i have a friend that does it and it got me interested. just wanted to see if anybody here did it and what there experience was like.
I've done it before with a crummy kit (Mr. Beer) and got similarly crummy results. But it was a lot of fun, and it *was* beer I ended up with, just not very good beer. One of these days I need to pick up a decent glass carboy starter set (like the one from Northern Brewer (http://www.northernbrewer.com/starterkits.html)) and give it another go.
I tried once, couldn't drink the results. I went out and got a case of bud and filled gave it to all my friends and said yeah i made it. One tried, cheap kit, Got the same, tastes like i brewed a harry midget results, and did the same thing i did. Its an ongoing joke with us now.
thanks for reminding me, I need to get my carboys out of storage since I'm going to be up here for a while.
i was looking at the more advanced stuff. not those kits you can buy. some of the stuff can get really expensive if you want to do it right.
Yeah, I would absolutely stay away from the cheap plastic stuff, like Mr. Beer. The glass carboy kits, like I linked, should give pretty good results though, even though they don't cost too much. What kind of expensive are you thinking? Are you talking about going the whole 9 yards and mashing yourself?
In the 70s and early 80s I used to brew a minimum 5 gallons each week plus winemaking. Beer got cheaper as I got lazier so I don't often do it now.
I used to do the whole bit, without kits using local hops and malt and often culturing a yeast from "live" bottled beers like Guiness or Bass. Bottling became a pain so I eventually swithched to plastic barrels with a CO2 cartridge to stop the beer from oxidising. It was a good hobby hic! I eventually used kits after they got better sometimes "enhancing" them and only made 100% "home brew" for special occasions. Like most things there is no magic secret just cleanliness of your kit and keeping good notes etc in case you want to repeat or indeed avoid an effect. :mrgreen:
The resulting beer was pretty good, it's just too easy for me to nip over to France and buy it for next to nothing these days. :dunno: :thumb:
Quote from: Cal Priceyou want to repeat or indeed avoid an effect. :mrgreen:
The resulting beer was pretty good, it's just too easy for me to nip over to France and buy it for next to nothing these days. :dunno: :thumb:
So they don't sell beer in Kent? What gives?
Quote from: Cal PriceLike most things there is no magic secret just cleanliness of your kit...
I might go so far as to say that cleanliness is the magic secret. I had one batch before my mediocre batch that went completely off, almost certainly due to bacteria of some sort. You absolutely need to make sure things are clean, or you'll have undrinkable beer. Keep things clean, and there really isn't much too it.
I was just thinking about getting a kit that has everything you would need. No need to upgrade later. Something like this: http://www.morebeer.com/product.html?product_id=15912
Been brewing on/off for about 10 years. Only had one batch go bad. Also tried to make Mead with a friend and that will real bad, people were puking after drinking it :lol:
I use stuff like that in the kit. I've never got into kegging yet, but that would be the next step I guess.
I sterilize with bleach, the oven, and the dishwasher on various parts.
mmm beer :cheers:
Cleanliness is key for making yogurt, maknig cheese, making beer, making wine, or doing cell culture in a sterile hood. The principle behind it all is the same. You are growing one organism, and you need to make sure that this rich growth medium you are supplying is not inhabited by any other organisms.
Alcohol will kill bacteria, but not fungus. Bleach will kill anything, but you have to make sure you rinse it all out - and don't introduce new stuff when you rinse. ;)
Jake, yup they sell plenty of great beer here but it's about a third (or less) of the price just across the water. Buy it ten or more cases at a time and it's a big difference.