Homebrew MUST Haves

[Jordan Logo]

We all know the essentials... kettle, spoon, grains, hops, etc. but what homebrew items do you consider essential/helpful to your everyday brew life?

For me it has to be a quality propane burner. Mine heats up my wort to a boil in about 10-15mins which makes my brew day that much shorter... not that I want it to be over ):

What about you? What are your brew essentials?

 

[fourfarthing]

kitchen scale that measures in grams.

 

[day_trippr]

Temperature controlled fermentation...

 

[MaxStout]

A good digital thermometer. For hitting mash temps those shiatty $10 dial thermometers from the LHBS won't cut it.

 

[OnePlate]

Small plastic cups for holding hops, brewing salts, tasting/gravity samples and whatever other kettle additions. I like the Chinet 9oz cut crystal cups.

For non-brew days, for pulling samples to taste and check gravity with my refractometer, I've found a 10ml serological pipette and pipette pump to be invaluable. Long as hell, simple to sanitize, only needs to go a little bit into the beer and the pump sucks out a couple quick pulls. In and out of the carboy in seconds.

 

[seatazzz]

Ferment fridge, hands down. Back in the day when I used a swamp cooler, I had a 50/50 chance that any particular brew would turn out well; now that I have reliable means to keep the fermentation temperature where it needs to be, almost all of my beers for the last year have been good, and some have been stellar. And to be able to brew lagers....oh heaven. Close second is the sight glass I finally got for my keggle; now instead of using the timer for my hop additions, I just keep an eye on the volume and add them according to that.

 

[Blazinlow86]

Fermentation temps control most definitely. Cheers

 

[Lefou]

A good digital thermometer. For hitting mash temps those shiatty $10 dial thermometers from the LHBS won't cut it.

A couple triple scale hydrometers, one analog and one digital thermometer, and a digital scale. Debating on a refractometer.
The one single thing I can't do without is an accurate thermometer on my mash kettle. The rest of the stuff tends to get hidden because it has applications for people who tend to "borrow".

 

[Pkrd]

Patience

 

[grampamark]

Homebrew. Charlie P. said "it takes homebrew to make homebrew", so, keeping the pipeline full is a must-have.

 

[Soulshine2]

hard to pinpoint one or few items that I have to have for brew day or the flipside the one or two things I couldnt brew without...when in reality..I need ALL of it.

 

[cloudybrewer]

Close second is the sight glass I finally got for my keggle; now instead of using the timer for my hop additions, I just keep an eye on the volume and add them according to that.

Forgive the hijack and my ignorance, but can you explain how that works? Are you using boil off rate to calculate time?

 

[OG-wan Kenobi]

Wort chiller 100%
Hydrometer kit is also very nice to have

 

[ramjam]

good wort chiller, pump, and auto siphon

 

[IslandLizard]

A few sacks of base malt, a variety of crystal/specialty malts, flaked goods and bulk hops (in freezer) on hand. Plus a good assortment of yeast strains in the fridge.

I can brew anytime I want.

 

[kevin58]

My list keeps growing. The first must have of mine was a grain mill. My beer improved by leaps and bounds.
Next was a Denny Conn design Coleman 100qt mash cooler. Now I can do big beers!
Now that I was making big gravity beers, a stir plate for making starters was a must.
Recipe design software. I discovered ProMash (still supported at the time) and now designing my own recipes was a breeze.
Pumps!. No more moving hot liquid by hand.
Kegging! No more taking over the kitchen to package my beer.
Temperature control and yeast health. Again, my beer improved by leaps and bounds.
Electric brewing. Another leaps and bounds improvement.
Then there are the accumulated items that are easy to over look... a good hydrometer, keeping a brew journal, cleaning tools, a trusted local homebrew supply store, a club or brewing friends to bounce ideas off of and learn from. But the biggest must have is that spark of desire to make beer. The thing that drew so many people to Charlie Papazian's kitchen for his casual learning sessions back in 1978... the thing that still drives us all today.

 

[HiImBrian]

Lots of great things already said, so I'll add Brewing Software.

