Long time beer drinker and enthusiast now it’s time to brew from Newport Beach!

[LGHT]

My brother was co-owner of the best sports bar on Sunset strip for several years in my younger days so partying and beer have always been a part of my life. After college and then an fancy office job my pallet has refined so I’ve moved up from "40"s to more refined microbrews. In the last 10-15 years I’ve attended over 100 beer events, tastings, and festivals. I've toured breweries in over 30 states and 4 countries and typically spend a week or 2 in Oregon every year just for the beer.

Now that I’m getting older and the kids are getting bigger I have some spare time and need to make use of a beer making kit I got for xmas a few years back. The only thing the kit didn’t have was the boiling kettles so I picked up a few Bayou Classic Outdoor Boil & Brew 30qrt setups I got for next to nothing. I know it's not the fanciest setup, but it's a starting point. The wife carries a few degrees one in organic chemistry and she's also a certified pastry chef so she said she will be in charge of quality control so I won't f'up the batches.

Looking for some advice on how to get started? Should I got the scientific route and read a few books on brewing before I do anything, should I attend a seminar and or demo to get an idea and just ask lots of questions and take notes, or do I just run out to the local B&M picked up the things I need and go for broke? I'm in Newport Beach area and noticed a few local brewing clubs, but I'm not sure if those clubs are the type where guys that have 10 years of experience brewing get together and compete or if they are open to newbies like myself?

Any and all advice on how to start my new hobby is well appreciated!!

 

[Konadog]

Welcome to HBT!

If it were me, and I had never brewed before, I would check out a club near you, which you seem to already have found. I would have to say, any club member that is going to brew soon, would be more than happy to have you come over and watch/help and learn.

 

[Kharnynb]

basic brewing reading here on the forum's beginner area etc. should get you started if you are making kits.

Depending on the kind of kit, we can say more, also on how accurate the instructions are ;D

 

[Morrey]

I brewed extract kits back in the 80's, basically stopped and resumed a few years ago.

I picked up a book "How to Brew" by John Palmer. Even with some prior experience, the material was a bit challenging to me since I had not been involved for years. I read the book but most of it left me sort of scratching my head. I am more of a hands on learner, so when hops are discussed, I want to hold a bag of hops in my hand to touch, feel, smell and know what the discussion means.

I began by brewing a simple extract kit following the directions. I will admit, the first beer sucked, the second beer sucked, but the third started pulling out of the nosedive. Right upfront, I learned I needed some sort of way to control fermentation temperatures. This is critical especially in my SC climate.

After 3 kits I re-read Palmers book as I shifted to All Grain. With some first-hand experiences under my belt, I began to understand the language, the process, the ingredients....etc. My hands-on experience made all of the theory make sense now.

I learned the hard way by failure. In hind-sight, I should have joined a brew club where beginners are welcomed and encouraged. Locally, they even do a newbie brew night and all the participants put their fermenters in a communal temp controlled freezer. This is the way to go if at all possible.

Good luck, and have fun as you learn to brew.

 

[LGHT]

Ok thanks all for the tips. I think my step 1 will be joining a local club. There are a few I’m considering, but one has an open guest invitation for new brewers and it seems a few guys are open to allowing others to watch them brew so I’ll probably start with that club.

It may be easier to understand books if I can get an understanding of the basics and concepts of brewing first so it’s not a complete foreign language. Not sure how good the kit I got is, but I believe costs was around $500 or so. Now that I have the space and some free time on weekends it should be a fun journey.

 

[Kharnynb]

can you link us the kit content? would be interesting to see what it has/doesn't have, also at 500 it should be rather overkill...that's as much as i spent on gear in all my 5 years

 

[LGHT]

It was the deluxe kit from brewsupply.com and he added a few extra items. It also comes with a few classes and a few brewing kits I've yet to pick out. I've moved a few times so I need to gather all the boxes and bottles and supplies and get my gear in order before I do anything. I'll probably post all my gear to see what I also need to add to that before I do anything.


Our Deluxe Home Brewing System
Includes 6 gal. glass carboy primary fermenter, 5 gal. glass carboy secondary fermenter, 2 carboy handles, 6 gal. plastic bottling bucket, air lock and stopper, Auto-Siphon TM and hose, bottle filler, hydrometer, dial thermometer, twin wing bottle capper, 1 gross bottle caps, bottle brush, sanitizer and instruction booklet.

 

[azmark]

If they still honor the class, take that. And pick up a kit. Sounds like your missing a brew kettle, so you'll at least need a kettle. They can help you decide if you want to brew with a 3 vessel set up, brew in a bag, or extract. You'll need different equipment for whatever you decide.

 

[LGHT]

If they still honor the class, take that. And pick up a kit. Sounds like your missing a brew kettle, so you'll at least need a kettle. They can help you decide if you want to brew with a 3 vessel set up, brew in a bag, or extract. You'll need different equipment for whatever you decide.

They still offer the class, but I may not take it as it's a 2 hour drive probably 3 since it's a weekday and I no longer live in that area. As for the kit I already have the kit and for a brew kettle I picked up 3 Bayou brew and boil kits. Seems basic, but for $50 a kit I couldn't pass it up. Even if I need to buy a bigger than 30qt kettle it was still a good starting point.