Homebrewing

[bubba]

I'm looking at getting into homebrewing my own beer. Who else is doing it? I'm looking for some beginner tips, supplies, suppliers, etc... I tried googling a bit, and haven't seen too many beginner setups and stuff....

[collecture]

I've got a set-up, but have gotten around to messing with it yet.

[mznb1u]

Bubba,

I have been homebrewing for many years.

Step One:  Buy "The Joy of Homebrewing" by Papazian

This book has many good recipes and the first several chapters give great advice on everything from homebrewing from extract syrups through full grain brewing.  Try a recipe that uses a pilsner yeast first.  The lager yeast require cooler temperatures for proper fermentation.  Also, if you can use fresh hops--they are better than the pellets.

HINT:   When you are boiling the wort do not take your eyes off the pot for too long.  A boil over onto your cooktop will create a carmelized mess that will be worse than any soda machine mess you have ever cleaned up!  Been there, done that! 

Step Two:  Buy a gallon of bleach

Everything that comes in contact with your beer during the brewing, fermentation and bottling process must be absolutely clean.    I thought that it was no big deal when I first got started and I ended up dumping 10 gallons of beer down the drain. 

The good news is that there is nothing that can grow in beer that can kill you but bacteria will foul the taste of the beer even if it looks like perfect brew--that is what happened to me.  When I am working with my homebrew brewing, fermenting or bottling; I always keep one side of the kitchen sink filled with a bleach water solution.  Anything that touches the beer should be sanitized and rinsed first.

Step Three:  Buy two or three 5 or 6 gallon carboys.

The carboy's work better than the buckets although both will work.  The glass is easier to keep clean and it allows you to see what is happening in your beer during fermentation.  If you watch the classifieds for beer making or wine making equipment you can usually find them cheap.

Step Four:  Start collecting bottles that are not screw off tops.

Sam Adams bottles work well and the long necks will fit a lot of soda machines.  If you live in a state that requires bottle/can deposits you can exchange your pop cans for the glass bottles that you need.  There is no reason to buy new bottles if you don't mind cleaning them.  Bottling can be a time consuming process when you figure that a five gallon batch will result in 60 twelve oz. bottles of beer.  What I have resorted to is using the 22 oz. Sam Adams bottles.  Fewer bottles to fill when bottling and lets face it--you are going to have more than one beer! 

Step Five:  Always keep your bottles clean.

If you are going to empty those Sam Adams bottles for your home brew--make sure to rinse them out very well immediately after consumption.  You can soak them in the laundry tub overnight to get the labels and glue off.  A plastic scouring pad works well to get everything off.  Then you can run the bottles through the dishwasher on high heat.  Stand them on end on the posts in the bottom rack.  You can time the cleaning of the bottles for when you are bottling but make sure that bottles cool before bottling.

Step Six--this one is the hardest:  Avoid the temptation to drink your home brew too soon.

You need to allow the beer time to carbonate and finish in the bottles--at least 6 weeks--8 to ten weeks is even better.  If you drink it too soon it will taste okay but not as good as it will if you wait.  Plus, your home brew will keep for a long time if you store it away from sunlight and in a cool place like your basement.

Step Seven--lather, rinse, repeat!

Have fun with the hobby.  The hardest thing about homebrewing is all of the cleaning and the amount of time it takes.   

Let me know if you have any questions.  I am happy to assist if I can!

Tim

[90grad]

I used to do this and got all my stuff from Williams Brewing.  One thing I was glad I bought was a wort chiller.  It cooled down the mixture quickly, using circulated water through a coil.  The thing hooked up to your sink faucet.

www.williamsbrewing.com

[bubba]

Thanks for the info Tim.... I was wondering about all the cleaning.... I saw a kit on line that had the carboys.... I was looking at getting a starter kit...

You can't crimp caps onto a twist off bottle? What color bottles do you use?? I guess brown if its Sam Adams...

What is the blowoff?? I've seen a few different types...


Thanks for the link Wayne...

[bubba]

OK... I got my goodies to start making beer. I got this starter kit...

Brewers Best DELUXE Beer Making EQUIPMENT Kit - Brewer's Best DELUXE Equipment Kit (Item #1002) Contains: 6.5 Gallon Ale Pail Primary Fermenter with Drilled and Grommeted Lid, 6.5 Gallon Ale Pail Bottling Bucket with Bottling Spigot, 5 Gallon Glass Carboy, Home Beermaking Book, Easy Clean No-Rinse Cleanser, Twin Lever Capper, Triple Scale Hydrometer, Airlock, Drilled Universal Carboy Bung, Liquid Crystal Thermometer, Siphon Hose and Shut-Off Clamp, Fermtech Auto Siphon, Bottle Filler Stick, Bottle Brush, Equipment Instructions and a Quality Wine and Ale Supply exclusive one gross (144) of bottle caps at no additional charge.

I was doing some reading, and got a few questions... I got a kit for brewing American Ale... all ingredients included...