I've used Beersmith for a few years and I love the ability to save past recipes as well as the brew day timers etc.
I'd also second:
- Good thermometer
- Temp controlled fermentation
- Pumps
- Site glasses
- Refractometer

 

[kh54s10]

Fermentation temperature control is my #1

There are tons of other items that you have to have.
And many more that make things easier. Those will vary from person to person.

To me thermometer, scale, hydrometer and some others fall into the category of essentials. You should have them regardless....

 

[seatazzz]

Forgive the hijack and my ignorance, but can you explain how that works? Are you using boil off rate to calculate time?

Yep. When I got it installed I loaded it with 7 gallons of water, got it to a boil, and timed it. Came up with an average of 40 minutes/gallon at a hard boil. Did one brew with it so far, and came out almost dead on 5.5 gallons in the fermenter as I intended.

 

[kh54s10]

Yep. When I got it installed I loaded it with 7 gallons of water, got it to a boil, and timed it. Came up with an average of 40 minutes/gallon at a hard boil. Did one brew with it so far, and came out almost dead on 5.5 gallons in the fermenter as I intended.

It would seem to me that if your boil off rate was right for the timing, it would be easier to use a timer for the addition of hops than to guess at the timing based on the level of the wort in a sight glass. Beersmith has a timer that beeps when it is time to add something. No hovering over a sight glass looking to guess if it is at the right level for an addition. But, as always - it is whatever works...

 

[CascadesBrewer]

One small thing that helped me was 1) over a few brew sessions I made a list of all the things that I needed to get from the kitchen (I brew on my back patio) 2) I purchased those items to keep in a bin with my brew supplies. This was mostly cheap stuff like scissors, spoons, timer, measuring cups, etc. Now, the only thing that I share between brewing and my kitchen are my digital scale (purchased for brewing but use it for espresso) and a few small glass measuring cups (I should probably pick some up for brewing...only needed them since I started taking pH readings).

Also, advice that I have for any new brewer...for any item you use post-boil, only use an item that is dedicated to your brewing. Make those items stainless or glass where possible. Never let something like an old plastic spoon or a baster used for a Turkey touch your wort/beer.

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

I've found that grain and hops are pretty much must haves... I mean maybe not hops, if you're into gruit... But I like the hops.

Yeast helps, too.

Oh, and water. Gotta have water. Can't really brew beer without it.

 

[balrog]

A long-suffering and understanding significant other

 

[beernutz]

Starsan

 

[Blazinlow86]

Starsan

And here comes Jonny....... Lol

 

[CascadesBrewer]

I've found that grain and hops are pretty much must haves... I mean maybe not hops, if you're into gruit... But I like the hops.

I have mostly just been open fermenting tap water these days. My NEIPA loving buddies say my beers are not hoppy enough and lack mouthfeel, but what do they know?

 

[Pkrd]

Thirsty friends.

 

[OnePlate]

A long-suffering and understanding significant other

Or a significant other that gets excited by what you're currently brewing for her.

 

[OnePlate]

Oh, thought of another MUST have - flexibility with your brewing schedule! Be willing to let your mash go long or put off starting your boil if you have small kids who refuse to take their naps on time.

 

[Spikybits]

A helping hand. Sometimes I feel like mutating a 3rd arm would be a godsend.

 

[grampamark]

A long-suffering and understanding significant other

Or a significant other that gets excited by what you're currently brewing for her.

Or a spouse who has a hobby that makes the cost of homebrewing look like a rounding error in the typical household budget (my wife is a quilter).

 

[seatazzz]

It would seem to me that if your boil off rate was right for the timing, it would be easier to use a timer for the addition of hops than to guess at the timing based on the level of the wort in a sight glass. Beersmith has a timer that beeps when it is time to add something. No hovering over a sight glass looking to guess if it is at the right level for an addition. But, as always - it is whatever works...

