Bswope

Ive been wanting to home brew my own beer and wine for awhile now and I have been looking at kits on line to get started but there is a lot to chose from so I figured id see if anyone here is a home brewer and get some advice on a good starting kit?

Thanks fellas
Buddy

capt.Ron

Yep Been doin it for year.....best beer you'll ever drink is the stuff you make yourself.
What kind of kits are you looking at?
Got links to the brands and kits?

rockcrawler304

Been wanting to brew mine as well but it seems like it takes A LOT of time and things to go just right to get a good tasting one. This is just my guess from the reading I have done.

capt.Ron

As long as you sanitize everything (1 cup of bleach to 5 gals of water)the beer touches it should taste fine. I prefer the darker maltier beers over the pilsners or blonds. So choose a kit that fits your taste. If you want to make your bottling easier get 9 two liter bottles to bottle it up in. The only problem with that is you gotta be ready to drink cause that whole bottle needs to be poured at once, stopping right as you see the yeast from the bottom starting to pour out with the beer. There will be a splash of beer left over but it's worth wasting to keep the rest fairly clear.
I'll try to scan some pages from my brewer's guide to help get you guys started.

Bswope

Sweet man........ please do!!!

Ive been looking at this kit with the glass carboy's.........
http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewin...arter-kit.html

capt.Ron

That kit will do the trick but you can do it a lot cheaper.
I have both glass and the plastic bottles. It's easier to see that the glass jugs are clean but the plastic ones are lighter and you really can't tell the difference in the taste of the beer. Also you don't really need 2 jugs for brewing unless you want to transfer from the primary fermenter after the first 2 weeks and give it a few more weeks to clear out. Clearing doesn't change the taste at all it's only for appearance.
Now if you want the convenience of having everything in one full setup that kit would be the way to go.
You might want to do a "Craigslist search for Brew Kits, carbouy, brewing supplies, to see if someone has some used equipment that they no longer use. It is time consuming and some folks start it but never finish.
Also check the yellow pages for home brew supply shops in your area.
There aren't as many "can Kits" out there anymore but one that has been around for yrs is "Coopers". I really like there Stout and Dark ales. Another is Muntons
You simply pour the can kit into boiling water and add about 4 lbs of dry malt. (careful it will boil over if you go to fast with it. ) Bring it back to a boil and then let it cool before pitching your yeast.
Anyway I'll get some more detailed instructions for you in a bit. I got employees chompin at the bit for me to get payroll out.

rockcrawler304

Thanks for the info capt.Ron I may look into it again now. I also like the darker beers and would love to just have my own any time. What do you figure your cost per bottle is?

knc77

I got a kit as a gift several years ago. Try to avoid the ones telling you to put sugar in. My first batch I did and I didn't care for the taste. I did some research and replaced the sugar with malt in my second batch and it was better.

Haven't done it in quite a while. Come to think of it, I haven't had any beer in a while either. Just might have to enjoy one this weekend if I can get things done first.

capt.Ron

I haven't really paid attention lately. I believe it's about 45 per 5 gal batch (maybe less) and you get 2.5 cases per batch so that's about 75 cents each.
I go a little higher on some ingredients so it could turn out a little cheaper.

Springer

I am an avid brewer . Been doing around 5 years the kits are good to start out with I don't use any glass carboys seen to much carnage with them. The plastic Better Bottles are very nice I have 4 of them and a SS conical for fermenting. This hobby is like any other if you get addicted it can get very expensive I have around 4k invested in this hobby.


read How to Brew by Palmer its online and is full of useful info. Capt.Ron I cup per five gallons is way overkill the CDC recommends 1 teaspoon per gallon to sanitize surfaces that contact food .

I do all grain brewing and have 300lbs of grain in my garage right now with another 220 coming next month from North Country Malt. If you need any advise just pm me .

There are several Brew boards this one is very good
Homebrewtalk

on tap right now

Pale Ale


and a nice Hefe

Springer

The average price of mine is .40 cents per pint but I buy everything in bulk . If I didn't it would be around 65 to 75 cents depending on the beer . If I do a super Hoppy beer like Pliney the Elder the price goes up

capt.Ron

Nice looking beers there!!!
I don't like that wheat stuff though!!
Just can't stomach the stuff.
Or the real hoppy stuff!
I've done a couple from scratch. Didn't seem worth it to me at the time but I plan to get back at it once we get moved into our new home. I'm just doing the can kits for now.

Springer

I do 10 to 20 gallon brews so its a little spendy to buy the kits . My son is just starting the hobby he is doing a Sam Adams clone kit this weekend

Beatle

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVAG7HdNkJE

Festa brew if you can get it in your area great brew. I get it all the time it comes with all the 23 liters of worth to brew you beer. Nothing else to make it, It does not have the apple taste of brews that you make from coopers etc. Note you dont have to add water it comes complete. I have gone one more step with the Draft set up in my basement Fridge. see photos.[ATTACH][/ATTACH]

Bswope

What Sam Adams is he doing??? Id love to try and get a clone as close to their October Fest as possible.... once i get the hang of things first! LOL