Liquid flavor

[TwistedGray]

I'd recommend one of Northern Brewer or More Beer extract kits.

Once you have it, read through the directions provided, and all any questions before brewing. Best to be certain you understand each step than to make a mistake in the process.

Then you're good.

What styles of beer do you enjoy? Maybe we can offer suitable kits to match your style.

Also, general location where you're stationed? Maybe a HBT member is nearby?

 

[Neil humphreys]

Ok we’ll let’s start now. I’m in Fort Drum about 20 minutes from the Canadian border and about 2 hours from Syracuse. Type of beers I like..... good question. I tend to try new beers where ever I go (being in the army that means a move every three years lol). I remember trying the blonde beer from the Ram restaurant and micro brewery in WA if anyone can describe that. I’m also a fan of the original Shocktop. I don’t mind the new styles they have come out with but the original I find I can always go back to and enjoy. I’m originally from England and my tipple of choice there was nearly always Stella or Carlsberg export. I was born just south of Newcastle so Newcastle brown ale too but as we have discovered in this thread it doesn’t appear to be on the cards anytime soon lol. So sorry it’s kind of a large range. I’ve spent about 15 years over here so far so moved away from the lagers and more towards a craft style beer which I enjoy a lot more. I drank a lot of Bitters in England. Mainly from drinking with my dad etc so a Bass is something like that. I kind of like something with a unique flavor. The first beer I attempted to brew over here was a chocolate stout and wow that was good. Nice subtle Smokey chocolate after taste and an obviously high alcohol content because 2 bottles and I was hanging out my ass.

 

[kh54s10]

I would suggest a step up to a kit from Northern Brewer, Morebeer or other online retailer. I would also get a good 5 gallon equipment kit and save the MrBeer kegs for small experimental brews.

Read How to Brew by John Palmer - there is an online version and a hardcopy version that is updated.

Look at all the info here on HBT. Look at YouTube videos etc. Learn as much as you can and have fun brewing new and exciting beers.

 

[BrewInspector]

Looking at post 45 the top photo shows no signs that there was a fermentation. This is what some of them are talking about that you may have bottled unfermented wort.

Looking at the second photo with the bottle in front... about 1/2 inch above the surface there is a fine light colored line ringing the entire visible area. That would be the top of the krausen surface during fermentation that had since dropped. Not the ordinary amount of "krud" one might expect but not really all that rare. If that is the krausen ring then fermentation did occur.

Your water level in the airlock is too low. At that level the air could flow either way. Pressure from the CO2 will likely win but temp variation could cause a back flow. The slots in the inverted cup must be covered. Escaping gas pressure will then cause the bubble to escape. It may have been full when you started but it does not appear so at time of bottling.

 

[Neil humphreys]

I’ll have another look at the bottles in a few days time and see what the out come is for them. The next beer I will try to make from your suggestions above. I have about 3 months of training coming up so I won’t be able to start or do anything for a little while but once back I can get another brew going. Are there mail order companies that I can get the malt mix from and the hops and yeast etc? The HBS here has a poor selection and also couldn’t recommend the right yeast to use for the beer I was trying to make.

 

[TwistedGray]

I’ll have another look at the bottles in a few days time and see what the out come is for them. The next beer I will try to make from your suggestions above. I have about 3 months of training coming up so I won’t be able to start or do anything for a little while but once back I can get another brew going. Are there mail order companies that I can get the malt mix from and the hops and yeast etc? The HBS here has a poor selection and also couldn’t recommend the right yeast to use for the beer I was trying to make.

A few of us provided suggestions, use those.

 

[Neil humphreys]

Sorry. Been on 24 hour duty and head still isn’t straight. Just checked back and I’ll check them out. Thank you.

 

[TwistedGray]

Sorry. Been on 24 hour duty and head still isn’t straight. Just checked back and I’ll check them out. Thank you.

No worries, look into any of the ones we suggest. You couldn't go wrong with those

 

[bpgreen]

I started with Mr Beer many years ago (before they were bought by Coopers). You can make good beer with a Mr Beer setup. The biggest drawback is that you can't make as much at one time.

In the picture in post 45, it looks like there's a layer of trub on the bottom. If so, that means it fermented, even though there's no krausen ring. It's unusual not to have a krausen ring, but if it fermented really slowly, it's possible.

Did you take a taste before bottling? The instructions used to say to take a taste. If it's sweet, it's not done; it should taste like flat beer if it's done. A hydrometer is a better way to check, but I used the taste test for my first few batches.

I'm curious about the airlock. Mr Beer fermenters usually don't have airlocks. Instead, they have notches in the keg to allow air to escape during fermentation and rely on a layer of carbon dioxide on to of the beer to keep the air out. I think they call that a passive airlock.

 

[Neil humphreys]

Yeah I’d never seen an airlock like that before either but I can see the concept of it. The air builds up and pushes the cup up. The air then travels through the water under the cup and out into the container and out the top of the airlock. Simple but effective I guess lol. I did not taste the beer unfortunately but the guys who tasted it the other week said it tasted like wine to them.

 

[TwistedGray]

Yeah I’d never seen an airlock like that before either but I can see the concept of it. The air builds up and pushes the cup up. The air then travels through the water under the cup and out into the container and out the top of the airlock. Simple but effective I guess lol. I did not taste the beer unfortunately but the guys who tasted it the other week said it tasted like wine to them.

Yeah, these are common airlocks. I think the previous poster was just making an observation that the kits used to not come with an airlock.

 

[Neil humphreys]

Ok so it’s been a hot minute and I took a bottle and refrigerated it for a day. Cracked it open tonight and....... it hissed when I cracked the lid but the taste is like straight vinegar. There is. I other words to describe how terrible it is.

 

[ncbrewer]

Damn. I really hate that.