Home brewing beer kits: Good for beginners?

Yes

5 of 6

by Mary Kent

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While reading the labels of the wines and beers that I would buy, I noticed than many of them are using sulfates as a preservative. It means that these bottles will stay 'fresh' on the shelves longer at your local retailer. Often, these beverages would give me terrible headaches within moments of consumption. So, I thought to myself, what can I do so I can enjoy drinking once again?

The only solution was to home brew.

First I started out with mead, then to wine and finally to beer. Why was beer last? Because, it is the hardest with respect to all the ingredients that need to be gathered. And since I didn't want to bother with that, I decided, a beer kit is the best way to go. Even with my experience with meads and wines, I still considered myself quite the beginner when it came to my first batch of beer as the process is very different.

There are several different types of beer kits available at winery shops and if you are lucky, there may be a local brewing shop in your area that will carry a greater selection. You can find all sorts of kits from 'Mr. Beer' to better quality beer kits made by local micro brewers. With a typical beer kit, you will get a cheap plastic tub to ferment in, that you use only once and that will take away from the quality of your beer. So, in my opinion, it's better to go with a quality kit for the ingredients and buy your own brewing equipment since you can reuse it over and over.

The equipment is the highest expense. You will need a carboy, a vapor lock, a candy thermometer, cleaning solution, a long handled slotted spoon, a few dozen 12 oz non-screw top bottles, new caps, a capper, a few feet of 1/4" hosing and a large pot to cook the must (pre-beer). A stainless steel five gallon chef's soup pot is the best for versatility. These can be purchased at either the place where you'd buy your kit or at a good kitchen supply store. Often you can collect bottles from your friends which will lower your cost a bit - just make sure they are not twist offs.

One of the nice things about picking a quality kit is that you can make a quality beer. My first go round, I started with an English Barleywine.

A kit will contain all the ingredients you need: A grain bag, a hops bag, malt syrup and two packages of sugar and a package of yeast. One of the most important things is to follow the directions with your kit and always keep the project well attended. I found the directions to the Barleywine kit to be easier than stereo instructions, but a little harder than making a cake. Measure out the water, heat to the required temperatures, steep, stir and keep watch so the must will not overflow your pot.

If you, like I did, follow the directions properly, you will have your carboy's vapor lock burguling from happy yeast.

In about three months or less, the beer will be ready. Use the cleaning solution to sterilize your bottles. Add the last bit of sugar to the must. Gently place your carboy on a countertop and use the hose to siphon the beer into the bottles and use the capper to cap them. Place them in a cool spot for a few days to encourage secondary fermentation.

There is no comparison to the fresh taste of homemade beer and knowing there's no preservatives makes it all the better.

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