How Did You Get Started?

[donaldlohsl]

I'm very new to homebrewing and would like to receive an array of advice from veterans of the community about anything that I should know. When I say "very new" I actually mean that I don't even have the equipment. I am willing to invest in a decent beginners system with a couple of long-time pals. Any and all help will be greatly appreciated.

 

[masskrug]

Information gathered on this site and Youtube for DIY videos. I also read a lot of Palmer's book before I started.

I started with two pre-made extract kits. They are very simple and don't require much equipment.

 

[fartinmartin]

Buy in a fation that will allow you to grow into it, dont buy small.
Boil pot at least 7 gals for 5 gal brews. Assuming 5 gals brews is where you want to be.

 

[autonomist3k]

Take your time with your recipes, my first batch was undercarbed because the recipe I got from the homebrew shop said to use too little priming sugar. So double check everything before you brew.
Read palmer's book as mentioned above.
BYO is a great resource.
Start collecting bottles now.
A keggle is an affordable route for a brew kettle.
Don't be intimidated by all grain, it's easier than it seems, (assuming you want to get that into it)
If you have a question, type it into Google and hit enter, odds are it will be answered.
Fermentation temps can be around 5 degrees hotter than the air temp.

 

[neo71665]

Don't use brew shops as your only supply source. I get better deals on heavy duty commercial kitchen stuff from a local restaurant supply store. All my big pots and spoons have come from there and comparing to the stuff I've seen my Buddy's show up with from name brand brew suppliers I'll keep it that way.

 

[HistoryBrewing]

Before diving into equipment my wife and I took a brewing class from the LHBS (local homebrew shop). The hobby sounds amazing and everything but I would make sure you're in to all the cleaning and sanitizing that needs to be done. In my opinion the brew process isn't super intensive but there are a lot of steps and having that jump-off point of someone well versed in everything will make you so much more confident doing your first batch at home.

As far as equipment goes, you don't really need a couple friends to help out at all. Most LHBS sell beginner kits for around $75. You'll still need a stainless steel kettle and spoon (also stainless) but those can be had at Wal-Mart for about $20 combined. Since you're just starting out I would definitely go with a smaller kettle to keep it cheaper but you do want it to be at least three to three and a half gallons (I still use top-off water and have never had an issue). Of course, like any other hobby, you'll catch the bug and want to upgrade your equipment but there's no sense in jumping in the deep end when you've never done it yet.

Condensed Version: We took a homebrew class first ($65 for a four hour class which included a Dale's Pale Ale clone). I would recommend that route to anybody wanting to get into the hobby.

 

[dranderson]

My wife got a Mr.Beer kit and a couple of extract kits. We learned the basics of brewing in the little brown kegs before we moved to five gallon batches. We have been slowing purchasing equipment since then.

Read the stickys at the top of the beginners forum, a ton of info there. Everyone here had helped a bunch too. Some problems just need an experienced brewer to be solved. So don't be a afraid to ask for help.

Cheers!

 

[Darwin18]

My wife (then girlfriend) bought me a Coopers kit back in 2008 when I expressed some interest in maybe making my own beer. It was a good starting point, but I quickly outgrew the Coopers kits and have long moved on to all-grain. I do still use bits and pieces of that kit, particularly the Cooper's fermenter and that sturdy plastic spoon!

 

[fartinmartin]

I bought my brew pot 19 Litres and kick myself every time I use it ! It's far too small, even to start off with, GO BIGGER

 

[ericinthewoods]

Sanitization is the most important thing. If you bleach rinse everything until you think the bleach is gone, then rinse it twice more.

Don't get caught doing over-complicated recipes. Find a good recipe on this site or from a brewing mag and use it. Don't start with high gravity beer; when you do, read the forums about our mistakes and use a fermenter with a blowoff tube. Go to brewbuilder and see how the gravity, SRM, IBU and ABV change when you change ingredients. There are tables that tell you which products from which companies are interchangeable, use those when you decide to buy ingredients. Sanitize. Plan ahead, your LHBS may not have everything you need, but it's likely that if you give them a week notice you can get any roast of barley or hop strain. Brew with a couple friends, if something goes wrong extra hands are useful, this stuff weighs a lot (and you supply the beer for afternoon). Sanitize everything. Make sure your fermentation is done before bottling.

Yeast starters are helpful and easy, but probably unnecessary.

If you want to do extract first, thats often possible on your stovetop with a large pot (so you probably won't have to buy anything new). Decide now how in depth you'll want to go- if you're planning on going full bore, get a 7-9 gal stainless steel pot from the outset. A lot of equipment can be sourced cheaply from eBay and Craigslist, it'll save you money down the road. You don't have to get the largest thing you can find, but you'll be happier if after 4 brews you decide to make 5gal of 8% beer.

