Fellow INGO Homebrewers!

[littletommy]

I've got a nice kit and everything, and all the ingredients to start, I've just never gotten around to it. The instructions seemed vague... so I really don't know the step-by-step to doing it.

I need to pick up some good water and give it a try sometime, maybe find instructions online unless someone here has a good walkthrough.

I've got a bunch of growlers from various breweries I can store in, as well as a number of bottles

Youtube is full of vids for just about every kit there is. Basically, your boil time, and time to add ingredients is the most critical, for instance, a boil time based on one hour means bring your water up to a boil, add the extract, then start the timer. That way, you have an accurate reference point for hop additions. It's really hard to screw up, as long as you are vigilant with keeping EVERYTHING sanitized.

 

[littletommy]

I only bottle beer for long term storage. It's too tedious. Look online, there's plenty of controllers to make it work.

I bottled my last batch 2 weeks ago, next one will go into a keg. I absolutely hate bottling. I figure the money I've put out up front to get into kegging will be money well spent when I don't have to bottle every batch.

 

[JoshuaW]

Man, I never pay much attention to this thread, and half the time dont realize it has been revived!

Kegging vs Bottling - I HATE bottling. I have done it only a handful of times, then I said screw that, I am doing this long term, Im spending the money. I bottle a small amount from the keg and set them aside to be consumed long down the road (fun experiment, about 80% of it gets better 6+ months later, 15% no difference, and 5% gets funky/spoils/infected or just doesnt taste as good as you remember). I highly recommend this route.


To the beginners in this thread, it is SIMPLE. Watch some videos on Youtube, but ultimately, make sure you keep things clean and make your hop additions when you are told to. If you do that, it will be drinkable. If you dont do the hop additions right, it is still drinkable, but you might not get the right amount of bitterness. To much and you may want to dump it, to little isnt as big of a deal (to much would be adding to many hops to early). If things are cleaned, you might get a funky wild yeast or infection. Feel free to try it if you are brave! It wont kill you.


As for me, I have been busy this summer, but I havent brewed much. Here is my current list:


2012 White Wine Kit bottled and on the rack, really good!
Hard cider in the keg. I tried a new recipe with this one, and it wasnt as good as my regular recipe, so this one has been sitting around for a while. Almost done, finally!
Super efficient IP in the keg. This one is way to sweet. It is a Galaxy SMASH, but I didnt adjust my recipe when moving from my stovetop BIAB setup to my fly sparge. The difference was going from 68% efficiency to 79%. This was already a sweeter IPA, now it is barely drinkable. Im dumping it, becuase Im bored with it.
Keg three is empty


2013 Red Wine Kit bulk aging. I can bottle this any day, but I will probably wait until late October.
2013 Sweet Mead bulk aging. Started this the same time as the red, will bottle it about the same time.
Nut Brown Ale bulk aging. I honestly think I started this last year sometime. I need to put it in that empty keg, but Im being lazy about it.
Centenial IPA bulk aging. This one is ready for the keg. It features 5oz of whole leaf hops in the kettle, and 3oz that I will dry hop in the keg.


Now for the busy part! I ripped up half my yard to plant some wine grapes! I have six vines of each, Foch, Vidal Blanc, and Vignoles. All of them are doing great, and are sprawling out on the trellis. Im going to try to take a small amount of fruit from each, but I only anticipate being able to make wine from the Vignoles next year. The Vignoles really took off, and I will be allowing several pounds of fruit on each them, so I should be able to make a gallon or so of wine.

 

[PapaScout]

This thread has been sleeping long enough! BRRRAAAAAIIIINNS!!!!

So, I've been wanting to try this for years and today was the day. I used the Belgian Dubble kit from Great Fermentations. Now I just need to drink 50 bottles of beer over the next couple of weeks so I can use the empties. You'd think I would have planned ahead better, huh?

I used some of the spent grains for bread and am eating a slice with butter I type. Yum...

 

[dyerwatcher]

Last two brews have been 10 gallons. I wish I would have gone all in at the beginning versus upgrading. My Blichmann Burner rocks!

