What to do for first brew?

[jeder212]

I've never brewed a batch of my own, and looking for ideas. I know it may not be wise, but I'm really thinking about doing AG my first batch. I have just got a 30qt Al pot, and built a MLT today. I used Flyguys design. I used a 5 gallon rubbermaid water cooler only because I got the 5 gallon brand new for free. In the future I will get a 10 gallon, and just transfer all the hardware over. I'm thinking about Bee Cave Brewery Haus Pale Ale. It seems pretty easy and straight forward. I'm also a huge fan of stouts, so also thinking about trying to find an easy stout to make. What do you think? I'm open for ideas.

 

[BigKahuna]

Again I will make my vote for Ed's Haus Pale Ale.
Everyone else does it for their first AG.
I did it.
Now You should do it too.

 

[flyangler18]

Make Ed's Haus Pale. You won't be disappointed.

 

[Bob]

Depends on what you like to drink. EdWort's HPA is incredibly popular. But brewing a stout is no different, procedurally, than brewing HPA.

You can brew a Dry Irish Stout - a la Guinness - with a very simple grain bill. Follow the same procedure you find in Haus Pale Ale and you won't go far wrong. All you're doing is changing the ingredients.

7 lbs Pale Ale malt
2 lbs Flaked Barley
1 lbs Roasted Barley

1 oz Target pellets @ 9% - 60 minutes
0.5 oz Northern Brewer pellets @ 9% - 20 minutes

Ferment with Nottingham at ~65degF until finished.

Simple!

Whatever you decide, good luck to you. Starting with all-grain isn't as difficult as some might imagine. Have fun!

Cheers,

Bob

 

[jeder212]

Hey Bob, thanks for that. It's been a while, but I used to go to Easton quite a bit. My stepmother is from there, and still has a lot of family living there. That's a great recipe for the stout. Since this is my first time, and I'm really itching to do this, I may just go ahead and do both. I'll be doing this next weekend. Gonna spend this week making sure I have everything gathered up, and trying to get a ball valve on my pot.

Thanks everyone for the thoughts. Cheers!!

 

[Kevin Dean]

Ed's Haus Pale Ale is a great and tasty brew, it was my first all-grain. With that in mind, really, there's not too much of a difference between any brew that uses the standard ingredients. The difference is in what grains go in and when you add the hops to the boil so assuming you have all the ingredients, any beer is good.

All-grain is easy, it's the unknown aspects of it that make it "scary". RDWHAHB and you'll be fine.

 

[Saccharomyces]

I did AG on batch #3. Batch #3 I botched up, missed my efficiency, etc. and it still made good beer. GO for it, and have fun.

 

[TwoHeadsBrewing]

Again I will make my vote for Ed's Haus Pale Ale.
Everyone else does it for their first AG.
I did it.
Now You should do it too.

+1, this is a great recipe for a refreshing Pale Ale. If you have the equipment, go for All Grain...you won't miss much by not experiencing extract brewing. Just make sure to make up a "Brew Day Worksheet" so that you don't forget anything. BeerSmith is an excellent software tool for all grain brewing and it also creates a worksheet for you that helps keep things organized. Good luck!

 

[farmbrewernw]

I also did Ed's Haus Pale Ale but yeah as long as you keep the grain bill simple it doesn't really matter what you make as long as you like the style. I don't see any problem with jumping right into AG, you'll enjoy it and make some great beer. Welcome to the club.