Homebrewing

Questions tagged [first-time-brewer]

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Questions pertaining to the caution or concerns of someone new to home-brewing.

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4
votes
1answer
67 views

What is the good amount of beer to brew as a beginner?

I plan to brew some type of ale as my first beer, i heard it is the easiest to start with. I was wondering what is the good small amount of beer to brew first time (or minimal amount possible) as i ...
2
votes
1answer
66 views

Is my home made cider safe?

I pressed apple cider last year and added nothing.... I just left it in 15 liter jugs covered with cheese cloth and paper towel... it smells like alcoholic cider, tastes pretty good, and is dark rich ...
1
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2answers
43 views

How can I use artificial flavors when making homemade hard seltzer?

I have some expreience in home brewing but I want to try something different this time. I want to make hard seltzer by fermantation. There are some recipes over the internet but I could not find any ...
4
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2answers
79 views

Is my final gravity to high for bottling?

I am making an Irish Red Ale, unfortunately I forgot to take a starter gravity reading before putting the beer into primary fermentation (primary fermentation was done at 68 °F +/- a few). ...
3
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1answer
65 views

Best yeast to make a sweeter mead

I've just about finished my first attempt at mead. I'm now thinking about my second batch. The yeast I have used is pretty aggressive, Bulldog mead yeast, so was wondering if anyone has some better ...
2
votes
1answer
28 views

Is it fine to add beet root for colouring in the middle of fermentation?

It's been 3 days of fermentation, I added beet root for colouring in the middle of fermentation. I used china globe grape (not that red), and after hours later the bubbles getting lesser
1
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1answer
27 views

Stopped fermentation wine

My fermentation seems to have stopped too early. I don’t have much experience (mostly some wine and mead making failed attempts) or proper gear like a hydrometer. Here is what I did differently from ...
2
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2answers
101 views

48 hours into ferment. Fermenter temperature is 73°F. Should I cool it?

First time brewing. I have a IPA in a 6.5 gallon bucket fermenter with US-05 pitched into it. I've got the fermenter in the basement and temperature probe taped to the side of the bucket. Ambient room ...
2
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1answer
82 views

What should I do after the primary fermentation of my cider?

I've just started making cider, and after 12 hours of reading I came up with a plan, but I need reassuring what should I do next: It's nearly constantly 25°C in my flat (where I brew), I used ...
1
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1answer
59 views

Any supplies I should I have some “extra” of?

As a new home brewer, I've been reading up on posts regarding things that can go wrong during a brew and how to fix them. For example, if I have understood correctly, stuck fermentation may require ...
2
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0answers
45 views

Any way to test for oxidation in beer?

New here. I've been reading up on transferring from fermenter to keg (or secondary FM) and the associated concerns with introducing oxygen into the beer. IPA styles in particular seem to run the risk ...
2
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1answer
40 views

48 quart rectangular cooler as an HLT?

I'm gathering equipment on the cheap to start all grain brewing and looking at options for an HLT. A rectangular 48 quart cooler is about half the price as the customary 10 gallon Igloo everyone uses ...
2
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1answer
57 views

First batch of wine, forgot the Campden - did I just mess up the whole thing?

I just tried to make wine for the first time. Manderin oranges, sugar, water, yeast, tea for tannin the whole kit and kaboodle! In a rush, I forgot to add the Campden tablet prior to doing all this ...
3
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2answers
119 views

What ingredients should I use for a grocery home brew?

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I've decided to burn some time by trying out my first home brew. It has come with many challenges though. I do not have access to barley other than pearled barley, which ...
2
votes
1answer
82 views

I forgot to take my first Gravity reading

I am making my first batch of mead ima first time brewer and I forgot to take my first gravity reading what should I do?
5
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1answer
58 views

Sour beer at home?

