Home Brew Shopping List

Gumbyman

Hi guys,

Just about to get stuck into Home Brewing and have been looking for info for last few days. Finally occurred to me to check boards! Sticky here is brilliant. I didn't get to read it all (work) but have decided to take the plunge. Was shopping around and the UK kits and prices are fairly hefty priced, especially when you add in postage. I pieced together a kit from parts from an Irish supplier and here is what I have come up with:

Added quantity 1 of 5 Gall. Plastic Fermenter for 18.00 each
Added quantity 1 of 5 Gall. Bucket with Lid for 12.00 each
Added quantity 1 of 20 grm. Bubbler Airlock for 0.50 each
Added quantity 1 of 35 grm. Rubber Bung, bored for 0.50 each
Added quantity 1 of Twin Lever (Crown) Capper for 13.00 each
Added quantity 1 of Auto Syphon for 16.25 each
Added quantity 2 of 100 Crown Caps for 2.50 each
Added quantity 1 of Long Handled Spoon for 2.00 each
Added quantity 1 of Bottle Brush for 2.25 each
Added quantity 1 of Brewbelt for 25.00 each
Added quantity 1 of VWP Steriliser (500 gm.) for 6.00 each
Added quantity 1 of Thermometer for 4.25 each
Added quantity 1 of Hydrometer for 4.00 each

Comes to €117.75 including delivery. Seems pretty good to me considering I'm getting an extra bin for secondary fermentation and a brew belt.

If you could take a look at this and let me know if I will have everything I need (besides the beer and bottles) and if you think this is a good deal that would be great!

Also, any recommendations on the beer would be appreciated. I'm thinking lager for first batch.

For bottles I plan on asking a pub for leftover bulmers cider bottles - is this a good idea or would it be hard to get them clean (and would a pub even give them to me)?

All help appreciated.

Thanks,
Gumby.

Prenderb

For a starter kit, I as a recent starter recommend this one below!

http://thehomebrewcompany.ie/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=4&products_id=213

They also have a great range of beer kits, and postage is 7 euro anywhere in the country if I remember rightly.

I also would direct you to irishcraftbrewer.com.

I never approached the local for his Bulmers bottles, though it sounds like a good idea. Can't help on that one other than that!

oblivious

Gumbyman wrote: »

Seems pretty good to me considering I'm getting an extra bin for secondary fermentation and a brew belt..

Welcome aboard you don't need to do secondary fermentation, you could either drop it or use it as a second primary

any i would recommend www.thehomebrewcompany.ie/

and also paying at trip over to http://www.irishcraftbrewer.com

noby

You seem to have everything covered. My opinions:

You will manage fine without the brew belt if you brew indoors, especially this time of the year.
Don't start with a lager kit. Lagers are very hard to brew right. Try a wheat beer kit perhaps; quick and easy and lovely for this time of the year. You could be drinking it for the middle of July.
No harm in having the secondary option, if not essential, as Oblivious has said.
Next time you're at a barbecue or party, grab all the empty brown 500ml bottles.

Best of luck with it.

BeerNut

AFAIK (and I'm sure someone here actually does) Bulmer's bottles are returnable, so the pub mightn't be too keen to part with them.

Ask the pub to stock Carlow Celebration Stout: 750ml swingtops: the homebrewer's friend

noby

BeerNut wrote: »

Ask the pub to stock Carlow Celebration Stout

Good luck with that!

I once got a crate of empties from my local bar man, but as TBN said they may not be too keen.

You could add a plastic barrel to your shopping list. The downsides being you may have trouble cooling the beer, unless you empty your fridge, and bottles are more portable/can be given to friends.

Gumbyman

Hey,

Thank you all for your replies - sound! That starter kit Prenderb mentioned looks like the job. Has pretty much everything I had on my list apart from the brewbelt and I'm going to try to get by without that for Summer as suggested.

Any suggestions as to the type of beer to brew as in which kit to get? I'm probably going to use thehomebrewcompany.ie so if anybody could recommend a kit there that'd be great! At the moment I'm looking at the John Bull Mater Class Wheat Beer (instead of lager as Noby suggested - thanks!) but it is €26 which seems relatively pricey. Is it worth splashing out or is one as good as the next? I suppose I'm a bit worried that my first batch is a cock up and maybe I should be using something standard as my first experiment.

What kits have you guys used in the past? Also, does yeast come in the kit or do I need to get this separately?

Thanks again,
G.

oblivious

Brewferm have a good reputation and most kits come with yeast, but the Brewferm also have good name with yeast

http://thehomebrewcompany.ie/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=1_10

noby

Gumbyman, you really do get what you pay for with beer kits. Any of the 3Kg kits on that site should be good (or the brewferm, as Obliv said). You're getting 3Kg of malt, as opposed to the cheaper kits where you have to add 500g sugar, which I wouldn't recommend.
They are relatively pricey, but you're going to get close on 40 pints at about 65cent a pint.

Gumbyman

Great stuff. Thanks guys, I'm going to go with this. Am I right in saying that I'll still need to add sugar when I get to the bottling stage (for carbonation) and that the 500g sugar with the other kits is added before the addition of yeast as a sort of ingredient?

Oh by the way, are there any other differences between brewing wheat beer and lager or do standard rules apply (as per the sticky thread)?

All this talk of beer is making be thirsty. Ah Fridays..........:)

noby

Yep, you'll use sugar to prime. The sugar in cheaper kits is to boost the abv, but using DME (spraymalt) instead will add more body and flavour. You could get a cheaper kit and some spraymalt, but for a first timer I'd keep it simple. A €12 kit and sprymalt won't be far off €26 euro anyway.

Standard rule apply.
To make a proper lager you need to lager it, ie cold condition. The lager kits usually come with an ale yeast, and are fermented at higher temperatures than a proper lager. These are very drinkable, but for a first timer, expecting to replicate your favourite lager, you might be a little disappointed, hence my wheat beer recommendation.

oblivious

noby wrote: »

To make a proper lager you need to lager it, ie cold condition. The lager kits usually come with an ale yeast, and are fermented at higher temperatures than a proper lager. These are very drinkable, but for a first timer, expecting to replicate your favourite lager, you might be a little disappointed, hence my wheat beer recommendation.

I would second the wheat beer idea and Safbrew WB - 06, Brewferm Wheat Yeast or Safbrew T-58 Yeast are good wheat beer yeast available from the homebrew company.ie