Newbie...

[SpeedCheeser]

Hey, guys (and gals, if there are any around). I've been reading a bit about homebrewing - "Homebrewing for Dummies" - and am going to finally start once I move into my new apartment with a friend in a couple weeks/months. I'm getting really excited and can't wait to give it a try. Anyhow, any tips (or even secret recipes ) are definitely welcomed and appreciated.

Thanks,

-SpeedCheeser-

 

[RichBrewer]

Welcome to HBT!
You will find lots of helpful information here.

 

[talleymonster]

Welcome!

One tip I'll give you is this:

Don't drink too much on brew day, at least until after you're done brewing. I woke up one morning with beer in a carboy....but I don't remember putting it there!!!

 

[SpeedCheeser]

Welcome to HBT!
You will find lots of helpful information here.

Thank you. That's what I'm here for. I intend to spend a few hours here a week just kinda poking around and picking up what I can. I learned just about everything I know about cars through a forum, so I figured why can't I do the same here, with beer!

 

[SpeedCheeser]

Welcome!

One tip I'll give you is this:

Don't drink too much on brew day, at least until after you're done brewing. I woke up one morning with beer in a carboy....but I don't remember putting it there!!!

Hahaha. That's great. I'll try to keep that in mind...but I guarantee nothing.

 

[kenche]

I haven't read the book that you mentioned, but I encourage you to read this free online book.

I also would encourage you to avoid any "beer kits". These are much like a "just add water" cake mix. Although the finished product is certainly a cake, it will most certianly taste like s h i t.

An "Extract with Specialty Grains" recipe will give you a much better beer. To do this however, you will need at least a 2.5 gallon pot. The rest of the equipment is no different than the "beer kit".

Good luck. If you want, you can make some phenomenal beer!

 

[Sir Humpsalot]

Welcome.

It's just too bad that tradition dictates you send your first 50 bottles of homebrew to the people who helped you brew. And just to make sure that I helped, I offer you this important advice:

Make sure you stir the stuff a bit.

Anybody who disagrees with that advice simply does not know what the hell they are talking about.

 

[SpeedCheeser]

I haven't read the book that you mentioned, but I encourage you to read this free online book.

I also would encourage you to avoid any "beer kits". These are much like a "just add water" cake mix. Although the finished product is certainly a cake, it will most certianly taste like s h i t.

An "Extract with Specialty Grains" recipe will give you a much better beer. To do this however, you will need at least a 2.5 gallon pot. The rest of the equipment is no different than the "beer kit".

Good luck. If you want, you can make some phenomenal beer!

It's not a bad book, really informative. I feel like I know half of what everyone is talking about already, but on the other hand feel like most of the rest is going to come from experience and talking to other people with experience. And I will definitely check out that online book. Thank you so much for the link.

Yeah, the local homebrew supply store gives you hopped malt extract and yeast when you buy the equipment starter kit. But I'm going to see if I can get them to trade it for plain DME and hops. And maybe buy a couple pounds of grain to try out. I'll just try to find a really simple recipe that doesn't have a whole lot in it yet. But I plan on doing all DME/steeped specialty grain brewing, at least for the first year or so.

Thanks!

 

[SpeedCheeser]

Welcome.

It's just too bad that tradition dictates you send your first 50 bottles of homebrew to the people who helped you brew. And just to make sure that I helped, I offer you this important advice:

Make sure you stir the stuff a bit.

Anybody who disagrees with that advice simply does not know what the hell they are talking about.

Thanks.

And anyone who wants to come down for the cracking of the first bottle is definitely welcome to some! Speaking of which...when it comes time to bottling, is it acceptable to bottle in 5 1-gallon jugs with stoppers instead of 53 bottles?

When you say stir, do you mean during the boil or before fermentation, etc?

 

[uniconfis]

Thanks.

And anyone who wants to come down for the cracking of the first bottle is definitely welcome to some! Speaking of which...when it comes time to bottling, is it acceptable to bottle in 5 1-gallon jugs with stoppers instead of 53 bottles?

When you say stir, do you mean during the boil or before fermentation, etc?

Only if you plan on drinking a gallon at a time. That's hard core man. When you say "with stoppers" what are you refering to? You need to make sure it has a tight seal to support the carbonation.

You'll want to stir the wort to prevent the extract from burning on the bottom of the pot. You'll also need to stir the wort in the fermentation bucket/carboy to ensure a good mix of your boiled wort and water and also proper aeration.

Don't forget to use your hydrometer to test the gravity at the beginning middle and end of your brew. Good luck and welcome

 

[Yooper]

Most one gallon containers aren't designed to hold pressure so they probably won't work. Not to mention that that's alot of beer to drink at one sitting! But, you can bottle in 22 ounce bottles, etc. and it's not so bad. I bottle all of my beer (no kegging equipment) and I use a mix of 12, 16 and 22 ounce bottles. I use some Grolsch style bottles and some regular type bottles and it goes pretty fast. Start collecting bottles now (Sam Adams bottles work great!) and stay away from the twist offs (Bud Light, etc) if you can.

Steeping grains and dry malt extract are a great way to go to make good beer so I think that is a good plan.

And, welcome to HBT!

 

[SpeedCheeser]

Thanks for the replies.

I don't know what you're all talking about, a gallon isn't that much. :rockin: J/K So I guess you say in one sitting because once it's open carbonation escapes and beer goes flat?

That just reminded me of another question, or more points of clarification.

Steeped grains do not add any fermentable sugars (in significant amounts at least) to the wort, and therefore don't affect the ending alcohol content, correct? Do they affect the gravity at all?

Also, is there any difference in using a LME as compared to a DME, other than the potential mess using a syrup?

Thanks (I promise these will be the last questions I ask in my intro page!)

 

[mrk305]

If you are close to a home brew supply, liquid is usually cheaper. Same stuff, basically, but powder has to go through another step.