This brewing kit came with a fermenting bucket and a carboy.... All the instructions they sent all involve the pail. Does the carboy get used the same way instead of the bucket? I don't want to create a bottle bomb...

Storage-- During fermentation, it should be in a cool dark place away from sunlight and florescent... I guess a closet is a better place? I probably have to move this 40 feet to the kitchen each time for transferring.

What comes out of the blowoff? Liquid or gas? How strong is the smell? The closet I'm thinking of is in the bedroom..

I think the cleaning has been burned into my head. I also think I can make one of those wort chillers at work for a whole lot less...

Hopefully, I'll be starting my first batch by the weekend.. 

[mznb1u]

Bubba,

The blow-off that they are referring to is the initial fermentation "boil".  About 24 hours after you pitch the yeast into the wort, the yeast will begin multiplying and fermenting the beer.  The first few days the "activity" of the process will be very vigorous and the wort will almost look like it is boiling.  During this process, the yeast is releasing a lot of CO2 as it consumes the sugars in the wort and converts them to alcohol.  If you are using the carboy for your primary fermentation vessel it will be important to install a blow-off tube during the first few days as a heavy layer of foam will appear on top of the wort and depending on the level of the liquid in the carboy--it can boil over.  During the first few days of fermentation, I keep the carboy on the kitchen counter near the sink.  I usually run a blow-off tube through the hole in the stopper and connect a length of clear hose to the tube.  I then place the other end of the hose in a container of water in the sink.  This will allow the CO2 to escape without allowing outside air back into the carboy.  The container of water will also catch any liquid that might bubble out of the hose.  Once the fermentation settles down and the foam layer shrinks, you can remove the blow-off hose, install the air-lock and move the carboy out of the way of the "War Department".

Being that the kit only has one carboy, I would use that for the secondary fermentation stage (I will explain later).  It sounds like the bucket has a lid with a center hole in the top.  If that is correct, you should be able to fashion a blow-off tube that will work for that.  After the fermentation settles down a bit you should be able to install the air-lock on the bucket.  The CO2 that is released does have a slight odor of hops but it is not overbearing.

I usually do a secondary fermentation stage after about two weeks.  At that time the fermentation in the bucket will have settled down quite a bit but the air lock will be releasing CO2 bubbles several times a minute.  The main reason that I like to do a secondary fermentation is to transfer the wort and remove the large layer of spent yeast that will have accumulated at the bottom of the bucket.  This will not hurt your beer if you don't do it but it will eliminate some of the clean-up after bottling.   After I transfer the liquid over to the carboy, I usually place the bung in the top and give the carboy a few good shakes.  Don't drop it or you will have one hell of a mess!  This will stimulate the wort a bit and get the fermentation going again.  Do not bottle the beer until the air-lock stops bubbling or at least until it is 3 to 5 minutes between bubbles.  Your beer will be sweet if you do not allow for full fermentation of the sugars.

A good trick to keep sunlight from getting to the carboy is to take a brown paper grocery bag and cut a hole in the center of the bottom that will allow the air-lock and neck of the carboy to pass through.  The bag will jacket the carboy and prevent exposure to sunlight.  You can do the same thing with the bucket as well.

If you are going to place the bucket/carboy in the closet, just make sure that the air-lock has water in it and that the fermentation has settled down so you don't have any boil over.  I don't know that I would recommend a clothes closet as the hops scent may cling to clothing.  If the bucket/carboy is covered with a brown paper grocery bag you will just need to find a cool place that is out of the way.  Also, the place should not be too cool.  You are brewing an ale.  Ale yeasts will stop fermenting if the temperature gets much below 60 degrees.  This is called stuck fermentation--it will start up again when the temp of the liquid gets back up over 60 degrees.

To answer the question on your previous post--you can not place a new crown on the twist off bottles.  Sam Adams bottles or other micro-brew bottles are usually the old style bottles.  I like brown bottles.

Hope this helps.  PM me if you have any other questions.

Tim 

PS--I might just run out an pick up a batch of ingredients to make some beer this week now that you got me thinking about it!

[mznb1u]

Bubba,

Here is a link to a post I made about re-filling bottles.  This may be helpful when you get ready to bottle.

http://soda-machines.com/component/option,com_smf/Itemid,29/topic,8738.msg65415/#msg65415

Tim

[bubba]

Thanks for the info Tim... I guess I'll do the primary fermenting in the bucket and transfer into the carboy. The bucket did come with a blowoff setup for the bucket as well. I'll prepare to start it this weekend. I need to get a wash tub still and thats about it I think.

I'll let you know when the brew has started....

[Larry]

Tim,

Your answers are interesting.  I couldn't stop reading it. 

If you make a batch, maybe you should take a few still shots of the process and post them or have them to P.M. someone later.  It seems there is always a post on brewing poping up now and then. 

I'll stick to the mass produced store bought brew for now.

Larry