I was reading the newspaper today and I saw an ad for Beer Kits from one of those Beer/Wine Kit making stores...and I thought.. "wait a second...I drink a lot of beer....I should make some fucking beer!!" The moment was compared to a black criminal finding Islam.

Anyway, I know some of you have make beer before(trendkill..but he's dead or something?)..my questions are is it hard to make? I heard it takes 7-10 days...and possibly some kits are easier matainence than others..does it smell like shit?(I live in an apartment..)..anyway, can someone give me the lowdown. Cheers!



EDIT - I'd be looking to make Pale Ale, because it's my favorite, but would be willing to try others..just not shitty black crap and the like.

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It tastes crap.

I prefer getting one of those barrels and a tap to go with it.

One step ahead of you

I did it once, made like five gallons of it, and it tasted awful. I forget the brand it was...

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This shit I saw an ad for is called FESTA BREW..$90 cdn on special...it says you don't have add water or anything...probably does taste like shit..

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Like you're going to wait that many days for it to finish brewing? riiiiight. Think about how much beer you could buy for the same price already made and aged. That's probably the step that's omitted that makes it taste better although most beers taste like crap to me anyways except for maybe Heinekens, but I don't drink beer anyways.

I tried making homemade wine once from grapes I'd grown. All I had was a bumper crop of fruit flies in my kitchen. My old Italian wine making friend told me that I was doing the right things, but I'd already pitched the stuff. I got tired of swatting.

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lol, sorry to hear about the fruit flies..

I dunno, I was just interested in it as it was advertised 23 litres for $90...once I read that I was drooling.

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AHHH! THE BALL'S IN MY COURT NOW!

Three things affect the quality of the beer you make:

1) Hygiene
2) The quality of the kit you buy
3) Hygiene again

The equipment you use to make the beer isn't particularly important... Hell, you could use a pig's intestine sewn shut as long as it was sterile inside. You'll need a fermenter, an airlock, a big fuckin' spoon, a hydrometer and a lot of different powders.

What makes it awesome: You have to be ABSOLUTELY ANAL about hygiene brewing. Things that go in the fermenter or bottles must NOT touch the ground or anything else. It can be a very finnicky process. Also, you have to buy good quality kits (good malt, good hops, good yeast) or the beer will taste like you're sucking on Walpurgis's infected nipples.

If you've got the patience, it's a VERY cheap way to get beer - that is, once you've got the equipment. A good home brewing store with a big fat homebrewing ninja man in it is your best asset as far as that goes. I used to brew a lot until I realised that making 25L of beer a week (I had three fermenters) was absolutely no good for my mental health.

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i made whiskey out of dandalions, but it got me very sick. and i didnt drink alot of it either

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My grandpa makes it, tastes horrible.

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it can be done and done well, i know a guy who can clone types of beer thats sold<i dont know how tho>. and makes really,really fine brew

hahahaha..you might as well make vodka out of bumble bees.


Thanks for the insights guys, especially FBS..haha, I can see why 25 litres a week wasn't good for your mental health...so does this shit smell? Is it very difficult to make? Does it go bad? Is it pricy? Should I get a shitty all in one kit before I expand?

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Making hard booz is a different story. Make methyl instead of ethyl alcohol and you can get sick, blind and/or died.

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Now THIS is a freakish coincidence. I was JUST contemplating making a thread about how to make beer on the way home from work, as I am sick of not drinking beer because I live in shitty America.

post about it here.

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i know. we all are dumbasses, and that just seemed to be my day

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One of my friends tried making beer once.

Ingredient list:
1 empty Coke bottle
Yeast
Sugar
Water

Leave next to the heater for 3 weeks.

Enjoy!

(no, it didnt work)

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Gross...I just did extensive reading...holy shit...it's definitely starting to not seem worth it.....

http://www.howtobrew.com/section1/


Jesus..they think a beer drinker will spend 3 hours to set up the shit..then wait 2 weeks to drink the godamn beer?!! FUCK THAT SHIT NIGGA!!

Jesus, what is this hobby for...patient people??!

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No doy.

wish i could make my own beer but im underage

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It's LEGAL to buy the kits and ingredients in Queensland, you dick. Go forth and beer-iply.

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fbs-- walpurgis was talking about someone from Australia a few years ago that got the makings for a still for their birthday or something. Was that you?


About the dandelions, I've never had the wine, but I do like dandelion tea and occasionally use the young, spring leaves in salads. It's great for cleaning out the kidneys, but can upset your stomach a little if you ingest too much. Excellent source of vitamin c, too. And so pretty all over my back field before it's mowed.

Give the brew making a try if you think it might be fun to do. But yeah, use quality ingredients and it will probably make a huge difference.

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Got a recipe here somewhere for danelion wine, if anyone interested i'll hoak it out

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yes but you see it is illegal for me to drink it but i dont think that really matters i shall go forth and be known as the beer man

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and? like that matters? no am serious...dunno bout where you are i got given beer when i was 15 at home, my parents thought that it best if i was gonna drink, i may as well drink at home and learn to drink with sense...erm okay! no, but it did help me...i know a lot of people that parents did the same, when they were 15 or 16....dunno what legal age in oz but it 18 here....btw i got mates in oz, adeliade and new south wales & my other half was out there for the lions tour in 2001 (before i knew him) and the photos he took, looks like a really beautiful country.

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yes well ive had vodka when i was 12 and yes some australia does look good but some of its a freaking hot shit hole

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Did you think it was some kind of insta-beer, that you mixed some powders together, added a some water and BAM! a frothy pint in your hand?

