What to brew first?

[drhusker18]

Just getting started and ordered 3 extract kits. Some time differences in finish. Got a hefe, brown ale, and citrus ipa. Each has a different finishing time 4-8ish weeks.

Should I start the longest one first and space out the earliers later for an on-time 3 beer finish or start the earliest one first to have my first taste quick?

At least I will have them all ready for summer....

 

[Kerrbrewer]

I would start with the fastest. That way you are enjoying some homebrew and have others started and in the pipeline. Be sure to set a few bottles of each aside and let them bottle condition for weeks/months so you can taste them at different maturity levels

 

[RM-MN]

The order you brew then depends a bit on how long it will take you to finish a batch. Your wonderful aroma from the citrus IPA will only last so long (my experience says 2 to 3 months and it starts to fade) so if you drink slowly, do this batch first. If you normally will drink up a batch in a month, then it is a bit of a toss-up with the hefe being ready to drink first but by only a few days to a week. The brown will improve with a bit more maturity so I'd do it last and let it sit while you enjoy the other 2.

 

[bobeer]

yea, I'd do the IPA first since you can drink them really fresh. Then do the other ones while you're enjoying your first homebrew. Good luck and welcome to the hobby!

 

[drhusker18]

Thanks for the info. I have read a few threads indicating different beers age differently.

Is there a typical "horseshoes and hand grenades" for how long home brews will last or the "enjoy by date"? Many craft beers I get locally have the best by date.

We have held on to some sweet wines too long for numerous and stupid reasons- and they were horrible.

 

[FlaglerBC]

Go with the here first. It will allow you to figure out the fermentation process. If a here gets too hot during fermentation you get tasty banana hefe flavors. Those you probably don't want those in your IPA or brown. Hefe is a forgiving beer to brew so go with that and use it as a learning process.

 

[Yooper]

Thanks for the info. I have read a few threads indicating different beers age differently.

Is there a typical "horseshoes and hand grenades" for how long home brews will last or the "enjoy by date"? Many craft beers I get locally have the best by date.

We have held on to some sweet wines too long for numerous and stupid reasons- and they were horrible.

Most lower alcohol beers, without complex flavors, don't age all that well. For something like a big imperial stout, that can age extraordinarily well.

Anything under about 6.5%, without roasted malt or oaking or other reasons it may need to age, or very hoppy beers like an IPA, are generally best within about 12 weeks but may not degrade too fast if kept cold. Keeping beer cold slows the aging process significantly.

Most "regular" beers will peak at about 3 months old.

 

[Homercidal]

I'd go with the Hefe, and watch pitch amounts and fermentation temps. Maybe read up on how that yeast works.

Then the IPA. Both of these will be best if drank early, but IMO the Hefe is a rather uncomplicated brewday, and will ferment and be drinkable really quick. The IPA might be right behind it in how soon it's "best", but the hefe is also likely to be the least expensive kit, so if you screw up it won't feel as bad (What am I saying? Everything will be FINE! )

Wheat beers are best fresh. Hoppy flavors tend to fade pretty quickly as well, so people like to drink them sooner.

High alcohol beers in general develop their best flavors over a certain amount of time, from a few weeks to more than a year or two.

 

[RM-MN]

I'd go with the Hefe, and watch pitch amounts and fermentation temps. Maybe read up on how that yeast works.

Then the IPA. Both of these will be best if drank early, but IMO the Hefe is a rather uncomplicated brewday, and will ferment and be drinkable really quick. The IPA might be right behind it in how soon it's "best", but the hefe is also likely to be the least expensive kit, so if you screw up it won't feel as bad (What am I saying? Everything will be FINE! )

Wheat beers are best fresh. Hoppy flavors tend to fade pretty quickly as well, so people like to drink them sooner.

High alcohol beers in general develop their best flavors over a certain amount of time, from a few weeks to more than a year or two.

I made an Imperial Russian stout last year about this time. It's finally getting ready to start drinking although I expect it to improve over the next year if I can keep from drinking all of it before then. I finished up a bottle of another stout at about the 2 year mark and it seemed to still be improving yet.

 

[eadavis80]

I would do the one that will finish the quickest first. You'll be craving your first homebrew once you get into this, so there is no point in delaying that first ever home brew. Once you get a solid pipeline going, one thing you MIGHT want to consider is using one beer's yeast for another batch. You can read more about harvesting/washing yeast in a zillion other threads, but in short - you can reuse the yeast from one batch for another if the beers work with the same strain.

 

[PADave]

Get yourself another fermentation vessel if you don't already have 2. That way you can brew more often!

 

[drhusker18]

I purchased 3!

Thanks for all the information fellas. Some good advice- but what I am hearing between the lines to to brew and brew often....

 

[GHBWNY]

In order, I'd go hefe, IPA, brown ale. As alluded to, the hefe can be consumed fairly soon, the IPA may lose a little (not a lot) of hoppiness as it ages, the nut brown will deepen with aging. I've done all three, stored all three for up to 9 months, and they all stayed strong to the *bitter* end.

And BTW, welcome!