Beginner equipment kit

[Ren]

I was looking for a beginners equipment kit, but can't really choose which one to buy or can't find the best one. Really hoped somebody (more experienced than me) could help me out with advice. I want bottle my beer.

- coopers beer starter kit:

- brewferm starter kit deluxe:

- also saw some kits on Balliihoo:

Maybe you have suggestions or links on other kits. Any advice would be helpful.

I skimmed through forum topics and searched for beginner equipment kits but couldn't find anything complete on this matter.

Cheers

 

[bobsbeer]

Welcome :

 

[dennisking]

Hi and welcome. Not up to speed on kits myself but I know Coopers are popular. Reading some of the posts in our kit review section may help.

 

[MrT]

Hi Ren,

The woodfordes wherry kit is a good starting point if you're into more traditional "real ale" style beer

I think it only comes with as a keg kit, but tbh it isn't hard to put a little kit together yourself, you really don't need much to make a decent first brew.

If you're into more contemporary hoppy/american style ales then there are quite a few good options. Going that route may require a little more investment up front, but nothing scary!

If you want any advice on what gear you may need (or I guess more importantly for now, what gear you don't need) then I (or someone else here) would be happy to help!

Cheers!

 

[Ren]

Hi Ren,

The woodfordes wherry kit is a good starting point if you're into more traditional "real ale" style beer

I think it only comes with as a keg kit, but tbh it isn't hard to put a little kit together yourself, you really don't need much to make a decent first brew.

If you're into more contemporary hoppy/american style ales then there are quite a few good options. Going that route may require a little more investment up front, but nothing scary!

If you want any advice on what gear you may need (or I guess more importantly for now, what gear you don't need) then I (or someone else here) would be happy to help!

Thanks for your reply.

I looked into woodfordes wherry kit earlier but i don't think I need barrel if i am going to fill ale in bottles straight from fermenting bin. Am I right? I like the idea that i can just pop some bottles in the fridge and hide the rest of them which i can't with the barrel (keg) as i have really limited space in my 1 bed house.

Coopers beer starter looks fine to me but I don't like that I can't buy all the stuff without plastic bottles.

brewferm starter kit deluxe : ( I can't post a link, because system thinks i am spamming) I was more looking into this but i am not sure about the quality, because there are not many reviews about this kit.

I thought I might buy everything separately but it will cost me much more than a kit(bundle).

Yes, I definitely love hoppy ales more then anything.

 

[bobsbeer]

The Coopers kits are popular, and there is nothing wrong with the plastic bottles that come with the kit. Saves you getting a crown capper up front. I use the coopers bottles alongside glass ones as you can test to see if the beer has carbonated. So they won't go to waste.

 

[Rento]

I went for a Coopers Starter kit last year and think it's great, I've done 8 brews in it now and it's never let me down.

R

 

[GavH]

I too started with the Coopers kit. PET bottles are ok, the FV is really good, just don't get the Original series 'Lager' if you have a choice.

 

[Brewerboy]

I started with this kit from biggerjugs.
It is very cheap and has most of what you need.
http://www.biggerjugs.co.uk/starter-bee ... -1023.html
Im sure what ever you choose will get you hooked.

 

[MrT]

Yes, sorry I wasn't saying to go for the kit with the keg, rather that it's quite easy to put your own kit together.
It sounds like you definitely don't need the keg!

You don't actually need that much gear to be starting off with.

I'm not a fan of Cooper's beer or their kits (bit bland for my taste) but each to their own. As simple kits go there's certainly much worse!

Which ever way you go, have fun! :thumb:

 

[Fil]

the kit you need is minimal,
a hydrometer and trial jar
a thermometer
a fermentation bucket/vessel with lid and optional airlock
kitchen scales
measuring jug/s
big spoon
a syphon tube,
and eventually bottles
The CRUCIAL thing u will need is patience, while a kit will tell you its ready to drink in X days, it will also improve in flavor/clarity dramatically if left to mature for a month or more in the bottle/keg


you can always add more, a common initial upgrade is temperature control over the fermentation.

and eventually stopping borrowing kitchen kit and getting dedicated brewing jugs scales etc

like any hobby/pastime, you can throw as much cash as you want at it, but you dont NEED to, and many a fine pint is brewed with minimum equipment.

enjoy the brewing and the beer :)

 

[MrT]

the kit you need is minimal,
a hydrometer and trial jar
a thermometer
a fermentation bucket/vessel with lid and optional airlock
kitchen scales
measuring jug/s
big spoon
a syphon tube,
and eventually bottles

Agree with Fil entirely.

Also worth mentioning that you won't get much in the way of big hop aroma kits in can-form, as the hop component responsible for that lovely aroma is quite volatile (essential oils basically)

If you got an 11 litre pot on top of Fil's list (doesn't need to be fancy - the one that I got when I started was about a tenner incl. postage) then you could make fantastic kits like this which are bursting with hop aroma!

Of course, if you want to start with less of an initial investment it's more than possible to make a decent beer. Pop it in an area of your house that has a steady temperature of 16-18C for two or three weeks before you transfer to bottles and you'll be laughing.

Cheers and good luck!

 

[dx4100]

Would recommend Coopers PET Plastic Bottles if you are starting out. Never let me down! No chance of bottle bombs!

 

[Rolfster]

Was in wilkinsons today. They have a bit of a sale on....

 

[GAZ9053]

I have the coopers kit, not had any problems with it, + you can see through the FV and watch your beer brewing. and it comes with a bottling wand to fit straight on ya tap.

 

[Ren]

Thanks for all the replies just ordered my "home brew online" kit.

Will try my first brew of St Peters blonde ale and see how it goes, then definitely will try the Way To Amarillo Recipe Pack (it looks really tempting).

Thanks for a good advice!

Cheers