After reading the other thread about beer a few times, I decided I would like to get into home brewing sometime after finals/Christmas. I didn't want to hijack his thread however so here are my questions to anyone who knows a thing or two about home brewing:

- What equipment is needed?
- How much space will this take?
- How long does it take to make one batch?
- Where should a beginner like me start?

I have found information on different sites with "beginner kits" but what I found didn't impress me, so I though maybe somebody from n00bfest would be kind enough to help me out! Thanks in advance!

the person to ask bout this subject would be Gman he knows a lot bout home brewing

Word, I hope the title will bring him in here. I think there might be some other home brewers by the looks of things in the other thread, I wanted to see what they had to say.

See this topic for some videos: viewtopic.php?f=2&t=24868

Watch the videos and read beer blogs. I suggest you become a beer nerd BEFORE starting to brew your own, as you'll have a lot more appreciation for it then.

Once you're ready, you need to get yourself a starter-kit. Most everyone sells the same stuff, more-or-less, so you don't really need to worry about where it comes from.

Austin Homebrew rules, and Northern Brewer is a pretty decent resource, too. I don't know if Austin Homebrew ships to Canada, but Northern Brewer might.

There's a homebrew shop in Montreal: http://www.choppeabarrock.com/

You should call 'em up and make sure they still exist, and then go in and talk to them. Tell them you're interested in doing it and whatnot. They'll answer any questions you've got. Don't ask 'em questions over the phone unless you're brewing a beer and need help in the middle of the process, though. Most folks hate getting a 10-15 minute phone interview with someone who they might not ever see in their store.

There are three methods to brewing beer: extract, mini-mash (some folks call it partial-mash), and all-grain. The different processes produce a similar end-result, but let me go over the pros and cons of each.

Extract: all of your fermentable sugars come from either powdered or liquid malt extract. Extract normally comes in jars or cans, and is available in a handful of different varieties. You can even mix different types together and come up with something interesting.

Extract Pros:
- It's easy. Your first couple beers should probably be extract beers, unless you've got a pseudo-experienced friend helping you out.
- It's faster than the other two methods.

Extract Cons:
- It's hard to come up with something 'unique' because all of the malt you're using is normally pre-packaged.
- Ingredients are generally more expensive than the other two methods.

Mini-mash: about half of your fermentable sugars come from either liquid or dry malt extract, and half come from actual malted barley (grains that you put in a big mesh bag and steep). The specialty grains are what adds the time to mini-mash. Basically, you have to steep the grains in hot water for an hour before you add your malt extract. That's what "mashing" is.

Mini-Mash Pros:
- It's cheaper than extract brewing.
- IMO, the beer tastes better than extract.
- More varieties: the specialty grains allow you to get quite ridiculous with your malt combinations.
- Quicker than all-grain, and no additional equipment is required; you can do it with the same equipment you use for an extract brew.
- Most breweries use the mini-mash method because it's a happy balance between price vs time.

Cons:
- More difficult than extract brewing, in that there's a higher margin for error.
- Takes about an hour longer than extract brewing.

All Grain: all of your fermentable sugars are malted barley (or some other grain, depending on what you're brewing). You can literally have dozens of different malts and roasts in the same beer, giving you the ability to do some crazy stuff. It takes a little bit longer than mini-mash, and requires extra equipment. You have to have a lauter/mash tun (it can easily be made -- google it) in which your grains steep and lauter. Oh yeah. Lauter means "rinse residual sugars off of your mashed grains with warm water".

All-grain Pros:
- It's the purist method.
- Cheaper than both extract and mini-mash.
- The possibilities are endless.
- Great tasting beer. 75% of craft breweries use this method because of it.

All-grain Cons:
- More difficult than mini-mash.
- Extra time.
- Extra equipment.

There, I hope that helps.

Wow, thanks a lot for that Gman. When I get sick of studying for finals I'm gonna read up on everything in your post. Once I'm done finals I should be able to really get into reading and maybe even buy some equipment in the new year. Thanks again!

i bow to your knowlege of beer

Brewing up a batch of mini-mash Sam Jackson tonight. I'll post pics and shit later.

Please do O' Beer God.

My first batch:

Bavarian Hefeweizen
OG: 1.049


The homebrewing resources here in n00bfest are unreal.

♥ Gman & Corpse.

Wow Fomenta, that's a kick ass looking beer!

Looks like fomenta [I typed formenta because I can't read. Clearly there's no "r" in his name, but I'm too dumb to realize that. Please stab me in the face. Also, I just got owned by a wordfilter.] gives great head.

There toward the end I didn't take any pictures because I was in a hurry. I'll likely post more next weekend when I brew up another batch.

We start with grain in a nylon mesh bag.



To make the mash, we've got to heat up water to 170 degrees F.

This is my Blichmann Engineering 42qt Boilermaker Brew Kettle (Thank you CorpseHumper -- best Christmas gift ever):



Anyway, here's some water heating up. Really interesting, I know:



Once the water hits 170, throw the grain bag in. I normally tie it off with string to keep the crap from falling out of it.



So the goal is to keep it at 155 degrees F for 45 minutes. It requires a lot of practice, and you have to know your cooktop and pot well to do it perfectly. That comes with practice.

Here's another pic of the mash:



Once that's complete, you pull out the grain bag and run hot water (170 degrees F) over it. Then get it to a boil.





Once it's boiling, cut off the heat and add your fermentable sugars:

Malt Extract
- Liquid:

Empty:

- Dry:


Get it boiling again, then add hops:

Hops:



Let it boil for 45 minutes, and then add more hops.

Let it boil for 10 more minutes, then add hops.

Let it boil for 5 more miutes, and then cut if off.

Chill the wort with a wort chiller, and then put it in the carboy (big glass jug).

Pitch the yeast:



Airate very well. Secure with a one-way airlock, and stick it in a closet for a week.

I just had a beergasm, thanks for the pics! Once I get some Christmas money, I'm gonna start buying some supplies.
Oh and Gman: F*CKING amazing brew kettle! So sexy.

Here are some more pics. I got an outdoor burner and brewed in my garage this time.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=4 ... bbb91e5c4f

Seriously thinking of doing this. With my luck, I'd probably kill myself with some crazy bacteria though, LOL!

You wanna drive over and make a batch on my equipment, let me know. You've got my #.

So, do you think these: http://www.austinhomebrew.com/product_i ... s_id=11231 are better than the glass carboys? They're sexy as hell, heh.

Get to learning Montreal! Hopefully it comes out good!

Someday i'm gonna try this out. When i've got money on the side. I normally don't like the taste of most beers(Gman might hate me for that) but my friend has been home brewing for about 25 years. It always turns out amazing. He's got a fridge in his workshop that has like 8 tanks in it with all different types, and every time I see it I want to learn. So with advise from him and Gman when I decide to do it is a guarantee to turn out amazing! Plus I need to take the time (like Gman said) to become more of a beer nerd. Gotta find the kinds of beers I really enjoy! Any ideas Gman for beers that dont have such a major hop taste to them. Something kind of sweet I guess you could say ?

Yeah, when I get my next paycheck if I have some $ left over after I pay off a few things, I'd like to start getting equipped! Summer makes me want to drink more beer!

I think there should be a home brew forum on n00bfest. If this many people are getting into it, who are part of n00bfest.