HomeBrew!

[npkeith]

Anyone out there homebrew? I'm thinking of getting into, and I was wondering if anyone had any tips for the novice. I'm lucky in that I have a large supply house 20 minutes from my home, with staff who are knowlegeable and helpful, but I'm wondering if there is anything people might suggest as a tip to make things better (even if it isn't a fix for a problem).

For instance - for a beginner, is it better to try lighter or darker beers? (which is more forgiving?)

Besides. I wanted to talk about beer for a while.
-Keith

[latenight]

I've home brewed and at my height I was brewing in 5 gallon soda kegs.

It doesn't really matter......although ales are easier than lagers since the don't have to be, ummm, lagered.

[HillBilly]

My daddy-o and our neighbor used to make beer. Now he don't have the time.

[npkeith]

I figured the bit about lagering. I live in Southern California, so the only way I'm going to achieve lagering temperatures here is to ferment in a fridge with a temperature controller, and that ain't gonna happen (at least, not until I become independently wealthy). So ales it is.

But light or dark, it matters not?

Remember - "I fear no beer!"

[latenight]

nope, split the diff and make amber!

[HillBilly]

But: "you went through your brew?"

[Zelda]

Dont know much about home brew, but I know when making your own wines the British "warming closet" - generally a closet that houses the geyser, is great for fermenting as it is a constant temperature.

[greenchick]

Originally Posted by npkeith

But light or dark, it matters not?

Nahh. It's been a while since I brewed, but iirc, anything from a pale ale to a porter is dead easy to start with -- when you go to the extremes, they get easier to screw up (for instance, a wit can be hard to keep that light while still getting full extraction, whereas a very dark stout can be hard to get nice and smooth without too many burnt flavors from the dark malts). But you've still got a big range to work with while you're getting into the hobby.

[The Mormegil]

i make mead by the 5 gallon carboy, and have all the stuff needed to do it right, and bottle it. the down side to mead is it takes like a year to be drinkable. It is definitely an art, not a science. If any one is interested in mead, ask me i've done about 4-5 batches, everyone different, but all good.

[Larrison]

I'm also in SoCal, and I've brewed a few batches of beer in my time... :P

Check around for a local brew club -- Santa Monica used to have the infamous "Maltose Falcons" club, and there was a very active club in Orange County. Lots of advice ...

You might also check into a local "brewhouse" too. These are local places that already have all the equipment and setup, and you can go in and just pick what you want to make, put it together (with as much help as you want), and they ferment it. You come back in a week or so, and bottle it.

The one closest to me is BrewBakers in Huntington Beach. Pretty good beer... http://www.brewbakers1.com/

As for advice/ experience? Go with the canned malt extracts for a majority of stuff. You can doctor the beer up all which ways from this, but its a good shortcut to start with this.

Sterlize and keep everything *clean* and I mean *sterile clean*. Nothing worse than spoiled beer.

Think about how much beer you're going to drink and how much you're going to make. I made batches of 48-50 bottles or so each time -- but since I'm not a big drinker, that would last me maybe 2-3 months a batch. Makes it kinda hard to do the experimenting with recipes when you only make a batch every few months..

I found a closet out of the sun, out of the heat (like under the stairs) worked pretty well for a fermentation area, and to store the cases (!!) of beer I would make. I would urge you to think about potential bottle cap failures, and put the beer in something like large, waterproof storage boxes. If a bottle cap pops, you don't have to clean the rugs.. and don't come home to a place smelling like an overripe cheap bar.

Cut down on the added sugar (including fructose or whatever). This will tend to keep the beers less alcoholic, and a little easier to drink.

Lastly, filter your brew as you bottle it, particularly if you are making dark beers. (You'll still ferment in the bottle for carbonation.. you don't want added sugars beyond a controlled level for carbonation). I did one experimental batch where I'd added a combination of hops and dark malted grains. Really really tasty.. But, I had let a bit of the solid malt make it into a few bottles, which then fermented more than expected, and tended to blow up in the closet... Not a good thing. And produced a couple of real surprizes when uncapping bottles...

But a good way to produce pretty good beer and for an amazingly low price since I was fermenting and bottling at home. Just after you have dozen or so cases stacked in the closet....

[Zilverzmurfen]

Red ales...yum!

[npkeith]

Larrison-
Thanks for the info. I don't think I'm going to do a lot of bottling. Instead, I'm going to get the Tap-a-draft system, and go straight to a form of kegging. I can do a second ferment in the 1.5 gallon bottles, or I can force-carbonate with a few CO2 cartridges.

I'm familiar with the smell of stale beer (I worked one summer in a liquor store) the plastic tote idea has merit.

I'm going to get my supplies from Beer, Beer, And More Beer, as they have a store about 20 minutes from my house. I do like the idea of finding a brewers club though. I'll have to look into that.

Oh, and while you had no way of knowing, before I went to nursing school, I got a degree in molecular biology, working with yeast genetics. I already know aseptic technique, and how to keep yeasty-beasties happy. But thanks for the tips nonetheless.