Who Homebrews?!

[Sjorge450R]

I am looking to get into it as I can see it as a fun and enjoyable hobby. Who brews their own brew and how did you get started? Lead me in the right direction. I am leaning towards starting out with a MrBeer starter just because of the simplicity of it.

[Pappy]

Copper pot, some tubing...some corn...some keroscene....

Oh you meant beer:devil:

[sexysilverado45]

pappy cant you make i don't know if you want to call it shine but its pure alcohol out of beer or any other kind of alcoholic drink by basically heating it to a certain point and run that threw a cooler were it condinsates into a liquid and its pure alcohol. thats not like step but step but close. correct?

[tri5ron]

Originally posted by Sjorge450R
Lead me in the right direction. I am leaning towards starting out with a MrBeer starter just because of the simplicity of it.
Ohhh, I've been known to heat up a kettle or two.....
so let me give you a little advice.

STAY THE HELL AWAY from that MrBeer piece of crap.
The only thing worse than that, is the "Beer in a Bag" thing.

sorry but,.... "Just Add Water, and Hang in the Closet", does not constitute or equate to "Brewmeister Extrodinaire".

All you'll end up with, is a long wait, to produce something that rates 5 notches below Coors Light-Zero-Carb-No Cal-Nearbeer-Ant piss. (Gee,... I'm not sounding very opinionated here am I ???)

Trying to call that "Homebrew", is about the same thing as asking which graphics will add the most horsepower.

If you want to get into brewing, do it right,.. and you will be happy with your labors.
I don't mean that you must go directly into All Grain Brewing.
Certainly not,...
But you should AT LEAST, start out with a good Malt Extract set-up.
Anything less would be like saying you want to make a fine Chocolate Mousse,...
then going to the store to buy some Jello Brand Instant Pudding mix.
Martha Stewart would NOT approve !

With a good Extract set-up, you can brew nearly exact copies of 90% of the worlds brews.
About $100 bucks in equipment, (quite possibly less if your creative),
and $30 to $40 bucks of ingredients, will produce your first 5 to 7 gallon batch, of some very kickass "barleyjuice".

One of my winter brews, is a Russian Imperial Stout, that will cross your eyes, curl your toes, and turn your legs into wet noodles.
It will put down a 200+ lb man with just 2 1/2 to 3 glasses.

If you drive to my house and I pour you a glass of that,....
First- you have to hand over your car keys.
Second- Your better off planning on calling the wife, and telling her you'll be coming home TOMMOROW, (after the room stops spinning) LOL!

(but you do need to work your way up, to brewing something like that).

[VTredneckgames]

Originally posted by sexysilverado45
pappy cant you make i don't know if you want to call it shine but its pure alcohol out of beer or any other kind of alcoholic drink by basically heating it to a certain point and run that threw a cooler were it condinsates into a liquid and its pure alcohol. thats not like step but step but close. correct?

yes that is basically all it takes. However Homebrew /= moonshine

Home brew is homemade beer. Homemade beer and wine is legal to produce (up to a certain amount a year, cannot sell)

Once you try to distill anything it is illegal.

I personally prefer homemade wine over homebrew.

[Pappy]

Originally posted by sexysilverado45
pappy cant you make i don't know if you want to call it shine but its pure alcohol out of beer or any other kind of alcoholic drink by basically heating it to a certain point and run that threw a cooler were it condinsates into a liquid and its pure alcohol. thats not like step but step but close. correct?

Pretty much. Folks tend to come up with what they feel is the best recipe(sugar content, time for mash to cook beyond the pointof what temp it has to reach, what goes in to add kick etc)

The cooker itself can also be an entire personal deal. Larger coils, cool down time etc all affects the flavor.

I know quite a few folks that still make it....its a good little side income haha. Its not that they are trying to fight the law, just keeping a legacy alive and people get a kick out of saying they have a jar of shine in the basement!

Im with VT, a good homemade wine is great.

