New guy to Brewing

[quote=“aldrichg9”]voodoo donut -

This must be a recipe from his book?[/quote]

Yes, from “How to Brew” by John Palmer. Also variations on Home Brew Forums, other blogs, etc.

Like Frenchie, I have learned to enjoy more subtle malt forward styles as much as bitter hop bombs. Just tonight I was fortunate enough to enjoy a bomber of Heady Topper “drink from the can” DIPA, and followed that up with my “don’t fear the REAPER” pumpkin ales, decidedly NOT hoppy. AND shared one of my Hefe’s with my wife over sauerkraut dinner. (Yes I can still walk :mrgreen: )

Um.,. Yeah it’s only slightly addictive. Lol

Take your time reading up on everything first.

I was told by a brewmaster that replicating Bud Light was very difficult…I asked him why anyone would waste time and money doing that and his reply was you would be surprised. I love a good cream ale in summer. Look at some of the “lawn mower beers” Also I’m thinking you might enjoy a Irish Red. Starting out brewing with a light beer might not be the best since as said above are much less forgiving of some mistakes first time brewers make. I also totally agree on the IPAs I can’t stand them either :slight_smile:

Thanks guys for the feedback.
I’m surprised to have more than one person say that IPA isn’t their most favorite style.
I have caught quite a bit of crap around here for not being on board the craze.

So I have this NB cream ale extract kit arriving today.
I have been considering pulling back on the hops a bit, or adding it later in the boil.
But - I also thought about following the directions the first time then modifying to my taste the next batch of it I try.
Also - my beer will be fermenting in my bonus room above the garage.
Currently the temp there is around 60 and will be dropping some with the outside temperature as I don’t keep it very warm.
I’m thinking these cooler temps will be better for my first batch but I want to be sure. Any input on this?

Whatever happens I will post back here when I have a finished product.

As a side note I have read a couple posts where guys recommended a cream or milk stout, rather than modifying a cream ale to a creamy vanilla.
So what is a cream stout like? I picture very dark burnt nut tasting stuff.
I’m willing to try anything.
Is there a good example I can try to find in the stores?

Do folks on this site like pictures? I could take pictures of brew day if you want but I guess most people here have seen it hundreds of times.

Your bonus room sounds perfect. When it gets down to 50 or so you can ferment a lager. Cream ale and milk stout are two different animals. Go ahead and post pictures if you like, it’s all fun.

There’s an older version of Palmer’s “How to Brew” free on-line at howtobrew.com

“Brewing Classic Styles” is an excellent starting point for touring beer styles either virtually or by following his recipes.

Ken Lenard’s site at http://www.freewebs.com/kenlenard/ is loaded with excellent information for all brewers - novice to expert. I’ve been using a lot of his recipes and techniques recently and they are excellent in spite of my poor technique. He leans toward lagers, but also has recipes for some outstanding ales. He has recipes for two blond ales, “Memory Lapse Pale Ale”, a Kolsch, a wheat ale, and … All are very good. None are extreme and the ones I’ve listed might be a good introduction to brewing.

Has anyone mentioned that you’re unlikely to save money brewing your own beer? It may start out that way, but when your circle of friends suddenly expands, you’ll find it’s a little more expensive - and much more enjoyable because you can adjust recipes to suit yourself - and all your new friends.

It’s been mentioned a couple of times in this thread about the money.
That was a motivator a couple years ago when I first started looking into homebrewing.

I have however been looking around long enough at the costs involved to know that this is not about money.

I really just want to brew something myself that I can share with friends and be proud of.

I’ve been homebrewing cheap hooch for some time now (ferment sugar water, add grape concentrate)
I want to make something that tastes good and isn’t just cheap swill.

Thanks old_dawg for the links and the suggestions.
I will definitely look into the Kolsch recipe!

Greg

Did you look into the late malt extract additions that I mentioned? That will help with your lighter styles.

