First Brew Completed. Outstanding Success, I'm hooked

[thegreatbrewnorth]

Just tasted my first batch ever, an American Blonde Ale kit from Brooklyn Brewshop. 3 weeks in primary and 2 weeks bottle conditioning. Put one "sample" bottle in the fridge overnight. Just finished drinking.

I had no idea what to expect, I have always wanted to try brewing my own beer and bought the kit on a whim. Then, when I actually started reading and researching on homebrewing, I got intimidate with all the variables and care it takes to make a drinkable batch of beer.

That being said, I was very meticulous with the whole process, including sanitation, fermentation, bottling, etc.

My first brew is an official success. I'm no beer connoisseur (yet), but I know a good beer when I taste one. Perfect mouthfeel and carbonation, and tastes great..like a freshly poured draught american ale. This is a great relief, as now I can justify brewing more beer and expect to get better and better!

Gotta say thanks to all the info I learned on this forum, no doubt it made my first attempt at homebrewing a smooth and successful one.

 

[brewkinger]

Welcome to the Dark Side
:cross:

 

[1977Brewer]

There's no turning back now. You'll find yourself either 1. Trying to figure out how to brew a gallon a day, (seriously, look into this) or 2. Trying to figure out how fast you can get to 5 gallon batches, like tomorrow. I went for five, my first batch was pretty fantastic, bottling my second sometime this weekend. 10 bottles of beer disappear like magic.

 

[SnakeRidge]

Good beer disappears quickly. Get back to brewing!

 

[Hello]

That is wonderful. It's really a wonderful hobby and congrats!

 

[thegreatbrewnorth]

Way ahead of you haha!


A week after my first brew, I went to my LHBS and invested in all the equipment to brew 2.5 BIAB.

I decided on 2.5 BIAB because I felt that was a good compromise between yield and the space I have available (I live in a 680sq. ft condo with my girlfriend.)

I go overboard (I'm a bit of a perfectionist) with any hobby I get into, and have already built a temperature controlled fermentation chamber (that fits perfectly into my coat closet!) for lagering and storing my mini kegs. I also have a hard cider that will be ready to drink this weekend, although I don't consider that a brew since I just dropped some yeast into a gallon jug of organic store bought apple cider ( gotta keep the missus happy, she doesn't like beer as much as I do).


I'm the best man for my buddy's wedding this fall so next project is perfecting a recipe based on his favorite beer tastes to present to him at his wedding.

I also want to tackle a mead soon. Before I know it, I'll be sneaking to the furnace room of my building to install SS conical fermenters for my own covert brewhaus operation.

 

[SnakeRidge]

Way ahead of you haha!


A week after my first brew, I went to my LHBS and invested in all the equipment to brew 2.5 BIAB.

I decided on 2.5 BIAB because I felt that was a good compromise between yield and the space I have available (I live in a 680sq. ft condo with my girlfriend.)

I go overboard (I'm a bit of a perfectionist) with any hobby I get into, and have already built a temperature controlled fermentation chamber (that fits perfectly into my coat closet!) for lagering and storing my mini kegs. I also have a hard cider that will be ready to drink this weekend, although I don't consider that a brew since I just dropped some yeast into a gallon jug of organic store bought apple cider ( gotta keep the missus happy, she doesn't like beer as much as I do).


I'm the best man for my buddy's wedding this fall so next project is perfecting a recipe based on his favorite beer tastes to present to him at his wedding.

I also want to tackle a mead soon. Before I know it, I'll be sneaking to the furnace room of my building to install SS conical fermenters for my own covert brewhaus operation.

This guy gets it. Welcome to the obsession!

 

[HB_in_Subic]

Welcome to the obsession!

I have done the same as you (made a batch of pear cider for the Mrs) and it did feel like cheating in comparison to beer. I also made her a batch of Mango wine.

I too am going to make a mead this week. Read thru this thread https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f30/brays-one-month-mead-429241/ for pointers. Mead and wine are different than beer. They need lots of interaction from when the time the yeast is pitched until final gravity.

After a year, I am into a 3 primary system for beer and primary for a minimum of 3 weeks. I also have a pipeline of 120L (usually 3 batches in conditioning and the remainder a mix bag of 3-5 batches). Storage space is always an issue. Kegs are probably the best solution for you, I bottle.

Also, start a brew log and keep copious notes. This will help you troubleshoot in the future should anything be amiss. Investing in a hydrometer eliminates guess work and helps you sanity check when your brew is truly done. Also, you can't do meads and wine properly without one. Buy 2, you will break one and need one quicker than you can replace (don't ask me why, done that with 2 so far).