[VTredneckgames]

Originally posted by Pappy

I know quite a few folks that still make it....its a good little side income haha. Its not that they are trying to fight the law, just keeping a legacy alive and people get a kick out of saying they have a jar of shine in the basement!

Im with VT, a good homemade wine is great.

Same here. Great for a cough too:D

And you can always take some of that wine and run it. Get some good brandy out of it.

My great grandpa was known around these small parts for his homebrew and mountain dew. Sadly though the art died with him. Some of the family :cool: has tried to carry on the tradition, but the quality just isnt there, yet.

[Pappy]

I like a good Dandelion wine, my uncle used to make some super stuff.

The last shine I had was at Hatfield, it was made by Junior Johnson (yes the nascar guy) It was some of the best I had ever had. Once I move in a few years I will set up another still for fun. I'd rather sip on a shot of that then most anything.

[beags86]

me an my father have been know to make a little wine a time or to.... last year we made 142 gallons of grape. lets see - then you have the strawberry-rubarb, cranberry, cranberry-grape, straight strawberry, apple, and wild/tame grape. lol prob alittle over 200 gallons a yr. is that within a certin amount to be legal?

[ben300]

Originally posted by Pappy
I like a good Dandelion wine, my uncle used to make some super stuff.

The last shine I had was at Hatfield, it was made by Junior Johnson (yes the nascar guy) It was some of the best I had ever had. Once I move in a few years I will set up another still for fun. I'd rather sip on a shot of that then most anything.

ya that stuff that junior makes is pretty good

[quad2xtreme]

My wife's made several batches with the Mr. Beer and all have turned out well. We were going to call it Witches' Brew but then B*tches' Brew sounded better. :p

I will say that she let it go about a week longer than it was supposed to and used a special sugar in the final stage when bottling. Every person who received bottles beg for more every time they know she is making more.

Definitely buy the bottles, the caps, and the tool for putting the caps on. I wouldn't put the beer into plastic bottles with screw on lids.

I am not a beer drinker at all and have to say it was better to me than any of the American light beers.

[Sjorge450R]

Originally posted by tri5ron
Ohhh, I've been known to heat up a kettle or two.....
so let me give you a little advice.

STAY THE HELL AWAY from that MrBeer piece of crap.
The only thing worse than that, is the "Beer in a Bag" thing.

sorry but,.... "Just Add Water, and Hang in the Closet", does not constitute or equate to "Brewmeister Extrodinaire".

All you'll end up with, is a long wait, to produce something that rates 5 notches below Coors Light-Zero-Carb-No Cal-Nearbeer-Ant piss. (Gee,... I'm not sounding very opinionated here am I ???)

Trying to call that "Homebrew", is about the same thing as asking which graphics will add the most horsepower.

If you want to get into brewing, do it right,.. and you will be happy with your labors.
I don't mean that you must go directly into All Grain Brewing.
Certainly not,...
But you should AT LEAST, start out with a good Malt Extract set-up.
Anything less would be like saying you want to make a fine Chocolate Mousse,...
then going to the store to buy some Jello Brand Instant Pudding mix.
Martha Stewart would NOT approve !

With a good Extract set-up, you can brew nearly exact copies of 90% of the worlds brews.
About $100 bucks in equipment, (quite possibly less if your creative),
and $30 to $40 bucks of ingredients, will produce your first 5 to 7 gallon batch, of some very kickass "barleyjuice".

One of my winter brews, is a Russian Imperial Stout, that will cross your eyes, curl your toes, and turn your legs into wet noodles.
It will put down a 200+ lb man with just 2 1/2 to 3 glasses.

If you drive to my house and I pour you a glass of that,....
First- you have to hand over your car keys.
Second- Your better off planning on calling the wife, and telling her you'll be coming home TOMMOROW, (after the room stops spinning) LOL!

(but you do need to work your way up, to brewing something like that).

Thanks! Point me in the right direction for getting into it this way! I dont really have any homebrew shops close to me so thats why I am asking on here.

