We are absolutely giddy at the prospect of brewing our own beer. It's something that we've wanted to do for quite some time, and this weekend we finally took the plunge! Want to join us? Here's the basic equipment you'll need:
Brewing Beer at Home: Basic Homebrewing Equipment
Beer Sessions
• 1. Equipment Overview - We were surprised at how little equipment we actually needed. We bought everything at our local homebrew store (The Winemaker's Shop in Columbus, Ohio), and the total came to about $100 for the equipment with an additional $30 for the ingredient kit.
• 2. A Really Big Pot - We didn't actually buy this at the store, but used a stock pot we already owned. It should be big enough to hold at least 3-4 gallons.
• 3. An 8-Gallon Plastic Bucket - This will hold the brewed wort during the primary fermentation. The lid is air-tight once it's snapped on and has a small hole where we will put the air lock.
• 4. A 6-Gallon Glass Carboy - This will be used for the secondary fermentation. We'll talk more about the primary and secondary fermentation when we actually brew the beer.
• 5. Airlock - This will go in the lid of the plastic bucket (and later, the carboy). It allows the carbon dioxide being produced by the yeast to escape without letting any outside air - and outside bacteria - into the bucket of fermenting beer.
• 6. Racking Cane, Siphon Tube, Clamp - We'll use this tubing to siphon the beer from the primary fermentation bucket into the carboy, and then later into the individual bottles themselves.
• 7. Sanitizer - The tagline of homebrewers everywhere is Sanitize! Sanitize! Sanitize! Unlike canning, the risk is not so much that improperly sanitized beer will spoil or make you ill - the alcohol content takes care of that risk. But if outside bacteria or wild yeast take up residence in your beer, they can cause some really funky and unpleasant flavors.
• 8. Bottle Capper and Bottle Caps - We can re-use old beer bottles for our homebrew, but they will need new caps. We'll use this crazy-looking contraption to seal the new caps onto the bottles.
• 9. Beer Ingredient Kit - Since this was our first batch of homebrew, we decided to start with the simplest, most straight-forward method. This kit contains pre-hopped malt extract and a packet of yeast. All we have to do is combine the extract with water, add the yeast, and let it ferment away. We figure we'll get the basic procedure down before venturing into the world of grain mashes, hops, and custom beer yeasts!
So far, we've found the homebrewing community to be incredibly helpful and supportive. If you want to brew along with us, we recommend looking up local homebrew stores or winemaking stores (which also usually carry beer-making supplies) and talking with the salespeople. We'll be posting about the first stage of our brewing adventure in another two weeks.
Do you have a favorite local homebrew store to recommend?
Related: How to Make Soda Water at Home
(Images: Emma Christensen for the Kitchn)
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Beer, Cookware & Tools, Gadgets, beer, beer brewing, homebrew, homebrewing, beermaking equipment, homebrew equipment, homemade beerRelated Links
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Curious - what did they give you for a sanitizer? Many wine places do not know beer very well, and one of the huge mistakes they make is to tell beer makers to use sulphites as a sanitizer. This works for wine for various reasons (lower pH and higher alcohol content), but it does not work for beer.
My other website is all about making beer : http://www.bodensatz.com/
view Bushidoka's profile
Oh, I see the One-Step in the picture. That's a good sanitzer.
view Bushidoka's profile
I've got a batch of dark hefeweizen ready to drink right now. I won't drink right now though even though I'd like to. I will wait until I punch out.
I also used the same equipment to ferment a batch of juneberry wine which I need to bottle any day now.
I can't seem to find a home brew store in the City of Chicago so I deal with the Home Brew Store in downtown St. Charles, IL (or is it Geneva?). You can also order all the kits, grains, hops and equipment online.
Here's some pictures of my brewing adventures:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/art_chel/collections/72157620742869078/
view art's profile
I suggest getting a bench capper, instead of that butterfly one. A bench capper is a little more money (but probably only about $25) and will be much easier on your hands.
Also if you still want to do kits, but want to go one step up, I suggest getting a kit from somewhere like northernbrewer.com... they have kits that come with specific malt extracts, hops, yeasts and specialty grains to steep in. Still super super easy and a more complex in flavor than one with pre-hopped malt extract.
view arielg's profile
My husband and I just bottled our 4th batch last night - a lemongrass wheat ale. Our set-up looks pretty much like yours, but ours is a bit smaller (6 gallon bucket and 5 gallon carboy). I haven't had any problems with the butterfly capper, but doing ~50 bottles isn't such a big deal.
We get our supplies from Austin Homebrew.
view jamiealyse's profile
I received a kit as a wedding present & have loved making beer now for 10 years. I like going to Modern Brewer in Cambridge MA for my supplies.
2 books that I highly recommend: The New Complete Joy of Home Brewing by Charlie Papazian and The Pocket Juide to Beer by Michael Jackson (not the singer, but this MJ also passed away recently). The pocket guide talks about different brewing styles, methods, ingredients from all over the world.
Relax. Have a home brew! - Charlie Papazian
view tallsarah's profile
I find a bottling bucket easier to use than just using the racking cane. I also recommend using 22 oz bottles, since they are easier to fill and you are always going to want to drink more than one. You definitely need a bottling brush to scrub out your bottles.
I get my supplies at My Local Home Brew Store in Falls Church, VA http://www.mylhbs.com Even though most of the supplies can be ordered online, I recommend going to a local store if it's an option, because it's nice to have someone friendly to guide you in the right direction, as it's more of an art than a science.
I've brewed about nine batches of beer this year and they have all turned out great. Home brewing is a great hobby that will give you a great appreciation for beer, the most civilized of drinks.
view HomebrewMeister's profile
Good timing, my husband and I are just about to make our first homebrew. We've both read The Complete Joy of Home Brewing and have been craft beer fans for years, it's about time we got started I say. Anyone know a boysenberry recipe?
view thedabble's profile