INGO Brewers

[briand212]

Quick question for my fellow INGO members that brew their own beer..

My oldest son wants to get into brewing and I decided to join in..

we are interested in eventually doing all grain .. any suggestions on a good startup equipment kit ??

 

[mbills2223]

Quick question for my fellow INGO members that brew their own beer..

My oldest son wants to get into brewing and I decided to join in..

we are interested in eventually doing all grain .. any suggestions on a good startup equipment kit ??

I haven't gotten into "real" brewing yet, but I use a Mr. Beer kit to brew some from time to time. If you ask me it's a good way to start

 

[IndyGunworks]

the mr. beer is a great way to get your feet wet inexpensively and make sure you like doing it first.... Had I started out w/ that I probably never would have left it... instead I have a few hundred in equipment and no room to brew..... cant wait for a bigger house!

 

[mbills2223]

the mr. beer is a great way to get your feet wet inexpensively and make sure you like doing it first.... Had I started out w/ that I probably never would have left it... instead I have a few hundred in equipment and no room to brew..... cant wait for a bigger house!

Mind if I PM you sometime about taking the next step? I know, scientifically, how to brew, but as it turns out the technical stuff is a whole different ball game!

 

[mrjarrell]

Take a trip into Indy to visit Great Fermentations. They have all the equipment and grains and yeasts, etc, that you'll need. Lots of good advisers and books, too. They also have intro classes to brewing every so often, Classes & Events :: Great Fermentations . There are also more than a few home brewing clubs and groups around. Not sure about any in your area, but you could check Meetup or even Facebook.
Or contact someone at Foamblowers of Indiana and see if they know of a local group in your area. Always a good idea to make new friends that are brewers!

 

[Mark-DuCo]

Mr. Beer is an ok starter set if you aren't sure if you want to keep brewing, but I would start with this kit (Brewing Starter Kit Midwest Supplies). It is a much better setup than Mr. Beer. I did start with Mr. Beer, but I ended up buying good equiptment right away.

 

[IndyGunworks]

Mind if I PM you sometime about taking the next step? I know, scientifically, how to brew, but as it turns out the technical stuff is a whole different ball game!

You can if you want, but there are more successful and knowledgeable brewers on here than myself... I would still consider myself a novice.

Take a trip into Indy to visit Great Fermentations. They have all the equipment and grains and yeasts, etc, that you'll need. Lots of good advisers and books, too. They also have intro classes to brewing every so often, Classes & Events :: Great Fermentations . There are also more than a few home brewing clubs and groups around. Not sure about any in your area, but you could check Meetup or even Facebook.
Or contact someone at Foamblowers of Indiana and see if they know of a local group in your area. Always a good idea to make new friends that are brewers!

I have spent ALOT of money with these guys and they are a great recourse.... they also offer classes.

 

[briand212]

You can if you want, but there are more successful and knowledgeable brewers on here than myself... I would still consider myself a novice.



I have spent ALOT of money with these guys and they are a great recourse.... they also offer classes.

I actually stopped by the shop in avon the other day.. they seemed like a great place.. but I always like to hear others experiances with local stores before jumping in.

lucky for us .. my son and i are going to split the cost for equipment so the startup will hopfully not be very painful

 

[IndyGunworks]

I brew w/ a propane burner, turkey friar, a 6 gallon wine pale, a glass carboy, and PET bottles. that's about the extent of my equipment... it was MUCH easier when I had a keezer and I could force carb instead of carbing in the bottles... tasted better to w/ no floaties.

 

[briand212]

thought i would update the thread.. My son and I went to GF in avon and talked with some very very very helpful staff. we ended up buying a really nice kit ( we could spend a little more since we split the cost between us). anyway our first Belgian Pale ale is ferminting along well .. We still have to get the rest of the equipment we need for doing all grain , but we are on our way Thanks everyone for the links and advice !!

 

[jetmechG550]

thought i would update the thread.. My son and I went to GF in avon and talked with some very very very helpful staff. we ended up buying a really nice kit ( we could spend a little more since we split the cost between us). anyway our first Belgian Pale ale is ferminting along well .. We still have to get the rest of the equipment we need for doing all grain , but we are on our way Thanks everyone for the links and advice !!

Just saw this thread, both GF have great people working there, the Avon store has been open for about a year or so now. They have Friday Night Club but I forget which Friday's it falls on but worth asking when they are meeting up. Need bottles? Or are you kegging? My brewing has been a little lacking lately due to time constraints, therefore my keezer is on hold and I have amassed a collection of bottles.