What is it about hops you don’t like? If it’s bitterness then look at your first hop additions. If it’s the flavor/aroma look at your late additions. If it’s both of may need to cut both. Lighter styles however are not notorious for being hop monsters so I would brew that cream ale kit as is and see where it takes you.

[quote=“aldrichg9”]It’s been mentioned a couple of times in this thread about the money.
That was a motivator a couple years ago when I first started looking into homebrewing.

I have however been looking around long enough at the costs involved to know that this is not about money.

I really just want to brew something myself that I can share with friends and be proud of.

I’ve been homebrewing cheap hooch for some time now (ferment sugar water, add grape concentrate)
I want to make something that tastes good and isn’t just cheap swill.

Thanks old_dawg for the links and the suggestions.
I will definitely look into the Kolsch recipe!

Greg[/quote]

Heck then itseasy. Anything you make will taste better than that. How long were you in?

[quote=“Loopie Beer”]Did you look into the late malt extract additions that I mentioned? That will help with your lighter styles.

What is it about hops you don’t like? If it’s bitterness then look at your first hop additions. If it’s the flavor/aroma look at your late additions. If it’s both of may need to cut both. Lighter styles however are not notorious for being hop monsters so I would brew that cream ale kit as is and see where it takes you.[/quote]

I have not yet looked into late extract additions. Will do so now.
It’s really a bit of both that I don’t like.
My answer to your other question is well… both.
I don’t much care for the strong bitterness, then I don’t like the mouth covering strong flavor that hangs around for half an hour.

Now I feel like all I do is bitch about hops…

[quote=“Brew Cat”][quote=“aldrichg9”]

Heck then itseasy. Anything you make will taste better than that. How long were you in?[/quote][/quote]
It’s been about three years that I have been goofing around with fermenting whatever I can find time to.
Never anything really worth drinking much of just having fun.
Now it’s time to make something that’s worth my time

Lot of good advice given so far.

My first beer was an imperial blonde ale, because like you, the hop craze was irritating to me (and keep in mind this was in 2010, when it was barely an ‘outbreak’, now its a full on pandemic) and I didn’t really personally dig them.

I have to say though, when I added those hops to the boil, I began to appreciate the power of hops…and I still love a hop-forward beer.

Brewing though, will almost certainly open your eyes to new styles that you never thought you would like. I can definitively say now that there really is not a style of beer, made really well, that I haven’t enjoyed. And I would not have gained that appreciation had I not brewed a good many of them.

Brew the recipe as-is. Actually brew 25-30 recipes as-is. Brewing is about process. Once yours is nailed and you have an understanding of the tenets, then you can go from a ‘cook’ to a ‘chef’.

Cream ale (one of the worst names for a style in the style guidelines IMO) has nothing to do with cream stouts. Or cream soda. Please for the love of God do not add vanilla to it.

Take a gander through the 2015 BJCP guidelines, or better yet, the brewer’s association style guidelines. You will likely find tons of styles you may not have had before, and certainly can build up a ‘backlog’ of stuff to brew.

Welcome to the hobby!

[quote=“aldrichg9”]

Heck then itseasy. Anything you make will taste better than that. How long were you in?[/quote]

I think he was asking how long you were in the joint.

[quote=“Pietro”][quote=“aldrichg9”]

Heck then itseasy. Anything you make will taste better than that. How long were you in?[/quote]

I think he was asking how long you were in the joint.[/quote]

Bwahhahah.

I didn’t catch that.

Now I feel a bit dumb. Never in the joint - just wanted to ferment some cheap stuff to get messed up at the lake.

Thanks for chiming in Pietro.

Sounds like I need to relax a bit and just brew it per the directions.

Pretty excited here though.
I had been worried about whether I would love the beer or not, but the more guys chime in the more I just want to see what happens and see what I really like.
None of my buddies or even my wife could care less about this.

Also I just read on these guys’ website that they have product available at a store in my area.

http://www.sunkingbrewing.com/home.html

Surely I can find something appealing.

http://www.sunkingbrewing.com/full-list.html

[quote=“Pietro”]Lot of good advice given so far.

