Not yet brewed, but looking for advice!

Hello Home Brew Forum members!

I'll introduce myself by explaining what exactly has brought me here (hint, it involves wanting to brew beer!), and an apology (sorry!) that I'm launching straight into what will most likely be a long and convoluted question already answered many times elsewhere...

I've always quite liked the idea of making my own beer. I grow my own veg, bake my own bread, it seems like the next obvious step! But... I've had beer made in vast quantities from kits in plastic buckets and it's been not good. Terrible, actually. Recently I saw a Brooklyn Brew Shop kit online and it LOOKS like it's good quality ingredients, etc, and makes what I would consider a sensible amount (a gallon, which I think is roughly 8 pints?). I was worried that maybe it would tie me in to their fairly expensive ingredient kits, but I found these with a quick search, which seem like they would do the job. Or I suspect that I could just buy packs of hops, grain and malt and start experimenting (although I think I'll stick with tried and tested recipes at first!)!

Anyway, I'd really appreciate your informed opinions. I don't have a lot of space, and I really don't want to make 20-40 pints at a time. So, my question to you all is, to your expert eyes does this kit look like a good bet for me to start? Considering I only have a small space in which to work, don't want to make vast quantities, and am also quite fussy about beer? Might I be better off buying the separate elements from Wilkos (they seem to sell the same gallon glass jug)? Or is this method a bad place to start?

Quick edit to say have now read about BIAB... Opinions on this? Can it be done on a smaller scale? Seems to be for around 5 gallons...

Best wishes to you all,

Michael

Those brewstore 4.5L kits are extremely expensive - to put it into perspective I can make 23L for about £8 or £9

Have a look at this extremely popular thread by clibit Very easy and very cheap (about £3 total ingredient costs for 5L)

http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=51779

That's a really interesting post, thank you! Although I have no kit as yet and presume would need 3 x the gallon bottles (are they called Demijohns?), as well as thermometer, etc. BrewUk have a thing called a Stove Topper. Still quite expensive (£30 for all kit plus ingredients for 8 pints, £10 for ingredients after but presume can buy seize rarely cheaper) but my main aim is the satisfaction of making my own beer rather than saving lots of money. Although saving money would be a pleasant bonus!

But you don't need much. It's very simple. I reckon if you buy a boxed set you will realise you been ripped off. :thumb:

Yep, basic kit for all grain method as it's in that thread would be big pot (maybe ten litres as you want to boil seven, though I get away with smaller), something to strain grain and hops (I use a paint strainer bag as in the "brew in a bag" method), funnel, wooden spoon, thermometer, 1 gallon demijohn and airlock. All up that's not going to set you back much.

You only need 1G Fermenting vessel (demijon plasic FV or whatever) for 1x 1 gallon brew. If you do a bigger brew get a bigger fermenter. I've brewed 1G brews in 5L food grade plastic jerry cans which are about 2 for a fiver. I also have a couple of these 5L fermenting buckets http://www.balliihoo.co.uk/5-litre-...pose-ideal-for-homebrew-winemaking-p-269.html
You can also use 5L water bottles you get from the supermarket.

You can have the satisfaction f brewing your own beer AND save money.

I'd recommend starting small and go for a demijohn (4.5 litre) as your fermenting vessel (see later). Assuming you want to craft your own you then have the choice of doing an extract brew or an all grain brew. Both of these allow you to put your own recipe together with all grain allowing you more freedom of ingredients. With extract someone has done the first few stages of brewing for you.

Advantages of using a demi john are :-

If it all goes wrong you haven't wasted much.
You might have a pan big enough already for the the mashing/boiling.
It's great to watch the fermentation happening with everything churning away during the peak of fermentation

Essential kit required :-

DemiJohn, airlock, syphon tube, thermometer, sterilising solution. I think that's it (anyone want to add any other essentials ?).

If you go all grain it's more convenient to use a grain bag but you can get away with just using a colander/sieve. Grain bags you can improvise, you can even use one leg of a pair of tights :mrgreen:.

Good to have (but not absolutely essential) is a hydrometer.

Get stuck in.

Just seen MyQul has replied - yes you can improvise the demijohn with the 5 litre water bottles, and for essentials you can also scratch the airlock and rely on visual activity. (saved a quid there).

For about £3 it would be mad not to get a hydrometer, to calculate how strong your beer is and check when fermentation is complete. Knowing the final gravity is also very useful information.

Quick edit to say have now read about BIAB... Opinions on this? Can it be done on a smaller scale? Seems to be for around 5 gallons...

Best wishes to you all,

Michael

Click to expand...

Welcome to the forum :

Have a look at the how to forum - http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=26


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clibit said:

For about £3 it would be mad not to get a hydrometer, to calculate how strong your beer is and check when fermentation is complete. Knowing the final gravity is also very useful information.

Click to expand...

imho a hydrometer is almost an essential piece of kit wheras an airlock isn't. I've never used one. I just put cling film over the opening of my fermenters (apart from my coopers fermenters which has a very good lid but still no airlock)

Yes I don't use airlock either. Just a plastic lid usually. I put sanitised foil on a demijohn.

Agreed about airlock, that's why I scratched it :-)

Also agree it is debatable about the hydrometer as it is useful to know what the strength of the brew is and to confirm if the fermentation has stopped and/or stuck. You could deffo start the process without one though.

Assuming an extract brew you only need the thermometer to check the temp of the brew before putting the yeast in. Wait until it feels cold instead ?

But I don't think this is about absolute minimalism though.