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EsnRedshirt Special user Newark, CA 895 Posts 
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Anyone here who brews their own beer?
I've been brewing all-grain since the start of this year; about to do my third batch tomorrow. Hopefully it's the one where everything comes together- the last two have had fairly low extraction efficiency, and the first one had the yeast stall out in the fermenter. I started making a yeast starter with my last batch, which is messy, but works well. As for extraction efficiency, I finally got a grain mill, and I'll be milling the grains just before I dough in. It's a simple American Amber Ale recipe, mostly two-row grains. We'll see how it turns out. Any other brewers have tips or tricks to share? (You New Zealanders can start your own thread about home distillation, since everywhere else it's illegal.)
Self-proclaimed Jack-of-all-trades and google expert*.
* = Take any advice from this person with a grain of salt. |
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MagicSanta Inner circle Northern Nevada 5841 Posts
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Is that brewery store still in San Jose still?
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Woland Special user 680 Posts
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A wonderful hobby, sir! I brewed my own beer (usually an English style bitters) back in the early 1980s. Should have dropped out of school and joined in the microbrewery craze. Not enough of an entrepreneur, I guess.
My only advice is to maintain cleanliness and avoid contamination. And enjoy! |
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mastermindreader 1949 - 2017 Seattle, WA 12586 Posts
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My family used to make some great white lightning. We drank it from mason jars. (It was also a fine paint remover.)
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critter Inner circle Spokane, WA 2653 Posts
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My kids' Godfather's wife makes the best home-brew in the world. She makes all kinds but the stout is the best. I call it "Eadie-Brau." (Her name is Eadie.)
I used to make absinthe, but Floyd makes it better and I don't like getting drunk these days. I also once lived on a property which had concord grapes growing on it so I made 10 gallons of wine while I lived there. It was decent. Had to chuck about half of it when I moved though.
"The fool is one who doesn't know what you have just found out."
~Will Rogers |
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EsnRedshirt Special user Newark, CA 895 Posts
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Santa, I don't know- I order everything from MoreBeer.com, which is based out of Concord (Concord, CA.) I used to live practically next door to them. There's a place in Hayward I should check out sometime, though.
Woland, you bet. I sanitize everything before use. Probably overkill for everything pre-boil, but not a bad habit to have. I'm going to run the sanitizer through my wort chiller tonight (it's a counterflow, of course.) Bob, I can't speak for myself, but my brother-in-law, well... like I said, we all can assume he's in New Zealand, and you grew up there, too 
critter, cool. I may do a barley wine one of these days, when I've got my extraction efficiency up to 70-80% and have enough space and spare bottles to store it for the year or two it takes to age properly.
Self-proclaimed Jack-of-all-trades and google expert*.
* = Take any advice from this person with a grain of salt. |
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MagicSanta Inner circle Northern Nevada 5841 Posts
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Petes Wicked Ale, which may be only in the bay area but made Pete rich started as a home brew. He got wine making equipment and made some then didn't like that he had to wait for vino and the brew store guys told Pete, who worked at Rolm Corp, how to convert it over to beer. Tada, beer master!
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Octopus Sun Special user Wiggle Wiggle 586 Posts
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Since 1986, all grain mash.
no secrets will be given. have fun learning the mash tun gig keep your wort clean! |
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EsnRedshirt Special user Newark, CA 895 Posts
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Sweet! Finally hit my target gravity with all-grain. Milling your own grain just before dough-in really makes a difference.
Next, I may try a hefeweisen... or maybe use some honey. Or maybe a honey hefeweisen. That would be a trip...
Self-proclaimed Jack-of-all-trades and google expert*.
* = Take any advice from this person with a grain of salt. |
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gsidhe Inner circle Michigan 1725 Posts
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I have played with brewing a bit. I enjoy it, but don't always have the time to do things properly.
For those times when I need a batch of something interesting but don't have anything at the right stage for drinking, I use this stuff. 48 hours and it is done. No sterilizing, no fancy containers, no bottling. It is not a beer or wine, but something else. Spikeyourjuice.com I have yet to have a batch that did not taste pretty durned good. Give it a shot (Purists...you may frown at this, but think of it as a gateway drug for new brewers). Gwyd |
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mastermindreader 1949 - 2017 Seattle, WA 12586 Posts
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Quote:
On 2012-04-13 14:19, EsnRedshirt wrote: New Zealand??? I grew up in New JERSEY!  |
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EsnRedshirt Special user Newark, CA 895 Posts
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Gwyd- interesting. They recommend using it with mostly grape based stuff. I'd probably end up trying it as a hard cider.
Anyway, my American Amber Ale is fermenting like crazy- the yeast starter really may have been overkill. I can actually see stuff swirling around inside as it goes (my last two batches have been too dark to really see any motion.) The foam almost reached the airlock, too- though I think it's starting to subside. Hopefully it won't bubble over today while I'm at work. It's sitting on a towel, but I should have thought to put it on a plastic bag from the start. Live and learn, and clean the carpet well.
Self-proclaimed Jack-of-all-trades and google expert*.
* = Take any advice from this person with a grain of salt. |
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gsidhe Inner circle Michigan 1725 Posts
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Quote:
On 2012-04-16 11:40, EsnRedshirt wrote: I usually use apple or a cranberry based juice. Blueberry Pomegranate is probably my favorite. Well worth experimenting with. |
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Michael K Loyal user Hazleton, PA 249 Posts
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All grain brewer here. Owned a small homebrew supply store for 3 years. If anyone is interested please read "The Complete Joy of Homebrewing" Third Edition by Charles Papazian. Once you get more involved read "How to Brew" by John Palmer.
For the love of all good things, do NOT buy a Mr. Beer kit, since it is a waste of time and money. Find a local homebrew store and get some buckets, air locks, and hoses which will work better and cheaper. -Gywd now that you are into this we can talk about getting you real hardcore equipment. See you at the Gathering in Nov! |
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MagicSanta Inner circle Northern Nevada 5841 Posts
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I found a brew store in Carson City today! Now if I only drank...
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gsidhe Inner circle Michigan 1725 Posts
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Quote:
On 2012-04-17 23:31, Michael K wrote: :) I know Michael K's stuff...It would be in the epic NOM category! I don't know if I am ready to be a hardcore brewer yet. I like simple stuff- Mead, ciders and vodka infusions. I'm sure I will eventually give in. |
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Woland Special user 680 Posts
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Agree with the recommendation of the Papazian book.
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EsnRedshirt Special user Newark, CA 895 Posts
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I've been hearing a bit about Gruit ales, and now I'm tempted to try one. Maybe I can find one somewhere out there in a bottle somewhere instead of risking wasting a whole batch on something I might not enjoy...
Self-proclaimed Jack-of-all-trades and google expert*.
* = Take any advice from this person with a grain of salt. |
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Michael K Loyal user Hazleton, PA 249 Posts
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There are a few commercial gruit ales and most are an acquired taste. You can just brew a batch of whatever mild ale you like and then split it into gallons to experiment on a smaller scale. One brew and five beers sounds like fun.
Thanks for the props Gwyd. Brewing isn't that hard. Keep everything clean and be patient are the two most important things. Michael |
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JRob Veteran user Central South Carolina 395 Posts
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In the last few years I have taken up both home brewing and wine making. Wine making is just a hair easier than beer because you don't have to continually stir the malt extract while it's cooking.
"Jim Roberts, AKA: Professor Jay Rob "<br>
The Professor's Facebook Page |
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Posted: Apr 13, 2012 04:33 pm 
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