If you love beer, then the probability is that you have tasted different varieties aiming to identify a brew that excites you think tastes awesome. The chances are you are familiar with different beer distinct flavors that differentiate lagers, ales, pilsners, IPAs, stouts, porters, and witbiers. However, the million-dollar question is, have you ever tried making beer yourself? You never know, maybe, your favorite beer you will ever taste may just be a brew that you made yourself.

According to the co-founder of Hops & Yeasts, a Brooklyn local brew shop, Mr. Al Smithington; said; “a majority of people spend about $200 for equipment, and other supplies like ingredients to brew with.” He added, “The first thing to do is find a commercial brewery supply store close to you. To make things simpler, consider buying a kit to get you started at HomeBrewers Association. At our shop, a 5-gallon setup will cost you $150, and this will include ingredients, recipes, and all the equipment needed to begin.”

The best thing about brewing your beer is that you do not need an industrial size beer brewing facility with a 15 barrel brewhouse, a background in chemistry or science, or a garage; you can do it in your kitchen. According to Douglas Amport, also a Co-founder of Hops & Yeasts, he started brewing beer in his kitchen, then moved it to the bathroom that wasn’t being used, then a closet, and finally to the garage.

Although there is no specific time to brew beer, it is important to note that is best between 62 to 75 degrees. During summer (hotter climate), you can purchase specific yeast that is effective well up to 90 degrees Fahrenheit.

Below is a guide for making beer and will help you get on your way with your homemade beer. Enjoy

1. Cleanliness Is King

To make the perfect beer, you must maintain a high level of sanitation. What does this mean? Well, it simply means anything intended for brewing beer (bottles, bottling wand, siphons, bucket, and others); must be sanitized. If you fail to observe this, your beer may be contaminated and collect flavors you do not intend.

Hospital level cleanliness is not necessary, but on the other hand, it is wise to avoid harmful bacteria. As such, soap and water are enough to sanitize the brewing equipment and working surface. Star San, which is a popular sanitizing tool, kills the microorganisms that will alter the flavor profile of your suds. All you have to do is spray it all over your brewing equipment and allow for about 30 to 60 seconds to pass.

Do not forget, yeast is an important part of making beer. Alcohol is made when fungi consume the sugar found in yeast. As such, the more the yeast cells, the higher the alcohol quality. The yeast cells are the first step in the beer brewing process.

2. The Ingredient Part

The ingredients you will need are: –

• 6 ounces of dry malt extract
• 2 quarts of water
• 1 quantity of instant starter wort

It is important to ensure that you have all the ingredients before you begin. Furthermore, it is recommended that you follow each step by step to achieve the best results.

3. The Brew Making Process

Begin by boiling the malt and water for the starter wort for about 15 minutes and then allow it to cool to 50 degrees Fahrenheit. You can either use a temperature gauge or use the ‘Rule of Thumb’. If you are using your thumb, it is important to note that it should be near room temperature, which is 70 degrees. Using a sterilizer or any method recommended by the manufacturer, sanitize a container. Place the 70-degree wort into the container, and Depending on your starter kit, toss in the yeast cells.

NOTE: do not forget to cover your starter wort but do not make it Airtight. Something simple like aluminum foil will do.

4. Making The Mash

The good news is that making a mash is optional. That is because you can still brew a perfect ale or lager with ready-to-go malt extract. However, if you wish to make yours, you can still do it. However, the recipe outlined in this document is for beer crafted in the Wit or Belgian white style. This recipe was created by the brew magazine called Zymurgy. The mash recipe is known as “Wit Ginger, Not Mary Ann.”

The ingredients are: –

• 11 quarts of water
• 11 Ib of grain

NOTE: our grain contains 0.5 Ib of caramel Pils malt, 16 ounces of flaked oats, 4.5 Ib of German wheat malt, and 5 Ib Belgian pilsner malt.

Place most of the ingredients mentioned into a kettle and warm it to 160 degrees Fahrenheit. Maintain this temperature for 1 hour. The main goal of mashing is to convert starches that are located in the grain into sugar and then extracting it. After 60 minutes, you must make ensure that this has occurred.

Therefore, to test this, take a full spoon of grain mix and water and add a small amount of iodine to it. If the iodine changes the color from murky brown to black, you’ll likely have to continue mashing. If the color remains the same, then it is ready.

Add the 11 Ib of yeast to the mash and mix it up well. After this, the next step is filtering, and many people prefer using rice husks. Now you are ready for sparging and straining. Using a Lauter Tun (a large strainer), separate the wort out of the grain. If you do not have a Lauter Tun, you can drill 1/4 inch holes into a 6-gallon bucket to make your budget-friendly strainer.

