What was your first brew day like?

[MinnesnowtaBrew]

What was your very first brew day like?

 

[Hammy71]

Stressful and messy. But the beer still turned out awesome.

 

[unionrdr]

As I remember it (hey,I'm 56,it ain't easy!) it was a bit hectic & exciting at the same time. To the point Where forgetting things becomes dangerously easy. I had gotten the Cooper's micro brew kit that came with BE1,OS lager can,& the usual 7g cooper's ale yeast.
Starting at 2:13pm,per my notebook,with sanitizing with that lil bottle of cooper's bleach smellin powder. 1/30/11-All tools,etc into fermenter with hot cleaner/sanitizer even though they were new. I figured someone putting it together mighta not washed after dumpin a load or something. Rinsed at 3:20pm after ordering starsan & bottle tree from JW Dover (my lhbs).
got my 1st OG reading at 4:28pm...at 30C! Oops...
All this on 1/29/11 & the kerosene heater runs outta fuel to boot. Interesting the things you jot down in your notes. by 8:20am on 1/31,temp got doen to a better 22C & I started using my old work CPO to cover the FV. All kinds of little notations like the 1/2" of foam i got the night before was gone by morning,as I'd pitched dry & hot.
It's amusing to read this again after all this time & brews. Atm,I'm on day 4 of my 1st partial mash's fermentation. My how times change in the quest for better beer.

 

[LeBreton]

First batch went pretty well actually, skipped the kit and made my own extract clone of SNPA based on the experience of others. Walked to my LBHS and was about to get started then realized I had to buy a bigger pot from the local restaurant supply, ******* expensive! No boil-overs or other mishaps. Only wish I had done it partial mash instead of all extract.

Drank a beer and did the dishes while brewing.

Dropped it into the ice bath with 5 minutes to spare before having to lave for a short shift in the evening. Transferred to carboy when I returned 4 hrs later.

Had another beer as a reward for a job well done.

 

[Xpertskir]

Went fairly smooth until the chill. I did a full wort boil outside in a 10 gallon pot. Long story short I didn't have a vessel large enough to hold the pot and an ice bath. It was a work night and it started getting late. I ended up screwing around with a hose and a shower that only held 4 inches of water until 2 in the morning.

I bought a wort chiller the next day.

 

[JonM]

Well, I made a lot of mistakes but still got beer. I remember being excited, but focusing extra hard on every detail and following the kit instructions to the letter. A couple batches later I lightened up and realized that, hey! This is fun!

 

[Frige]

I picked up a Mrbeer kit from a resale shop for 4 bucks. I brewed it up on the stove and stuck it in the corner for 2 weeks then put it into the plastic bottles for 2 weeks. That was the most godawful stuff I ever drank. Almost no alcohol. But I was hooked, next batch was much better.

 

[Gixxer]

My first batch was a mr beer kit. Brew day went well, but since then I have had a few brew days that were quite "eventful"

 

[dryboroughbrewing]

I remember sitting down afterward and being very thankful that none of my burns required medical attention...

 

[unionrdr]

We sat down aftawards with shots & beers at the comp to watch videos. The fermenter stand is conveniently to the right...

 

[BootstrapBill]

I had two major mistakes:

Too much water pressure on my wort chiller - I dropped it in there and cranked it on and the line burst in the close to boiling wort.

Didn't close the lid all the way on my primary - had the lid on but not sealed all the way. I didn't see any bubbling in the airlock forever and wondered why.

It came ou infection free and delicious. It was a clone of Deschutes Red Chair. Very memorable.

 

[JonM]

Second brewday I had a boilover. Was still cleaning gunk off the stove at brewday #3.

 

[Dirty25]

I don't really remember, I got really drunk and that's it. I helped out a few brew times with people before my first brew day.

 

[nukebrewer]

I don't remember having any serious problem with the brew day itself. Just being paranoid about making sure that I was doing the right stuff at the right time and getting super giddy when I saw my first airlock bubble. My fermentation temp could've been a lot better, though.

 

[landshark]

Extract kit from LHBS, wife and I were both excited, sat the Turkey fryer in the kitchen, set off the smoke alarm while steeping. Moved it all onto the back porch. Read the instructions line per line. Added hops, all at once (time was on the next line) Whoops. Called a friend who had been brewing for a while to see if it was ok. Got it cooled down after the boil and put it in a 5 gallon water jug with an airlock then went to bed. Woke up next morning with krausen all over my spare bedroom. Rubber banded a paper towel over the top to prevent more spillage while I went to town to build a blow off tube.

Fun weekend. Bottling that batch was a ***** though. Tried to do it from a racking cane and couldn't keep a siphon. Ended up pouring the beer into most of the bottles. Still made beer. And I went to kegging immediately.