 

[Naptown]

+1 on Great Fermentations

Get yourself a 10 gallon igloo cooler and build yourself a keggle. Tons of all grain videos on youtube. I was doing 10 gallon batches with that setup, and then I would split into 2 5 gallon batches using different yeasts.

Next equipment that you'll need is a corny keg setup. You can siphon beer after fermentation directly into the corny kegs and save yourself TONS of time without messing with bottling. Just like anything, the right equipment makes things easier. If you outgrow that setup, then you and your son are some beer drankin' sons of *****es.

 

[John317]

Pretty much what most are saying go to great fermentation's- they are great and you can take an intro class if needed. I plan on turning an old keg into my brew pot (keggle). I hate bottling so prefer to use a kegerator as well but if you bottle I recommend the larger bottles so you fill less. All sorts of information on the internet but I would recommend going into a store and talking with people and get a hands on idea of what you need and don't need. I would start simple and work up to more complex recipes. Home brewing is awesome and very rewarding.

 

[briand212]

I go to the GF in avon.. they have been great to us..
our first extract batch is coming along great!..
My son is a bit cider nut and wants to make Graff,, So I will be visiting them again in the morning to get the ingredients for him and another kit for a murphys Irish stout clone for me ,, (why didnt anyone warn me that this hobby is addictive )

I still have to buy bottles and figure I will use them until I save up the money for a keg system. First I need to get the rest of the equipment to go All grain

Thanks again everyone for the advice!!!

 

[JettaKnight]

I go to the GF in avon.. they have been great to us..
our first extract batch is coming along great!..
My son is a bit cider nut and wants to make Graff,, So I will be visiting them again in the morning to get the ingredients for him and another kit for a murphys Irish stout clone for me ,, (why didnt anyone warn me that this hobby is addictive )

Graff? That's a new term to me.

I still have to buy bottles and figure I will use them until I save up the money for a keg system. First I need to get the rest of the equipment to go All grain

AG used to be more important years ago when dry and liquid malt was of questionable condition. Now, it's easily possible to make award winning extract beers.

As for bottles, try Craigslist or the Foamblowers. Brewers always have extra bottle to give away. Every homebrew competition has a huge surplus at the end - usually filled with homebrew, unlabeled. I see there's a competition this week in Lima, Peru - but that might be too far to drive for bottles.

 

[ipswervy]

Great Fermentations can set you up with a 1 gallon setup. You will brew about a 12 pack of beer each time. If you go with a 5 gallon kit you will have 50 to 60 beers to drink. I have 4- 1 gallon sets so I can brew different styles of beer and not worry about wasting a batch if I don't like it. Go all grain, it isn't difficult.

 

[JettaKnight]

Great Fermentations can set you up with a 1 gallon setup. You will brew about a 12 pack of beer each time. If you go with a 5 gallon kit you will have 50 to 60 beers to drink. I have 4- 1 gallon sets so I can brew different styles of beer and not worry about wasting a batch if I don't like it. Go all grain, it isn't difficult.

Spending a whole afternoon just to get a couple of six'ers doesn't quite seem worth it.

 

[John317]

Did the PDG Pale Ale this weekend from Great Fermentation's. Pretty excited to see how it turns out as this is my first batch that has had a blow out through the airlock. Since it was clogging my airlock I took the tubing from my racking cane and put it the bung, the other end I fed into a gallon jug with some sanitized water to act as my air lock until the reaction slows down. I'm curious as to what others do when the yeast reacts so strongly. From what I've looked up its generally considered a good thing to have so much yeast activity as long as its not wild yeast causing it.

 

[Naptown]

Did the PDG Pale Ale this weekend from Great Fermentation's. Pretty excited to see how it turns out as this is my first batch that has had a blow out through the airlock. Since it was clogging my airlock I took the tubing from my racking cane and put it the bung, the other end I fed into a gallon jug with some sanitized water to act as my air lock until the reaction slows down. I'm curious as to what others do when the yeast reacts so strongly. From what I've looked up its generally considered a good thing to have so much yeast activity as long as its not wild yeast causing it.

You did the right thing. I always air-locked in the form of a remote growler.

 

[John317]

You did the right thing. I always air-locked in the form of a remote growler.

Yeah I hope so, hope that with it blowing out it didn't allow anything to get in that'll infect my yeast. I've been good so far with all my previous batches with nothing going bad- from what i've read on some home-brew forums it blowing out should be considered a good thing.