Home Brew Beer
Discussion
As a bit of fun I have decided to take the plunge and have a go at some home brew beer, up until now I have been put off because as a teenager I remember my brother trying it and the stuff tasted and looked like p*ss.
Are there any PH brewmasters out there who can recommend a good homebrew starting kit and some do's and dont's? Has anyone had good success with home brew beer?
Are there any PH brewmasters out there who can recommend a good homebrew starting kit and some do's and dont's? Has anyone had good success with home brew beer?
Don't know if you can get these over there, but:
www.mrbeer.com/
The wife put a stop to it because when it was in the fermenting stages it looked "like a science experiment". Quite good though...
ErnestM
www.mrbeer.com/
The wife put a stop to it because when it was in the fermenting stages it looked "like a science experiment". Quite good though...
ErnestM
do alot of home brew myself.
wine and beer.
beer - wilkinson and morrisons have some good stuff to get you going, but home brew shops are out there.
last christmas my FIL gave me a starter beer brew kit basically - pressure barrel, and beer kit.
best advise, be methodical on sterialisation, your creating perfect growing environment for bacterior, and you dont want to spoil the brew with a nice growth of mould
but it is dead easy, barrel in bath, add i think its 1 tea spoon of sterialisor per gallon, so a 5 gallon barrel = 5 spoonfuls, fill with hot water from tap - leave to stand for 10 - 20 mins, was out thoughly, the rest - follow the instructions on the kit.
beer - i like the Norfolks Wherry Beer, a nice ale
wine, 1gallon demijons or a 5 gallon plastic barrel needed depending on kit - tho best for long term storage to keep wine in the glass demijons, as theres less air in the vatt - and alot of the cheap 1 gall kits can be very nice.
in the end i think beer is about 10-20p a pint from a 40 pint/ 5 gallon kit, and wine about 50p a bottle.
(oh and watch out, they are often very strong, wherry seems to come out about 7-10% depending on conditions, we let it ferment slowly in the cool temperatures of the cellar)
thats the important point - find somewhere cool for fermentation - if no cellar, under the stairs, in the garage etc. not too cold, but not too warm as it'll kill the yeast too early.
wine and beer.
beer - wilkinson and morrisons have some good stuff to get you going, but home brew shops are out there.
last christmas my FIL gave me a starter beer brew kit basically - pressure barrel, and beer kit.
best advise, be methodical on sterialisation, your creating perfect growing environment for bacterior, and you dont want to spoil the brew with a nice growth of mould
but it is dead easy, barrel in bath, add i think its 1 tea spoon of sterialisor per gallon, so a 5 gallon barrel = 5 spoonfuls, fill with hot water from tap - leave to stand for 10 - 20 mins, was out thoughly, the rest - follow the instructions on the kit. beer - i like the Norfolks Wherry Beer, a nice ale
wine, 1gallon demijons or a 5 gallon plastic barrel needed depending on kit - tho best for long term storage to keep wine in the glass demijons, as theres less air in the vatt - and alot of the cheap 1 gall kits can be very nice.
in the end i think beer is about 10-20p a pint from a 40 pint/ 5 gallon kit, and wine about 50p a bottle.
(oh and watch out, they are often very strong, wherry seems to come out about 7-10% depending on conditions, we let it ferment slowly in the cool temperatures of the cellar)
thats the important point - find somewhere cool for fermentation - if no cellar, under the stairs, in the garage etc. not too cold, but not too warm as it'll kill the yeast too early.
oh another tip i missed on my first brew - ensure the seal of the screw lid is smeared with vaseline to ensure a good seal, or else no pressure builds and you cant get the beer out the barrel of a top tap (ie tap is at the top of the barrel, with a float inside which draws off the top layer of beer, so it can be drunk sooner as the sediment settles, but needs pressure to push the beer out.
It tasted like slightly organic ribena but was incredibly stronglord summerisle said:
oh another tip i missed on my first brew - ensure the seal of the screw lid is smeared with vaseline to ensure a good seal, or else no pressure builds and you cant get the beer out the barrel of a top tap (ie tap is at the top of the barrel, with a float inside which draws off the top layer of beer, so it can be drunk sooner as the sediment settles, but needs pressure to push the beer out.
Thanks, you are a mine of information, the spoiling risk is what I was worried about, I once tried to make mead when I was a kid and ended up with a demijon of honey vinegar.
