OT: Home Brewing

[jb1020]

Whats the initial investment in getting started brewing your own beer? I've been semi interested in this for a few years now but never done a ton of research. It might be so far over my head that I'll lose interest pretty quick.

I guess a few other questions....

Is there a place in the Jackson area to go that sells the equipment?

how much space is needed? Like will a few shelves in a garage be enough room?

Any other info/things to consider?

thanks...

 

[UpTheMiddlex3Punt]

Order this kit for $99.99 - http://www.midwestsupplies.com/brewing-starter-kit-1.html
Get some bottles - collect from friends or buy some
Find a recipe kit you like ($30-$40) - http://www.midwestsupplies.com/homebrewing-ingredients/recipe-kits.html

Those recipe kits tell you exactly how to do everything. You can use a stock pot if you have one (make sure it's large enough for the recipe), or buy a dedicated brew pot. Doesn't really matter at first so long as your stock pot isn't nasty. You won't need a big *** 5-10 gallon brew pot at first. Most kit recipes that make 5 gallons only require 2-3 gallons for the boil and you'll add in ice to get to 5 gallons (I recommend the ice from the grocery store for this as they filter their water well and it's easily available).

Altogether, you can get started for about $150. Don't homebrew to get out of paying for beer.

You'll need a surface about the size of a small picnic table. Enough to hold your one brew bucket plus other supplies. The kit I linked to has a second carboy, so you can pipeline your brewing if you want.

Clean your kitchen well before you boil your brew.

 

[thebushman82]

Brewhaha Supply in Jackson. Over by Piccadilly. They will be more than happy to guide you in the right direction.

 

[LuckyTownDawg]

Whats the initial investment in getting started brewing your own beer? I've been semi interested in this for a few years now but never done a ton of research. It might be so far over my head that I'll lose interest pretty quick.

I guess a few other questions....

Is there a place in the Jackson area to go that sells the equipment?

how much space is needed? Like will a few shelves in a garage be enough room?

Any other info/things to consider?

thanks...

Brewhaha is a homebrew store down in lafluers plaza in Jackson (where Piccadilly is) go see Mac, he has everything you need.

You can get started pretty cheap with basic equipment and build as you go, and space requirements are as simple as a place to stick a 5 gallon bucket.

I would also highly suggest hitting up the local homebrew club hbamm.org, great folks.

Come on down to the brewery some time and I'll run through the basics

Lucas

 

[patdog]

Don't have much to add except that my brother-in-law has started home brewing this year and he's brewing some damn good beer. After the initial investment, costs are less than what beer at the grocery store would cost. Be sure all your pots, utensils and bottles are clean.

 

[dorndawg]

Not to discourage you or anything, but be advised it's not the easiest thing. I've done it a few times & enjoyed it fine, although it is a little tedious. As others have mentioned, sanitizing is priority #1.

Anyways, after doing it a few times I realized I'd rather just let people who are really really good at brewing beer sell it to me.

 

[Seinfeld]

I've pretty much reached the same conclusion. Don't get me wrong... it was a fun time killer over the holidays, but on top of having to wait something like two weeks for the beer to ferment and for the carbonation to take hold, the kit that I used only made about 8 pints so it was a whole lot of time and effort for a small amount of beer.

That said, it turned out pretty well. If I was going to do it again, though, I'd get the 5-gallon equipment

 

[jb1020]

thats kinda what I'm onthe fence about

Not doing it to save money, more of a hobby I guess. I almost made the plunge a few years ago, but the kids were babies. I didn't feel like I had any time.

Kind of back around to having some time and thought this would be fun.

Really though, the wife is having major issues finding my a Christmas present and this is the first thing that came to mind.

thanks for the info.

 

[thf24]

Personally I wouldn't jump right into a 5-gallon extract kit, I'd go this route.

http://www.mrbeer.com/premium-kits

It starts you off with a smaller volume and a simplified process that requires almost no special equipment that doesn't either come with the kit or already exist in the average home kitchen. Mr. Beer will teach you the most basic concepts of brewing, most notably sanitation, while letting you get a sense of whether or not it's something you'd like to delve further into for a minimum investment. If you decide you like it and want to explore further, then buy and read the first half or so (for starters) of this book:

http://www.amazon.com/How-Brew-Everything-Right-First/dp/0937381888

and buy a kit like the one UpTheMiddle linked along with the necessary additional equipment. That's my recommendation. It's a fun and rewarding hobby if you have the right mentality for the meticulousness of it and I personally love it, but going this route will save you some time and money if at some point you decide it's not for you.

 

[leonblack.sixpack]

http://www.boxbrewkits.com/

Use this... Smallish kit, has all that you need and looks great when not in use.

I supported these guys when they were in Kickstarter. I've made two batches, with the third fermenting now. Each was easy and tasted good.

With the proliferation of great craft beer, this is not going to save you money. But, it is a fun way to kill a little time, and create something on your own.
Good luck.

 

[The Peeper]

I did it off and on for a few years. Set aside about 2- 3 hrs on a Saturday morning to wash everything, pots, utensils, mix everything, boil the wort, let it cool, etc. Then about 10 days to 2 weeks later set aside another 3 hours to wash bottles, pour, cap, clean up, etc. Then wait for it to get right. I made some excellent ones and some not so good. Biggest flop was a summer lager kind of Corona-ish I guess. Got recipe from brew shop and the owner who had never steered me wrong there told me how much extra sugar and a special yeast to add to make it better. Couple days after I bottled I'm in the basement woodworking and I hear BAM! I investigate and there's a cap blown off a brew and the whole neck of a bottle off another. No big deal, sometimes you break bottles capping them anyway. Long story, over next week I lost a case of bottles blowing up. I set the other case outside too scared to even handle them to save my bottles. Lesson learned, more (sugar and yeast) isn't always better. Don't use regular screw top bottles either, mine were the older harder to find thicker opener type and I still blew them up!