Anyone here brew their own beer?

  • After Iowa State won the Big 12, a Cyclone made a wonderful offer to We Will that now increases our match. Now all gifts up to $400,000 between now and the Final 4 will be matched. Please consider giving at We Will Collective.
    This notice can be dismissed using the upper right corner X button.

Clonefan94

Well-Known Member
Oct 18, 2006
10,428
4,978
113
Schaumburg, IL
Yes, I do.

All-grain - cooler Batch sparge
3 tap kegerator
Kegging only

Usually build my recipes for 6 gallons, that way by the time is all said and done I get a full 5 gallons into the keg.

Been Brewing for 2.5 years, although I did do a few of the simple beer machine/Mr. Beer pre-hopped extract stuff back in the late 90s.
 

mj4cy

Asst. Regional Manager
Staff member
Mar 28, 2006
31,194
13,551
113
Iowa
Not a huge deal, but there is a beer thread now on CF! Bottoms up!
 

mcdrier

Member
Dec 11, 2013
755
2
18
Yes, I do.

All-grain - cooler Batch sparge
3 tap kegerator
Kegging only

Usually build my recipes for 6 gallons, that way by the time is all said and done I get a full 5 gallons into the keg.

Been Brewing for 2.5 years, although I did do a few of the simple beer machine/Mr. Beer pre-hopped extract stuff back in the late 90s.

Nice...I have yet to do an All-grain brew...that is my next step...I brew from liquid malt extract and add in the pelleted hops.....

I keg my beer and try and force carbonate....I am having an issue where when I first drink beer from my keg, it is flat, the middle glasses are perfectly carbonated, and the last part of the keg is over carbonated...I try and adjust my psi going into the keg as I go, but it stays over carbonated...
 

Clonefan94

Well-Known Member
Oct 18, 2006
10,428
4,978
113
Schaumburg, IL
Not a huge deal, but there is a beer thread now on CF! Bottoms up!

In his defense, homebrewing is a little different than just a general beer discussion, imo. If you are just into drinking beer and trying new styles, you may not want to read people chatting about the merits of a decoction mash.
 

ianoconnor

Well-Known Member
SuperFanatic
SuperFanatic T2
Nov 11, 2007
13,132
6,881
113
Johnston
Yes, I do.

All-grain - cooler Batch sparge
3 tap kegerator
Kegging only

Usually build my recipes for 6 gallons, that way by the time is all said and done I get a full 5 gallons into the keg.

Been Brewing for 2.5 years, although I did do a few of the simple beer machine/Mr. Beer pre-hopped extract stuff back in the late 90s.
Pretty much exactly same for me, but I have a 2 tap kegerator (until we buy a house & I build a keezer). :yes:
 

Clonefan94

Well-Known Member
Oct 18, 2006
10,428
4,978
113
Schaumburg, IL
Nice...I have yet to do an All-grain brew...that is my next step...I brew from liquid malt extract and add in the pelleted hops.....

I keg my beer and try and force carbonate....I am having an issue where when I first drink beer from my keg, it is flat, the middle glasses are perfectly carbonated, and the last part of the keg is over carbonated...I try and adjust my psi going into the keg as I go, but it stays over carbonated...

Need to give it about a week and a half at pressure for it to really carb up right. There is the roll method people use, where they pressurize to about 30 psi and roll the cold keg back and forth for about 5 minutes to get it to carb up quick. I usually never set my pressure more than 12 psi and just give it the time it needs. Once it's carbed, if it's stil under pressure, you won't get that carbonation out without forcing it out. i.e. Killing the pressure down to almost 0 psi and pouring off quite a few beers. It gets difficult to get it just right, so I usually go with setting it at 12 and giving it the week and a half.
 

ripvdub

Well-Known Member
Mar 20, 2006
8,302
702
113
Iowa
I've been brewing for just over a year. All grain. I have 2 5 gallon kegs. I brew mostly IPAs and a hefeweizen. I need to get a better filtering system.
Last time I brewed they milled it wayyyy too fine and got a terribly stuck sparge, worst one ever. Basically had to filter by hand.
 

ianoconnor

Well-Known Member
SuperFanatic
SuperFanatic T2
Nov 11, 2007
13,132
6,881
113
Johnston
I've been brewing for just over a year. All grain. I have 2 5 gallon kegs. I brew mostly IPAs and a hefeweizen. I need to get a better filtering system.
Last time I brewed they milled it wayyyy too fine and got a terribly stuck sparge, worst one ever. Basically had to filter by hand.
Perfect excuse to buy your own grain mill!
 

dmclone

Well-Known Member
Oct 20, 2006
20,685
4,800
113
50131
I tried home brewing a couple of years ago and here are my thoughts.

#1 I like variety. It's fun to brew but then you have 48 of the same beers that you have to drink. I brought home 2 cases of 3 Floyds Zombie Dust and it was incredible beer but even with that I got tired of the same old beer. Plus you shouldn't keep IPA's for a long time.

#2 The recipes I used were good but to be honest, I can buy better off the shelf. The stuff you buy in stores are made by professionals who have perfected the recipes.

#3 The best thing I made(also the easiest) was Apfelwein. This was good because you can't buy it in the store and it will really get you drunk.

