Never done anything besides drink beer.
Searched a few phrases here, but seems most of you guys are way more advanced.
Where is square 1 for learning to brew beer? (the right way)
I’m an IPA guy for sure.
Thanks for your time and input.
I always suggest buying How to Brew by John Palmer
There is a freeby version at howtobrew.com
+1. I would read howtobrew first before buying any equipment and then you can see how advanced you want to go in the beginning.
Awesome. Thanks for the info.
I’m pumped on learning about where this delicious nectar actually comes from. You know, like before it actually gets to my kegerator.
Search out homebrew clubs in your area. Goto a meeting, ask lots of questions. My club has a program where we pair beginners and more experienced guys for brew sessions. Ask lots of questions here. The people on this forum are very well informed, and experienced. Search out videos on the interwebs, there is a wealth of info there, too.
+1 on Palmer’s “How To Brew”. I first started with Charlie Papazian’s “Joy of Homebrewing, 3rd edition” That book is a bit dated, but took the mystery out of it, and gave me a great start.
Again, don’t hesitate to ask questions here. This is a great forum.
Welcome to the forum, and welcome to the obsession!
Take a class at a Homebrew store and buy a kit.
If you decide to give it a go you came to the right place. You will get great advice here from many experts. Read “How to Brew”, talk to your local homebrew shop, and jump on in. Ask any questions you have here, there are no dumb ones. Welcome!
The tutorials on AHA helped me as well as reading. If you can heat water, follow a recipe, clean, and wait… you can brew beer. A bazillion people have done it for a bazillion years.
Thank you all for the warm welcome!
Welcome and I agree with the above suggestions. I would further say that you might want to brew with someone to see what they actually use, before you buy things that are seldom used and for the most part, unnecessary. You won’t know that until you brew with someone. That person can likely tell you how to minimize from what they use to allow you to get started with the minimum expenditure. After that, you will know what other items are priorities as additional equipment and avoid the stuff that are in some kits that aren’t really needed.
Then you will want to follow the mantra spoken here: sanitization, pitch rate, temperature control…
Good luck and happy brewing!
Welcome wheezy. It is a great hobby and the results are far more fun than a little piece of paper with a golf score on it.
How to Make Beer - American Homebrewers Association … some of the best info around.
I would also suggest checking out the Let’s Brew section on HomebrewersAssociation.org. There are step-by-step tutorials for various methods of brewing across different experience levels. I would suggest starting in the Beginner section or with the “Extract w/ specialty grains” tutorial in the intermediate section. Both utilize malt extracts for all the fermentables, but the specialty grains gets your feet wet in using raw grain ingredients without too much more hassle.
Also, check out [u]Zymurgy: An Introduction to Homebrewing[/u]. It is free to download and covers the brewing process for beginners.
And, of course, ask us forum-peeps questions, too!
Cheers,
Duncan
I agree with all of the above. In particular, seeking out a homebrew club, other experienced brewer, the right brewshop/teacher is a great way to get going. There is just no substitute for seeing someone that really knows what they are doing - It can put you lightyears ahead of where you would be trying to feel your way on your own. What area are you located in? Someone might be able to send you in the right direction depending on where you live.
Again. Thanks for all the input.
I’m in Orange County. I also have a coworker that I reached out to today who has been brewing for several years.
He’s gonna come be my supervisor on batch 1.
I will keep you guys posted.
Orange County, CA? If so, check out the ecology center in San Juan Capistrano. They offer brewing classes, but the next one isn’t until late September. I have not attended one, so I can’t fully vouch for it.
Even if you don’t go for the class, be sure to check it out sometime. It’s an amazing place ran by some incredible people. http://theecologycenter.org
Wheezy, what part of oc? I’m in ranch santa margarita and brew with my two neighbors.
Definitely a +1 on the Zymurgy pamphlet. We got a bunch of them for the Big Brew Day and handed out to anyone who’s never brewed before. It’s rather brief in some areas, but for a beginner, it really does a good job of telling you what your in for when you start this wonderful hobby.
Welcome! When we started, we did so by making a very small investment in a one-gallon kit, which gives you everything you need, including step-by-step instructions. It will also allow you to easily try it on your kitchen stove top. If you Google homebrewing kits, a lot of options will come up, and you can buy online.
Making beer with a small batch kit is really easy (if you can make soup, you can make beer). We got hooked, and I think you will too, and soon we were stepping up to larger batches, and eventually all-grain brewing.
But my advice would be not to invest too much until you see if it’s for you. You can get a complete, one-gallon kit for around 50 bucks, and be drinking your own beer within a couple of weeks.
All of the other advice you are getting here is excellent, but (and it’s just my opinion from my personal experience), I feel it’s best to “get your feet wet” first to see if it’s for you.
Cheers!
I also started with the 1 gallon kit, but now that’s just sitting around. Honestly, I’d give it to ya if you were in the area. My advice would be to brew with your friend once and if it seems like something you want to get into then check out craigslist for a decent 5 gallon setup. New my 5 gallon setup was around $200 and you can easily find all you need for under that. 1 gallon is roughly a 12 pack and that goes by pretty quick. Waiting ~4 weeks for a 12 pack was cool and all, but idk how many people brew more than a couple 1 gallon batches before they upgrade.