Home Brewing - Sound Off

[KillJoy]

As some of you know, I enjoy beer. GOOD beer.

There is a local brewery that I can get my favorites fresh daily. They even carry a selection of some great micro brews that change on a regular basis (all on Tap).

Well....I have been contemplating, for quite some time, about brewing my own beer. I would just like to see what the average joe can do on his own. Nothing special....just good 'ol beer that tastes good, and leaves you wanting another ;)

I know, for a fact, that there are other drinkers of fine beer here. Have any of you home brewed?

Can you help guide me, other than pointing me to a website or websearch? Friends always seem to help friends better than strangers ;)

:beer:


KillJoy

[Mopar Boy]

I brewed my first batch this weekend so it will be a little while before I can taste it..:( I got the kit as a birthday present a few months ago. My first batch is a Irish red beer.

Here are some information sources on the web.

http://www.howtobrew.com/section1/index.html

http://www.homebrewadventures.com/how_to/how_to.shtml

There is a good brew store here in Charlotte off of South Blvd near Scaleybark Rd.

[mpearce]

I know someone who makes their own whiskey.

[Grifter]

i have brewed about 10 batches so far...
its not that hard. just go to a local brewshop and buy a brewing kit. 20qt pot, carboy, airlocks, a 2nd carboy is a good idea for a primary fermenter.
then buy a beer kit, its the easiest way to get started.
check out http://www.midwestsupplies.com/ or http://www.northernbrewer.com
i buy my stuff from midwest.. they are local to me.

best beer i made so far is an oatmeal stout.. i love stouts.

[whoskal]

I have been brewing beer since I was old enough to buy it......I am lucky that there is a few home brew stores in the area......nothin better than gettin sauced on your own stuff!!!!.........I have about 15 gallons of wine going right now.

[Motorhead350]

As some of you know, I enjoy beer.

No you? :lol:

[Marauder2005]

I graduated with the son of the founder of Sam Adams. They started the

same way. I say go for it. Plus fresh beer is delicious.

[grzellmer]

Even though I work for one of those "evil" mass brewers, I have home brewed many batches over the years. My favorites are the various types of "Amber" beers. They are tastier than a pilsner beer without the bitterness of a dark beer.

IMPORTANT: Beer is very susceptable to impurities. Clean everything twice. Wash all your bottles in the dishwasher on a "Sanitize" cycle if you can. Don't overfill the bottles. CO2 is a product of fermentation. No space in the bottles means they can blow up if overfilled.

Lastly, just remember not to pour the last 1/2 inch of beer from the bottle into your glass. Unless you like to drink leftover yeast.

Good Luck

Gary

[Dragcity]

Now you are talking my language.....

I have been brewing since 2000, and have run through about 400 batches thus far. I just upgraded my equipment allowing me to make 10 gallon batches of all grain.

I have won 1 Second Best of Show, 6 Gold, 8 Silver and 5 Bronze in local and State competitions. I am also a BJCP Certified Beer Judge.

Go for it. It is relatively easy if you follow some general rules. You can make pretty good beer from extract kits, and exceptionally good beer from all grain/partial mash.

You can make a lot of your own eequipment, pretty cheaply.

Ingredients are available all over and on the internet.

Let me know what you need.....

[Mopar Boy]

I have a brew question to the guys here on my first batch. Im brewing an Irish traditional red beer and everything seems to be going ok but I have noticed something that has me wondering.

I'm doing a two stage system and this weekend I am suppose to transfer from my bucket to my glass carboy. I had a lot of activity in the first day and 1/2 to two days (gasses coming through the airlock). Well this activity has stopped and today I decided to look in to see if the foam was gone.

Well there appears to be yeast on the side of the bucket and some floating on top of the brew. From what I have read I thought the yeast would settle to the bottom. OK now the question, I was wondering if the yeast has stopped fermenting to soon and if I should add any Amylase Enzyme to kick back up the fermentation? I have the brew at this time in my basement (so the kids stay out of it) and the temp down there is about 55 degrees.

Thanks for any advice...:)

[Zack]

Well....I have been contemplating, for quite some time, about brewing my own beer.
KillJoy

About the only thing you will be good at brewing is Methane. :bigcry: