Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie

Home brewing

Options
  • 21-03-2005 9:08pm
    #1
    kleefarr
    Registered Users Posts: 5,743 ✭✭✭


    I was just reading some old posts about home brewing

    here

    and was wondering whether those that gave it a go, had any good results or not.
    Where can the kits be bought?

    Kevin


«1

Comments

  • Options
    #2
    Shabadu
    Registered Users Posts: 7,659 ✭✭✭Shabadu


    My grand-dad brewed ale and wine in the kitchen at home. He decided to make some "modifications" to the kit recipe, adding more sugar and yeast to try and finagle a higher booze level. It was rocket fuel, apparently.

    I should warn you he gave the recipe to our neighbour who didn't have so much luck. He left the air flow thingy closed one night and the jar exploded.


  • Options
    #3
    kenmc
    Registered Users Posts: 7,276 ✭✭✭kenmc


    I laid down my kit on 1st March. Due to be finished tomorrow all going well. Had a quick snifter on Friday and smells ok, still a lot of yeast floating in it so hadn't died down yet though. Teensy taste, was not too bad at all!
    Got this kit:http://www.happybrewer.co.uk/htm/micro-brewery/default.htm
    from http://www.grapengraindublin.com/.
    Got it as a xmas pressie, so not sure of the exact cost, circa 70 euro though....
    maybe I'll try another drop this evening sure. damn you! :)

    Edit:
    Hmmm. still not ready. loadsa yeast floating round still. AND more worryingly, it seemed to run out of pumping pressure after about 1/3 of a glass :(
    Doesn't look so good.....GRRRRR


  • Options
    #4
    kleefarr
    Registered Users Posts: 5,743 ✭✭✭kleefarr


    Don't you have to add something at the end a leave it in a cool place for a while? This aids the clearing, but i'm not sure if it would up the pressure any.

    Found this on the grain and grape website...

    "Step 6.
    Priming sugar, to carbonate the beer, should be added before bottles are caped or barrel is sealed. Leave in a warm place for three days and then transfer to a cool room for storage until the beer clears, (usually about two- four weeks.) "


  • Options
    #5
    kenmc
    Registered Users Posts: 7,276 ✭✭✭kenmc


    not this kit - least not in the instructions that came with it....


  • Options
    #6
    kleefarr
    Registered Users Posts: 5,743 ✭✭✭kleefarr


    kenmc wrote:
    not this kit - least not in the instructions that came with it....


    I would give it a go. Can't hurt surely. Then you may get some prussure out of it.


  • Advertisement
  • Options
    #7
    rubadub
    Registered Users Posts: 32,373 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    Is it still sweet? if it is it is not brewed out fully. Warm it up to 26C which may restart the yeast.


  • Options
    #8
    Beëlzebooze
    Closed Accounts Posts: 495 ✭✭Beëlzebooze


    At home we proceed as follows:

    1 gallon of fruitjuice (if we feel active we will crush the fruit ourselves, if not we will buy unsweetened fruitjuice at the supermarket, COPELLA IS BEST!)
    1Kg of sugar
    teaspoon of yeast
    juice of one lemon (nutrients)

    dump all into demijohn
    add waterlock

    wait till the co2 production stops, rack and drink!

    if you want a nice buzz, don't wait till the fermentation stops completely, you have lots of co2 in your wine, makes it quite nice , but it is quite sweet.

    most important thing of all though is hygiene (sp), clean all your equipment with campden tablets, or things will go sour! also dont forget to put a half camden tablet into the waterlock, and if it happens to fall into your wine, no bother, it might kill the yeast, but if youi restart your wine after a day or so, the yeast will pick up again!

    have fun, but don't see a great brew wasted!


