Home Brewing

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

I did a little bit of home brewing back in my college days, but that's been sufficiently long enough ago now that I can't really recollect many of the finer points of home brewing.

 

One of my coworkers got me a chintzy Mr. Beer home brewing kit for my birthday earlier in the year though because he thought I'd enjoy it. I went ahead and made the beer because why not. Didn't turn out half bad. Now I've got the bug again.

 

Any home brewers on here? Where do you get your supplies? Are there any high-end starter kits out there to get? Am I better off just buying everything a la carte?

[rjs4470]

I got into Homebrewing pretty heavy in my late 20's early 30's. Started with a Mr Beer kit, which turned out horrible. I then tried full store kits with complete recipes and quickly moved to creating my own recipes. I made porters, stouts, wheat bears, and even a couple belgians. They all turned out pretty well. But it was the one hobby I've had that my wife absolutely hated (she couldn't stand the smell of wort cooking) and I absolutely hated bottling. Storage also became a bit of an issue, and finally I gave up. I've thought about doing it again, but just haven't been able to find the time to get back into it.

 

I used to work in Norwood, so I'd get all my supplies at Listerman's on Dana avenue in Cincinnati, although I also used to get a few things at the Party Source in Bellevue. It's funny you brought this up, as I was just at Jungle Jims over the weekend and spent a little time in their homebrewing section. There also used to be a place on Beechwood ave in Anderson Township, but I can't remember the name nor do I know if it's still in business.

[SnottieDrippen]

I'm gonna pick up a basic set to get my feet wet this weekend but I'm really interested in what has worked for experienced brewers.

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

I'm gonna pick up a basic set to get my feet wet this weekend but I'm really interested in what has worked for experienced brewers.

 

Sounds like you and I are essentially in the same boat. Ha, I'm currently browsing this: Listermann Brewery | Store

[ThrillVille Cardinal51]

Honestly you don't need anything too fancy. Big pot, thermometer, hydrometer if you want(I'd reccomend it if your actually looking for consistency) and a 5 gallon bucket.

 

Get a brewers best starter kit from a Homebrew store. Get the one without the glass carboy(unless you want one of course).

 

In Louisville, there is a wine and beer makers supply off Westport road. Sweet old lady works there. Super nice.

 

There's another one on Preston near Eastern parkway as well. There are some super knowledgeable guys in there that'll set you up.

 

In nky, I don't know of any exclusive homebrew stores, but the big liquor store on turf way has homebrew supplies but I think it's limited.

 

I'd reccomend heading into the closest brew store and talking to the dudes there. My experience has been that if you have a style or idea, they'll be able to set you straight with what you need.

[ThrillVille Cardinal51]

Also, limit the number of bottles you buy. Buy ones with beer in them. They're not much more expensive and are far more enjoyable.

[MJAlltheWay24]

As much as I love craft beer, I've just never had a big interest in home brewing. I'd rather drink the fruits of other's hard labor.

 

Besides the places that have been mentioned, I hear a lot of people purchase things at Paradise for home brewing as well.

[rjs4470]

As much as I love craft beer, I've just never had a big interest in home brewing. I'd rather drink the fruits of other's hard labor.

 

Besides the places that have been mentioned, I hear a lot of people purchase things at Paradise for home brewing as well.

 

When I was doing it 18 or 20 years ago, it wasn't as easy to find good craft brews. The market has changed so much. Making your own beer doesn't save you money and is really a lot of work. Washing, sterilizing, filling and capping all those bottles really does suck. And it's not cheap and it doesn't take a big mistake to ruin a whole batch and all that time and effort. I may revisit the hobby again but if I do, I'll be legging my beer instead of bottling it.

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

In Louisville, there is a wine and beer makers supply off Westport road. Sweet old lady works there. Super nice.

 

Stopped by there today to piece my homebrew kit back together. I've lost a few odds and ends over the course of a few moves since I first assembled my kit. That old lady working there is DEFINITELY as sweet as can be.

[ThrillVille Cardinal51]

Stopped by there today to piece my homebrew kit back together. I've lost a few odds and ends over the course of a few moves since I first assembled my kit. That old lady working there is DEFINITELY as sweet as can be.

I always love seeing her flip through her cards to see how much things cost. Cracks me up.

[coldweatherfan]

Sounds like you and I are essentially in the same boat. Ha, I'm currently browsing this: Listermann Brewery | Store

 

Chuck is a world of knowledge at Listermann. He will help you with anything you have a question about.

 

My recommendation is to just buy a kit of a type of beer you like.

 

Then after you start sampling it you can determine if you want a little more floral taste, mor bitter, less bitter, etc. Then email or call and tell him what you'd like to accomplish and he will make suggestions.

 

I always add a 1/4 lb of carapils malt to everything I make to increase head retention.

[coldweatherfan]

When I was doing it 18 or 20 years ago, it wasn't as easy to find good craft brews. The market has changed so much. Making your own beer doesn't save you money and is really a lot of work. Washing, sterilizing, filling and capping all those bottles really does suck. And it's not cheap and it doesn't take a big mistake to ruin a whole batch and all that time and effort. I may revisit the hobby again but if I do, I'll be legging my beer instead of bottling it.

 

I've always enjoyed it, and personally think it saves quite a bit of money.

 

Typical kit at Listermann is $35 or so.

 

That makes 9 six packs. You woul pay $8-$10 a six for a craft beer.

 

2-3 hours brewing and then 10-14 days later, 2-3 hours bottling.

[rjs4470]

I've always enjoyed it, and personally think it saves quite a bit of money.

 

Typical kit at Listermann is $35 or so.

 

That makes 9 six packs. You woul pay $8-$10 a six for a craft beer.

 

2-3 hours brewing and then 10-14 days later, 2-3 hours bottling.

 

You're probably right....I was going by craft beer prices 20 years ago where you often paid up to $15 per 6 pack. I typically did not buy kits. I used software (whose name I can't remember) that had pre loaded recipes and where you could create your own, based on a rough flavor profile, and then bought ingredients and did everything from scratch. I did use malt extract, but also used a lot of specialty grains that I mashed myself. So I was typically spending $50 or so per batch. And since I did higher ABV beers, I often did secondary and even tertiary fermentation which would take up to 6 weeks. I loved everything about making my own beer, but bottling/preparing bottles got to be unbearable and eventually made me quit homebrewing.

[coldweatherfan]

You're probably right....I was going by craft beer prices 20 years ago where you often paid up to $15 per 6 pack. I typically did not buy kits. I used software (whose name I can't remember) that had pre loaded recipes and where you could create your own, based on a rough flavor profile, and then bought ingredients and did everything from scratch. I did use malt extract, but also used a lot of specialty grains that I mashed myself. So I was typically spending $50 or so per batch. And since I did higher ABV beers, I often did secondary and even tertiary fermentation which would take up to 6 weeks. I loved everything about making my own beer, but bottling/preparing bottles got to be unbearable and eventually made me quit homebrewing.

 

Their kits include the malt, specialty grains, hops, yeast, pretty much everything you need to make quality beer. They range from around $32 - $45. You can also add anything special you may want to add to your beer.

 

I typically do one 5 liter keg and bottle the rest. The 5-Ls are perfect for a little football gathering. I have a nice bench capper though, so capping is easy.

[rjs4470]

Their kits include the malt, specialty grains, hops, yeast, pretty much everything you need to make quality beer. They range from around $32 - $45. You can also add anything special you may want to add to your beer.

 

I typically do one 5 liter keg and bottle the rest. The 5-Ls are perfect for a little football gathering. I have a nice bench capper though, so capping is easy.

 

If I ever get back into it, I will definitely go the keg route.