[buck440]

from my understanding you got to be really careful when making homemade alcohol cause sometimes you end up with a lot of ethonol which is an optic poison and can cause vision problems. that why they say if you drink bad moonshine you go blind.

[tri5ron]

Originally posted by Sjorge450R
Thanks! Point me in the right direction for getting into it this way! I dont really have any homebrew shops close to me so thats why I am asking on here.
You can get everything you need through ebay, or craigslist.
Look up your local homebrewers assn., and they will be happy to help. (you might be surprized how many people you will find local to you)
Buy and READ a book called
"The New Complete Joy of Homebrewing"
written by Charlie Papazian.

and also get yourself a subscription to Zymurgy Magazine.

good luck on your new hobby.
It's a perfect example of "Reap what you sow".



Originally posted by buck440
from my understanding you got to be really careful when making homemade alcohol cause sometimes you end up with a lot of ethonol which is an optic poison and can cause vision problems. that why they say if you drink bad moonshine you go blind.
There seems to be some confusion between brewing and distilling.
you can not screwup a homebrew so bad that it will make you go blind.
That only comes from bad "mountain dew" practices.

[Sjorge450R]

Originally posted by buck440
from my understanding you got to be really careful when making homemade alcohol cause sometimes you end up with a lot of ethonol which is an optic poison and can cause vision problems. that why they say if you drink bad moonshine you go blind.


Tri5on. Hopefully i stick with this as i feel like it would be a very enjoyable hobby to have.

[Guy400]

Several years ago my buddy and I decided we were going to get into this. We had a local wine store that was big into homebrewing and they were very helpful. We bought a couple of these kits and I made a lager and my friend did an IPA and a stout. It was actually very good beer and you had a sense of accomplishment. The dad of a girl I dated in college was huge into homebrewing and he came up with his own recipe for a red (like a Killian's). That was simply the best beer I'd ever had and he would get so pissed because I'd always raid his beer fridge in the bar and I'd drink it about as fast as he would brew it. It's a lot of fun.

[stever25]

Originally posted by Pappy
Copper pot, some tubing...some corn...some keroscene....

Oh you meant beer:devil:
Yeah, we were talkin about beer!!!????:devil:

[extremeblastr]

hey tri5 interested in maybe selling a couple of what you would consider your tastier brews and shipping them this way, a buddies father used to brew and he had some great stuff going but he passed recently (was sick for a lonlg while) and as much i as i would like to get into this i just don't think i have the time and as i'm sure you know theres nothing like a good home brew

[tri5ron]

extremeblaster,
I can't tell you how many times I'v had to turn down similar request's.
Besides the fact that it would be illegal to do on a few different levels, there are also some prohibative factors here.
It's been a while since I last brewed, although I do want to get it going again. (when I was heavy into it, I was brewing up to 20 gallons a month).
Homebrewing is not for selling or profit. Considering time, ingredients, equipment, and work, it is more a "labor of love". You really don't save any money doing it. You just come back with some really fantastic beer.

Another thing, is that since it is not pasturized, it does not "Travel" very well.
It's almost like it "Bruises" when not kept refridgerated, and getting shook-up in transit.

As well as, I've not Bottled any of my brews for many years. I prefer kegging my brews for more consistency per batch, and better aging and conditioning. (besides, bottleing is a big PITA)

This means that directly after fermentation, the entire batch goes into Corneilus kegs, and a fridge is stripped of it's interior shelving, and becomes dedicated as a big "Kegerator".

so therefore, non refridgerated, long distance travel just isn't any good for it... carries some pretty stiff fines with a B.A.T.F.
It quite litterally would not be the same when it got to you, as when it left here.

If you don't want to make the time necessary for homebrewing, You'd be alot better off to find a local Microbrewery, who's brews something you like, and satisfy your cravings that way.

thanks for the request, but there would be a long line of guys ahead of you, who would be pissed if I was to do that.

[bens250ex]

tri what kit do you use? or what does your kit consist of? got any pics?

