Ubernoob

[J'sGarage]

Hi Everyone, I've just put down my first brew(if you can call beer from a can brew) a week and a half ago, all bottled up and looking mighty clear


Anyway, I got the BrewCellar Microbrewery kit(the one that comes with bottles and everything), I guess you are all shaking your heads at this, but hey it's a start.

I really don't know much about beer at all, so I can guarantee I'll be asking some stupid questions, but bear with me, I'm keen to learn this fine craft.

i bought a bunch of random stubbies from my local last week to try and decide exactly what flavour/style I want to make. Wife an I have decided we like Lagers above Ales. not that we dislike Ales/pale ales, we just prefer Lager.

One in particular we enjoyed was Monteiths Golden Lager. I don't necessarily want to replicate it, but thats the style I want to try.

Is this difficult to do? keeping in mind, my only experience in brewing so far is the "can of goo, hot water, stir, yeast, wait, bottle" method.

Eventually I will have a fridge set up and will be kegging rather than bottling, but baby steps I think is the best approach.

I'm 39, with Wife and 7 and 5yo boys, not that its relevant but I thought I'd chuck that in.

Cheers
Jason

 

[Spiesy]

Welcome aboard Jason… it's all downhill from here…

Lagers, funnily enough, are harder than ales to make. I say "funnily enough", because they have a much more subtle flavour profile - compared to their ale brethren. Due to this, it's very easy for flaws to show up.

One of the most important parts of making a lager is fermentation, and lagering (storing the fermented beer cold for a period of time).

Whilst AHB is a great resource, I recommend getting yourself a couple of good books and diving in.

• "How to Brew" by John Palmer, if a top book and has pretty much everything you need to go from start to amazing beers and then some.
• "Brewing Classic Styles" b Palmer and Jamil is also a top book.

Perhaps see if you can order both of them together from Amazon or The Book Depository.

 

[DJ_L3ThAL]

Welcome, many fun learning times ahead of you! Nothing wrong with starting out with a kit mate, don't stress.

Lagers are more difficult to brew than ales due to he need for temperature control. They ferment typically at 8-12C where ales 16-22C. Do you have a fridge you can use with a temp controller for fermentation? Lagers also take at least twice the time to brew (properly) than ales due to the need to have a Diacetyl rest and a lagering period before drinking. Due to these low temperatures it also takes longer to bottle carbonate lagers.

I'd recommend trying a "faux" lager using US-05 yeast, stick with the lager recipe you formulate, but just use the US-05 and brew it at 15-16C (if you can), you'll be pleasantly surprised.

 

[mosto]

Welcome to the hobby mate. No problems starting with the can of goo, most people here would have started that way. You can certainly make tasty beer with kits, but there's a few basic rules to follow, regardless of how you brew.

Firstly, sanitation. Doesn't matter how good the rest of your process is, if you get an infection, your beer is cactus. Many different and effective cleaning processes but mine is wash everything thoroughly in Di-san (Aldi equivalent of Napisan), rinse, then give everything a dose of Starsan (a no-rinse sanitizer).

Secondly, temp control. Particularly if you like lagers. Without a fermentation fridge, it's virtually impossible to brew lagers at this time of year, as lager yeast likes to sit at around 12c. Ales more like 18c. So if you can get hold of an old, working fridge, hook it up to a temp controller, like an STC1000, your yeast, and therefore your beer, will thank you.

Finally, ingredients. Use the best and freshest you can, particularly yeast. The better the ingredients, the better the beer.

I asked plenty of stupid questions on here when starting out and was mostly met with extremely helpful advice, so feel free to ask away.

Happy brewing.

 

[benno1973]

At the risk of parroting what everyone else has said...

1. Welcome to the forum!

2. No issues with brewing from a can. 90% of us started there, and slowly moved on. The best investment you've made so far is joining a forum and asking some questions.

3. Lagers are harder than ales, due to their light flavour profile which doesn't hide many flaws. They also require some temperature control to allow fermentation at 10-12C, and a period of cold lagering at 1-4C for a few weeks. I'd suggest choosing a lighter style ale (like a summer ale) and attempting that, brewing at 18C with a neutral yeast like US05, BRY-97 or Nottingham. All these yeasts are fairly commonly available from your local homebrew store. You may also find that you are attracted to the hops generally used in lagers (noble german hops like Saaz, Tett, etc), rather than lagers themselves (using a lager yeast). This makes it a bit easier, in that you can use a can of lager, but ferment it with an ale yeast (thoise listed above) to get something that you'll like.

