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How to Brew
Good Beer
"There's more
than one way to do it". That can be said about a lot of things.
Homebrewing is no exception. This is not the last word on homebrewing,
but I have had success doing it this way, and thought I would document the
process of making beer from beginning to end.
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Begin by pouring
yourself a beer.
Homebrew, if you've got it. If not, Guinness will do.
Ingredients
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American Amber
Ale
"Chatham Chief"
8 lbs Ultralight
Malt Extract
Cracked Grain: 1 lb Crystal 60L
1 oz Magnum Hops (bittering)
1 oz Willamette Hops (finishing)
1 tsp Irish Moss
California Ale Yeast
Water
I have been using
recipe kits. They are pre-measured and easy to use.
This kit has a liquid malt extract, but I have had success with dry malt
extract, too.
I will try all-grain brewing sometime, but it takes more equipment -and time.
Equipment
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5 gal Stainless
Steel Pot
Long Spoon
Filter Funnel
Thermometer
Rubber Stopper
Airlock
6 gal Glass Carboy
Hop and Grain Bags
I have read pro & con reviews on brewing with
aluminum pots, but stainless steel is safe for sure.
You can substitute a 6 gal Food Grade plastic bucket with a
tight fitting lid for the carboy. Everything you need to brew,
except for the propane cooker, will cost about $70.
This could be done on the stove.
Sanitation
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Fill your 6 gallon
carboy to the top with water and
about 1 1/2 oz Clorox bleach. Let sit for 30 minutes.
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Pour bleach water
into a bucket. This is
what you'll use to sanitize small parts later.
Rinse the carboy thoroughly with hot water and drain.
Soak filter, airlock, and stopper in solution.
Rinse with hot water when ready to use.
Brew
At the beginning
of the brew, put 2 gallons water in freezer
to chill. I you are using liquid yeast, pull it out of the fridge.
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Start the fire
with 3 gallons of water in the pot.
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Bag the
grain in a nylon mesh grain bag and put in cold water.
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Gradually creep
the temperature up to 170, taking 30 - 45 minutes
to do so. If you reach 170 earlier than that, turn off heat and let sit.
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When temperature
reaches 170, remove grain bag.
Rinse with water and squeeze out the excess liquid.
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Bring to a boil.
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Remove from heat
and stir in malt extract. Stir well, making
sure not to let it stick to the bottom. Hint: Set the jug in hot
water in the sink. This will make pouring easier.
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Return to heat and
bring back to a boil. Keep stirring until it boils.
Once it starts boiling, it will foam up really fast. This is called
the
"hot break". Remove from heat and keep stirring until it settles
back down. Return to heat and keep stirring. If it foams up again,
remove from heat. Sometimes it takes several times before it settles
out and boils. All of this takes place in just a couple of minutes.
What we have in the pot now, is called wort.
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Bag bittering hops
and add to boiling wort. Set timer for 60 minutes
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Stir occasionally.
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With 20 minutes
left on the timer, add Irish Moss.
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With 5 minutes
left on the timer, remove the hop bag.
Squeeze excess liquid out with spoon.
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Bag finishing hops
and add for last 5 minutes.
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At end of time,
remove from heat and remove hop bag.
Cool
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Now, you have to
cool it as fast as possible. There are
numerous methods, but an ice bath cools it pretty good.
Leave the lid on and cracked just a little to let steam escape.
Leave it until the ice melts. Wort will still be warm- that's OK.
From this point on, anything that comes in contact with the
wort needs to be sanitized.
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The water that's
been in the freezer is good and cold by now.
Add both gallons to the sanitized carboy.
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Using the
sanitized filter funnel, pour the wort into the carboy.
The cold water will cool the wort down fast. If sediment clogs
the filter, use a sanitized spoon to keep it moving.
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The tape on the
carboy is the 5 gallon mark that was
previously measured. Top off the level to an inch over the
5 gallon mark. You will end up losing beer in transferring,
so this will help offset what is lost.
Pitch the Yeast
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When the
temperature drops to 70 - 80 degrees, add the yeast.
Plug the hole with a sanitized, solid rubber stopper. Now, it needs
to be shaken and rocked for about 5 minutes. This gets oxygen into
the wort. This is the only oxygen the yeast will ever get, so shake well.
Fermentation
During this time,
the yeast will consume the sugars and oxygen
while releasing by-products: Alcohol and CO2.
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Plug the top with
a sanitized, drilled rubber stopper with the airlock.
Put a little sanitizing solution in the airlock to create a chamber.
Put carboy in a cool dark place, like a closet or basement. Ideal
temperatures are between 65 - 70 degrees.
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Fermentation
varies with conditions. It usually begins in 1 - 2 days
and ends in 3 - 7 days. During this time it really gets active. It's
fascinating
to watch. There is a lot of foam created and, during the peak, you can see
the beer churning with activity as the yeast do their job. It's alive!
Transfer
Some methods
suggest that you can skip this step- thinking that the
risk of contaminating or oxidizing is greater than the benefit of removing the
beer from the spent yeast, which produces a clearer beer in the end.
I usually do this step, being careful to sanitize everything that comes in
contact with the beer. I may do a comparison soon, and see if it is worth
it.
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Sanitize a five
gallon carboy and pour some sanitizing solution
into a bucket to sanitize a racking cane, a hose, and the airlock.
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Ready to
transfer. Notice the layer of spent yeast on the bottom
of the carboy. You can also see that the level is right at 5 gallons.
That's why we started with an extra inch or so.
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Place a book under
the carboy to allow the racking cane to get
all the brew off the slurry. Using a sanitized racking cane and
hose, create a siphon. Fill the cane and hose with water, then
place the cane into the full carboy. Use a clip or clothespin to
keep the cane from hitting the bottom. Place the other end of the
hose in the empty carboy, and you have a siphon. Try not to splash.
Settling
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Replace the full
carboy back into the closet for another week.
Kegging
Now the beer is
done. It just needs to condition in the bottle or keg.
This allows time for the beer to carbonate. I bottled my first year, but
found the cleaning of bottles to be a huge pain in the ass. A couple
of soda kegs and a CO2 tank allow me to serve draft homebrew. There
is a lot less to clean, and it shaves hours off the process.
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Sanitize a 5
gallon soda keg and all parts, as well as the racking can and hose.
Add 1 pint boiled water and corn sugar to clean keg.
Place a book under the carboy to allow the racking cane to get
all the brew off the slurry. Siphon beer into keg, trying not to splash.
Now replace all keg parts and put the keg back in the closet for a week.
HomeBrew!
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Jody's Garage is
equipped with an old, free refrigerator.
I drilled holes in the sides for tubes to pass through.
CO2 goes in from the left, Beerline passes out through
the right, under the stairs, to the taps. About 12 lbs
of pressure seems to be about right.
Cheers!
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