Experiencing Home Beer Making

Making home brewed beer is a simple experience once all of the equipment is bought. Home beer making equipment includes a stainless steel brew pot, a primary fermenter with an airlock and stopper, a plastic hose for transferring the beer, a beer bucket with a spout for bottling the beer, beer bottles, bottle brushes, bottle caps, and a bottling machine. In addition to these items, individuals will need a stick-on thermometer for the primary fermenter, as well as saucepans, pot holders, spatulas and stirring spoons. Home beer making kits of ingredients are a great idea for those just getting started with the process, and the only other thing needed is some sort of fermentable material such as malt extract or demerara sugar.

Steps of the Process

The first part of home beer making process is to thoroughly sterilize all of the equipment to get rid of any bacteria that might be on it. Each piece of equipment should be washed to remove any dirt or left on matter from the last beer making experience. Once that is removed, the pieces should be sterilized either by placing each item in the dishwasher for the high heat drying cycle or to soak it in a bleach or iodine solution for thirty minutes to kill the bacteria. Once each piece is thoroughly sterilized and dried, then it is time for the home beer making process.

The next step in home beer making is to bring two quarts of water to almost a boil. This means that the water should be steaming but not yet boiling in the pot. Once reached, the pot should be removed from the stove and the ingredients from the beer kit should be added to the water and stirred in. (There are directions on the beer kits as to the order the ingredients should be added.) In addition to the ingredients from the beer kit, the fermentable ingredients should be added and stirred until dissolved in the water. Once that is done, the pot should be replaced on the stove and set on the lowest heat for ten to fifteen minutes.

While this is cooking, the primary fermenter should be set up with four gallons of cold water in it. That way, when the ten to fifteen minutes are up, the ingredients from the brew pot can be stirred into the water in the fermenter. This should be stirred for about two minutes so that the yeast can be thoroughly oxygenated. After that, the primary fermentation must last for three to five days, during which time there should be air bubbles rising into the airlock. Once the bubbling stops, or there is at least two minutes that elapse between bubbles, then the primary fermenting process is done and the beer can be bottled and stage two of the home beer making process can begin. After the beer is bottled, the individual must still wait at least two more weeks before enjoying the home made beer.