Husband has never home brewed before. What is the best thing to buy him for Xmas ?
http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/esse ... r-kit.html
It comes with one beer kit. If your husband likes hoppy beer, go for the Caribou Slobber. Malty beers? Irish red. Clean and easy drinking? American Wheat.
What are two or three beers, that he will spend extra money for, that make him say, Aaahhhh,?
I agree with that starter set mentioned above but don’t forget a burner and a pot. If you have a gastove and a large stock pot in the kitchen it will probably be enough for an extract. Another thing is you can help him on brewing and bottling day my wife helped me get started and it made it that much more fun.
[quote=“rebuiltcellars”]http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/essential-brewing-starter-kit.html
It comes with one beer kit. If your husband likes hoppy beer, go for the Caribou Slobber. Malty beers? Irish red. Clean and easy drinking? American Wheat.[/quote]
Worth noting, you can swap these 3 kits for something else. When I got my kit, I subbed for the st Paul porter.
What kind of beers does he like? That will help us suggest not just which one to get with the kit but also extra kits or future presents. Beers like Coors light are almost impossible to make and not worth the trouble. If he likes dark ones, real hoppy or something like a Belgian beer then he will love this hobby.
I would say something easy to brew. As in something that has a wide range for a ferment temperature, doesn’t require secondary fermenting, and can be competed in about three weeks.
Bump what @uberculture said.
The kit is great, has everything you need. This is exactly what I started with about 12 yrs ago.
My wife bought me the kit and every time I am in my garage brewing, I remind her that she created the monster.
[quote=“andymag”]
My wife bought me the kit and every time I am in my garage brewing, I remind her that she created the monster.[/quote]Don’t tell her that or he may never get the kit. :lol:
I would second the equipment kit along with the recipe kits mentioned above. If he’s anything like most homebrewers I know (including me), he (and you!) will love whatever he makes as long he follows some fundamental brewing practices. I would also recommend grabbing him a copy of The Complete Joy of Homebrewing and/or How To Brew…and of course, point him to this forum for advice from some excellent brewers. Both great resources and he can dip into them on Christmas morning.
Congrats on being a great wife!
I recommend a copy of How to Brew by John Palmer and a Northern Brewer gift certificate for about $200.
The starter kit mentioned is pretty much a requirement to get brewing, but let him read up on his options and decide himself on the boil vessel. Plus he can pick his own recipe and he won’t have to either brew immediately or let the ingredients sit.
My recommendation - Get the kit rebuiltcellers posted above.
I kind of think then of the kits that are included, the american wheat might be the easiest one to do first, although any of the three listed are about the same skill level wise.
I am not normally a irish red guy but I LOVE the irish red in the kit they have as well. really all three are great
only other thing you will need to have on brew day is at least a 5 gallon stock pot. then eventually about 2 cases of bottles, but those are expensive to buy and ship versus maybe buying those locally if you have a home brew shop nearby. OR you can always get busy drinking pry top dark bottled beers now and saving bottles.
Holiday time is perfect for attending parties and offering to “recycle” the bottles from the party.
BTW - You are about 30 days away from winning wife of the year… :cheers:
I was typing while Sam was as well. I like his gift card idea. or at least buy the kit and then a gift card and let him fill in the blanks with the brew vessel etc.
One final thought (from me) as I’m sure we are overwhelming you. You could buy him a beer kit that YOU like to drink, which would give him extra incentive to take the plunge!
Offer from NB just arrived in email, spend $125, get free Caribou Slobber kit. Gift cards are not included though.
It is worth mentioning that the same equipment that is used for brewing beer can also be used for making wine from kits. I began making wines specifically so my wife could have something she would enjoy as much as I did the beer. Eventually I tackled sparkling wines as well. Now we are both very happy with the output from this hobby.
Why not go with the small 1 gallon kit to see if he enjoys beer making? That way you can hold off on buying the 20 qt stockpot and other minimal essential--------- it adds up quickly. If he does enjoy it, I would recommend the kit that includes the glass or plastic carboys. As a newcomer, it is exciting to see the yeast at work.
Thanks everyone for the replies! I’ll i know is he likes the locally brewed micro brews. I see him drink some IPAs .
