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Hi from Scunthorpe
A quick glance through this site suggests that I am a midget amongst giants. Inspired by my daughter's boyfriend, I have just bought my micro brewery with Woodfordes Wherry kit. It's all new to me, and some of the postings in various forums (fora??) are utterly baffling, but I shall read them all and hopefully learn some of the mysteries of the art of brewing. Being retired (66), I have all the time in the world. Here's to the first glass!!
Responses
Posted 2 years ago by Member
Hi Pete
Go for it and good luck! I haven't done anything but all grain for longer than I can remember.. but I'm sure there'll be plenty of people here who can help!
Nice to meet you!
(with grateful thanks to the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers and slightly adapted)
Posted 2 years ago by Moderator
Hi Pete,
You've gone for a great starter kit there. The woodfords wherry is a cracking pint and the kit is the most complete starter kit you could ask for. I started with kits and have recently gone in to "all grain" brewing (like the brewerys do) but I bought a wherry as a backup because it tastes so damn good!
Just follow the instructions, take your time and if your ever stuck drop in on the forum and ask, it's what we are here for! I'm sure your going to love it!
Ta,
Nath
Conditionin' - LEB Pale
Conditionin' - Thwaits Nutty Black
Plannin' - A user upper!
Posted 2 years ago by Member
Hi Tony and Nath,
Thanks for your warm welcome and encouragement. I think my beer has completed its primary ferment. The airlock stopped bubbling and the hydrometer (a new science to me) showed a reading of around 1.010, so I have transferred the brew into my barrel this afternoon.
I'm curious about the term "all-grain" and what it implies. My wife and I quite like darker ales, like Batemans "Victory". Can beers like that be brewed at home?
Pete
Posted 2 years ago by Admin
Hi Pete, looks like the wherry is going well.
The term All Grain concerns the brewing method. There are 3 ways in which beer can be made at home.
Kit - using a kit like the woodfordes.
Pros' - Easiest/quickest method. Needs minimal equipment. Good beer produced and cheaper than supermarkets.
Con's - Limited to the ranges available, you can play about with them a bit very limited really.
Extract - uses malt extract (either dried spraymalt or canned liquid) and hops. You basically boil the malt extract with the hops for around an hour, cool then ferment etc as per a kit.
Pro's - Much more scope for experimenting as you can follow recipes to make beers similar to those you can buy. Fresher hops taste and you feel more attached to the brew as you are more involved. You only need a big pan and strainer in addition to the standard brewing equipment.
Con's - most expensive method as malt extract is pricey. You are still limited to the range of extracts available (usually driven by colour, light/medium/dark).
All Grain - You use crushed malted barley to create your own Malt extract then follow the same procedure as Extract. You mix the grain with hot water then hold the temp for around 1.5 hrs (as process known as mashing). You then rinse with more hot water (sparging) to get all the sugars out then boil with hops.
Pro's - amazing beers can be produced, as good as if not better then shop bought. In Theory most shop bought beers can be replicated (limited by ingredients being available most difficult being same yeast). Works out to be the cheapest method although most home brewers tend to spend the savings on extending the kit.
Con's - needs extra kit (mash tun/boiler) which can be quite expensive although you can make your own. Takes about 5/6 hours to get to fermenting stage although this is not labour intensive. Just following processes then leave for a while.
Depends on what you are homebrewing for. If its for cheap, tasty beer but mainly driven by the need to save money and create plenty of booze then kits are probably for you. If you are interested in making amazing beers and don't mind a bit of effort (which is well worth it) then I would try extract and/or All Grain.
Its a great hobby which you will get hours of satisfaction from, not least ending up with loads of great beer for less then 50p/pint.
For me its about creating my own beer so its All Grain all the way although I did brew using the extract method for a while. All grain allows me to make the beer to my exact spec and experiment. There are over 40 hops, 40 yeast and loads of grains to the combinations are endless.
I'm not familiar with Batemans but I'm 100% confident you can create something similar (although possibly not from kits). You can find All grain recipes for most branded beers so you can then follow that and you should end up with something pretty close (dependant on the quality of the recipe of course).
There is plenty of help available on here and we all started our brewing journey somewhere so don't worry about asking, what may seem stupid, questions and we'll do our best to answer.
Get stuck it, you know you want to!