  • Options
    #9
    kenmc
    Registered Users Posts: 7,276 ✭✭✭kenmc


    rubadub wrote:
    Is it still sweet? if it is it is not brewed out fully. Warm it up to 26C which may restart the yeast.
    kinda sweet. I'll try that - I'll get one of those heat mats.
    Cheers
    K


  • Options
    #10
    rubadub
    Registered Users Posts: 32,373 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    kenmc wrote:
    kinda sweet. I'll try that - I'll get one of those heat mats.
    Cheers
    K

    it needs to be heated above normal brewing temp to get it restarted, then let it cool back to about 20C again. Even dumping closed 2 litre bottles of hot water into it could do the trick. I would get a aquarium heater before a heat mat as the mats have no thermostat. I would also get a electic blanket before a heat mat as most places charge a fortune for the mats here, you also will get more use from the electric blanket, and as the weather is getting warmer the like of tescos and dunnes will be selling off the electric blankets 1/2 price, billy bonus.

    If the brew wont restart you may have to brew up a starter. this is a small amount, say 1 litre of (preferably) the same brew kit though sugar and water will do with new yeast. if you have no new yeast stir up your brew and put about 100ml of it in the starter brew. after a few days it will increase in % and yeast content and you can dump it in the old brew.
    if you were to simply add new yeast to the dead brew it may be killed by the high %, yeast must get used to the % gradually.


  • Options
    #11
    rubadub
    Registered Users Posts: 32,373 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    Be&#235 wrote: »
    if you want a nice buzz, don't wait till the fermentation stops completely, you have lots of co2 in your wine, makes it quite nice , but it is quite sweet.

    Or let it ferment out and almost go clear, then put it into 2 litre coke bottles with 3 teaspoons of sugar and cap it, warm it up and it will get fizzy in the bottle
    Be&#235 wrote: »
    most important thing of all though is hygiene (sp), clean all your equipment with campden tablets, or things will go sour!
    you can also clean with bleach, tesco value bleach is best as it has no thickeners or perfume added just good old sodium hypochlorite.


  • Advertisement
  • Options
    #12
    kleefarr
    Registered Users Posts: 5,743 ✭✭✭kleefarr


    rubadub wrote:
    you can also clean with bleach, tesco value bleach is best as it has no thickeners or perfume added just good old sodium hypochlorite.

    Would something like milton do the job as well?


  • Options
    #13
    kenmc
    Registered Users Posts: 7,276 ✭✭✭kenmc


    I looked at it again last nite and it had obviously fermented a bit more cos there was some pressure in the barrell again to get some beer out. There was much less yeast floating around in it this time, and it had a slightly sharp taste, and some bubbles. I have now put it closer to a radiator to try get some more heat into it. Hopefully it will restart it and it will be OK. How can I test for alcohol (besides drinking loads of it and seeing if I can't stand up any more obviously!!:))

    Unfortunately I have no more of the kit left, and I don't have any brewers yeast to make a starter. Also I can't get the beer out of the keg to put into a coke bottle cos it's a top-tap keg which relies on the pressure of the CO2 to pump it out.....

    hey rubadub, wrt the aquarium heater, is that a mat type thing that goes under the aquarium or something that goes into the keg, cos the keg is all sealed up and that wou;dn't be an option....

    Where do you get your bits n pieces by the way?? I'm looking at www.grogsmugglers.com and www.grapengraindublin.com for bits... can't find anything else - I know there used be a homebrew shop in Ranelagh (actually a health shop with homebrew stuff there) cos my dad used to do home-made wine...

    Cheers
    Ken
    edit: rubadub, just re-read your post and saw the bit about not having any yeast for a starter - so I just take out some of the brew, add sugar and water to it and leave it sit in a bottle or something somewhere warm and then dump it back in in a few days......???

    For cleaning i used a sort of a powder that came with the kit - was kind of chlorine smelling... filled up the keg with water and a couple of tea spoons of this, let it sit there for 30 mins, rinsed it a few times and then started the brew.... is it possible that I didn't rinse it out enough and some of the yeast got killed by this chlorine stuff????
    What do you think the problem is with this - is it just not warm enough perhaps????


  • Options
    #14
    rubadub
    Registered Users Posts: 32,373 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    kleefarr wrote:
    Would something like milton do the job as well?
    milton is the exact same a unthickened, unperfumed bleach 3% sodium hypoclorite (normal bleach is 6%). I presume milton is more controlled in its production as it is intended for babies, but your aim is to make poison that you will be drinking!


