In this post, we’re talking about how to get into homebrewing beer. Perhaps you want to get started with this fun hobby, or you want to give someone a present who wants to get into home brewing. Read on! Where is the best place to start?
A great way to get into home brewing is to get a beer or cider kit. These kits come in a vast range for many different beer and cider styles, and they’re easy to make or acquire. Nearly every brew shop will sell them, not to mention places like Amazon.
A great advantage for starting homebrewers is that good beer kits comes with clear instructions. Perhaps even more importantly, kits will only contain the equipment you need to make beer, avoiding unnecessary expenditure. Focus on the equipment you’re going to need and is useful for your homebrewing adventure.
So, what sort of essential equipment do you need?
Equipment you need to get into homebrewing beer
- A fermentation bucket with lid and hole for an airlock.
- A secondary fermenter with a bubbler airlock and a tap on the bottom.
- A mash paddle to stir your wort. You can also use a spoon with a long handle if you have one.
- A hydrometer to measure the gravity of your wort (original gravity or OG and final gravity (FG)).
- No-rinse sanitizer and (screw-top bottles).
- Tubing (for beer transfer)
- Filler stick (to fill your beer bottles
Ingredients needed to brew beer at home
When you start, we recommend that you use a pre-defined kit that includes malt extracts. You pay slightly more for extracts than grains, but extracts simplify your brew day considerably and reduce the amount of equipment you need. When you are comfortable brewing beer, handling hot liquids, and you are ready to invest more into your newfound hobby, you can make the switch to all-grain brewing (where you essentially make your extract). Make sure all ingredients (grains, extracts, hops, yeast and any other additives) are fresh when you make your beer.
If you need more information on how to get into homebrewing beer (or kick start it for the one you are gifting a kit), please check out our Homebrewing-101, Guide or homebrewing equipment sections on our site (brewingbrowser.com).
If you are interested in learning more about the science of brewing, visit our partners at The Beerologist.
Image Attribution and License:
This image is attributed to Shermozle, and used under license CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/, via Wikimedia Commons.