First brew-itis... very contagious

[Daveo]

Hi all,

Being an ale drinker ive often wondered about brewing my own... on Sunday i came across a Brewbuddy kit for £20 and i thought id give it a go. My missus and I made up the kit yesterday afternoon. We followed the instructions to the letter and it has formed a foamy froth so im quite confident at the mo..

:hmm: In hindsite, after reading up on the forums, i think ive got two things wrong.. 1. i used normal caster sugar and 2. i didnt dechlorinate the water. Also i didnt appreciate the MAJOR importance of sterilization, however i think we were pretty thorough on that so fingers crossed.

One thing that annoyed me about the kit is the fact that it claims to be all you need to make beer.. I knew at the time that there was no keg with the kit but my lack of knowledge at the time led me to believe that a keg was just for keeping the beer in after its made and more of a cosmetic thing... my intention was just to scoop it out of the barrel :whistle: After reading up ive gone and bought a fermentation keg now too. Its not the money, just a gripe about the fact that i thought the kit 'has everything you need'.

Already planning a honey beer with my old man.. and my missus already reckons i should get another keg so i can make her some cider/fruit beer.. happy days :P

Anyway... heres some beer p0rn for you Sorry about the crappy cameraphone pics.. The barrel is wrapped in bubblewrap, under a desk about 2foot from the radiator and away from draughts

My brewbuddy kit.

FV after about 15hours.

FV after 26 or so hours.

 

[falafael]

well done to you mate, however, keep the lid on that fermenting bin!, i never take the lid of mine till its ready to bottle, can't risk any for of bacteria/air getting into it!, don't worry about the caster sugar, i've used it myself a few times as well, normally its granulated sugar i use, and as for dechlorinating the water..i never have!! lol
good luck with the brew there, and heres hoping you get a good brew!! :

 

[BrewStew]

well done mate :clap:

your trip to the "Dark Side" is but a few corners away now :lol: :thumb:

 

[toasted]

well done mate , good on you for giving it a go i hope it turns out well for you :

 

[Wez]

Fair play - please keep us posted with how you get on :thumb:

 

[Daveo]

nice one fellas..
will keep the lid on from now on then.. was just checking purely to make sure it wasnt dead :wha: i read somewhere that u can give it a couple of stirs as its fermenting.. but that doesnt seem right. i think im gonna leave mine well alone. the pressure is on as friends and family are already queueing up for a taste.

ive got a hydrometer and will wait at least 7 days before sanitizing the life out of my pressure keg and transferring it.


so whats all this about all grain :twisted: ?? haha i kid i kid... one step at a time.

 

[Wez]

I've never stirred a fermenting beer before unless i've had a 'stuck fermentation' - my theory is that it's best left alone, less risk of infection and oxidation :thumb:

 

[Daveo]

my theory is that it's best left alone, less risk of infection and oxidation :thumb:

Thanks mate.. yeah thats what i was thinking.. it seemed to be counter intuitive to all the other info i'd read so i left it well alone.

 

[Wez]

You've done right :thumb:

All Grain next then :thumb:

 

[Daveo]

Had a sneaky look, the foam has gone and its making a gentle fizzing noise.. Has definatley taken on an alcohol smell since yesterday.

 

[tubby_shaw]

Still looking good :thumb:

 

[A T]

Looking good :party:

 

[Daveo]

Hi all, quick update. It was 1.012/13 ish yesterday and today down to 1.010 ish if im reading the scale correctly, so its still working away. :grin:

Im considering bottling it in plastic 2l sparkling water bottles instead of in the keg now... for 2 reasons.
1. it will be ready sooner and 2. if ive messed up and its not very nice i can leave it mature for a few months and not tie up my only keg. What do you think?

If i use the sparkling water bottles can i reuse the original caps?

 

[BrewStew]

sounds like a great idea

yes you can reuse the screw on caps. just make sure the plastic grommets are sound inside the caps (if they had any to start with)