5. The First Runnings

In your brew pot, catch the extra liquor that runs off. The goal is to capture the smallest of the grain from your sweet liquor. This is what is known as the first of the run. After you have completed this process, heat the remaining water (1/4 gallon per grain pound) at a temperature of 190 degrees Fahrenheit or based on your recipe. Pour the water on the husks in the Lauter Tun. Once again, you’ll want to catch the extra liquor that runs off in the brew pot (the second Runnings). The brown alcohol in the brew pot is now what is called wort.

Conclusion

It is important to note that home brewing kits vary. As such, it is important to ensure you understand what is going on in every step. All home brewing kits will provide instructions to make a 5-gallon beer. These kits cover all the processes one must undertake while making the beer.

 

A brewing guide will provide an individual with detailed knowledge that they will need to make their beer. For anyone tired of paying too much for stale beer, there is hope out there. Using this type of guide, virtually anyone who wants to learn to make beer can do so. Brewing is not necessarily a difficult process but it is complex if you do not know the details of how to make it. With one of these guides, though, learning the details is simple.

Brewing beer is ideal for someone who likes fine quality but does not want to spend lots of money on the product. For most individuals, brewing beer is not something that they knew that they could do. Yet, it can be done in great form too! Anyone looking for an opportunity to become their brewmaster can do so right through these guides for brewing beer.

Why Brew Beer?

There are many reasons why it can be ideal to brew your beer. First of all, the individual that is making the beer will have ultimate control over what goes into the beer itself. That is, they will be able to tell the quality of the ingredients used in the beer. Many times, the products that go into a traditional beer that is bottled will contain non-natural products to help keep the product fresh. The problem with this, though, is that the beer can taste funny.

Secondly, the brewmaster can save money by making their beer. They can easily purchase the ingredients for making their beer and spend less than twenty-five cents per beer. That’s pretty good savings. Of course, by making your beer, you also get to brag that the beer your friends are drinking is your creation.

Beer Styles

When it comes to beer styles, you have many, many options to choose from. Which one will you like the best? This is hard to tell, but you’ll have to allow yourself to make and try several if you plan to find the perfect choice. A beer style is a label that is given to the type of beer. This label will generally reflect the character of the product and often where it came from. Usually, on commercially sold beers especially, the process of styling a beer comes from how it has been made over the years.

Some common choices include these:

• Ale Styles: American amber, American brown ale, American porter, Chile Beer, Pumpkin Ale, Wheat wine, American strong ale, black & tan, American sour ale, American wild ale, and many more from the Americas. In addition, there are Belgian and French ales, English, Finnish, German, Irish, Scottish, and Russian ales.
• Lager Styles: These will include American Lagers such as American all-malt lager, American double pilsner, American Malt Liquor, Light Lager, Low Alcohol Beer, and a wide selection of others. There are also styles that including Czech lagers, European, German, and Japanese lagers.
• Cider Styles: New England Cider, Specialty Cider, and Standard Cider
• Hybrid Styles: Fruit and vegetable beer, Barbed and spiced beer, and smoked beer
• Mead Styles: Braggot, Fruick Melomel, Traditional Mead, and Metheglin

Although ciders and meads are not necessarily beers, they are commonly thought of and enjoyed by beer lovers nonetheless. Selecting the type of beer that will interest you is the key to making and enjoying great beer. Trying a new style of beer never hurt either.

A brewing guide will provide an individual with detailed knowledge that they will need to make their beer. For anyone tired of paying too much for stale beer, there is hope out there. By using this type of guide, virtually anyone that wants to learn to make beer can do so. Brewing is not necessarily a difficult process but it is complex if you do not know the details of how to make it. With one of these guides, though, learning the details is simple.

Brewing beer is the ideal way to go for someone that likes fine quality but does not want to spend lots of money on the product. For most individuals, brewing beer is not something that they knew that they could do. Yet, it can be done in great form too! Anyone looking for an opportunity to become their brewmaster can do so right through these guides for brewing beer.

Why Brew Beer?

There are many reasons why it can be ideal to brew your beer. First of all, the individual that is making the beer will have ultimate control over what goes into the beer itself. That is, they will be able to tell the quality of the ingredients used in the beer. Many times, the products that go into a traditional beer that is bottled will contain non-natural products to help keep the product fresh. The problem with this, though, is that the beer can taste funny.

Secondly, the brewmaster can save money by making their beer. They can easily purchase the ingredients for making their beer and spend less than twenty-five cents per beer. That’s pretty good savings. Of course, by making your beer, you also get to brag that the beer your friends are drinking is your creation.

Beer Styles

When it comes to beer styles, you have many, many options to choose from. Which one will you like the best? This is hard to tell, but you’ll have to allow yourself to make and try several if you plan to find the perfect choice. A beer style is a label that is given to the type of beer. This label will generally reflect the character of the product and often where it came from. Usually, on commercially sold beers especially, the process of styling a beer comes from how it has been made over the years.

