So you have decided to enter the exciting world of making your own beer at home. Congratulations! Homebrewing is one of the most rewarding hobbies you can undertake. Like most hobbies, it requires patience and attention to detail, but unlike many, you can enjoy the fruits of your labor with friends and family for years to come.
This guide is intended as an overview of the homebrewing process. There are many sources of information available online and at your bookstore or library. Use them all, and get ready to make great beer at home for a fraction of the cost of commercial beer.
How To Make HomeBrew: Equipment
Before you can start making homebrew, you will require a few essential items that will make the whole process easier. These are:
A Boiling Pot: this should be stainless steel, and should be able to hold about 3 gallons. It is possible to use two smaller pots in a pinch, but if you can find a larger pot, it is much easier.
A Fermentor: a food-grade plastic pail works best, about 6 gallons. Available at hardware stores or restaurant supply stores. This is where the beer will sit while the fermentation takes place.
Airlock: This is a device that allows the gas to escape during fermentation without allowing air back inside. If air gets in, the beer will be spoiled by airborne bacteria.
Thermometer: a floating dairy thermometer is best. The thermometer must be able to be immersed in liquid and withstand temperatures of 150F.
Bottles: you will need something to put the beer in after it is ready. Plastic pop type bottles work, or you can get glass bottles and a bottle capper. Grolsch style bottles work very well.
Stirring Paddle: the beer needs to be stirred quite a bit during processing. A large plastic spoon with a long handle can do the trick.
That is the basic equipment required. There are many more optional items that will make your homebrewing project much easier. Check online or your yellow pages for homebrew suppliers. The initial expense will be offset as you get into making more batches of your own homebrew.
How To Make HomeBrew: Ingredients
The four basic ingredients needed to make your own hombrew are: Water, Malt Extract, Hops and Yeast. These four essentials are the building blocks of any beer recipe.
Water is the medium, and it should be the purest you can get. Spring water is best, either from a natural spring or the bottled kind. Do not use bottled reverse osmosis or distilled water, as the minerals have been depleted and that will affect the taste. If you must use tap water, consider purchasing a home water filter system, or at the very least let the water sit overnight to allow some of the chlorine gas to evaporate.
Malt Extract is created from barley. The process to create malt is fairly complex, so it is a wonderful help to homebrewers that it is available in either syrup or powder form. There are many different varieties of malt extract available on the market, and this will determine the kind of beer you get. The basic rule is one pound of malt extract per gallon of water. This will provide a lighter beer. The more malt used, the fuller and richer the beer will be.
Hops are used as the preservative that keeps beer from spoiling. Again, there are many types of hops available on the market, and many methods to using hops in making homebrew. Bittering hops are used at the beginning of the boiling process, and Aroma hops are usually added toward the end. The method will depend on the homebrew recipe you are following.
Finally, Yeast is the ingredient that creates the wonderful carbonation that makes beer special. The yeast eats up the sugars in the malt extract, and in turn create gas. There are also many types of yeast, and these will have an impact on the flavor of the homebrew as well. Liquid yeast is generally preferable for making homebrew, however dry yeast can be used as long as it is re-hydrated before being added to the mixture.
That is an overview of the equipment and ingredients involved in making your own beer. In part two of 'How To Make Homebrew' we will discuss the process itself.
About the Author
Create your own Liquid-Gold Homebrew for only $5.27 per gallon! Get started right away with this How To Make Homebrew package that teaches you everything you need to know about making great Beer At Home!
Brent Craig is an author and a journalist with a dedicated interest in how to make homebrew. For more information, please visit: http://www.HomeBrewPerfection.com
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