Beer Making Kit.

[Shermie]

Has anyone ever made beer at home before?

I'm seriously considering getting a beer making kit to try my luck at making homemade beer!

A friend of mine does it. His kit is the Mr. Beer one featuring a keg-style fermenter.

The one that I'M considering & leaning toward getting is the one pictured below
featuring the conical-shaped fermenter.

It is made & styled to look like the shape of the giant conical-style beer vats that you might be behind the glass walls in breweries and restaurants that make their own beer.

I want to try it and see what it's like to do it!!

 

[Shermie]

Here's the one that my friend has.

 

[Adillo303]

I have made beer twice. Brown ale once, which I really loved and lager once which everyone else loved.

With the kits, there is really not a lot to it, great taste though.


If you want to do the whole thing from grain to beer there is a lot involved. I have not done it, but, I have freinds that do and they say it is great.

P. S. - I did not carbonate, I added the Champagne yeast as I bottled. It make it more all natural. Or at least, that is what I told myself. LOL

 

[Shermie]

I have made beer twice. Brown ale once, which I really loved and lager once which everyone else loved.

With the kits, there is really not a lot to it, great taste though.


If you want to do the whole thing from grain to beer there is a lot involved. I have not done it, but, I have freinds that do and they say it is great.

P. S. - I did not carbonate, I added the Champagne yeast as I bottled. It make it more all natural. Or at least, that is what I told myself. LOL

This one will let you do it that way.

But like you said, a lot more work is involved, and even though I truly LOVE IPA, it also seemingly no provisions for ordering more batches, to which I don't want to get into.

And there are no 1-liter bottles to order, forcing you to store the whole 1-gallon jug in the fridge to chill it once the beer making is complete!!

 

[Shermie]

I've picked up my beer kit today!

I'm seriously contemplating getting started with the first batch this evening!!

 

[Doc]

Let us know when it's ready to test. I'd be happy to be a quality tester for you.

 

[Shermie]

Let us know when it's ready to test. I'd be happy to be a quality tester for you.

Monday is the day to taste-test it, provided that the fermenting has stopped by then.

 

[Doc]

Wow, thats fast.
I've never given these kits another look ...partly because my dad gave it a try (no kit) a long long time ago. Before I was old enough to drink beer. But me and a few friends would sneak some out (I was in high school at the time). Man that stuff tasted so BAD. Yuck. And I remember it taking a long long time to make. So, I'm surprised at how quick you will have some to drink. Any clue how they sped up the process so much?

 

[Shermie]

Wow, thats fast.
I've never given these kits another look ...partly because my dad gave it a try (no kit) a long long time ago. Before I was old enough to drink beer. But me and a few friends would sneak some out (I was in high school at the time). Man that stuff tasted so BAD. Yuck. And I remember it taking a long long time to make. So, I'm surprised at how quick you will have some to drink. Any clue how they sped up the process so much?

Thanks, but not quite yet.

Fermenting it takes a week or so because I have to let the yeast do its thing. Then, when the beer is clear, tastes flat with no sweet taste in it, then and ONLY then can it be ready for bottling.

After the bottles, caps and any more of the equipment that might come in contact with the beer are sanitized, and sugar is added to each one of the bottles, the beer is then put in the bottles about 1/2 way up the necks, and they are sealed with the caps. That is when the priming (carbonation) takes place. it takes up to a week.

When the bottles feel very tight & hard while trying to squeeze them, the beer is then carbonated. Much like squeezing a plastic bottle of soda.

Then the manual says that if you want better tasting beer, let it chill in the fridge for about a week. That's about 3 weeks total. But this step is not really crucially important. The beer can be enjoyed after about several hours in the fridge.

 

[Shermie]

I can seeing having some of the beer along with a nice thick steak dinner!!

 

[Shermie]

Here's the fermenter on the kitchen table with the fermenting beer in it.

Right now, it is at a temp of 75 degrees. A temp of between 64 & 82 degrees must be maintained at all times throughout the brewing process, even after it is put into the 1-liter bottles!

 

[Shermie]

Beer is now in bottles for carbonating with priming sugar.

 

[Shermie]

As the beer carbonates, the brown plastic bottles themselves will all eventually become pressurized until they are opened. They'll all begin to feel very hard, like an unopened 2-liter bottle of soda.

 

[Shermie]

The beer making seems to be coming along fine! All of the bottles are firm and hard now, and the carbonating process is going very well.

 

[LETHAL GTS]

The problem with these kits, is that it would take a week or so to make enough beer that I can drink in one evening.
Then if you have friends over, well they had better bring some back up.
But I really like my beer. I find that beer can cure just about anything!

 

[Shermie]

I don't plan on having any company over, especially not for beer drinking or beer parties.

 

[LADawg]

I find that beer can cure just about anything!

I saw a sign that read "Beer will save the world. I don't know how, but it will."

 

[QSis]

Very cool, Sherman!

Lee

 

[Shermie]

Thanks!

Here's the beer with the labels on the bottles.

 

[Shermie]

Two bottles of the beer has been put in the fridge to chill. One tipped over and there was a little head on it, signifying that the beer has carbonated successfully!!

Ordered another set of beer bottles and 2 more batches of beer base!

__________________

 

[Shermie]

Yay!! It worked!!

Just tasted the chilled beer!

Tasted very good, though it is very frothy when poured into a tall glass.
__________________

 

[Shermie]

First glass of chilled home brewed IPA from the batch! Tastes very good!!

 

[perrycavacava]

Looks interesting.. How much is that kit?

 

[Doc]

It does look very good. Nothing wrong with frothy.

 

[Shermie]

Looks interesting.. How much is that kit?

I paid about $88 for the Signature Kit, which comes with most of the basic things to get you started.

There are 2 more lower priced kits. The lowest priced one is just the fermenter. Was going to get that one, but I still needed the bottles to bottle the beer, so I just went on and bought the Signature Kit.

There's the Basic Kit which costs about $55, the Plus Kit for $75 and the Signature Kit for $95.

Prices have gone up since I first ordered mine. Each kit comes with 2 cans of beer base and a packet of One Step sanitizer to get you started.
Each set of canned beer base also comes with a packet of yeast, which is used in the fermenting process.

 

[Shermie]

Thanks, Doc.

 

[Shermie]

Started my 2nd batch of beer yesterday! Pilsner flavor this time.