Share your beer. Get feedback.

And sanitize everything.

This post feels like a Baz Lehrman song

Don't forget the sanitizer.

 

[beergolf]

My wife gave me a beginners equipment kit for a gift several years ago. Once I got it I spent a lot of time reading this forum and looking at Youtube videos to get a good idea of the process.

Good luck.

 

[Clonefan94]

Back in about 1997 or so, my wife bought me a "Beer Machine" for Christmas. Basically pre-hopped cans, add water and yeast and it does everything in the vessel. Then when it's done you can also dispense from it as it holds pressure. Not the best, but it was a neat novelty. I'd mix a batch up a couple of times a year. In the end, store bought beer was still better.

Then in 2000, the wife bought me a Single tap kegerator, as we both enjoyed beer. Over the years though, a 1/2 barrel of BMC went from $52 to $102. At that point, I decided that for that price, I could easily just make my own. So, I started doing all the research I could, found this site, added two more taps to my kegerator for a total of 3, bought 5 corny's, a 10 gallon pot, a burner and jumped in head first. I wish I wouldn't have waited so long.

 

[rodwha]

I see mentioned to bypass any pot not quite large. I've been considering upgrading from my 5 gal aluminum pot, but I'm not sure about space (we are moving), and I'm not sure I'll be able to boil much more than the 4 gals I do. I LOVE brewing in the house as that smell lingers ALL DAY LONG!!!

If you intend on brewing indoors a 5 gal pot may be ideal. And it's possible that a thin walled aluminum pot would also be ideal as it'll transfer the heat well enough. If you are going outside then look into a turkey frier setup. They usually go on sale around Thanksgiving.

Buy an extra hydrometer and floating thermometer. You'll break them eventually!

Also, stock up on the little things that last a while such as hops, DME, dry yeast, and bottle caps. It's nice to have on hand if you are the type (as I am) to decide to make changes after your shipment from the brew store has arrived, as well as if there is a miscalculation or problem.

For aerating my beer I use a whisk. Whips it up quickly and easily!

 

[jpeebs]

PATIENCE IS KEY!!! I've been brewing for about a year and am just now learning how important it is. It'll be extremely tempting to pop a bottle after letting it sit for a week, but I've learned that if you can let it sit for a few more weeks, it's going to taste a lot better. I still usually pop one after a week or so to try it out, but I'm always disappointed. And I think this was said already, but sanitizing is one of the most important things. Dirty materials = dirty beer = bad beer. Just my two cents. Brew on!

 

[Clonefan94]

Sorry, had to head to a meeting so I didn't get to finish my post completely.

Basically, as others have said, patience is key. It's going to kill you to always look in the fermenter. It's going to drive you nuts to wait for the beer to really bottle condition. If you don't want to be disappointed, give the beer time to do it's thing.

Also, if you are going to buy a new brew pot, imo, don't start small and then spend more money moving up. Get enough to start out doing full boils. Unless you always plan on brewing indoors, on your stove, a 5 gallon pot or less, imo, is a waste of money. That is if you plan on ever moving your brewing out of the kitchen. Even an 8 gallon pot would be enough for a full boil, then worst case, if you moved up, it would probably still make a good hot liqour tank, but best would be 10 gallon.

Then especially watch your fermentation temps. Depending on where you are, even a gallon jug of ice next to the fermenter with a towel over it could be enough. (I always have a cool basement). So yeah, patience and fermentation control are probably the best things to watch.

 

[NickTheGreat]

I had been thinking about it for years. Read Palmers book from the library and decided to go for it. Luckily I have a great LHBS and bought my starter equipment and extract kit for ~$120. Had to supply a big pot, and already had a turkey fryer.

That went well, and slowly stepped up to AG.

 

[electrolight]

My tip from a beginner brewer... Don't expect to finish your beer in one evening with your first go at it. I don't care who you are talking to, set a full day aside for your first time. From the preparation to the cleanup it took me 12.5 hours... Now I had to do two partials, but it even without that it easily took longer than the 3 hours I heard people rambling about in the forums...

Assume it will be an all day thing... if it turns out your done early, congrats!

 

[rodwha]

How I got started....

I lost my job nearly 2 weeks before my daughter was born. I frantically looked for another job, but couldn't find one during the off season (A/C work). Since we had been concerned about what and where to keep our daughter as this day and age seems all too crazy we figured maybe this was our answer. What?!?! Me???

So I traded my work boots in on a pretty little skirt and took care of our daughter and cleaned the house. It took 2 years for the pride to finally digest, but looking back 4 1/2 years I wouldn't trade that time in on anything! She's daddy's little girl for certain!

