Brew Your Own Beer at Home!

Brewing your own beer is not only a time honored tradition in many parts of the world, but it is also pretty rewarding for the average Joe. Brewing can be a lot easier than you think, and depending on the method you choose, it can be much cheaper as well. While you can purchase pieces of brewing equipment separately, its usually best to get a pre-made kit. This keeps your overhead cost down, and your beer production up!

Spending hundreds if not thousands of dollars on quality equipment is far too easy, so for this, we will concentrate on the basic kit for starters. From chillers to grain mills you can spend untold dollar amounts, so for now, stay away from whole grains, and keep your eyes on the extracts. While nothing quite replaces whole grain brewing, the beer produced from extracts and starter kits is pretty good anyway, and will give you a taste of the process. Though I will give many pointers and tips here, this is not a guide to brewing. Due to the variations in equipment you will be using, it's best to follow the guides given to you with a starter kit. These will tell you exactly how to best extract beer from that particular equipment.

Pre-made kits have many of the same parts, consisting of at least a brewing tank and instruction booklet. But depending on how much you are willing to spend, the quality and quantity of the equipment may suffer. Www.mrbeer.com offers a decent starting place for many who do not wish to invest too much time or effort, while still getting that "brewing" experience.

Www.northernbrewer.com though has several types of brewing kits that will either start you off small, or work you quickly into kegging. This is the first big choice you will make in your journey to becoming a master brewer, and as such, you must determine how much money you are truly willing to spend in the venture. Spending less now means spending more in the future depending on your level of interest, while spending more now, means spending too much if you have no interest later.

Quality ingredients and cleanliness are paramount in beer brewing. The entire works must be sanitized throughout the entire process in order to achieve the Holy Grail of Ale. Allowing nasties such as spores of mold or bacteria into the beer that should not be present will result in beer that is either undrinkable due to horrid flavor, or disgusting in appearance due to mold growth inside the bottle. This means that you need to sanitize allequipment and bottles before use. Hot water, and soap will fix this right up, but be sure to wash your hands after touching anything. Use paper towels to dry off, and immediately toss them into an already opened trash container, far from your operation.

Quality products are another piece of the puzzle that will either make your finished product look the Mona Lisa, or a cheap crayon-drawn copy. For those just starting out, its best to use hopped extracts. This requires no real hops, which is great for the current ecological state of the plant, as there is a worldwide shortage of it. Also buying and using beer specific yeasts will help improve the quality of your yield. I find that its best to use liquid pitchable yeasts, as they are easier to add, and normally will create a better flavor.

The main problem I have found using the items commonly found in kits is the quality of those items. They will not give you liquid yeast usually, nor will the malt extracts be of great quality. Throwing these included items out is simply wasteful, so go ahead and use their ingredients, and see what you think. At least this will give you a cheaper idea of what the process involves, and let you know if you would like to continue using better ingredients.

Adding custom ingredients can also liven up even the most basic brew. These can be added immediately after the brew is in the fermentation tank, and ready for the lid. For many, a type of fruit is a great addition, while others like beer a little darker. For fruits or sweets, its best to pair them up with a beer that matches characteristically. Adding honey to a wheat brew you are cooking up is a great idea. Adding cherries to a dark porter will create an interesting brew as well. For making an already dark beer even darker molasses can be added, giving a deep, rich, creamy sort of texture. Blueberries, cherries, apricots, and lots of other fruits can be tested, so here is your chance to make a boring extract into something you can call your own.

Take care though, additions to your beer must follow the guidelines in your instruction manual. This is because anything sweet contains natural sugars, some if not all are going to be fermentable, meaning that it will create more alcohol. This is not always a good thing, as it can be very difficult to brew beer over a certain ABV. Too much alcohol and it will kill the yeast, leaving a lot of sugar unfermented in the beer, making it taste very sweet. Use sweet additions sparingly, and if your manual says nothing about this, call the manufacturer, as there will be brew-masters there to help you.

Next is another important part of the process, and that is after you have followed the direction all the way to the actual fermentation part, leave the beer alone! Certain types of beer take longer to ferment than others, and if disturbed, can result in horrid beer. Do not open or move the container around violently. A natural settling of the dead yeast will occur, and should be left there. Any other ingredients you add will likely float to the top, or suspend somewhere in the middle.

Bottling is the last step that requires any work from you. Your instruction booklet will tell you the best method for your equipment. When you see that you will be adding more sugar to the bottles or the mixture itself you may be getting confused. The point of this is to carbonate the bottles one at a time, because the fermentation process has most likely eaten all the available sugar away. The by product of the fermentation process is carbon dioxide, the same gas that escapes when you crack open a soda, or beer. Adding this sugar now will make the beer do the hard work you for. After the appointed time, you can refrigerate the beer. Now, the next time you interact with your creation, you will be to drink it!

Though the tips here can help you through your journey, you can never have enough help or ask too many questions. Visit sites like www.homebrewtalk.com, www.homebrewchatter.com, or www.brewboard.com.