Thanks also for the kit recommendations, btw, any tips for the process of transferring the beer from the fermentation bin to the pressure barrell?
On and normally how long does it take to produce a good batch?
We made a batch of "Guinness" at college. I was working at a pub at the time, so we "borrowed" an empty beer barrel and sterilised it by rolling it round the garden with some water and fairy liquid in it 
The brew tasted great. Very lethal, too, as we left it fermenting for rather too long...
The brew tasted great. Very lethal, too, as we left it fermenting for rather too long...
i do the brewing in the pressure barrel - thats what its there for 
takes 1- 3 weeks to brew depending on the kit, the wherry batch i just brewed took 3 weeks to clear properly, tho i started drinking after about 2 week when it was still a little cloudy, i'm nearly finished the batch, got about 1.5 - 2 gallons left, and its still got good pressure for pouring, whereas the last batch as i forgot the vaseline sealing i had to release a CO2 canister to get enough pressure to pour.
i did a barely wine kit start of summer - a 2 gallon kit in a 5 gallon wine barrel - non pressureised, with just an airlock bung in the top to seal properly. then followed the instructions of decanting into plastic bottles with a tea spoon of sugar per pint for secondary fermenting, tho i think that was a bit much.
if your near rossendale valley give us a shout, you have a try of some the contents of the cellar collection.
takes 1- 3 weeks to brew depending on the kit, the wherry batch i just brewed took 3 weeks to clear properly, tho i started drinking after about 2 week when it was still a little cloudy, i'm nearly finished the batch, got about 1.5 - 2 gallons left, and its still got good pressure for pouring, whereas the last batch as i forgot the vaseline sealing i had to release a CO2 canister to get enough pressure to pour.
i did a barely wine kit start of summer - a 2 gallon kit in a 5 gallon wine barrel - non pressureised, with just an airlock bung in the top to seal properly. then followed the instructions of decanting into plastic bottles with a tea spoon of sugar per pint for secondary fermenting, tho i think that was a bit much.
if your near rossendale valley give us a shout, you have a try of some the contents of the cellar collection.
the way i do it is. (for wherry at least since iv done a few brews of this)
(take sterialisation as read - everything is cleaned)
if its the first time best thing to do is first with just water fill to 6 pints full and mark outside with a marker pen, then add the remining 34 pints and mark the full 40 pint mark - for ease later.
boil 6 pints of water and add to barrel, while water is boiling, put the 2 tins of concentrate in the sink and cover with hot water from tap (helps concentrate to flow - its like treacle) now open tins, and add concentrate to barrel, wash out tins with boiling water to get max concrentrate into barrel.
now add 29/30 odd pints of cold water from the kitchen tap to barrel (this brings the temperature of the mixture to the right temperature for starting the Yeast) open the paket of yeast and sprinkle the yeast into the barrel.
Screw down the lid of the barrel tight, give it a good shake to mix everything up well (tho 40 pints is heavy to careful with your back) a good slosh side to side for a minute or 2 is sufficent. now leave barrel in kitchen for a day or 2 for the warmth to help the fermentation get a good start, then move to a cool place for the remaining time.
the barrel lid needs to be screwed down tight and sealed with vaseline - your wanting to keep the pressure in the barrel during this fermenting stage - as this pressure allows you to pour the beer - the barrels do have a blow off valve at the top to release any excess pressure.
the CO2 canistors are used in a little plastic fitting and screw onto the blow off valve and add extra pressure to the barrel to enable pouring when the beer level gets low and the pressure has dropped too low.
i know it reads complicated, but its is quite simple and worth the effort in the end. (and hey duty free beer)
(take sterialisation as read - everything is cleaned)
if its the first time best thing to do is first with just water fill to 6 pints full and mark outside with a marker pen, then add the remining 34 pints and mark the full 40 pint mark - for ease later.
boil 6 pints of water and add to barrel, while water is boiling, put the 2 tins of concentrate in the sink and cover with hot water from tap (helps concentrate to flow - its like treacle) now open tins, and add concentrate to barrel, wash out tins with boiling water to get max concrentrate into barrel.
now add 29/30 odd pints of cold water from the kitchen tap to barrel (this brings the temperature of the mixture to the right temperature for starting the Yeast) open the paket of yeast and sprinkle the yeast into the barrel.