It's fun to brew but I ended up selling everything on craigslist. If I was to do it again I would move to small batch where you just make a 6 or 12 pack.
 

mcdrier

Member
Dec 11, 2013
755
2
18
I tried home brewing a couple of years ago and here are my thoughts.

#1 I like variety. It's fun to brew but then you have 48 of the same beers that you have to drink. I brought home 2 cases of 3 Floyds Zombie Dust and it was incredible beer but even with that I got tired of the same old beer. Plus you shouldn't keep IPA's for a long time.

#2 The recipes I used were good but to be honest, I can buy better off the shelf. The stuff you buy in stores are made by professionals who have perfected the recipes.

#3 The best thing I made(also the easiest) was Apfelwein. This was good because you can't buy it in the store and it will really get you drunk.

It's fun to brew but I ended up selling everything on craigslist. If I was to do it again I would move to small batch where you just make a 6 or 12 pack.

So why did you sell everything? Did you get sick of trying to stay ahead and did you get tired of the cleaning, sanitizing, etc? I can see that for sure...Also, seems like there is equipment you always want as well.

My dream scenario is one keg on tap, one keg carbonating, one brew in the primary fermentor, and one brew in the secondary fermentor....It sounds easy, but life gets in the way...If I brew this Friday or Sat. morning, I can possibly get one keg tapped, one brew in primary and one brew in the secondary....I would still be one brew behind though.


I have it down to $19 for 53 bottles of beer....That is over 2 cases, and much cheaper than store bought beer.
 

MRN4ISU

Active Member
Jan 23, 2012
239
117
43
31
Ames (Moville)
BEER? I like Beer.

3634426.jpg
 

ILiftWithRoyce

Well-Known Member
Feb 6, 2012
1,642
465
63
32
Ankeny
I tried home brewing a couple of years ago and here are my thoughts.

#1 I like variety. It's fun to brew but then you have 48 of the same beers that you have to drink. I brought home 2 cases of 3 Floyds Zombie Dust and it was incredible beer but even with that I got tired of the same old beer. Plus you shouldn't keep IPA's for a long time.

#2 The recipes I used were good but to be honest, I can buy better off the shelf. The stuff you buy in stores are made by professionals who have perfected the recipes.

#3 The best thing I made(also the easiest) was Apfelwein. This was good because you can't buy it in the store and it will really get you drunk.

It's fun to brew but I ended up selling everything on craigslist. If I was to do it again I would move to small batch where you just make a 6 or 12 pack.

Honest question, why is this? This is not the first time I've heard that. But weren't IPA's designed for long storage? (Being shipped from Western Europe to India)?
 

kmcbrid

Active Member
Mar 23, 2006
354
36
28
Ankeny, IA
www.municipalgame.com
Yes, I do.

All-grain - cooler Batch sparge
3 tap kegerator
Kegging only

I am the same here. I do 10 gallon batches only now. If I do a new recipe, I will do a 5 gallon to test, but then jump to 10. I currently make an Irish red, an american ale, an Irish stout, an IPA, a Black Lager, a fruity wheat, and a porter. The recipes are ones I developed and I enjoy getting consistency now, from batch to batch, when I make each one.

I have been brewing for about 4 years now and understand the posts that say life gets in the way. I would think I could always keep beer on tap, but with brew times what they are, sometimes hard to set aside a Saturday or Sunday to brew.
 

ianoconnor

Well-Known Member
SuperFanatic
SuperFanatic T2
Nov 11, 2007
13,132
6,881
113
Johnston
Honest question, why is this? This is not the first time I've heard that. But weren't IPA's designed for long storage? (Being shipped from Western Europe to India)?
The hop profile fades as time goes by. For the best aroma/flavor, it's best to drink IPAs as soon as possible.
 

mcdrier

Member
Dec 11, 2013
755
2
18
I am the same here. I do 10 gallon batches only now. If I do a new recipe, I will do a 5 gallon to test, but then jump to 10. I currently make an Irish red, an american ale, an Irish stout, an IPA, a Black Lager, a fruity wheat, and a porter. The recipes are ones I developed and I enjoy getting consistency now, from batch to batch, when I make each one.

I have been brewing for about 4 years now and understand the posts that say life gets in the way. I would think I could always keep beer on tap, but with brew times what they are, sometimes hard to set aside a Saturday or Sunday to brew.

When it is time to brew...sometimes you do not feel like brewing. Getting all the equipment out, and needing to babysit it to avoid boil overs..

I have a done liquid malt extract (lme) recipe that was a 20 min. boil....and it turned out well. I prolly will go back to that once I am through the 36 lbs of lme I recently bought. I think I have (3) 6lb bottles left...
 

JHUNSY

Well-Known Member
Aug 31, 2013
5,211
2,974
113
Des Moines, IA
I actually started brewing last year. I have done a few batches of cider just from random recipes I threw together. I really had an itch by the end of Summer to invest in more equipment so I could do some beers (more specifically lagers) but I can't get over that cost up front as a college student. I will more than likely end up brewing a few wines here soon and letting those actually age to keep me interested while avoiding the need for more equipment.