Brew your own...

[twall]

Kind of the "by God, I brewed it, and it AIN'T GONNA GO TO WASTE" thing? :laughing:

Yeah, it's an all in one kit. Plastic fermenter, makes 2 gallons.

They have a lot of options on the website, but I'm gonna start small, cheap, and simple first. The way I love my beer, I'd love to get to the point of doing it FROM SCRATCH. But, that's years down the road.

 

[tglass]

I've always been wanting to try one of these homebrew kit things. What is the initial cost and is it quite an ordeal to make? Is the final product worth the time?

 

[twall]

I've always been wanting to try one of these homebrew kit things. What is the initial cost and is it quite an ordeal to make? Is the final product worth the time?

It was $30, and everything you need is in the kit. It says you can use old pop bottles, old beer bottles, for your bottling procedure.

I bought the $15 8 pack of litre bottles. Came with caps and labels.

A refil kit was $15. Makes another 2 gallons. Each refil kit comes with another bag of sterilizer powder.

All you need is priming sugar for the carbonation, from what I see. And a metal stirring spoon for when your 'cooking' the wort. Says NOT to use plastic, but don't know why.

 

[ptexer]

good hobby. keep everything sterile. I love the many types of beer you can brew. I like my beer thick and dark.

 

[twall]

good hobby. keep everything sterile. I love the many types of beer you can brew. I like my beer thick and dark.

Here here! That's why I got a 'st. patrick's' refil. :wink: I am partial to Guinness style stout.

 

[wade simpson]

Never used Mr brew but made my own for a few years. I was surprised at how easy it is. I had to stop cause I just had too much beer around..wasn't good for the head or the general mass.

 

[RobertN]

Beer is my business, and I'm late for work...

Been brewing off and on since 1984 or so. Early on, I tried a "kit" that was a can of hopped malt, a can of corn sugar, and yeast. Quick boil, and in to the fermenter. Turned out reasonable. It still required primary bucket, air lock, bottle capper ect.

Never tried one of the kits as mentioned in this thread.

 

[twall]

Beer is my business, and I'm late for work...

Been brewing off and on since 1984 or so. Early on, I tried a "kit" that was a can of hopped malt, a can of corn sugar, and yeast. Quick boil, and in to the fermenter. Turned out reasonable. It still required primary bucket, air lock, bottle capper ect.

Never tried one of the kits as mentioned in this thread.

I'll let everyone know in about a month - that's about what I gather is the time it takes from kit to gut. Says to use any plastic pop bottle, as long as you have the cap for it, and the plastic seal in it.

The fermenter has the air lock and all that stuff built into it, along with a tap to pour the beer into the bottles. Just a 1/2 tsp sugar to prime the carbonation process in each bottle is all I need. This is all based on what I've read in the last 24 hrs.

 

[RobertN]

It should work fine, and make a nice beer. Most important thing is to make sure everything is spotless clean, by the directions. As long as everything is cleaned properly, and the fermentation temperature is ok(ie too hot), then it should consistently make a nice beer.

The fermenter has the air lock and all that stuff built into it, along with a tap to pour the beer into the bottles. Just a 1/2 tsp sugar to prime the carbonation process in each bottle is all I need. This is all based on what I've read in the last 24 hrs.

 

[twall]

It should work fine, and make a nice beer. Most important thing is to make sure everything is spotless clean, by the directions. As long as everything is cleaned properly, and the fermentation temperature is ok(ie too hot), then it should consistently make a nice beer.

When I was a kid in the early 80's, my dad made wine. Parsnip, dandelion, elderberry, blackberry, strawberry, etc..... It was a major PAIN! All those insturments, the sugar testing, the acidity, the midway alcohol development, the records. Cheesecloth, even when he bought the grape juice, it was still a long, drawn out process, and one tiny mistake, and you got bitter vinegar.

But, he wanted me to see how it was done. I want my kid to see how stuff is made, too. I thought about wine....but....

This seems a lot more foolproof.