Newbie here. I know nothing about making beer. I love sours. Can you make sours at home? Is it too complicated compared to other beer making?
2
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2answers
137 views

First Time Brewer: Skipping secondary fermentation, bottling and a few other questions

I'm brewing my first batch of home brew, 'Hank's Hefeweizen' from Norther Brewer (extract). The instructions say 2 weeks primary, 2 weeks secondary, and 2 weeks bottle conditioning. I did not check my ...
2
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1answer
53 views

Rinsing frozen red currants

I picked some garden grown red currants a good while ago and threw them straight in the freezer without washing them. I'm planning on making wine with them soon. Most recipes I've read recommend ...
4
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1answer
61 views

Ale Popped the Bung

This is my first brew, so I kinda look at it as a rite of passage, but I had 5 gallons of brown ale fermenting in a 6.5g carboy. The airlock was super active for the first 16-18 hours. Soon after that ...
4
votes
2answers
539 views

How to brew moonshine?

I would like to know the equipment and the step by step process, as I have already tried to do it, but it didn't work. I have already watched several videos, but it is not the same to talk to someone ...
3
votes
3answers
406 views

Baloon air lock not inflating after second day

I'm making mead for the first time. I used bakers yeast and a baloon as an air lock . The tutorial said that the yeast will be off gasing for 3 weeks but my mead only off gased the first day. Now it's ...
1
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1answer
130 views

Will bread yeast restart stuck brewery in a bag

Building up to my first home brewing I purchased a muntons brewery in a bag session IPA. (On special from Aldi seemed like a steal). I followed all instructions to the letter keeping everything ...
1
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2answers
448 views

Bread Kvass Safety Concerns

My first brewing experience is gonna be bread Kwass (following this recipe). Now, I browsed a bit to get some info, and I only managed to get terrified. There are three concerns that I would like you ...
4
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5answers
193 views

Stuck Mead Fermentation?

Obligatory: This is my first batch of Mead and I'm still learning the ropes. If I've made any critical mistakes, please point them out but do know: odds are, I had no idea of that particular issue. I'...
1
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2answers
85 views

Fermentation first time

I need help. First time brewing in my life and I made some mistakes as expected. This was a 1 gallon brew kit. First indication something was wrong was after pouring the wort into the 1 gallon ...
3
votes
1answer
51 views

Brewing Low ABV Lager

Good day! My question is simple, me and the wife love lager, I like a good 5% ABV but the wife is a light weight and likes a 3.5% ABV so the question is: How can I brew a nice lager (similar to ...
1
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1answer
27 views

What does it mean by late boil? [duplicate]

I am looking at a Christmas ale to brew and found this recipe (I am still learning to brew, so I am using malt extracts) https://www.brewtoad.com/recipes/variant-of-great-lakes-christmas-ale-clone . I ...
2
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1answer
111 views

Growing edible brewers yeast?

I want to grow brewers yeast that I want to as use as supplement, get various nutrients and NAD+. Which brewers yeast strain is easiest and best to to grow for this purpose? What medium and ...
0
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1answer
39 views

Why have I got a low ABV wine problem

This was my first attempt. I followed a recipe for jam wine in CJJ Berry's book. Did exactly what he said. Temperature between 26°C-28°C on the heat strip. Used Lalvin K1-V1116. Start OG 1.090, final ...
4
votes
2answers
138 views

Lack of sweetness and carbonation

I'm a novice apple cider brewer and my first batch yielded a brew that tasted like white wine, very dry and virtually no carbonation. During fermentation, I saw bubbling for about 5 days, but I left ...
4
votes
1answer
84 views

Messed up West Coast IPA recipe, could dryhopping make it good?

My first batch, I followed a recipe using malt extract to create a West Cost IPA. The wording of the recipe made me invert the Hop additions... [Edit] Instead of: 2oz of Centinennial at 0mins left ...
1
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2answers
192 views

Brewing with tamarinds

For reference: tamarind. I recently saw this fruit at the store today and thought it smelled interesting so I investigated. I've decided to brew my very first batch of beer as a tamarind saison as a ...
0
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1answer
75 views

Total Yeast Cell Count

I will give two examples of yeast cell count. First one is 0.34 B cells/ml in 6 liters of wort starter with just a few amount of slurry cake. 2nd one is 1.46 B cells/ml in 1 liter of starter including ...
3
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2answers
73 views

Fermentation container leaking carbon dioxide

I've just finished preparing my first fermented drink ever (Kvass) and I used a Mason jar to store the preparation during the 2 days of the fermentation process as advised by the various guides I ...
4
votes
1answer
98 views

How much sugar to real apple ratio?