[tri5ron]

Originally posted by bens250ex
tri what kit do you use? or what does your kit consist of? got any pics? The kit pictured above is very good to start off with. mine is similar to that. The only other thing you need is a large kettle similar to a turkey fryer kettle, a long handled spoon or paddle, and a thermometer.
but to make the cooking process a bit easier, (and cleaner), it is better to use the big burner from a turkey fryer, rather than cooking it on the kitchen stove.
(This is for 2 reasons),
1-
a turkey fryer will boil 3 or 4 gallons alot quicker and easier than the kitchen stove burners.

and 2-
in the event you have a "boil-over" while cooking, and waiting for what is called the "Hot Break", you wont be cleaning up that sticky mess from all over your kitchen.
(go ahead,.... ask me how I know this.) lol!

Also, the bigger the cooking kettle, the better.
Do not try to boil 4 gallons of "Wort" in a 5 gallon kettle,
if you do,... you'll quickly come to learn how big of a hot sticky mess it will make.

Buy the book, and read it before you attempt your first batch, and you will learn all these terms, and will have a good understanding of the entire process.

Oh and BTW,...
did you know that when you are drinking beer or any fermented drink,....
That you are actually drinking animal piss ???? LOL!!!

yep it's true.
Yeasts are little critters that are the heart ad sole of fermentation.
The alcohol in the beer you drink is actually their piss !

You don't belive me ??? Go read the book.

I'm going to go grab a beer !!!

[bens250ex]

Originally posted by Guy400
Several years ago my buddy and I decided we were going to get into this. We had a local wine store that was big into homebrewing and they were very helpful. We bought a couple of these kits and I made a lager and my friend did an IPA and a stout. It was actually very good beer and you had a sense of accomplishment. The dad of a girl I dated in college was huge into homebrewing and he came up with his own recipe for a red (like a Killian's). That was simply the best beer I'd ever had and he would get so pissed because I'd always raid his beer fridge in the bar and I'd drink it about as fast as he would brew it. It's a lot of fun.


where do you get this kit from?

[Guy400]

I bought mine from a local wine/beer shop that specialized in homebrewing. The place I bought it in Canton doesn't even have a website but they sold the kits plus they sold different beer recipes together that came with the yeast, brewing sugar, grains, etc. You just bought the style of beer you want to brew and followed the instructions. I would recommend that first because it almost idiot-proofs it for you first time brewing. If you get into it more you can find stores where you can buy specific grains, rice, hops, yeasts, etc. and fully customize and create your own recipes. This other store in Akron is where we started going later. It was a lot of fun but I got away from it about 3 years ago and my kit sits in the box in the shed along with 24 glass bottles.

http://www.grapeandgranary.com/

[backwoodsracer]

Love some shine homeebrew is nasstteeeeeyyyyy but I love most of the "lights"

[tri5ron]

Originally posted by backwoodsracer
Love some shine homeebrew is nasstteeeeeyyyyy but I love most of the "lights"
Nasty ?!?!?!
what do you mean ???

my Russian Imperial Oatmeal Stout is so smooth, that you only have to chew it 7 times before you swallow !
:blah: :D

it's best served with a fork !

[Scro]

Originally posted by tri5ron
Nasty ?!?!?!
what do you mean ???

my Russian Imperial Oatmeal Stout is so smooth, that you only have to chew it 7 times before you swallow !
:blah: :D

it's best served with a fork !

If I'm ever on the West Coast again, I'd be glad to have a tasting on that;)

[tri5ron]

Originally posted by Scro
If I'm ever on the West Coast again, I'd be glad to have a tasting on that;) No problem there Scro !
That stuff is the best in the middle of winter. It comes up to about a 11% to 12% alcohol by weight, or 14.5% by volume.

That means by the time you drink 2 1/2 glasses, it's the same as if you just "Beer Bonged" a 12 pack of your average store bought beer.

yeah,.... It'll rock your world ! :D

[Scro]

Yep, drinking stouts when it's hot out just doesn't sit well with me. I prefer IPA's in the summer, and any time of the year for that matter. In fact, I just finished off a 12.5% ABV double IPA. I think one 14.5% would be plenty for me.:p

[beags86]

Originally posted by tri5ron
No problem there Scro !
That stuff is the best in the middle of winter. It comes up to about a 11% to 12% alcohol by weight, or 14.5% by volume.