  • Options
    #15
    rubadub
    Registered Users Posts: 32,373 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    kenmc wrote:
    How can I test for alcohol (besides drinking loads of it and seeing if I can't stand up any more obviously!!:))
    you can use a hydrometer at the start to show you the "potential alcohol", then you take away the "potential alcohol" reading at any time to show what it is at the moment. i.e. at the start it will float high showing 5%, a few days on it will be floating showing 3%, which means it is currently 2%.

    you can get vinometers used to test totally fermented (dry) beer/wine but they are not brilliant. best just drink it!

    kenmc wrote:

    hey rubadub, wrt the aquarium heater, is that a mat type thing that goes under the aquarium or something that goes into the keg, cos the keg is all sealed up and that wou;dn't be an option....
    it is like a big test tube with a heating wire coiled up inside, you can twist a knob on the top to set the temp you want, it sits inside the actual brew submersed and controls temp to within 1C. You may not be able to use it is you are using a sealed mini brewry thing.

    I used to get stuff in easons but i think they dont sell it anymore. country cellar in dun laoghaire used to do it, theres a place in stillorgan shopping centre too. if ordering a lot it could be cheaper to get it online from the uk as prices here are usually crazy. i havent brewed beer in years, have moved on to much better brews i have packets of yeast that will brew 8kg of sugar to 18% in 5 days if you are after rocket fuel give me a pm


  • Options
    #16
    gonker
    Registered Users Posts: 1,290 ✭✭✭gonker


    Used to make this many moons ago :D I remember once having a few glasses and going to the loo and not being able to get up of the loo my legs would just not work. I dont know whether it was the amount I drank or was it stronger than normal wine :confused:


  • Options
    #17
    rubadub
    Registered Users Posts: 32,373 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    gonker wrote:
    I dont know whether it was the amount I drank or was it stronger than normal wine :confused:

    Thats the main problem with homebrew, you brew vast quantities of it which cost next to nothing so people don't really "count" what they are drinking, and of course they throw in the extra 2kg of sugar for good luck!


  • Options
    #18
    Loobz
    Registered Users Posts: 1,700 ✭✭✭Loobz


    I got a recipe a few years back from the back of a tin of condensed milk, of all places :rolleyes: and it went a little something like this:

    1 tin condensed milk
    lots of wh*hiccup*iskey
    teaspoon of vanilla essence
    and possibly some water (its been a while)

    Anyway, I bunged it all up in a pot, mixed the bejayzus out of it, poured into an empty Uncle Bens curry sauce jar and headed to my mates place to drink even worse alcohol (ie Lidl's Rachmanoff vodka) for the weekend.

    Now, there apparently is a name on this drink, but its fried most of my brain cells so I cant remember that either. Or that could have been the Rachmanoff. :( Answers on a postcard to.....


  • Options
    #19
    Aid the Blade
    Closed Accounts Posts: 96 ✭✭Aid the Blade


    you forgot to tell em bout da wire handel on that thar jar jimbo-bob, yeeeeeeh haaaarrr!!!BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! well ahm all outta bullets,not the first time either


  • Options
    #20
    Shabadu
    Registered Users Posts: 7,659 ✭✭✭Shabadu


    Aid the Blade wrote:
    you forgot to tell em bout da wire handel on that thar jar jimbo-bob, yeeeeeeh haaaarrr!!!BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! well ahm all outta bullets,not the first time either

    0_o ?


  • Options
    #21
    rubadub
    Registered Users Posts: 32,373 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    that sounds like that fancy liquor them there city folk do be drinking cletus, i'll sticks to me white lightning moonshine...

    there are many recipies for balieys like drinks on the net, vodka, condensed milk and irel coffee esscence is very nice


  • Advertisement
  • Options
    #22
    Aid the Blade
    Closed Accounts Posts: 96 ✭✭Aid the Blade


    i know the chap and i helped him finish off dat moonshine


  • Options
    #23
    Blisterman
    Registered Users Posts: 7,450 ✭✭✭Blisterman


    Its more expensive to use those homebrew kits than actually buy beer It appears.