Some common choices include these:

• Ale Styles: American amber, American brown ale, American porter, Chile Beer, Pumpkin Ale, Wheat wine, American strong ale, black & tan, American sour ale, American wild ale, and many more from the Americas. In addition, there are Belgian and French ales, English, Finnish, German, Irish, Scottish, and Russian ales.
• Lager Styles: These will include American Lagers such as American all-malt lager, American double pilsner, American Malt Liquor, Light Lager, Low Alcohol Beer, and a wide selection of others. There are also styles that including Czech lagers, European, German, and Japanese lagers.
• Cider Styles: New England Cider, Specialty Cider, and Standard Cider
• Hybrid Styles: Fruit and vegetable beer, Barbed and spiced beer, and smoked beer
• Mead Styles: Braggot, Fruick Melomel, Traditional Mead, and Metheglin

Although ciders and meads are not necessarily beers, they are commonly thought of and enjoyed by beer lovers nonetheless. Selecting the type of beer that will interest you is the key to making and enjoying great beer. Trying a new style of beer never hurt either.

One of the best ways for you to find a recipe that you love is to make your own from experience. There are many ways in which you can alter the recipes that are out there to make them more your own. It is important of course to ensure that the procedure remains the same and that you are not holding back on the processes so that the result is well worth the investment.

One way in which you will be able to add to the recipes that are used for home brewing is to use extracts. These can be added to the recipe to make them just slightly or completely different. Some types of extracts are those such as fruit extracts, herbs and spices, soda extracts, and liqueur extracts. Whatever it is that suits your tastes is what you should pursue in making beer.

Of course, if you are not ready to make your homebrew beers yet, you will need to rely on the recipes that you find right here on the web. The good news is that you just have to give several a try. Many options are out there and you can better them later if you so choose. Yet, on the web, you will find a wide range of options for you to use. Many of the websites out there that are dedicated to helping the home brewer to make some of the best-tasting beers will provide a wide range of products.

When considering a brew recipe, make sure that you have the right ingredients for it and ensure that you have the best quality ingredients. For that, they should be fresh and tastes that you will enjoy.

Home Beer Making

Home beer making is the ideal way to have a great-tasting beer in your home every day that you want to. You could go out to the store and purchase a six-pack of beer, pay too much and get home to have that stale and poor taste in your mouth. But, making beer is a little more complex than just that. You will need to learn a little more about how the process works.

Making beer at home happens in several ways. First, many beer brewing machines can aid in the creation of some of the best beers out there. Second, there are many more online courses, books, and more that can be used to help an individual to create the type of beer he or she wants to make. These can come in the form of guides too. The goal is to provide valuable information about the ingredients that go into beer to make it taste great.

The first thing that should be done is that the individual making the beer should learn how the process works. This is easily done with the help of the brewmaster courses that are offered right on the web. Once this is complete, the individual will know which type of beer-making machine he or she will want to purchase. From here, it gets even simpler.

The ideal way to make beer at home is to do so with the best ingredients. The ingredients that are used are what will produce the taste and fragrance of the beer. In some cases, homebrewers will allow for a mixture of flavors too. That means that an individual can easily find the right combination of flavors that he specifically likes and be able to make them from his home, for a fraction of the cost with the best use of ingredients. Brewing beer at home just got a whole lot more worthwhile.

Fancy brewing beer? Well, you can and should because it is really easy. Did you realize that you can make 40 pints of very good quality beer in about 3 weeks? Most starter beer kits contain very easy-to-follow instructions. So long as you follow them closely, remembering to keep your homebrew equipment clean, then you will soon be enjoying your homemade beer with your mates.

There is some starter homebrew equipment you will need upfront. This can be bought either as a complete beginner’s kit or as individual items. Once you have got them though, your beer will cost you as little as about 40p per pint. And it tastes as good as (better in some cases) any pub beer.

So, what do you need to start with? Well, you can either buy a complete beer making starting kit or the separate bits below: –

• 25 Litre brewing bin/bucket
• paddle / stirrer / big spoon
• Siphon tubing
• Sterilizer powder
• Beer kit (includes yeast sachet)
• 40-pint barrel or 24 1 liter bottles

I usually recommend to people that they start with a complete kit. This ensures you have everything you need.
The following applies to the Woodforde’s Wherry beer kit and some others will vary a little, so do follow the instructions supplied.

OK, so you have your equipment. This is how easy it is: –

Firstly but very importantly, sterilize all of your brewing equipment. The instructions should be printed on the tub the sterilizing powder came in. 3-4 teaspoons of powder are added to the fermenting bin. Add about 10 liters of warm water. Place into this any other equipment you are using such as the stirring paddle, hydrometers, and thermometers. Leave to stand for about 10 minutes. It’s best to swish the solution over the inner sides of the bin a few times.