That means by the time you drink 2 1/2 glasses, it's the same as if you just "Beer Bonged" a 12 pack of your average store bought beer.

yeah,.... It'll rock your world ! :D

ron - what do you know about beer bongs? i know they didn't have them back when you were growing up... i mean weren't you growing up during prohibition...lol


gotta say that a good double IPA is awesome with a good set of wings... (to me at least)

really surpises me how many people are into craft beers, when is seams so many people are hypnotized by corpo america.

always seams i am by myself when talking to people about beer- the convo goes like this

me:what kind of beer to you like?
person i am talking to: bud light, miller light, coors light
me: oh i see
person i am talking to: why what kind do you like??
me: i like dark beer..
person i am to: OH, well i don't drink that stuff, i don't know how anyone can..

- well you get the idea - (i am sure you have had similar convos.)

glad to find some fellow beer conasuir!!


you guys ever see "beer wars" documentary?

[Scro]

I got to admit. Up until about two years ago, my go to beer was bud light. The subject came up at work with a buddy of mine, and he told me that I should try to branch out to "good beer". I remember saying, "I think bud light is pretty good" lol. He said, " HA! I'll bring you some good beer." The next day he brought in a Dogfish Head 90 minute, and a Flying Dog Double Dog. I had those the following two nights, and was hooked. The rest is history.:D

[Pappy]

I guess I am a real beer drinker...because if its cold I will drink it! I dont care about the name, whether it has gotten head or not...just cold cold cold!

[Guy400]

Gave it up 26 months ago. One day I just started getting headaches even if I drank just one beer. <turning in my man card>

[stever25]

Originally posted by Pappy
Copper pot, some tubing...some corn...some keroscene....

Oh you meant beer:devil:
YEAH!!! thats what he meant!!!:devil:

[400exrider707]

I just got my first kit, looks exactly like the one pictured above.

I got mine here...
http://www.midwestsupplies.com/

I can't wait to try it out! Waiting for a few extra things to come in, and my beer choice, should be here next week. That site has a lot of good info. Call and order a catalog from them, it has tons of info right in the catalog.

[beags86]

Originally posted by Scro
I got to admit. Up until about two years ago, my go to beer was bud light. The subject came up at work with a buddy of mine, and he told me that I should try to branch out to "good beer". I remember saying, "I think bud light is pretty good" lol. He said, " HA! I'll bring you some good beer." The next day he brought in a Dogfish Head 90 minute, and a Flying Dog Double Dog. I had those the following two nights, and was hooked. The rest is history.:D

man the dogfish head 90 minute is some tasty stuff, have you tried the world wide stout?? yeah i gotta say the heavier stuff hits you a bit hard then light beers, i think thats what got me hooked.

[beags86]

Originally posted by Pappy
I guess I am a real beer drinker...because if its cold I will drink it! I dont care about the name, whether it has gotten head or not...just cold cold cold!

i still have a soft spot in my heart for my first fav beer... a good old cold miller lite (come on all you haters - bring it)

i don't think i have ever turned down a cold beer, or a warm one for that matter:D

[beags86]

Originally posted by Guy400
Gave it up 26 months ago. One day I just started getting headaches even if I drank just one beer. <turning in my man card>


can't drink beer anymore huh?

i have a solution for you... can you say jack daniels??

[Pappy]

There was 5 flavors of the clear stuff on tap tonight.....man did a good job haha whooohooo!

[tri5ron]

Even if you’re not a homebrewer you should be a member of AHA. You’re eligible to get tickets for the Great American Beer Festival held every year in Denver. You get to attend all the AHA Rallies and you get Zymurgy Magazine. If you’re into beer your membership will increase your appreciation of the brewing arts.

Cheers



http://www.homebrewersassociation.org/