Brewing Your Own Beer!

[iCraig]

Basically just thinking about taking up brewing my own beer as a hobby, and I am wonder if anyone here does it or has done it in the past?

Looking at getting all the usual kit like on of these (the very top one) or for abit of easierness (if thats a word ) I was looking at the Miracle Brewing Kits.

So has anyone done it, what do they recommend I start off with etc.

TAI

Craig

[Nath]

Started doing homebrew at the end of last year, and have my fourth batch maturing right now.

I've not had any 'bad' beer so far. My current (third) brew doesn't taste particularly nice, but I think that's down to it being crap beer rather than having gone bad. The other two brews were quite drinkable - Below pub standards, but a lot nicer than canned beers you get from the supermarket. I have heard that the lagers do not come out very well, so it's best to stick to proper beer. If you like keg bitters and lagers, you might find the taste a bit too strong, but if you are used to drinking real ale you should be pretty satisfied with the results. I have also heard that cider is a good bet.

If you use pressure barrels rather than bottles, the beer takes a fair bit longer to mature. However it's far easier to clean a single barrel than forty bottles.


That kit doesn't look the best value. Wilkinsons do homebrew stuff, and are probably your cheapest options besides eBay. I got my 40pint pressure barrel for £15, and brewing bucket for £8. The only other thing you need is a syphoning tube, a long plastic spoon, and some steriliser. If your local Wilko's stocks all that, you will probably pay less than £30 all in. The actual beer kits themselves cost about £8 for forty pints, though you can get more expensive ones.

For 20p a pint, you can't go wrong. The only problem is that due to the time it takes for the beer to ferment and then mature, you really need three brews on the go at any one time to ensure a constant supply of beer (unless you are a lightweight and drink one pint a night).
____________________
Hard livin', hard luck.

[randomname]

Might have to invest in one myself.

By the way, Digitiser rocks.

[colin1]

I made one batch years ago.
It was ok and quite strong but with the kits, you make a huge abmount at a time and i dont drink that much. I managed to get a few people to drink a bit of it but not much. One claimed to have got sick as a result of it. We only drank it because we were poor students. I no longer know any poor students who will risk their health to get pissed on the cheap. I never told them, but i found a dead earwig floating in it ! You cant seal the lid, as othewise the tub would explode from the yeast brewing.

I dont drink that much so most of it went to waste.

If i did it again, id try using it with fresh ingredients such as barley and hops, rather than using the canned syrupy stuff. Probably quite a lot more work but may taste better.

Someone I used to know, had a dad who made it from natural plant ingredients such as barley and hops so I know some people do it.

Theres a specialist brew shop near me that sells everything really cheap for about half those prices.

hydrometer is also good for knowing when its ready and how strong it is. it measures the the amount of alcohol. You float it in the liquid. If its dense, it sits high with one reading, if its not dense it sits low with another reading. I cant remember if more alcohol is more dense or less dense but you get the idea.
____________________
Mr_Fisty-"Speed limits were broken, front wheels lifted, knees kissed tarmac. No kittens were killed, no plod annoyed and no accidents. As im sitting relaxing with a cold beer my bike is pinging and ticking as it cools down. I loves bikes. That is all.."

[m99dws]

I used to do it but was more hassle than it was worth. I have all the equipment free to a good home if anyone wants it.

[iCraig]

[Nath]

Fucking hell Craig, do you bother reading the replies to your questions?

Beer needs to ferment in one container, and then mature in another (secondary fermentation). The only reason canned/keg beers don't need maturing is because they are filtered and pasteurised. That'll probably taste rank due staying in one container for the whole process. Also, looking around that site it appears the 'refills' cost £23! Seems like a very expensive way to make crap tasting beer.

The common way of brewing beer costs £30 for equipment, £8 for the beer kit, and about 50p worth of sugar. You're paying almost double that, and will then have to pay more twice the price for every subsequent brew
____________________
Hard livin', hard luck.

[m99dws]

The hassle was in washing 40 or more bottles to fill, and finding somewhere in the house to store it. Plus my wife wouldn't drink it so she had Stella whilst I had home brew. That idea soon went out the window.

[Villers]

[m99dws]

Nah. I'm just in a position where I can afford to buy more beer than I could drink (and that's quite a bit!!), so why bother brewing it when I could just go buy it.

[carlnicholson...]

I remember being 10 and helping myself to my Dads home brew when he was out.

As I recall, it was pretty fucking good.
____________________
"THOSE WHO RISK NOTHING, DO NOTHING, ACHIEVE NOTHING, BECOME NOTHING."

[Dazbo666]

[thx1138]

Yeah I've brewed a few batches.

Bru Box is a good place to start, it's an easy learner kit, but a little more involved than just adding water and shaking ones you can buy.