  • Options
    #24
    kenmc
    Registered Users Posts: 7,276 ✭✭✭kenmc


    depends on how soon you want a ROI to pay off. sure it's more expensive for the first couple of kits, but after you have all the hardware, then it's about 11 euro for 40 pints, with nothing more to pay.
    Besides - it's not about the money - if it was everyone would buy stella and rolling rock and tesco beer and no-one would buy the belgians, asians, mainstream commercials etc.
    For me it's about the beer itself, and the fun of making it myself. My first batch was a big success - I like it a lot, and have 2 more kits lined up to make soon....


  • Options
    #25
    rubadub
    Registered Users Posts: 32,373 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    Nothing like getting slaughtered on your own booze the first time :D
    The price of booze has dropped. I remember 12 years ago the cheapest cans of beer I could get were £1 (€1.27) now there are plenty of €1 beers available. The price of sugar and beer kits has gone up so the saving is not as much anymore.


  • Options
    #26
    Blisterman
    Registered Users Posts: 7,450 ✭✭✭Blisterman


    Well the cheaper kit 40 pint refill works out about 80p a pint plus shipping to Ireland. Thats about €1.20, which if you shop around, you can get cans for. I agree though, it would be fun to make your own beer.


  • Options
    #27
    Aid the Blade
    Closed Accounts Posts: 96 ✭✭Aid the Blade


    a friend of mine got me staarted on it and its a rite laugh.i just bottle em its cheaper still.u get bout 36/38 pint bottles of roughly 6% beer.its not like ur ordinry crap beer.and u can do cider aswell even dem pikeys at lidl cant get u cider at that price or value.


  • Options
    #28
    kenmc
    Registered Users Posts: 7,276 ✭✭✭kenmc


    Blisterman wrote:
    Well the cheaper kit 40 pint refill works out about 80p a pint plus shipping to Ireland. Thats about €1.20, which if you shop around, you can get cans for. I agree though, it would be fun to make your own beer.
    Dunno where you're looking, but grapengrain in dublin do the most expensive kit they have for €23.85. There's a €4 delivery charge per order, so assuming you just order this, it's €27.85 for 40 pints, which is 69 cents a pint.
    the cheapest kit goes for €7.95, add shipping is 11.95 or 30 cents a pint. The average price is around €13 for 40 pints which is about 43 c a pint. If you get more than one kit the delivery is still 4 euro, so the price drops further.

    Most of the beer I (still - despite homebrewing) buy in the shops (usually Belgians or Asians) is close to 3 euro for 330ml, so as I said before, homebrewing is not (at least for me) primarily about saving money, its about enjoying beer with a nice flavour and no crappy additives that I have made myself. The fact that I have to make it and wait for it means that it's not convenient, but thats solved once the first lot is bottled you can start another to have it ready to go when you run out.
    The fact that it is cheaper than buying it off the shelf is a nice side-effect.


  • Options
    #29
    kenmc
    Registered Users Posts: 7,276 ✭✭✭kenmc


    Aid the Blade wrote:
    a friend of mine got me staarted on it and its a rite laugh.i just bottle em its cheaper still.u get bout 36/38 pint bottles of roughly 6% beer.its not like ur ordinry crap beer.and u can do cider aswell even dem pikeys at lidl cant get u cider at that price or value.
    Where do you get your stuff from Aid-the-blade? I ordered some of mine from Grog Smugglers recently, and some stuff from the Homebrewshop.co.uk - they were really sound to deal with, offered me loads of advice. I wish there was a brick-n-morter store in Ireland/Dublin that I could go to and look around and get advice in person - seems to be quite big in the US and UK


  • Options
    #30
    Aid the Blade
    Closed Accounts Posts: 96 ✭✭Aid the Blade


    im in waterford and theres a homebrew store on the quay.ill ask inside if yer man knows any place in dublin or i could get his no. 4 u cos they're fairly sound,they even have a mobile no. for after hours advice.mite be after the weekend b4 i get down there.
    has anyone tried a stout or make any recomendations as to a nice crisp cider somewhere between linden and bulmers.


  • Advertisement
  • Options
    #31
    kenmc
    Registered Users Posts: 7,276 ✭✭✭kenmc


    savage! that'd be brilliant!
    no not tried a stout yet, and I don't drink any cider, so wouldn't be interested in that. although the girlf might be more accepting of the hobby if I made her some of that! :)


Advertisement