Beginner's Kit Recommendations...

[dan_olo]

Hi,

First off, I'm new to this forum so hello to all. I'm also new to homebrewing - in fact I haven't even started yet! I just want to see what you people would recommend as a first-time kit for a new home brewer.

I've had a quick skim of these forums and Brupaks seem to come quite highly rated. Would I be ok starting off with their Brewer's Choice Traditional IPA? Also, what additional equipment would I need over and above what is included with the kit?

Thanks for all the interesting and informative posts on this forum,


D

[prodigal2]

dan_olo

DaaB's pages on starting out is a great place to start out:

http://www.18000feet.com/how/H2HB2.htm

Its worth noting that a beer kit refers as a rule to just the ingredients to make beer.

To start out I would do a Brupaks Pride of Yorkshire kits, but that would be just me, the brewers choice range is a tad more involved, though it does produce stunning beer with DME(Dried Malt Extract).

Its easy to confuse kits with the kit you need to produce beer, and in truth most of us have made the mistake when starting out

[Stonch]

Yes, I think that's one of the most confusing aspects for the beginner!

Intuitively you'd think kit would refer to the buckets, the tube, the barrels and all that jazz.

[SteveD]

Munton's Smuggler's Gold is a good one. It's more pricey, being a premium 3kg all malt kit, ie, no extra sugar to add, but I think it's worth it.

I made this kit a few years back, after I'd been mashing for a while, as a bit of a laugh, and I was short of time. When it was tasted, my genuine initial reaction was "Bloody Hell! These kits have improved! If I'd known they'd got this good, I'd have made a few"

When I started, kits weren't as good, with Tom Caxton, and Boots, being the most popular, but now is a different story.

Stonch, your Beer blog is a riot. Taking the keg onto the street. Quality!!

[davidson]

If you want to do a lager, you cant fault any of the coopers range

[tubby_shaw]

If you want to do a lager, you cant fault any of the coopers range

In fact not only lager kits, the Coopers ale kits made with dried spray malt instead of sugar come highly reccomended

[dan_olo]

Thanks for the advice.

Is it not the wrong time of year to be making lager? It's something I'd love to try but I was under the impression that you needed a low temperature fermentation for lagers. I have a brick outhouse in my garden which would probably stay under 20 degrees in all but the very warmest of the British summer (if we get one!) - do you think lager would work in there?

[Burner]

Have you considered the Brewferm kits? They are really very simple and produce nice beer.

[kenmc]

Have you considered the Brewferm kits? They are really very simple and produce nice beer.

I second this. easily the best kit's i've tried.
whatever kit you use though, AVOID ADDING SUGAR, use DME or LME instead.

[sparky Paul]

I was asked the other day for a recommendation for a kit for a beginner, I was thinking about a 3Kg single can liquid kit like the John Bull Masterclass kits which seem to work well enough.

With nothing to add, I can't see how a beginner can go wrong... DME is great, but it isn't the easiest stuff to work with.

[BarryNL]

Have you considered the Brewferm kits? They are really very simple and produce nice beer.

They do, but the downside for a new brewer is that you need to use DME to get good results and also you need to wait at least 6 weeks after bottling for them to really hit their best.

Definitely recommended as a second or third kit to do though. In fact I did a Diablo today (as relaxation after doing an all-grain yesterday). I think the Diablo is going to be a monster - I used 750g DME instead of the 500g sugar they suggest - and it hit 1.080!!

[Stonch]

Definitely recommended as a second or third kit to do though. In fact I did a Diablo today (as relaxation after doing an all-grain yesterday).

I love that - what does a homebrewer do to unwind after a heavy homebrew session?

More homebrewing!

[Stonch]

I was asked the other day for a recommendation for a kit for a beginner, I was thinking about a 3Kg single can liquid kit like the John Bull Masterclass kits which seem to work well enough.

With nothing to add, I can't see how a beginner can go wrong... DME is great, but it isn't the easiest stuff to work with.

Out of interest, what's the difficulty in handling DME? Is it to do with it absorbing moisture from the air? If so, why's that such a problem?

[Burner]

They do, but the downside for a new brewer is that you need to use DME to get good results and also you need to wait at least 6 weeks after bottling for them to really hit their best.

Definitely recommended as a second or third kit to do though. In fact I did a Diablo today (as relaxation after doing an all-grain yesterday). I think the Diablo is going to be a monster - I used 750g DME instead of the 500g sugar they suggest - and it hit 1.080!!

Yowzer that should be truly Diabolical (in a good way). I did the Christmas yesterday in order to have it ready for this coming Christmas!!

[Paul_S]

I was asked the other day for a recommendation for a kit for a beginner, I was thinking about a 3Kg single can liquid kit like the John Bull Masterclass kits which seem to work well enough.

With nothing to add, I can't see how a beginner can go wrong... DME is great, but it isn't the easiest stuff to work with.

I made a JB Masterclass Bavarian lager for my wife. It is taking a hell of a long time to clear - there is continuing secondary fermentation so I keep having to vent the barrel.

If you went for one of these kits I'd get a decent lager or ale yeast as mentioned above.