what is everyone brewing?

Nice looking keezer.

I'm brewing a Live Oak Hefe clone tomorrow.

 

considering I just ate a half cooked burger, and a pork chop with side of beans and slaw.... you don't want to know.......

but really though my buddy has a nice oatmeal stout brewing right now. Im a sucker for dark velvety beers!

 

Another newbie question....

I've seen the link for getting started - but honestly, what's the 'attention' factor involved? Is it a lot of work / time involved to maintain the entire process?

The thought of doing this is neat since we've been enjoying micro-brews. But I'm almost afraid I won't have enough time to commit to it.

 

Depends on what you're making. The actual brewing process is a couple of hours including sterilization, cleanup, etc. Brewing itself can take from a couple of days to months. But that's just letting it sit for the most part. Bottling is another couple of hours, and is kind of a pain - which is why I bought a keg system.

All told, it's more work and usually more expensive than buying beer. You do it because you want to make wine/beer exactly how you like it. To experiment and have fun, like any other hobby.

Like most stuff, you get better the more you do it, so the time gets shorter. But you still have to take over the kitchen for half a day (twice), which wife/hubby might not like. I ended up building a bar just for a place to brew. Time wise, it's a hobby. Meaning it sucks up free time like a black hole swallows light.

 

I brew the extract with partial mash recipies right now. An average brew day takes about 3-4 hours for brew and cleanup. The next 30 days are fermentation and aging.

If you like craft beer and are thinking about getting into brewing your own beer I suggest you find someone local who brews and see if they will let you help/watch their next brew. I will be amazed if they say no.

 

Thanks!!
Yeah, I kinda figured it was somewhat involved with time - which, with my work schedule, I wouldn't have enough time to devote to it. I think I'll stick with supporting the local micro brews!

Thanks again!

 

Ive got a peaches and vanilla cream ale in secondary. Wanted to branch out and experiment with some new stuff. Honey Wheat or Belgian White are next.

 

Honey Wheat makes a great base platform. A buddy of mine brewed a honey wheat and added a couple of pounds of mesquite smoked jalapenos (seeds and all) to the mash. That beer had some bite to it. He said next time he is going to step down on the jalapenos and maybe tweak the hops a little more.

 

I've got an amber and a brown on tap... Newer brewer, use brew in a bag method. Started brewing first off by all grain method... That's not any bragging, it's a message to interested individuals that anyone can do it, keep everything post boil really clean and it comes out great! Also, I'm not real patient and even I can get through the process feeling like the wait isn't ridiculous. My brew day is usually 5 hours (5+gallon batches) and I'm sampling carbonated product within about two weeks (if i force carbonate in a corny keg). Its a little young, but i dont know the difference! I've never had a bad batch, and some were amaaaaaazing! But I've only done about 8 batches. Anyway, go for it! And cheers to all you Tacoma enthusiasts!

 

Sorry all, new to the forum and accidentally added a posting title frown face! Guess I need to preview my posts first!

 

omg thats sick

 

anyone have any good suggestions good to brew in summer temps?

 

Yep, right in the middle of tackling that very problem. Building some racks in this old fridge.

 

Racking my Live Oak Hefeweizen to a keg tonight. I let it sit two full weeks in the primary fermentation this time instead of just ten days. We'll see how it is after another seven days of carbonation.

 

I'm bottling a Farmhouse Saison when i get home and hopefully unpacking this bad boy to brew up the next batch which will either be a double IPA or possibly one of the kiwi kits from northern brewer.

 

So I know this is an old thread, but I need some home brew advice.

Just finished up my first batch last Friday 1/3/14. Nut Brown Ale and everything went fine up until fermentation(I think). I placed the brew in a brew bucket with the airlock on top filled 1/2 with water/sani. It's sitting up stairs in a room that is not being used and the temp seems to be around 71F. The issue is, I haven't seen the slightest movement(bubbles) out of the airlock yet. Should I be worried that my yeast is dead, or is it too early to tell?

Also, when should I think about moving it to the second fermentation glass carboy? I have read that when you notice that there is no more movement from the airlock that this would be a good time to move to secondary, but I haven't seen any movement at all.

Any help would be great, if ^ doesn't make any sense, please let me know and I will try to explain better.

 

what yeast did you use? I just finished a newcastle clone so we should have similar results.

i fermented at 65* and shook the carboy on days 4,5,6,7,8. then let it settle for then next seven days.

At 71* you should have lots of action!

another common issue is the brew bucket hasn't sealed properly so it seems like nothing is happening. peek inside the airlock hole and see if a krausen has formed

 

What temperature was the wort when you put your yeast in (pitching)? What yeast? Expiration date? Check your current gravity reading and compare it to the initial, as this is the most reliable method of fermentation progress.

 

Thanks for the replies guys. I am good, I was just worrying too much. I racked yesterday and found that my gravity reading was 1.020, which I think is right on time. I will be bottling in about 4-5 days!

Again, thanks for the help!

 

How long of a fermentation did you have for this beer? I know a lot of people have stopped racking to a secondary if it is less than 3-4 weeks. Now I do not rack off the yeast unless the beer is left in the carboy for dry hopping or conditioning past the one month mark. Just asking.