I became good at my job at some point, and it turned out I had a little too much time on my hands. I pestered my daughter and wife just to pass the time. Well, OK, it's a genetic thing since we Hancock's just can't help but torment the ones we love the most. SWMBO had this bright idea that brewing my own beer would keep me occupied well enough and bought me a brew kit, pot, and a Cooper's kit. Beer had become a bit of my best friend as I had become stressed out having a hard time learning what "wha" meant when going through my little checklist showed that she was clean, fed, and well rested. We found out that we both greatly enjoyed walking with her either in the stroller or backpack carrier to the corner store for a 6 pack.

I was intimidated by the idea of brewing at first and so my kit sat untouched for quite some time, but I eventually brewed it (kinda as it was more like a destruction of a beer as I didn't understand temp control and created jet fuel that gave a nasty hangover after just 2 or 3 beers). I didn't make a quality beer until my third brew. 34 brews later and I'm finding myself quite happy brewing beer. My friends seem to enjoy it too!

 

[Setesh]

I actually started with wine. I had the idea of making Icewine for people for Christmas gifts. This went over extremely well and I ended up making a couple of batches of wine. When I was at the brewing store getting one of the wine kits I picked up a Coopers ale kit and gave it a whirl. That was ~8 years ago. Now I am putting the finishing touches on an EHERMS system. It's a very slippery slope this brewing hobby....

Most helpful resources I've found:
Learn to Brew by John Palmer. The book, not the website. The website is great but the book is way more current
The Brewing Network podcasts
This forum of course!

Largest impact changes to brewing quality:
Fermentation temperature control
Yeast starters

Best change for enjoyment of brewing:
Kegging - This mainly because I hate bottling so much. I also like being able to fine tune carbonation levels, but mainly I just HATE bottling!

Things I would change if I had it all to do again:
I would spend the money I spent on getting into all grain on fermentation temperature control and kegging, in that order. I would stay with extract until I had mastered fermentation (yeast pitching rates, temp control, fermentation schedule). Then and only then would I go to all grain. I made the jump to all grain way too soon because I thought that is how you make better beer. IMHO that was a horrible decision. I took tons more variables and threw them into a process I didn't have a good grasp on in the first place. I think this set me back quite a lot in my brewing education/mastery. Sometimes I would make really great beers, but I was horribly inconsistent. If I did the same beer three times in a row I got three different beers. If I had it to do over I would stick with extract until I could brew consistently, then I would do SMASH beers, then play with temps, dry hopping, hop schedules, etc. One change at a time, master that change, then move on.

 

[celticdevildog]

I bought the deluxe starter kit from Northern Brewer for my anniversary this year. I had been wanting to brew for a while and kept dropping hints to my husband (who didn't pick up on them), so I bought it myself. Three batches down since July and I already am plotting and planning how I'm going to upgrade and what I'm going to do for the next 3-4 batches!!

I can't recommend John Palmer's Book enough!! It is a great starting point even if you only read the first chapter. Trust me, you'll go back and read it several times. I think I read the first chapter 3 or 4 times before starting my first batch, and then again during the first batch. It is a great resource to have. I use both the online version linked above and have a hard copy.

Also, this site is great for information. The people are friendly and very good at giving their experiences.

Lastly, to reiterate what others have said:
1) Clean and Sanitize
2) Fermentation temps
3) Patience
4) Clean and Sanitize
5) Enjoy your beer!

 

[skitter]

I added a Mr. Beer kit to my Christmas list last year. This summer for my birthday I got given the Brewmasters Select kit from my Wife. I didn't have the heart to tell her that for the same cost she could have bought me a full 6g kit. It has been a blessing in disguise, I have limited funds so the smaller batches have worked to my advantage. That and the LBK fits perfectly under the bar.

 

[MindenMan]

I went through Pharmacy School 2 years ago, and was so freaked out about what could go bad, I just stared at the brew kit my wife gave me as a present many months before. When I found out there are no pathogens that hurt humans that will grow in my beer to be, I jumped on it and made a barely marginal Amber Ale PM kit. It took all day because I added way too much sparge water, and had to boil it off. I made a couple more PM kits, and then moved to AG. my BK was also my mash tun, and my lauter / sparge tun was made out of 2- 5 gallon buckets. I still use my 2 bucket tun setup, and I have been brewing good beer for over a year.

Edit: I still use my 5.5 gallon SS triple bottom pot as my mash tun. It is really thick and keeps the temps within 2 degrees for over an hour. I just got a 30qt turkey fryer setup new for $20.00 at Wally World. I had to wait
until they were on clearance to get the green light from the wife.

I guess my whole point is, you don't need a bunch of expensive equipment when starting out. Being creative with what you already have is always a real money saver.