While you wait, stand the unopened tins of malt extract in a bowl of hot water for a few minutes. This softens the malt and enables most of the contents to be easily poured out.

Then open the tin(s) and pour the malt into the clean fermenting bin. You can use a little boiling water to rinse the last bits out but be very careful, the tin(s) will be hot.

Next, add 3.5 liters (6 pints) of boiling water to the extract and mix with the spoon, ensuring all the contents are completely dissolved.

Now top up with cold water to a total of 23 liters (40 pints) and mix thoroughly again. Then snip the top from the yeast sachet and pour in whilst stirring.

That’s all for the moment. Easy isn’t it! Fit the lid on the bucket and leave it to stand for about 4 to 6 days in a warm place (between 18-20 degrees C / 66 – 70 degrees F). In colder months, you should consider buying a brew belt. These are easy-to-use and economical heaters that simply fix around the fermenting bucket and keep your brew at a constant temperature until you start bottling, usually about 5 days.

After a day or two, you will see a thick crust forming on the top of the liquid as the yeast starts to eat the sugar. This means fermentation has started. Fermentation is complete when bubbles cease to rise through the liquid, usually between 4 – 6 days.

You are now ready to transfer your brew to the barrel or bottles, whichever you prefer. This is maybe the trickiest part of the process but is easy once you are used to it. First siphon the beer from the fermenting bucket, avoiding disturbing the sediment. Using the siphon provided, fix the tube to the inside of the fermenter but not quite reaching the sediment.

Then suck the tube to start the siphon process. Fitting a tap or a little bottler if using bottles makes this process a lot easier and will also avoid messy floors and worktops or maybe a divorce! Next, add a teaspoon or two of sugar to each liter of beer. This will condition the beer, using up the remaining yeast in the mix, and provide a little carbonation to result in a nice lively beer.

Now the hard bit. Yes, you have to wait! Stand your bottles or barrel in a warm place for 2 days and then transfer to a cool place for at least 14 days or until it has cleared. Ignore any sediment in the bottom. This may look like a thin white/ brown layer on the bottom of the bottles. This can be avoided with careful pouring when drinking although it won’t hurt you anyway.

So that’s it. How easy is that eh? Now you just need to drink your beer. Oh and don’t forget to start the next batch ready for when it runs out. And of course, don’t forget that the second batch is so much cheaper without the starter equipment costs.

Don’t think that the Stellas, Jupiler, and similar Interbrew mass-produced draft beers are typical of the region. When you drink a real Belgian beer, you will know the difference. The trouble is, although becoming increasingly popular, it is still not too easy to find a pint of Belgian beer being sold outside of Belgium. Well, now you can brew your own and they are surprisingly good.

Several homebrew companies now produce beer kits that produce very good imitations of the more well know Belgian style beers. Belgian beer kits generally take a couple of weeks longer to brew than the average beer kit to achieve a higher alcohol content and subtle Abbey beer style flavors.

Brewferm now produces 13 different styles of Belgian beer kits, each of which will take between 7 and 20 liters of beer. As well as the more common Pils, Gold, and Wheat beer styles, you can also try the more adventurous Gallia, Diabolo, Abbey, Ambiorix, Triple, Old Brown, Grand Cru and not forgetting their rather superb Christmas ale. Or, if you like a fruit beer, then the Lambic Kriek or Framboise may be for you. I have known a lot of women who thought they didn’t like beer, who then tried a Kriek cherry beer or a Framboise raspberry beer and quickly changed their minds.

Be warned though. Some of these beers are not for the faint-hearted, such as the Grand Cru and Triple at about 8,0% abv, although this isn’t exceptional for a Belgian beer. Having said that, the Pils and Wheat beers are a more everyday tipple at 4,5% and 5,0%. These kits are reasonably priced and very straightforward to brew at home.

Milestone Crusader is another increasingly popular Belgian-style beer kit. This is a blond style Beer with a zesty clean finish and at about 4.4% very drinkable. The kit makes up to 40 pints, and at less than £20, makes a very reasonably priced pint.

Finally, I want to mention the Beers of the World kits. Although high in alcohol its body remains light due to the inclusion of genuine Belgian “candi sugar”. They also make a Belgian Witbier. Wheat beers, whilst deservedly popular all over the world, have until now been rather difficult to brew at home. This kit puts that right.

Beers of the World kits are designed as refills for the Brubox starter kits. However, there is nothing to stop you from making it up as a normal beer kit. It will make 10 liters of excellent beer for the price of about £13. Try finding a Tripel for that price in your local.

So that gives you a quick overview of the Belgian beer kits which you can try at home. It’s a lot easier than you may think and the results drink for themselves. And if this is your first time trying homebrew, remember that your second batch will be much cheaper without the start-up equipment costs.
So what are you waiting for? Show your friends and family what a real Belgian beer tastes like.