IPA...since that's what I usually drink (Harpoon is my favorite $1/bottle brand). "Brew what you know". Turns out I made a couple rookie mistakes but the end result is drinkable (even tho I just bottled it 3 weeks ago). It's cloudy and sweet (hoping both improve with age altho cloudy may be the result of one of my mistakes) and I would have liked more hops (I used a TrueBrew kit without any improvisions).
As soon as the primary was empty I did up an Irish Stout from a recipe I had filed 20 years ago with comments "perfect...don't change a thing" (that's a good reason to take notes, huh?). I bottled it 10 days ago and a test bottle was carbonated and tasty already 4 days ago (and I bottled using DME).

Anyhow...if I may be so bold, let me make one strong suggestion...I just did my third batch (got wild and went for a lager since I live in Maine and cold fermenting is as easy as walking into the basement!).

The suggestion is, before you even start your yeast starter (something I believe in from 20 years ago), write yourself a step by step list of every major step including timing in minutes, hours and days when appropriate. This forced me to think things through and at several points I realized the generalized instructions that came with the kit needed me to do additional research and HBT held all the answers I needed...without even asking.

Anyhow, I just felt you might be able to use some of my very new and recent thoughts. GOOD LUCK.