My first beer was an imperial blonde ale, because like you, the hop craze was irritating to me (and keep in mind this was in 2010, when it was barely an ‘outbreak’, now its a full on pandemic) and I didn’t really personally dig them.

I have to say though, when I added those hops to the boil, I began to appreciate the power of hops…and I still love a hop-forward beer.

Brewing though, will almost certainly open your eyes to new styles that you never thought you would like. I can definitively say now that there really is not a style of beer, made really well, that I haven’t enjoyed. And I would not have gained that appreciation had I not brewed a good many of them.

Brew the recipe as-is. Actually brew 25-30 recipes as-is. Brewing is about process. Once yours is nailed and you have an understanding of the tenets, then you can go from a ‘cook’ to a ‘chef’.

Cream ale (one of the worst names for a style in the style guidelines IMO) has nothing to do with cream stouts. Or cream soda. Please for the love of God do not add vanilla to it.

Take a gander through the 2015 BJCP guidelines, or better yet, the brewer’s association style guidelines. You will likely find tons of styles you may not have had before, and certainly can build up a ‘backlog’ of stuff to brew.

Welcome to the hobby![/quote]

You should be. If you can follow directions, you will certainly ‘like’ the product, but you may even love it, and it will become a hobby unlike any other.

wait until you start brewing good beer. You will have more pop ins than you can deal with. Just keep stuff sanitized ($0.99 spray bottle filled with sanitizer mixed on brew day is a great investment for peace of mind), read as much as you can about yeast and pitch rates and fermentation temp, for the love of God, fermentation temp. (remember, brewers make wort, yeast make beer).

Get it through your head early that the yeast create heat when they ferment the wort, so figure out a way to dial in the temperature of THE FERMENTATION/BEER (not of the room the fermenter is sitting in). Keep it lower than you think. 64 is a good target for the first few days of fermentation.

Those guys make great beer. Wish I could get it in my hood. Great place to start.

All great advice above. Wish I had a room I could keep at 50 degrees! You should be able to ferment lagers in there with no issue at all. Once you get your process down you should take a shot at a pilsner. It is a difficult style to brew because there’s no hiding flaws but should suit your palate as well as that of SWMBO.

Welcome to the addiction and have fun! :cheers:

Well, after a bit of a hangup in shipping, Northern Brewer took care of the issue as quickly as possible.
Great customer service btw. Thanks NB

Tonight I got my first batch of brew started with the cream ale extract kit.
Everything went pretty well for the most part, however there is a bit of an issue.
Even though I stirred, I managed to scorch some extract.
My stirring seems to have been mainly around the outside of the kettle as the center has a bit of burnt stuff as well as a few flakes floating in the wort.

Oh well - not much I can do about it now except wait and see how it turns out.
I did manage to over chill the wort to 56* F and had to use a hot water bath to bring it up and pitched the 1056 at 66*
The wyeast web site gave a temp range of 60-72 so I ran with it and will see what we wind up with.

Thanks guys for your input and comments.
I will update this thread with how the beers turns out.

Greg

For your next attempt make sure you take the kettle off the heat ( kill the propane burner f you’re using that). Slowly pour in the extract and stir the entire time. Continue to stir to ensure that it is dissolved.

Over chilling isn’t a bad thing. You don’t have to warm it up next time. Pitch and let it free rise to your targeted ferm temp. I always chill my wort to 3-4° below ferm temp, pitch, and let it free rise.

Congrats on your first beer! :cheers:

That’s the thing, I did turn the burner off
I wasn’t stirring while pouring though.
I’ll do that next time.

If it was off the heat, it probably just wasn’t all mixed/dissolved before you fired the kettle again. Just stir it real well after adding it, no reason to walk and chew gum at the same time.

Pay attention to those yeast temp ranges, but don’t take them as gospel. Always remember that yeast will GENERATE HEAT while fermenting, so the ambient room temp will be below the beer/fermentation temp, at least in the beginning.