4. Concentrate and read up on sanitation and temperature control.

 

[J'sGarage]

Thanks for the kind words

I thought I'd crack one of these just for a reference point tonight, My first impression: a good head, dropped away a little quick but that was actually expected at this time in the process, good flavour, a small hint of a dirty aftertaste, but I think that will clear off with aging.
Good colour, a nice light amber, and a nice bite as far as alcohol content goes.

I really am very happy with how this is turning out.

now for the amazing part: the yeast was actually adda when the wort was still at 31DegC. it took me 48 hours to get it down to 24DegC, and by 70hrs the bubbling had stopped completely. I left it another 24hrs, and no more bubbling was noted (from start to finish this was checked every two hours, or thereabouts) and bottled it.

It was bottled Friday evening, and tonight(the following wednesday) I have the results mentioned above. If I was any happier I think I might actually explode. Grinning like an Idiot.


Now for the hard part.....leaving it alone for another two weeks.

Today I bought a Black Rock Dry Lager kit,(can O' goo again), and rather than straight dextrose, I got Brewcellar's Brewbooster (250gm corn syrup, and 250gm light malt mixed with the 1kg dextrose) should be interesting! I think I'll use a live yeast for this one too.
oh and a "Mangrove Jack's Craft series Mixed Berry cider" for Wifey

I think I need to buy more bottles.....

 

[Wilkensone]

• "How to Brew" by John Palmer, if a top book and has pretty much everything you need to go from start to amazing beers and then some.
• "Brewing Classic Styles" b Palmer and Jamil is also a top book.

Perhaps see if you can order both of them together from Amazon or The Book Depository.

Just so you know I picked these both up from the book depository UK for about $22 each delivered and they came within the week from memory.

Welcome to the forum, I'm in much the same position as you so good luck.
Wilkens

 

[Bribie G]

Hi, those starter kits are good because they supply just about everything you need in the way of gear such as hydrometer, probably a hand capper, the fermenter etc etc.

There are some shortcut lagers or fake lagers you can make with good results. For example US-05 as mentioned, or Nottingham yeasts when fermented at below 20 degrees can make a good lager like beer and can definitely lift a tin brew.

The Americans had a popular ale before prohibition (when many styles were lost) called Cream Ale that was made specifically to target the lager market, by breweries that wanted to churn it out quickly. It was a light flavoured pale beer popular with industrial workers, and I often make it myself. A very close version to try is Murrays Whale Ale if you can get hold of a bottle to try (although it contains some wheat but is very similar). Available at Dans or "better" bottle shops.

So really, you don't have to brew amber coloured highly hopped ales, with a bit of practice you can produce anything you want, basically.

 

[yum beer]

If doing the dry lager kit DO NOT add the dry enzyme that comes with it.
It eats away for a long time and it is slow which make it very easy to bottle before its finished.
The sugars you are using wil dry the brew out enough.

 

[J'sGarage]

Slower and with smaller words please....

its a can of goo and a bag of yeast, or is that not what is referred to as a kit? Or is the yeast the enzyme?


cheers
Jason

 

[Bribie G]

Sorry I thought you meant the complete starter kit in a box, like you get for Father's day

The yeast is the small metallic packet stuck onto the top of the tin, with the granules inside that ferments the beer.

Don't worry about enzymes, never used them myself and not necessary.

 

[Scooby Tha Newbie]

It is goo mate. But with a little care it will turn out good. Temp& sanitation are a must. Then good yeast.try not to change to many things. Take notes.
Temp is so important I got two fridges bf any brewing started. Have fun.

 

[JDW81]

Slower and with smaller words please....

its a can of goo and a bag of yeast, or is that not what is referred to as a kit? Or is the yeast the enzyme?


cheers
Jason

The kit is generally the tin of goo and pack of yeast. People will often refer to kit and kilo (K&K) which refers to the tin of goo and a kilo of brewing sugar (malt extract usually). The enzyme is there to help dry out the beer (not make it less wet, but make the flavour less sweet), but not that common an ingredient. Yeast and enzyme are not the same.

Don't worry about having lots of questions, we were all beginners once and felt totally out of our depth (I still do more often than not).

Good luck with it.

JD

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

The enzyme & yeast are completly different.

Yeast converts ( digests ) sugars into alcohol and CO2.

Enzymes help break down complex sugars so the yeast can use it better and ferment all the available sugars

Yeast wont convert all the sugars during normal fermentation.

Using enzymes with let the yeast convert all the sugars, but produces a "dry" beer. A beer that lacks any sweetness. Not to be confussed with "Tooheys Extra Dry"

 

[J'sGarage]

Thanks