So I was going to try an apple cider up to around 12%. So how much sugar will I get roughly per apple and how much additional sugar should I add. The apples are a small granny smith kind. Currently I ...
3
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2answers
3k views

Any food alternatives you can use to brewers yeast nutrient?

It would be a week or till I can get some brewers nutrient is there any food substitute I can use, apples, rice, sweetcorn, apple juice, tomato paste etc?
1
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1answer
233 views

Can I use Sodium Dichloroisocyanurate ('Sterilising Tablets') to clean vessel/equipment?

I have some old tablets what say Sodium Dichloroisocyanurate and 'Sterilising Tablets' on them and am wondering if these when diluted will be suitable to clean vessel/equipment before brewing?
1
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1answer
98 views

First batch result [closed]

I'm know enjoying my first batch of beer. I think, it will be some kinda use for those who are hesitating to start their brew or still researching. I did quite much research before i did brew. ...
2
votes
3answers
115 views

First time extract brewing with little resources

Where I live we only get some of Coopers international extracts, but none of the brew enhancers or dry malt extracts that I've seen in most of the recipies. Will I get good results if I don't add any ...
2
votes
2answers
148 views

Can I over-filter my beer?

I'm going to dry hop my very first IPA (without a bag) and I've read that when bottling I will need to put some kind of filtering cloth on the end of the racking cane to prevent hops sediment from ...
1
vote
1answer
239 views

Swapping Omega Belgian A with Omega Abbey Ale C

I’m still early in my homebrew education, and am trying a couple new Northern Brewer kits. I recently bought a kit for a Dubbel that suggested the Omega Belgian A yeast, but I accidentally purchased ...
1
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1answer
2k views

Mead: is it time to bottling?

I have a few questions. I'm making mead for the first time. My mead is now brewing for 2 months (since 11th august), but I'm not sure if it's time to bottle it. That's because it is still sparking. I ...
0
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1answer
98 views

Instead of Hop can only Ginger or Orange Peel be used for brewing Pure Wheat Beer?

I want to brew my first batch of pure wheat beer. But instead of Hop I want to use either dried orange peel or freshly grated ginger. Kindly suggest what to use and in what quantity should I use and ...
0
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2answers
645 views

stirring or degassing wine

If I stir my wine after the first racking, won't that stir up all that sediment? Will that give the wine a bad taste and will it reduce the ABV? I don't want to do either one. Obviously this is my ...
1
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3answers
286 views

Step by Step homebrewing from extract - need verification and clarification

I am sorry for the long thread, but I am digging the net for few days now and did not find such a "tutorial", so I will built my own and want to share it. I will be happy you comment/correct me, and I ...
3
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3answers
190 views

Helping a first timer!

I'm hopefully about to make my first batch of sparkling slightly sweet cider. I have read all sorts of advice about reducing/increase tannin, stabilising and other scientific stuff. I want to keep it ...
2
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2answers
237 views

How strong you can brew a beer using Brubox kit?

There is a BrüBox which allows you to brew your own craft beer at home. What's the estimated alcohol percentage you can achieve by using the provided equipment and following the instructions from the ...
0
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2answers
60 views

Where (from Europe) to get a decent kit to start all-grain brewing?

I've been searching for a kit to start all-grain brewing, but seem to find nothing from Europe. My lack of knowledge might have something to do with this.
4
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1answer
117 views

Do I need the dregs from primary fermentation for carbonation?

I'm currently making my first homebrew - a ginger beer using this kit and recipe. It's finished primary fermentation (hopefully, the cold weather has me concerned), and I've just bottled it for ...
6
votes
3answers
212 views

What are the essential data one should collect when brewing beer?

guys, I just started homebrewing and I want to know what are the essential data one should collect when brewing beer other than hop schedules and gravities. What additional statistics do you suggest I ...

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