What I've Learned (Some tips & Shortcuts) - Part 1

If you're new to my blog, I recommend you start at the beginning to have the opportunity to truly learn from my mistakes and laugh at my failures.

My intro post can be found here:
Intro & My First Home Beer Brewing Kit

From there you can navigate forward using the Archive on the right side of the page.



What I've Learned:

I dove headlong into brewing with no past experience and only limited guidance.
Naturally, hindsight being 20/20, I made some mistakes and I've learned some things.

My hope is this post will help you to:

1. Not make the same mistakes I did.
2. Learn some shortcuts and ways to save money.

1.  Learn from my mistakes!

#1  Hydrometer Readings

Take a hydrometer reading before pitching your yeast and sealing the wort up in your fermenter.  I didn't and now I will not be able to accurately determine the alcohol content of my first beer.  Here is a great article with very detailed instructions:  http://mikesbrewreview.com/how-to-use-a-hydrometer/

ABV Calculation:
OG = Original Gravity
FG = Final Gravity

(OG - FG) * 131 = ABV%

Example:
OG = 1.055
FG = 1.010

(1.055-1.010) * 131 = 5.895%

#2 Equipment

Be sure you have ALL the equipment you will need before you get started.  I love my new equipment kit, but upon discussing my project with my new friends at www.homebrewtalk.com and what I've picked up from my reading it would seem I'd have a pretty nasty beer if I used the combo fermenting / bottling bucket for both purposes.  I'd have been okay if I'd fermented in the 6 gallon carboy that came with the kit, but I didn't.  I've since ordered a new bottling bucket which I will siphon beer into from the combo bucket at bottling time.  It's not a total loss, however. I intend to run more than one batch of beer at a time, so the added equipment will be useful.

Edit - There are probably upwards of 20 various, available fermenting, conditioning and bottling vessels in my garage 1 year after this was written.  Beware - this IS an addiction.

Take a look at my new "Buy Equipment" page for some great starter kits.

#3 This Is Addicting!

If you find the idea of making your own beer intriguing, be warned, you will not satiate that craving with a single brew kit.  The minute your first wort goes into your fermenting vessel, you'll be itching for more!  My advice would be to get your feet wet with a complete, 1 stage brew ingredient kit, as I did.  This will allow you to get a feel for the process of brewing and will have minimal risk of failure (as long as you're sanitary!).

Once that batch is fermenting and you've studied up and understand what your next steps are, feel free to begin planning your next adventure.  You have my blessing.

Shortcuts and $avings

#1  Save Money on Bottles

After paying nearly $30 for the bottles I'd need for my first batch, I decided to find a more economical route.  After all, if (when) I brew more than one batch at a time, I'll need more bottles.  It's also safe to assume some bottles won't be returned or will break.

What was my trick?  I put on layers of my best filthy ripped clothes, a dirty knit hat, fingerless gloves, found a shopping cart, and walked around the city picking bottles up out of ditches and trashcans.

Will work for booze!

Actually, I just went to the local redemption center and asked them if I could buy some bottles from them.  They agreed to let me take whatever I wanted for $0.15 per bottle... roughly 1/4 of what I paid for the new bottles (you can ask at your local liquor store too or just save your empties).

UPDATE - As of the end of February I now have nearly 75 Grolsch Bottles and 10 cases of brown bottles all cleaned and de-labeled.  This was a combination of saving my own empties and what I was able to find at the redemption center.

Total cost savings is somewhere in the $250-$300 range... not bad for a half hour here and there over 2 months.

#2  Bottles From The Redemption Center Are Gross!

Great, so I found a way to save money on bottles... Moldy bottles with a little bit of a stranger's backwash in each one.  Now I have to make these something I want in my mouth.

I never liked Sam's Oktoberfest.  Maybe it's better this way?

Here's how I cleaned & sanitized them:

1. Submerge bottles in deep basin sink filled with warm water.
2. Put about 1 scoop up to the "1" line of Oxy Clean per 3-4 gallons of water in the sink.
3. Allow bottles to soak for 30-40 minutes.
4. Easily peel labels off and wipe off glue/residue with stainless steel scrubber pad.
5. Use bottle brush to scrub out inside of bottles.  I bent mine in the middle so I could easily spin it with my finger and hang it over the edge of the sink.
6. Rinse thoroughly (I bought a bottle washer similar to this one).

This task sucks, but if you are willing to put the effort in, you'll have clean, reusable bottles at a fraction of the cost of new.

Edit - Do not over-soak in the Oxy Clean solution or it will create a residue that is virtually impossible to get off... one more mistake of mine you can learn from.

Should this happen to you, a soak in a vinegar/water bath will remove the (beer stone?) residue.

Finally they went into the dishwasher (no detergent) on High Temp Wash and Sanitizing Rinse... a great shortcut if you have a dishwasher with these options.

I hear you can clean plates and stuff in here too.

UPDATE - There is some debate on the effectiveness of using the dishwasher to sanitize as everyones' water runs at different temps and it can be difficult for the hot water to make it into the bottles' narrow openings.

I've since purchased a Vinator Bottle Washer which I fill with StarSan solution and use immediately before bottling.

NOTE - If your bottles don't have mold or sediment in them you can give them a 30 minute bath in a mix of baking soda and hot water and the labels peel just as easily.  This does NOT sanitize or work well with really dirty bottles, however.

#3 Drink Grolsch

Grolsch bottles are freakin' awesome.  They have that nifty, flip top thing, they're fancy looking and they're perfect for bottling a pint (just shy, actually) of home brew.  Fliptop bottles sell for $1-$2 each or you can get them for $2.50 filled with not-terrible beer.  I've opted for the latter.  It's all I've bought for the last week and my collection is coming along nicely.

Edit - Green glass is not ideal.  It allows too much light to get into the bottle.  If you use green glass be sure to store your bottles out of the light.  I now only use Grolsch bottles for quick transport of kegged beer.

The only problem is it's so much fun opening them I can't stop drinking!

#4 Use Water Jugs As Carboys

Yep - those water cooler jugs can be re-purposed for making beer.  There is some debate on this topic, but the general consensus is that this is a safe, cheap alternative to expensive glass carboys.  The catch is you need to be sure you're using a safe plastic.  Look at the bottom of the jug and figure out what type of plastic it's made of (the number inside the recycling triangle thing).

Here is a link explaining the different types of plastics and which are considered safe www.wikihow.com/Identify-Food-Grade-Buckets

I grabbed a 5 gallon Nestle water jug (#1) for $5.99 + $5 deposit.  I'll use the water to make a batch of beer, so I basically get a carboy for $5.  Your local brew supply store should have stoppers that will fit.

Edit:  I've heard a lot of more mixed reviews on this.  Even some links to baby boys being born with "teenie weenies" because of their pregnant mothers' exposure to BPAs.  This terrifying thought combined with the fact plastic scratches easier (thus better harboring bacteria), has me steered me away from recycled water bottles.  That said - those numbers are on the bottles so you can determine what is safe for reuse & consumption.  If you're on a budget, I really doubt you have too much to worry about with plastic jugs.

Okay, you can't really see it, but there's a "1" in that triangle.

The above tips can potentially save you time, frustration and hundreds of dollars.  In exchange I only ask that you subscribe to this blog!