Help With Home Brew Beer

pinkfloydian

I got a present of a St. Peters Brewery Ruby Red Ale 40 pint beer kit. I'm new to this, so I need help with purchasing the brewing kit.

I need a fermenter container and a pressure barrel I assume (don't want to bottle it), but have no idea what else to buy.

There are only basic instructions on the pack.

Can anyone help and recommend an online store.

Also, how long will the beer keep in a pressure barrel?

T

oblivious

Cant go wrong with The home Brew Company https://www.thehomebrewcompany.ie/


I have been using them since they started

BeerNut

Get a fermenter with a solid lid -- don't bother with a bung and airlock arrangement. Actually, get two: you'll be glad you did.

You'll also need:
A hydrometer for measuring the strength
A thermometer to make sure your measurements are accurate and your wort isn't too hot for the yeast
A trial jar to do the measuring in and for measuring sanitiser (see below)
A siphon to transfer the beer to your pressure barrel when it's finished
A stirring paddle for ensuring the kit is thoroughly mixed

From the supermarket get a bottle of thin bleach and some ordinary vinegar. You can make non-rinse sanitiser by adding 30ml of bleach and 30ml of vinegar (separately) to 20L of water. Never mix neat bleach and vinegar. You can also scale this recipe bigger or smaller if you need to.

Then you should be ready to make beer.

pinkfloydian

Thanks for the replies.

There are only 4 instructions on the package (which contains 2 cans and 2 sachets. Instructions are as follows:-
1) Clean and sterilise all beer making equipment. Stand cans in hot water for 5 minutes. Pour can contents into the sterilised fermenter.
2) Add 3.5 litres (6 pints) boiling water, top up with cold water to 23 litres (40 pints) and thoroughly mix to make sure all contents are fully dissolved.
3) Add the hop sachet, then the yeast, cover the fermenter and leave to stand for 4-6 days in a warm place (between 18-20C, 65-70F). Fermentation will be complete when bubbles cease to rise (if you use a hydrometer, when the gravity remains constant below 1014)
4) Transfer the beer into bottles or a pressure barrel with a little sugar (half a teaspoon per pint) to help condition the beer. Stand bottles or barrel in a warm place for 2 days, then allow 14 days in a cool place or until beer has cleared.
***************************************************************
My questions are:-
a) What capacity should the fermenter be?
b) What capacity should the pressure barrel be?
c) What are the instructions for activities to be carried out between creation of the mixture and decanting to the pressure barrel and what kit should I buy before I start (other than fermenter and barrel)?
d) Is it possible to have a "gassy" rather than a flat finished product and if so, what should I do?
e) How long will the beer last in the pressure barrel and at what temperature should it be kept?

BeerNut

Rule 1 of kit brewing is never read the instructions, they're always wrong. But since you've posted them:

pinkfloydian wrote: »

1) Clean and sterilise all beer making equipment. Stand cans in hot water for 5 minutes. Pour can contents into the sterilised fermenter.

That's OK. To "sterilise" (actually it's just sanitising), mix up the sanitiser I mentioned above in the fermenter and dunk in your lid, hydrometer, trial jar, thermometer and paddle. Give them at least five minutes and splash some sanitiser around the top of the bucket too to make sure all the insides get wet.

pinkfloydian wrote: »

2) Add 3.5 litres (6 pints) boiling water, top up with cold water to 23 litres (40 pints) and thoroughly mix to make sure all contents are fully dissolved.

Fine again. The main thing is you want a finishing temperature of about 27C. Lower isn't a problem but definitely no higher than 30. If it's above 30 when you finish, add more water if you can, or just leave it outside to cool a bit. Don't worry about the precise volumes for this bit: it's all ballpark but the temperature is important.

Can't overemphasise the importance of stirring thoroughly: your gravity reading will be off if it's not totally mixed. Stir constantly when topping up.

pinkfloydian wrote: »

3) Add the hop sachet, then the yeast,

I wouldn't bother with the hop sachet at this stage. Add it during the second week but it's not going to make much difference I'd say if you don't add it at all.

pinkfloydian wrote: »

cover the fermenter and leave to stand for 4-6 days in a warm place (between 18-20C, 65-70F). Fermentation will be complete when bubbles cease to rise (if you use a hydrometer, when the gravity remains constant below 1014)

4-6 days! Give it at least two weeks. Take hydrometer readings during week 2 and the main thing is not the gravity itself but that it's constant over several days before you move on. Sanitise anything you use for taking samples before you take the sample -- I generally put the trial jar, thermometer and hydrometer in a stockpot and add 10ml of vinegar and bleach (separately!) to 7L of water. Hydrometers are only accurate at 20C so if your sample is a few degrees either side of that you can calibrate it for accuracy.

18-20C is ideal for fermentation; lower isn't a problem but above 24 is. Also you only need to leave the lid on loose.

pinkfloydian wrote: »

4) Transfer the beer into bottles or a pressure barrel with a little sugar (half a teaspoon per pint) to help condition the beer.

Grand. Remember to sanitise the pressure barrel before siphoning the beer into it. And do your best not to splash any beer as that will introduce unwanted oxygen, hence the siphon.

pinkfloydian wrote: »

Stand bottles or barrel in a warm place for 2 days, then allow 14 days in a cool place or until beer has cleared.

Eh? No, just leave them/it at room temperature again, and again for about 14 days.

pinkfloydian wrote: »

a) What capacity should the fermenter be?

Any of the standard sizes will be fine. The 33L ones are more flexible, I guess.

pinkfloydian wrote: »

b) What capacity should the pressure barrel be?

Likewise.

pinkfloydian wrote: »

c) What are the instructions for activities to be carried out between creation of the mixture and decanting to the pressure barrel

Leave it the hell alone, mostly. Just take gravity readings every couple of days in the second week.

pinkfloydian wrote: »

and what kit should I buy before I start (other than fermenter and barrel)?

I've covered that above.

pinkfloydian wrote: »

d) Is it possible to have a "gassy" rather than a flat finished product and if so, what should I do?

The two weeks it spends in the barrel will carbonate ("condition") it. The extra sugar is to kick off that new phase of fermentation except this time the gas is trapped, hence the fizz.

pinkfloydian wrote: »

e) How long will the beer last in the pressure barrel and at what temperature should it be kept?

This I don't know. I suspect no more than a couple of weeks but I've never used a pressure barrel. The beer will flatten as the keg empties though you can top it up with CO2 cannisters. Once you've started serving keep it as cool as you can.

pinkfloydian

Thanks BeerNut for that comprehensive reply

T

Carawaystick

I wrap my fermenter in a blanket
To keep the temps steadier, and to keep light away