Hey guys any members on here brew there own beer ? How has it turned out how many attempts did it take you to get a good batch of beer. I have brought a coopers DIY kit and have a batch going but being cooler months of the year its hard to keep the temp in the 21 t0 27 temp will most likely need to wrap a heat mat around it or something to keep it at that temp will it still l turn out ok even if its not in that temp range while in the fermentation period right now the temp is like 16 to 18 I think my question is will it still turn out ok and just take longer or will it be crap.
I also checked out the beer factory which is a microbrewery company based in seven hills where you brew your own beer on site from a choice of the 200 beers and around 2 to 4 weeks time its ready to pick up which you can bottle it on site or have it put into kegs if you have a keg set up at home which I am thinking of getting. Brewing beer from them works out cheaper then buying cases of beer from the shops I am not a massive drinker so brewing the 50L would last me afew months easy its still not as cheap as brewing it at home but mite be easier and I know every batch will turn out great and have such a big range to choose from so mite try them out sometime soon for now I am giving the home brew a go really not expecting my first attempt to be any good tho hahah.
any tips from people who brew beer would be great also has anyone ever brewed beer from the beer factory at seven hills or any other places that do the same thing.
Cheers
Michael
I worked for several years with one of Australias largest homebrew chains, and helped create many of the concentrates available throughout their stores and others that they wholesale to. Like anything you do, with homebrew you get what you pay for. Starting out with a Coopers kit is a great way to cut your teeth on brewing your own beer, but unless the DVD content has drastically changed since I left the industry about five years ago, then the only thing it is good for is to be used as a coaster. Number 1 rule:
Do NOT brew your beer above 22°C, unless you wish to produce overly fruity crap abounding in impurities. I would say the best temp for most ale yeasts is around 18°C, and try not to drop below 16°C with the Coopers yeast as this runs the very real risk of creating a stuck ferment which will leave you with a half finished product.
The best thing you can do when brewing your own is to excercise patience. Most of my ales would not leave the primary fermenter for at least ten days. This would ensure that the fermentation was completed fully, prior to moving to a secondary for bulk aging, or for packaging. Which brings me to my number 2 rule:
Always use a hydrometer. This nifty little piece of gear is the cheapest method of scientifically proving that your fermentation has ceased. No other way is viable, unless you wish to purchase a much more expensive refractometer. To ensure your fermentation has finished, take a sample and record the reading. Wait 24 hours, then take another sample, record and compare this reading - it should be the same. If fermentation has finished, then wait a further 24 hours and take a third sample. Compare the three to ensure that fermentation has definitely finished. Then you can proceed to bottling, kegging, or transfering to a secondary fermenter for bulk aging.
My number three rule isn't really a rule... more of a recommendation that stems back to the whole 'get what you pay for' quote. Generally speaking,
simple sugars are bad, evil additives (adjuncts, in brewing terminology) that only add alcohol, and nothing in the way of
nice flavours to your brew. I say
nice flavours, because they do add flavour, but these tend to be harsh, cidery characteristics that greatly retract from the finished product. Dextrose is better than sucrose, or table sugar, but still adds the cidery element if overused. To create a truly masterful homebrew, try replacing the brewing "sugars" with 100% malt, either dried malt or liquid malt, and see the difference this makes. You will be astounded when comparing these to brews created with sugar instead. Then, once you've gained teh confidence necessary, try to experiment with adding hops and even steeping some specialty grains such as crystal or chocolate grain. Always remember that the best place to go for advise is your local home brew shop. Being close to Seven Hills, then I would highly recommend popping in to the Country Brewer at Girraween and speaking with either Karl or Graham. They are both extremely knowledgeable and happy to talk anyone through any issues or fears they may have.It's also a good place to pick up different ingredients and recipes for various brews as well. Sure, their concentrates are several dollars more than the tin of coopers from the supermarket, but they are a superior product (naturally... I helped create them :lol
. Of course, if you don't wish to support your local home brew shop, you can always try asking the checkout chick at KMart for brewing advice. I'm sure she'll be a veritable encyclopaedia of relevant information
My ultimate recommendations then...
1. All malt ingredients
2. Purchase a seperate yeast, such as safale or, during winter, saflager (which will happily brew at 9°C... just takes longer to finish at that temp), and throw out the generic under-the-lid-yeast.
3. Brew ales between 16°C to 22°C Max. Brew lagers (using a lager yeast) between 12°C and 16°C
4. Excercise patience, and never try to rush things. Once bottled, leave them at room temperature (read: similar to the temperature which you brewed the beer at) for a minimum of six weeks prior to cracking - your tastebuds will thank you.
5. Do not give up if you fail. Discuss the issue with a homebrew retailer, or someone truly knowledgeable about the hobby, as chances are whatever happened to you has been well documented previously, and they will have an answer for you.
6. Support your local home brew shop. It may cost a bit more - even twice what you would pay at Woolworths - but if these shops all close down because everyone just wants to make cheap piss instead of good beer, then all the knowledge they contain inside their collective brain will be lost!
Hope this helps. And as they say in the hobby...
RDWHAHB (Relax, Don't Worry, Have a Home Brew),
Pete
