Absolute Beginner

[JohnF88]

Hello,

So I have quite a bit of free time on my hands over the next couple of months and have got it into my head that I would like to start home brewing. Unlike most people I think I want to jump straight in with the all grain method as opposed to kit brewing or anything like that. I thought I might as well throw myself in at the deep end! Plus everyone says 'its not that hard'.

Have had a look around the forum there is so much information that it is difficult to know where to start! What I am really looking for is a list of exactly what I need to buy and then a step by step guide on how to do the brew. Are there any books that people would recommend? I was thinking of buying one of these two kits which claim to have everything you need but I'm not sure if I can get the stuff cheaper separately or whatever and whether or not is is worth it to go for the 'deluxe' version or not?

http://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/aca ... P-1dWea-So

http://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/aca ... P-1d2ea-So

Any advice/links etc would be much appreciated.

[Matt12398]

One of the best books out there is John Palmer's How to Brew. It's available as a book but you can also access all the content for free on his website. Just google it.

I personally would advise against a complete kit. A lot of the the equipment can be made yourself with little to no practical skills and as a result save a vast amount of money and generally end up with a better quality product. My boiler is a 40 litre buffalo tea urn that cost about £100, my mash tun is a converted Igloo Ice Cube cool box that with manifold and fittings cost me under £100 to make. I use my boiler for both boiling wort and also as a hot liquor tun. My Immersion coil is much bigger and therefore more effective than the one in the complete kit and cost about £30 to make.

Wikinsons can be good for some of the basics bits of kit but there are lots of other online retailers that forum members use.

For hops, grain and yeast I'd recommend www.themaltmiller.co.uk and www.worcesterhopshop.co.uk

Alternatively if you have a good local homebrew shop that's well priced you can save yourself the postage charges.

[mark4newman]

Hi

Don't jump in, if you find it isn't for you , then you have spent a lot of money on nothing.

At least get a couple of kits before you get going. If you like it, then you won't have wasted money as the fermenting bin, and the keg can be used in AG brewing.

From the AG kit you will need a mash tun (Convert a cool box), and a boiler/HLT....personally I would go far a malt miller boiler, and get him to cut two holes for the elements . These can be picked up at backers. And of course a hop stopper and a chiller.

Then you will need some form of temp control, a brew fridge is ideal. Without this you will be at whim of what summer or winter has to throw, and the yeast may well get too hot and produce off flavours (Esp in first 48 hours)

Then I think you have the essentials, after that you might end up with a whirlpool, especially useful for pellets. A RO water purifier, especially if you live in a area with high carbonates....

As for the techinque, there are plenty of pages on the web, so I advise reading them.....or Graham Wheelers book is good...

[Andy__]

Hi

Don't jump in, if you find it isn't for you , then you have spent a lot of money on nothing.

...

totally agree with the above.

I also think you should do a couple of kits. None of the equipment you buy for that will be wasted.

Then when you have the basics on sanitation and bottle or kegging mastered move on to making or buying a boiler. With a boiler you can either do extract or full all grain using the BIAB method.

If your still into it after that then dive right in.

[Goulders]

I did a few kits to get the idea of pitching, fermenting etc and then went Biab which is all grain with a buffalo boiler. I now use a cool box and effectively a 2 vessel setup.

While all grain brewing IS straightforward when you get the hang of it, water treatment is even more important (especially in hard water areas) to get the wort at tge right pH so as to avoid astringent flavours. So it is best to get the other processes right first, during which read the forums to your heart's content!

With a kit the wort is already converted and you don't need to treat your water except with a campden tablet.

If you still love the hobby AG opens up more options in terms of recipes, is time comsuming and fun!

Also see if anyone lives near you that can show you the ropes of AG before you go there - though I never did!

[JohnF88]

Right ok ok, think I'm going to do a kit first and see how it goes. Jumping into all grain might be a be daft. I guess the higher outlay and higher chance of messing something up could lead to a loss of motivation!

Was in wilkinson's earlier on an unrelated errand and was very close to picking up some stuff but decided against it because I wasn't 100% sure on exactly what I needed to buy and I reckoned I would probably forget something and have to go back anyway. Also wanted to have a wee look about the internet and see which kits got good reviews. Lot of people seem to be recommending the Wooforde's wherry so I suppose I will start with that. Just a quick check on the sort of stuff I need to be buying....

The kit (obviously)
Fermentation vessel
Pressure barrel (do I need to get some sort of CO2 injection thingmy or is that not necessery at this stage?)
An autosiphoner
Steriliser
Hydrometer
Thermometer?
Stirring spoon

Anything else?

cheers for the help so far!

[Matt12398]

The Wherry is a great one. It was the first kit I did. I only did two kits before my first all grain and it taught me the basics of fermentation, sanitation, bottling etc which is all valuable stuff. I too like Goulders then moved onto BIAB which is also a great halfway house to traditional all grain brewing.

Your list looks good. Some people say camden tablets to treat your water to remove chlorine. I've only tried it once and not sure I noticed a difference but I've never had a noticeable chlorine taste to my tap water so it may be more important for others.

[JohnF88]

I think the water here is alright. Just outside Edinburgh and the tap water tastes fine, not like Central London or something where I hear its not as good so I think I will just wack it in straight out the tap.

[greenxpaddy]

Get the basics first just so you can sparge right. Then you will tweak it as you go along. That's the fun of all grain. Good chap missing out the kits. All grain is pretty straight forward anyway and you'll get better results which will spur you on!

Good luck. There is sooo much info here I know it is hard to find it all. Just ask and people will respond. Most of everything has been duplicated thousands of times over on here anyways

[Texy]

Hi,
I went in head first with AG, although I have be making wine for many years. Actually, I,ve gone 'backwards' recently as my last 3 brews have been from kits,
but thats mainly due to getting them for Xmas presents, and also when Wilco's sold off some cans for only a £1. My next brew will be AG however, once the weather gets better. Kit to get is really a toss up between how much money you wish to spend, and how good your DIY skills are. I ended up paying around £200 altogether, although I did have some kit from wine making I am able to use. I built the HLT myself, using a homebrew supplied 30ltr tub with holes pre-cut for the kettle elements. I then got 2 tesco value kettles and fitted the elements to the tub, and I also added a lever tap. I would of also built the mashtun myself, but was put off by the cost of copper, so I ended up buying a converted icebox with tap and grain filter fitted for about £50. I already had couple of large fv's, but I did end up buying another, £12 from a local shop.
Hope this helps,
Texy

[Texy]

Oh and another thing, although down to personal choice of course, is that I bottle all my beer rather than cask. There's pro's and con's to each method, but bottling is easier for me to manager.

Texy

[candygold1]

i started off like most do with a few kits then made the change to a/g and found it all quite straight forward with all the help on here. i must say the difference between kits and a/g is in my humble opinion massive

[Col Robinson]

Unlike most people I think I want to jump straight in with the all grain method as opposed to kit brewing or anything like that. I thought I might as well throw myself in at the deep end! Plus everyone says 'its not that hard'.

Have had a look around the forum there is so much information that it is difficult to know where to start! What I am really looking for is a list of exactly what I need to buy and then a step by step guide on how to do the brew.

Hi John F88,

Have you had a look at http://www.sensiblemole.com - you might find it useful. I'm a little bit biased though, 'cos it's my web site!

Happy Brewing,

Col