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Yes..haha..well, I thought it would take less time than 2 friggn weeks!

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hahaha i pity u guys.i got a friend who has a brewery at her place :P

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beer brewing? Just give me a crate of 'ol Hertog Jan's, and I'm happy

Sure, if it's not too much trouble for you to find it. I'm curious as to how it's made.

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those new home-taps with Hertog Jan are the bomb man. a student-friend of mine got one from his rich ass parents. we drain his tap every friday

Yah i think I'll just settle WITH THE BEST FUCKING BEER IN NORTH AMERICA IF NOT THE WORLD!!!....Alexander Keith's...

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cool! can I get an invite?

if he gets invited then send some to australia for me

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Well yeah I guess if you don't wanna wait just go to the supermarket and get some. But I got a recipe for some porter one time and it was really fucking good. I think I waited a full 6 weeks to drink it. It's not like you can't just buy some beer to drink while you wait though! And just think, $30 worth of shit, and 6 weeks later you have 50 (count em FIFTY!!!) totally blow your balls off excellent beers.

On the other hand, I only did that once so maybe its a shitload of trouble after all.

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fuck it takes like a month if i remember correctly to make beer... or is it wine im thinking of? Anyways, if you get the kit its pretty damn easy. My uncle used to make beer all the time. My parents make wine from the kit like every month. its pretty basic, just takes time.

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Wine takes about a year to ferment. And thats just the low quality sort.

Well, if we all sent him one beer from a micro brewery around us then he'd have quite a selection without the hassle of making it. The metaltabs brew exchange. Instead of making cookies and exchanging them for Christmas, do beers.

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no it doesnt.

it takes a year or more to AGE. theres a difference.
the actual process of making wine itself takes a month. Were not talking about wine companies which im sure take a long time, we are discussing home wine/beer making kits.

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okay whatever

haha, I'll agree to that HAILZ!!!!

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Ok, I saw the EXACT SAME AD in the newspaper as I saw last year. haha. And it REALLY got me thinking again..."HMMM I SHOULD ACTUALLY START MAKING BEER!"

I'm really going to look into it this time, I see there is a pack for a Double Oatmeal Stout at a local beer kit store. *drools*

So...graf, I remember seeing your pic's of beer making.. how's it turning out and give me any tips and information you can!

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this thread has got me so thirsty for beer.

my husband is in iraq. i have nothing better to do.

maybe i will make some beer......hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...

no. too lazy. i can just walk around the corner and have my pick of plenty of fine beers. buaha

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No, really? I seriously didn't know that.

You sound like you need some sexual healing. Christ!

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haha i was wondering how i never saw this thread..then i saw the original date it was posted. now i've got three alcohol threads to post in!

i would go ahead and do it..but i don't know if i'd buy a premade kit with ingredients. there are some good websites..not sure if they ship to canada though. i'll have to post them when i get home..have them bookmarked.

our beer was fucked. we killed the yeast because we mixed it into the wort right after removing the wort from the stove. instructions didn't mention that part! i didn't try any, but roommates did. it smelled bad in the end..looked like some shit was growing on the surface level.

it smells great though when you are making it! it varies with your choice of hops but ours were cheap and smelled good, so good hops must smell great.

the waiting thing sucks..but i think the way fbs had it set up is the way to go. its a lot of work though. it would just be nice since you'll have one batch ready to drink while another is almost ready to bottle, while starting another batch. that cuts down on the waiting..but triples the work.

if you have aim or something, i can send you this book we have in pdf format. it has EVERYTHING you need to know about brewing. its almost 400 pages long!

fuck yea! kool-aid beer!

actually bass, i just clicked that link..and its the same book only in pdf form with a pic of the cover and pics inside instead of what appears to be all text.

Oh well, it's the thought that counts.

Well, I wanna start with a pre-made kit first because I think it's less chance of me fucking things up. lol. I just figured with some xmas money I'll be getting, now is the time to start thinking of this scenario. Hell, I've even thought about taking commerce and then going to a brewing college, even their are only a few in the world(to my knowledge). I mean, if I was serious about brewing beer for a living, might as well start young.

Hmm, master's of psychology or owning and operating a craft brewery..

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beer cannot heal my sexual frustration. as i have found out, but refuse to accept!

17 days though til R&R. hooray! then we have to wait again til next september.

DEAR GOD WHY!!!!!!!

i will just go about with drowning my sorrows... in beer.

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So like it had already been said you can make very very good beers if you have the time to sit there and learn my drummer has been doing home brews for about 8 years now he can make some amazing clone beer ala a great fat tire clone and rouge clones. I tried it and made some very very shitty ass beer but im going to keep trying and tryin untill i make some good beer.

From what i've learnt from other forums for home-brew, with those kits, you should discard the yeast that is in there, and get a good, proper yeast

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Hmm, good to know. Thanks. I've been reading a few threads on brewmaking at Beer Advocate..not too much for a beginner reference there though. Not many 20 year old brewers by the looks of it.

I think this time around I'm definitely going to do it though. Hell, whynot.

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(Yes, I know this is a late reply)

Haha dude, obviously it didn't work because that's how you make ethanol...

You only make about a 15% solution, then you have to distill it to isolate the ethanol (hard).

And you need a nice constant temperature of 37'C for the yeast to produce catalytic enzymes...

...freaky fact (for those that don't already know)

Yeasts are living organisms. And yes, many are present around female genetalia, less around male.

On your scalp too, I forget what they do. Something like itch.

Ok, this is beer talk, not infected vagina's talk.

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you've never heard of punani ale?