Screw down the lid of the barrel tight, give it a good shake to mix everything up well (tho 40 pints is heavy to careful with your back) a good slosh side to side for a minute or 2 is sufficent. now leave barrel in kitchen for a day or 2 for the warmth to help the fermentation get a good start, then move to a cool place for the remaining time.
the barrel lid needs to be screwed down tight and sealed with vaseline - your wanting to keep the pressure in the barrel during this fermenting stage - as this pressure allows you to pour the beer - the barrels do have a blow off valve at the top to release any excess pressure.
the CO2 canistors are used in a little plastic fitting and screw onto the blow off valve and add extra pressure to the barrel to enable pouring when the beer level gets low and the pressure has dropped too low.
i know it reads complicated, but its is quite simple and worth the effort in the end. (and hey duty free beer)
eeeee theres a forum for everything: www.beermakerforum.com
this is the kit i started with for Beer. www.edirectory.co.uk/pf/pages/moreinfoa.asp?pe=CCBJDHIQ_+micro+brewery+beer+starter+kit&cid=880
wine is much simpler to brew
>> Edited by lord summerisle on Tuesday 20th September 15:39
this is the kit i started with for Beer. www.edirectory.co.uk/pf/pages/moreinfoa.asp?pe=CCBJDHIQ_+micro+brewery+beer+starter+kit&cid=880
wine is much simpler to brew
>> Edited by lord summerisle on Tuesday 20th September 15:39
lord summerisle said:
eeeee theres a forum for everything: <a href="www.beermakerforum.com"><a href="www.beermakerforum.com">www.beermakerforum.com</a></a>
this is the kit i started with for Beer. <a href="www.edirectory.co.uk/pf/pages/moreinfoa.asp?pe=CCBJDHIQ_+micro+brewery+beer+starter+kit&cid=880">www.edirectory.co.uk/pf/pages/moreinfoa.asp?pe=CCBJDHIQ_+micro+brewery+beer+starter+kit&cid=880</a>
wine is much simpler to brew
>> Edited by lord summerisle on Tuesday 20th September 15:39
Cheers for all that, as luck would have it some blokes selling this on ebay near where I live.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/KING-KEG-Home-Brew-Beermakers-Pressure-Barrell_W0QQitemZ4406334594QQcategoryZ38172QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
Looks like it'll do the job?
Then I found this place, which seems to have a good selection of kits
www.brew-it-yourself.co.uk/index.php
>> Edited by timmy30 on Tuesday 20th September 16:14
Always fancied having a go at this myself - but I always ended up saying 'sod it' and going to the pub instead.
These people: www.burghley-homebrew.co.uk
are based in my village and always have a very impressive stand at the local beer festival. Might be worth a try?
Good luck
These people: www.burghley-homebrew.co.uk
are based in my village and always have a very impressive stand at the local beer festival. Might be worth a try?
Good luck
TheDarkSide said:
Always fancied having a go at this myself - but I always ended up saying 'sod it' and going to the pub instead.
These people: www.burghley-homebrew.co.uk
are based in my village and always have a very impressive stand at the local beer festival. Might be worth a try?
Good luck
Think I'll just take the plunge, until recently I lived in London, but we left and moved to the countryside where I have things like a garden, garden shed etc. so I have the space to get up to this kind of mischief
Mind you if it turns out at 10% I'll be on my backside after a few pints
that was what i was like with my first brew
that eBay barrel is very similar to the one i put up.
difference is the position of the tap - the wherry kit barrel has the tap higher, and a float inside, whereas that barrel tap is at the bottom.
the only difference that'll make is the length of time till you able to drink the brew, as it'll take longer to clear down to the bottom tap - this is no bad thing as it'll give the beer time to mature really well, and be very nice.
its the same tap by the looks of things so it may have a float system with it, or possibly retro fit one later (the float is just a tube and a float that keeps the tube in the top 1" or so of beer - nowt special)
but as he says. the kig keg is very good.
that eBay barrel is very similar to the one i put up.
difference is the position of the tap - the wherry kit barrel has the tap higher, and a float inside, whereas that barrel tap is at the bottom.
the only difference that'll make is the length of time till you able to drink the brew, as it'll take longer to clear down to the bottom tap - this is no bad thing as it'll give the beer time to mature really well, and be very nice.
its the same tap by the looks of things so it may have a float system with it, or possibly retro fit one later (the float is just a tube and a float that keeps the tube in the top 1" or so of beer - nowt special)
but as he says. the kig keg is very good.
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