Hey poggor,
The first issue is what sort of beers will you be brewing? If you want to try anything, are there a few styles you might be focusing on a bit more?
And how much do you want to spend?
How much can you store?
I made a similar move ~1yr ago (then finally got my mill 3 mo's later - a painful wait!).
I also had similar questions, with the answer to my 1st question being kinda anything so i wanted to cover my options. This was also done as part of a Bulk Buy, so i went a bit overboard loading up on "bargains" (like i'll be needing all of 5kgs of Midnight Wheat over the next 20yrs!). Basically i went to the further end of versatility. You might not want that much to start with.
I went with something very similar to mckenry -
a bag of Maris Otter (seemed best for an Ale malt option),
a bag of Bohemian Pils (from Weyermann, seemed best for pils - still don't know on this),
then a 1/2 bag of wheat (i use a little to a lot in most beers),
1/2 bag of Vienna (pretty much not used, but that's just the recipes i've done so far - i should get around to it soon ... faux lagers & sparkling ales!),
1/2 bag of Munich 2 (somewhat excessive, but 5kgs would've been fine - a bit of Munich goes into so many things),
& 1/2 bag of Victory (great malt, but a little goes a long way).
I then went 5kgs into each of pale, Med, & dark crystal, CaraAroma, CaraBohemian, Chocolate, & Midnight wheat.
Now, in summary, i'd repeat the full bags of MO (going to try TF Floor Malted MO, or TFFMMO for those in the know
i'm told it's better than the simpsons), the boh pils, & the 1/2 bag of Wheat. The wheat could def be somewhat less - you could go for 5kgs unless you're brewing wheat beers etc soon. I brew more deeper/darker ales so the boh pils is a bit less important, but i've done a few varieties where the pils was needed, so after 1yr i've actually got a similar amount of each left.
All/Most of the specs i could've gotten 1-2kgs instead. Not too many recipes need more than 300g of a spec, and normally it might be 300-400g in total specs. i'd probably go the 2kg option. Except Midnight wheat or Black patent or Roast Barley - 1kg is truckloads. Munich i'd go 5kg.
That is how it's worked out for me, given the dozen or so beers i've brewed over the last 12 months. Your needs will obviously be different, but it hopefully gives you a decent illustration to go by.
Storage is *super* important. Mice = bad. Also it takes up a fair bit of space once you have 50-100kg of grain sitting in the house. Airtight containers are also best for general long-term storage purposes.
If you needed a cut-down version:
1 - bag of MO or another ale malt
2 - bag of Pils (only if you want an extra full bag) - adds versatility
3 - 5 kg wheat
4 - 3-5kg Munich
5 - 2kg of (each?) crystal - i do 3 crystal splits (so 300g med crystal becomes 75/150/75 pale/med/dark) but it's not necessary.
6 - 2 kg Biscuit/Victory - adds good aromatics
7 - 1kg something dark, i.e.: Black/Midnight/Roast barley
The other things like CaraAroma, CaraBoh, Chocolate, Vienna i'd suggest may or may not be relevant depending on exactly what you'll brew. Chocolate seems pretty common in recipes but i've just not used it yet. CaraAroma i've used in a few recipes, like Red Ales, so it's been a better choice for me.
While i clearly went a bit crazy on the malt purchases, i really love the fact i can dream up a recipe, wander into the spare room and measure out the grains at 11pm ready to brew the next day. No running to shops required! I kinda think if i have to go to the shops for 100g of something, i might as well have gotten the whole lot from the shops and have no grain stored at home. Bit extreme but it works for me.
Hope that overly long answer helps.