I do agree with you, to a point; my issue has always been overthinking, and further to that, thinking that I should increase the boil time to get my volume where I need it. And for a few brews, that meant having less in the fermenter than I intended. Now that I have done the boiloff test, and the math, it makes more sense to add the hops based on the volume rather than the boil time. I still keep an eye on the timer, but my main goal is to have the right volume at the end of boil. If the sight glass says done, but the timer says 15 more minutes, I'm going to agree with the sight glass. If my gravity winds up a few points off my target, I'll mark it down to experience and work more on my starting volume. Either way, I'm making beer; a few ABV percentage points doesn't bother me a bit. Currently sipping on a truly delicious light (4.6%) lager that was done with paying attention to the volume rather than a hard and set timer, which wound up at just the right volume & SG based on my math. Of course, to each his/her own, but this worked for me.

 

[balrog]

Or a significant other that gets excited by what you're currently brewing for her.

And if wishes were horses then beggars would ride.
My better half detests beer. The smell, the taste, the aroma of the boil, and even the heavenly luxury that is the mashing of the malt.

Sigh.

 

[Soulshine2]

A few sacks of base malt, a variety of crystal/specialty malts, flaked goods and bulk hops (in freezer) on hand. Plus a good assortment of yeast strains in the fridge.

I can brew anytime I want.

^this

 

[Soulshine2]

Or a significant other that gets excited by what you're currently brewing for her.

as the old saying goes and stands true...If mama aint happy, nobodys happy.
Happy Wife ,Happy Life.

I keep a hef around just for my wife. But she does enjoy my hobby and likes my other brews .

 

[kh54s10]

I do agree with you, to a point; my issue has always been overthinking, and further to that, thinking that I should increase the boil time to get my volume where I need it. And for a few brews, that meant having less in the fermenter than I intended. Now that I have done the boiloff test, and the math, it makes more sense to add the hops based on the volume rather than the boil time. I still keep an eye on the timer, but my main goal is to have the right volume at the end of boil. If the sight glass says done, but the timer says 15 more minutes, I'm going to agree with the sight glass. If my gravity winds up a few points off my target, I'll mark it down to experience and work more on my starting volume. Either way, I'm making beer; a few ABV percentage points doesn't bother me a bit. Currently sipping on a truly delicious light (4.6%) lager that was done with paying attention to the volume rather than a hard and set timer, which wound up at just the right volume & SG based on my math. Of course, to each his/her own, but this worked for me.

I don't really understand the need for this. I figured out my boil off 7 years ago. I use Beersmith to make my recipes. I use the strike water volume, batch sparge to the volume I know that I need for preboil. The difference made by ambient temperature and humidity only vary the volume going into the fermenter by about a tenth of a gallon one way or another. This from 30 degrees ambient to 90+ and high humidity. The final volume doesn't change much at all.

 

[McKnuckle]

"Patience" is the best answer. There are many good answers, but as far as gear goes, I vote for Cornelius kegs (and the various accessories required to utilize them).

I think the importance of hot side equipment is over-stated. Too many new brewers are obsessed with huge, shiny kettles with many ports, pumps, etc. - but are somehow not ready to invest in kegging yet.

The brew day is over in a few hours, and wort is actually easy to make if you understand the principles. I could make wort with cheap ass equipment if I had to.

Even fermenting, which is a critical process for sure, is easy to do as long as you manage yeast, control temperature, and keep out oxygen. Many different types of vessel can be used if you are a bit crafty. The vessel itself isn't the most important part.

But serving? This is where the beer will remain for the longest time in its life - in the package. It needs to be kept fresh, cold, sealed, carbonated, dark, and sanitary for weeks to months.

There are not that many practical options for serving. Bottles are a pain in many ways - cleaning them, physically filling them, getting the right amount of sugar in them, keeping out oxygen, not tipping them over, carbonating them correctly, storing them properly...

Kegs are amazing packages. They are very easy to use and perfectly designed for what they do. And you can ferment in them, too!

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

Or a significant other that gets excited by what you're currently brewing for her.

Or even better, one that hangs out during brew day and helps.

 

[Immocles]

Or a spouse who has a hobby that makes the cost of homebrewing look like a rounding error in the typical household budget (my wife is a quilter).

Ha! Yep. My wife doesn’t quilt, but she has knitting projects all over the house. It amazed me how much a ball of yarn can cost. It’s in another league in comparison to the cost of most of my supplies. It’s nutsssssss.

 

[tsholl]

A spray bottle with Star San, and lots of paper towels.