Anyone brew/brewed their own beer?

[HeyWayne]

Well, the kit arrived - although "kit" wasn't what I was expecting.

I received two tins of stuff and that was it.

I sent another email to the dude at Hamstead Brewing Centre (really helpful dude), and he sent me a fermentation tub, some pipes, a stirrer, some thermometers and some sterilising powder. Along with loads of bottles, caps and a capper.

Cleaned all the kit, then set about brewing.

Followed the instructions on the box for the tins and added the water and then yeast. Let it sit for a few days and it frothed up and looked like a nice revolting pint.

My mum got hold of a 5 gallon 10 psi barrel and there were some other gubbins inside (tubing and what like like some sort of "vales" - though I can't work out what they'd do).

Anyhoo - syphoned the brew into the barrel (with a wee mouthful of the stuff), but when it got to the bottom there was a kind of "clay" goop - no idea if it's supposed to be there, but most of it got syphoned into the barrel.

Now just have to wait.....

[shirlthegirl43]

The gloop should have been left in the primary fermenting vessel Wayne. Could I suggest you clean the first tub out, put the beer back into it, let it all settle then re-syphon into the cleaned pressure barrel. It will spoil the beer if you leave it on the 'lees' (technical name for the dead yeast goo)

Did you prime the pressure barrel with sugar to get fizz?

[SarzWix]

The 'clay gloop' is sediment, it'll sink to the bottom of the barrel. If you bottle it, try and leave the gloop in the barrel

Which kit did you go for?

[HeyWayne]

The gloop should have been left in the primary fermenting vessel Wayne. Could I suggest you clean the first tub out, put the beer back into it, let it all settle then re-syphon into the cleaned pressure barrel. It will spoil the beer if you leave it on the 'lees' (technical name for the dead yeast goo)

Did you prime the pressure barrel with sugar to get fizz?

Dang it - I knew I should have left it out!! Didn't want to waste a drop though, that's my problem. I was hoping I could leave it in as the tap is set about an inch or so above the bottom - I guessed for that reason.

I don't know about "primed" but added the maximum 85g of sugar (household as I didn't have time to get hold of brewing sugar) to the barrel - if that's what you mean?

The 'clay gloop' is sediment, it'll sink to the bottom of the barrel. If you bottle it, try and leave the gloop in the barrel

Which kit did you go for?

This one: Smugglers Special Ale

[shirlthegirl43]

Adding the sugar is priming. Don't worry about using granulated sugar - I use it for all my brewing. If your tap is well above the level of the lees maybe it will be okay. I know if you leave wine on the lees it gets a 'musty' flavour but maybe that doesn't happen with beer.

Enjoy!!

I bottled the last of our home brewed beer yesterday. I tried a pressure barrel with my first lot but couldn't get it to pressurise once it was below half full and wasted a half barrel of yummy beer. Decided then that the next batch would be bottled so we have been saving and begging bottles (Spitfire / Bishop's Finger style) for a while.

[SarzWix]

I think once it sinks to the bottom of the barrel it will 'set' fairly firmly, so you hopefully won't get it in your pint
Like Shirley says though, the trick is in keeping the pressure up once you've drunk half of it, so that you get a bit of head on your pint. The OH doesn't mind his cider being a bit flat so that always goes in the barrel, and the beer into bottles.

Sounds like a nice ale, we've never tried that one, you'll have to let us know what it turns out like

[Flummery]

I've made beer both from kits and from scratch - I have somehwere a small paperback on beer brewing. It all started when I found some hops growing wild! I definitely prefer the 'from scratch' version - no chemical aftertaste. Wonderful stuff.

[shirlthegirl43]

That is what I have noticed most about the homebrew Flum - the lack of that nasty 'bite' in the throat after it has gone down.

[Flummery]

What brand you drinking Shirley? Dracula?

[shirlthegirl43]

LOL Flummery. I usually don't drink lager or beer as I hate the aftertaste. I find the home brew a lot smoother (has a hidden kick though which hits you a few hours afterwards)

[HeyWayne]

Only reason it's in the barrel is because I had to move it from the fermentation tub and didn't have time to bottle it. Thought I might be able to bottle it in batches? I'm guessing not though...

Would love to be able to brew from scratch, but doesn't it involve witchcraft, mathmatics and science - all of which I'm rubbish at.

Oh, and space.

[pdblake]

I've got some nettle beer on the go

[shirlthegirl43]

Only reason it's in the barrel is because I had to move it from the fermentation tub and didn't have time to bottle it. Thought I might be able to bottle it in batches? I'm guessing not though...

Would love to be able to brew from scratch, but doesn't it involve witchcraft, mathmatics and science - all of which I'm rubbish at.

Oh, and space.

I bottled ours in batches as I didn't have enough bottles to do it all at once. Will tell you in a day or two if the last batch is as good as the first

[WrexTheDragon]

Would love to be able to brew from scratch, but doesn't it involve witchcraft, mathmatics and science - all of which I'm rubbish at.

The hardest part is a 40 pint rolling boil (thank God for Burco boilers).

No dark arts involved.

I even grow my own hops now. Very easy.

[pdblake]

Nettle beer is bottled and bubbling away in the kitchen.

Should be ready for Sunday