Sorry for slow reply, been a bit busy at work lately.
RobertN laid it out pretty well. They are regular soda kegs, can sometimes be creatively scrounged, bought pretty cheap from homebrew suppliers, or you can actually buy really nice new ones from places like Williams Brewing. You will need a CO2 tank and regulator; many homebrew suppliers can supply the regulator, the tank can usually be leased really cheap from welding suppliers or anyplace that fills fire extinguishers. A 20-lb CO2 tank will last a long time. You can also get manifolds to split the gas supply into several lines, handy for maintaining pressure on several tanks. The taps are similar to the "picnic taps" used on regular beer kegs, although you can get all fancy and get real bar-type taps to mount on the door of your fridge (I haven't done this).
One really nice think about using kegs is that you can force-carbonate the beer rather than priming. You put the finished beer in the keg, chill it, then put extra gas pressure on the keg for a certain length of time (I don't have the figures in front of me, but I can get them if you're interested). This forces the CO2 into the beer for carbonation, instead of using a priming method to carbonate after fermentation. It's easy and relatively quick, and there is VERY little sludge (dead yeast) in the keg. I strongly recommend kegging, it's really not that expensive, and it beats the heck out of dealing with all those bottles.
There is a lot of homebrewing info on the web. Anyone that is at all serious about it should join the American Homebrewers Association and get their quarterly Zymurgy. American Homebrewers Association
I got the Williams Brewing catalog. Has some good info and some neat stuff. Things have greatly improved in the last few years when it comes to brewing equipment.
My daughter especially liked the concept of carbonating her own sodapop using a kegging system. [img]/forums/images/icons/laugh.gif[/img]
I brew form time to time, on a 10g three tier gravity feed system. My favorite beer was actually an extract; a full blown Rasberry Imperial Stout. It was awesome! I also have a "stock" recipe, that is simply modified to make a fruit beer(I use fruit extract for it), or a light ale. I have made a lot of different styles over the years though. In fact, I was one of the first 100 or so people on the original Homebrew Digest.
So any of you guys have any tips for a wannabe homebrewer? Any good starter kits? How much money will it cost to start? I was thinking of putting a homebrewing kit on my Christmas list. Is there any good, affordable starter kits? Thanks.
The most important thing to remember is clean-clean-clean. It is very important to sterilize all of the surfaces that will come into contact with your mash, wort, and beer and to minimize exposure of the contents to air. Free-living organisms can make a good brew-recipe go bad fast.
As to starter-kits, any of your brewing supply stores should have the basic starter components. If you have one near you, I'd recommend talking to somebody there. There is a lot of good stuff available online now too, but when you are just getting started, the guy in the shop can help you pick out the stuff you need. There are a lot of different types of yeasts, hops, extracts, etc..., that can be a little overwhelming to a novice.
I'd probably recommend a very SIMPLE recipe for your first go, before you start experimenting too much. Get down the basics first. WATCH CLOSELY when heating your mash, IT CAN BOIL OVER IN SECONDS if you turn your back... it is a REAL MESS to clean up.
If you mind the instructions and thoroughly STERILIZE everything, you can hardly go wrong.
Good luck and have fun!!! [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]
Larry
Thanks for your help. Swung by one at lunch today.[I found one about 300feet from work. [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] never knew it was there] I talked to the guy, and they have a starter kit that comes with all the stuff I need. [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Think that will be the way to go for now.
I'm glad you found the advice useful. It is a great hobby and an opportunity to create some of the best beer that you can get. I just picked up the ingredients for my next batch. I'm making a Cranberry Amber Ale. This is the second time for the Cranberries, the first one was pretty good but a little tart. It made for a refreshing summer drink though. I'm planning to make this one a little sweeter for a nice hearty winter drink.
Well, I got my homebrew kit for Christmas. If it ever stops snowing, and I can stop clearing the drive, I am going to start my first batch. Any good web sites for the begener homebrewer?
1 - an automatic dish washer makes a great bottle sterilizer as long as you have never ever, EVER put that evil liquid drying agent in it. Jet Dry and equivalent will ruin your beer.
2 - the simplest way to make a batch foolproof is to boil the entire batch. This does require an 8-10 gallon pot to make a 5 gallon batch. If you can't justify the big pot, get the biggest pot you can find and boil the extract and as much water as you can fit.
3 - A ten gallon pot full of boiling wort will cool pretty quick in a bathtub full of cold water, especially if you change the water a couple of times. Wort coolers are nice but the beginner can get away with hefting the pot in to the tub. The most critical time in your beers life is when it is cooling from boiling to pitching. That is when it is most susceptable to baddies getting in.
4 - never add sugar to boost specific gravity. You will end up with a brew that tastes terrible and gives you a hangover. This is probably THE most common mistake and has given homebrew a bad name.
5 - kegging sure makes the hobby easier but does add considerably to the cost. There is nothing wrong with fermenting in a plastic bucket with a spiggot (put a plastic bag over the spiggot and seal with a rubber band after you assemble the sanitized parts you ran through the dishwasher). Bottling is simple after fermentation completes. Just lift a bottle to the spiggot, turn the knob and fill the bottle.
6 - always prime the batch, not the bottle, if you are going to use natural bottle carbonation. The old books said to put a teaspoon of table sugar in each bottle. I sure had my share of poppers doing it that way.
7 - two stage fermentation sure helps reduce the amount of yeast in the bottle but can be skipped if you don't mind a little extra sludge.
Finally - my favorite foolproof brew?
Get yourself a gallon of unfiltered apple cider from the box store in a glass jar. Toss in a packet of champagne yeast and give it a shake. Stick a fermenation lock in a rubber cork on the top. Put it in a 5 gallon plastic bucket and leave it be for a month or two changing the water in the fermentation lock as needed the first few days. It WILL foam over and make a heck of a mess which is why it is in the plastic bucket and why you have to add water to the lock every so often. Wait for it to stop bubbling, then wait another week or so for it to clarify, then gently pour it into a clean jug. Put it in the fridge and enjoy.
I made mead once. It was ok but not my favorite. I made a few wheat beers and they are great during the summer. My favorite has got to be a nice mild brown. I find that most american homebrewers go for that over hopped microbrewery taste. Never understood the american fascination with preservatives. Hops were traditionally added to a beer as a preservative. IPA's are strongly hopped to survive the trip around the cape. I personally like a nice brown beer I can taste the malt and not have it overwhelmed by the hops.
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