Home Beer Brewing

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

I haven't homebrewed in a while - the better part of a 2 1/2 years, in fact. Saw on Listermann Brewing Company's Facebook page where they are offering FREE beginners brewing classes this week and the week after. I think I'm going to go for a refresher on the process.

 

Tuesday October 23: 6:00pm-10:00pm Beginners Extract Brewing

Tuesday October 30: 6:00pm-10:00pm Beginners All-Grain Brewing

 

Took the extract class as a refresher back on October 23, and finally got around to brewing a batch this past Sunday. ...only took me 4 months to get around to it. Regardless, I've currently got a Kolsch style fermenting in the spare bedroom. I originally put it down in the basement, but it turns out that it's still a little cold down there. When I went down and checked before I left for work on Monday, the beer was down at about 58°. After the move upstairs, it's been a nice 67 1/2° every time I've checked. Anyway, I just used Listermann's Kolsch extract kit, and doctored it with a little bit of extra rye malt. Looking forward to trying it out.

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

I threw together a cider two weeks ago. Three gallons of apple juice, 7 containers of frozen apple juice concentrate, 2 pounds of dark brown sugar, then added water to bring it to about six gallons in the primary fermenter. I'm using Nottingham dry English ale yeast with it as well. I siphoned it into a secondary fermenter yesterday, and so far it tastes pretty good. I'm thinking about putting some cinnamon sticks and other stuff into half of it, then leave the other half a traditional cider.

 

 

I bottled a pumpkin ale last week, and cracked one open two days ago. It tasted better than I expected, but I think another couple weeks in the bottle will do it some good.

 

How did the cider turn out? My fiancee grew pretty fond of the dry ciders they have in Wales while she was living there last year. (I believe there are more types of ciders produced in Wales than there are beers...) It'd be pretty cool to figure out how to make a decent one on my own.

[Jim Schue]

Sure would be nice if the originator of this thread was still doing this as a hobby. He had a knack for it, to be sure, and may have missed his ultimate calling.

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

Sure would be nice if the originator of this thread was still doing this as a hobby. He had a knack for it, to be sure, and may have missed his ultimate calling.

 

The good ADmiral gave up on homebrewing?

[Jim Schue]

The good ADmiral gave up on homebrewing?

 

Yeah, I've been trying to talk him back into it, but it's been a tough nut to crack.

[ThrillVille Cardinal51]

How did the cider turn out? My fiancee grew pretty fond of the dry ciders they have in Wales while she was living there last year. (I believe there are more types of ciders produced in Wales than there are beers...) It'd be pretty cool to figure out how to make a decent one on my own.

 

Well it's funny you ask, because I just tried some last night. It's a little on the sweet side, but I'm really happy with it so far. It tastes like a sweet wine. I think I'm going to rack it soon, then let it sit a little just a little longer in a carboy. I'll definetely end up carbonating most of it and putting it into bottles, but I think I'll leave some still too in case I want some warm.

 

I would say I'm happier with the way this batch tastes compared to my first. I used champagne yeast in my first batch and wasn't too wild about it. It didn't taste bad but the problem was that I bottled it before it was "ready". My buddy waanted to bring it to a home brewing competition, so I caved. I'm sure it would have tasted better had I let it age a bit longer. It did get the party going though, because it was 10+% alcohol(atleast).

[ADopted ADmiral]

Sure would be nice if the originator of this thread was still doing this as a hobby. He had a knack for it, to be sure, and may have missed his ultimate calling.

 

Thanks for the compliment my friend.Maybe one day I'll give it another run...:thumb:

[NEERFAN]

I brewed an American Barleywine and it fermented for 10 days, I think it finally stoppe burping today. I will dry hop this weekend. It's going to be a big beer, the OG was 1.106.

[Jim Schue]

Thanks for the compliment my friend.Maybe one day I'll give it another run...:thumb:

 

Sooner rather than later would be kosher by me.

 

I still say you should come to B'town and be the brewmeister for my restaurant. Let's make a mil, then you can go to Florida. I'll go with you, then. At my restaurant, I'll never ask you to cook bacon. Just beer.

[ThrillVille Cardinal51]

Six months(ish) ago I took a few 12 ounce grape fruit concentrate containers and mixed them with some water, sugar and champagne yeast. I have to say, for less than ten bucks in materials, I have a little more than two gallons of pretty drinkable wine. Two glasses and I'm feeling pretty cozy. I'm more than satisfied, really.

 

Also, I just bottled a hard cider I started in December. It tastes really good still, but I think a little carbonation will make it out of this world good. This one cost a little less than twenty bucks, and I got 62 bottles(6-ish gallon batch). I cannot wait for it to be ready.

[Bengal Maniac]

My son in Atlanta brews his own and it is always very good. Don't know how he does it, except he has a kit and gets different varieties every couple of months. I just drink it, don't ask how.

[ThrillVille Cardinal51]

My son in Atlanta brews his own and it is always very good. Don't know how he does it, except he has a kit and gets different varieties every couple of months. I just drink it, don't ask how.

 

It's really not too complicated, you should try it. It's a good time. There is a little work involved, but it's pretty rewarding.

[NEERFAN]

As long as you follow the directions and sanitize, you can make good beer. I have a Barleywine I bottled on Sunday.

[ThrillVille Cardinal51]

So I just cracked open a hard cider that I bottled a little while ago, and it's actually a home run. Really crisp with an apple taste and good carbonation. I'm very pleased.

 

Just wondering, have any BGPers tried making wine from berries? I have two mulberry trees in my backyard and I've collected three freezer bags full so far. I know that mulberry wine by itself isn't great, so I think I'm going to buy some frozen berries from walmart to add in as well. I also have a couple pounds of cherries from my parents house to throw in too.

 

If anyone has any suggestions/advice or stories I'd be glad to hear them.

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

Well these are pretty cool looking. I keep meaning to bust out my homebrew gear and give things another shot (my stuff has all been sitting in my buddy's basement collecting dust since I moved to Louisville for my wife to complete med school...that stuff would take up a lot of space in my apartment right now). But these seem a bit more compact, and they give you a chance to work on things in smaller recipe sizes. I may actually shell out the money for one of these fellas....

 

 

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