starter help need you lovelies!

[harleyheath]

Hello all out in brew land,
my name is heath, I live in the east midlands, im old, and im really not sure if im posting in the right place? I hope I am.
ok Im very new to the world of home brew, I did a bit as a teen (bad boy, lol) but what with rising pub prices and lower wages, im going to try my hand again.
I had a quick look through some of the forums before I bothered you lot but I seem to of drawn a blank.
so here goes, I would love to brew up (please dont hate me, lol) a pilsner type lager, im more than happy to use a kit for my first few but im even stuck on that! I would like something not to bitter but not a wishy light beer, plus it must be at least about 5%, can anyone recommend a good kit to start with? plus any hints or tips that will make my first brew drinkable.
I have all the kit hopefully, just need to get my head round it all again.
any help would be very much appreciated! :

 

[GrumpyBunny]

An IPA might be a good place to start; I'm not familiar with kits but the general consensus is that the two can kits produce better results.

Have a look in the Beer Kit Reviews forum for some inspiration. The Coopers IPA is well receiverd.

Welcome aboard :

 

[Archtronics]

Could try a better brew Czech pilsner or Coopers pilsner.

Most of these don't use lager yeast which requires lower temps to ferment, once you have a few under your belt you can start experimenting etc :thumb:

 

[harleyheath]

hay thank you for the swift replies!!
that sounds great, yh after a bit of googling today i see lager is harder to brew and has to be brewed at a lower temp, and then fridged? im not really up on the lingo so alot of it I didnt understand, lol, but I have a utility room with no heating thats pretty cold most of the time and a fridge that has been converted to hold a pressure barrel, not sure if either of these will help?
thank you again! :thumb:

 

[harleyheath]

and yh after a bit of searching I see that the IPA is recommend as a starter, I think i'll go for an IPA, to get me going then a coopers pilsner as these seem to get good reviews?

 

[Archtronics]

If you have a fridge you can pick up a kit such as the coopers pilsner and some lager yeast then ferment as a lager, this may require some modification to your fridge tho.

As a rough guide for a lager

7-14 days at 10 - 13 degrees
3ish days at 16 -18 degrees for something called a diactyl rest.
Then lagers at 2 degrees for as long as you like I aim for 6 weeks.

I did this with Coopers European lager kit, it is a good kit but worth all the effort hmm maybe not its up to you. :thumb:

Start with the IPA and go from there.

 

[harleyheath]

thats great, sounds good and not too complicated although im sure it is! lol.
I do have fridge, and its been heavily modified with a jigsaw, lol. :shock: fits the pressure barrel very nice!
Yh i think i'll start with the IPA, as thats a drinkable ole beasty, then once i've cut my teeth an I have a bit of beer to drink while I wait, i'll do the lager.
thank you all for the great advice!
im sure i'll be back asking advice while im doing it if thats ok?

 

[Aleman]

If you want some great help and can get yourself down to Hamstead Homebrew (Just off Jn 7 of the M6) 0121 358 6800, Rob and Chris will sort you out with what you need.

They aslo make some cracking kits there

 

[Archtronics]

Aleman, I noticed you reviewed the new baron kit recently do they sell them there as its not to far from me?

 

[harleyheath]

thank you! I'll give them a call see what they say an order some stuff up!
many thanks!