 

[USA#1]

I kegged a fat tire clone and an Irish red for my birthday in February. I am ready to make a couple more. I usually do two batches at a time. My friend Erik brewed with me last time he is very knowledgeable and has a website with some good information. Beer Is My Passion | Just another WordPress site

 

[JettaKnight]

This thread has been sleeping long enough! BRRRAAAAAIIIINNS!!!!

The sleeper must awaken!


...and I must find time to move. But with judging a moving, it may be a while.

 

[sepe]

This thread has been sleeping long enough! BRRRAAAAAIIIINNS!!!!

So, I've been wanting to try this for years and today was the day. I used the Belgian Dubble kit from Great Fermentations. Now I just need to drink 50 bottles of beer over the next couple of weeks so I can use the empties. You'd think I would have planned ahead better, huh?

I used some of the spent grains for bread and am eating a slice with butter I type. Yum...

Check around for homebrew shops. If you lived up north I'd be able to direct you to a place that sells Grolsch bottles for $.25 to $.50 a piece.

 

[danmdevries]

Brewed up 40 gallons over the past week, 6 different batches, some 5g, some 10. Dunno what I made really, don't tend to follow recipes for the most part anymore, just throw some stuff together and see what happens. In a few weeks we'll see what happened.

 

[forgop]

I bought a kit 2 years ago and it's still in my garage. Me thinks it's time to get it in gear sometime in the next few weeks.

 

[laf]

I've got a used barrel from Journeyman Distillery in MI that's filled with 10 gallons of barleywine sitting in my kitchen. It's a little short so since tomorrow is a holiday, I'll be brewing a 5 gallon batch and using that to top it up. The rest I'll just toss in bombers or belgian cork and cage bottles and naturally carbonate.

Anybody here brew on/with a RIMS system? I'm trying to dial mine in and having trouble with the mash getting stuck from the pump sucking the grain bed down.

 

[IndyGunworks]

I sold my kegorator so I will not be able to force carb this round.... but I have a nut brown and a cream ale on the way. Going to have to bottle this and am a bit nervous about getting a bunch of yeast in the bottom of the bottle from the force carb. worth a try though.

 

[JettaKnight]

Check around for homebrew shops. If you lived up north I'd be able to direct you to a place that sells Grolsch bottles for $.25 to $.50 a piece.

That's almost worth a trip...

My best "dumpster" find was out walking with my wife and stumbled upon two dozen boxed up on the curb.

The trick is to keep the contents out of the light - stupid green glass.

 

[JettaKnight]

I've got a used barrel from Journeyman Distillery in MI that's filled with 10 gallons of barleywine sitting in my kitchen. It's a little short so since tomorrow is a holiday, I'll be brewing a 5 gallon batch and using that to top it up. The rest I'll just toss in bombers or belgian cork and cage bottles and naturally carbonate.

Anybody here brew on/with a RIMS system? I'm trying to dial mine in and having trouble with the mash getting stuck from the pump sucking the grain bed down.

I have a RIMS. I had a lot of problems with a false bottom in a plastic cooler. It would suck up the bottom of the cooler and block the intake. What sort of intake do you have?

I've do 60% rye Roggenbier without much difficultly - it was slow, but steady.

 

[chuckp]

I've got a used barrel from Journeyman Distillery in MI that's filled with 10 gallons of barleywine sitting in my kitchen. It's a little short so since tomorrow is a holiday, I'll be brewing a 5 gallon batch and using that to top it up. The rest I'll just toss in bombers or belgian cork and cage bottles and naturally carbonate.

Anybody here brew on/with a RIMS system? I'm trying to dial mine in and having trouble with the mash getting stuck from the pump sucking the grain bed down.

How do you like the barrel from Journeyman Distillery? Also do you know what they charge when a barrel is available? I have a 15 gal Dad's Hat Rye Whisky barrel which is fantastic and am looking for more barrels for some sour aging.

Chuck

 

[Indy574]

Fellow Home Brewers, I have a couple cases of beer bottles, 12oz variety, if anyone wants them. Shoot me a pm if your interested, I live in Argos.