Fermenting:
Conditioning:Pale with Styrians
Drinking:Cascade Pale Ale, Summer Lightning
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Hi again,
My brew isn't doing what it should (or perhaps I'm not). Following on from my last post (about a month ago) I left the pressure barrel in a 'cool' place for about two weeks, and then moved it into a 'cold' place - the understairs cupboard, where it's been for about a week. The beer is quite disappointing. It surges from the tap in a frothy rush, but when left to settle in the glass for a few minutes, is quite flat and not clear. The flavour seems ok, but there's no life to it. Any suggestions??
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Hey Pete,
Did you prime the barrel with some extra sugar when you transferred to it?
Posted 1 year ago by Moderator
Hi Tony,
If the beer is coming out fast and frothy its a good sign that the keg is well pressurised.
Make sure you pour the beer slowly with a "squirt" at the end to get a proper beer out with a decent head, I find this takes a few mins for a pint.
It may not be clear yet as it is still a little young, its around a week per 10 drop, (basically this means if the hydrometer read 1045 at the beginning and 1005 at the end you would wait at least 4 weeks) but remember this is only a guide line and the beer will clear when the beer is ready.
As for the life in the beer you will find a kegged beer way more flat than a bottled beer. This is why I keg my ales and bottle my lagers. Next time why not get 5 or so bottles and keg the rest then you can "sample" a bottle and 1/2 pint from the keg each week to see the difference.
And the taste - Well what can I say, I found my 1st wherry was totally clear and uber-drinkable by the 2nd day of warm conditioning, but may last one is still not quite ready (done about 5 weeks ago). Its clear but the taste is not quite there yet. Ask anyone on the miracle that is conditioning, its amazing what difference a few days can make!
Hope this helps Tony, and remember dont get put off or dishartened, it just takes time. There are plenty of other great kits for you to try if the wherry is not to your taste (but I bet it is, just give it a little more time!)
Ta,
Nath
Conditionin' - LEB Pale
Conditionin' - Thwaits Nutty Black
Plannin' - A user upper!
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Hi Stu,
Yes, I primed the barrel with the required amount of sugar, Annie (wife) measured it out in her most meticulous way. I'm still trying the best way to 'draw-off' a pint, Nath, but I shall keep persevering. We're away for a week from tomorrow, so I'll see if it's improved any on our return.
Thanks guys,
Pete
Posted 1 year ago by Admin
Pete, you'll probably find the beer comes out less frothy after you've drawn a few pints, as the pressure will calm down a bit.
It may also take a few more weeks to be really clear and drinkable, Wherry can take a while to reach its peak. Keep trying it every now and then until it's get to where you want it to.
Home brewing does require patience and that's why it good to get a few on the go and then forget about them while you drink the one's that are ready.
Fermenting:
Conditioning:Pale with Styrians
Drinking:Cascade Pale Ale, Summer Lightning
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Hey Pete, I'm just over the river in Hull.
I brewed my first kit (a wherry, like yours) in November hoping it'd be ready for a pre-christmas party. It was okay but still cloudy and very lively like you've described. Lo and behold was away at my parents' for Xmas and returned for New Year. The extra week in a cool kitchen really did the trick; the beer had settled and was perfectly clear. Since then I've bottled and kegged and have realised just to wait a bit longer for my results. I'm doing extract experiments at the moment (the Amarillo and Summer ale kits on here are excellent) but really keen to move to All Grain when I can afford the gear and create some space in the Utility room.
Good luck with it!
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Hi All,
Just back from London visit, tried the beer - it was absolutely dreadful, something's obviosly gone wrong somewhere. While we were in London, we helped our daughter's boyfriend finish off the last of his homebrew - same kit as mine - and it was brilliant, clear, lovely flavour and with a nice sparkle. I'll keep this lot in the barrel for a while - just in case it does improve, but meanwhile I'll get another one going in the brewing bucket. I quite fancy the darker Woodfordes Nog 'Porter Style' - anyone tried it??
I'll report on my progress for your thoughts.
Incidentally,blackhatchetboy, I'm a native of the fair City of Hull, but lived over here for about forty-some years.
Posted 1 year ago by Admin
Hi Pete, yes the nog is good if you like that style of beer. Dark, malty and reasonably bitter. I would keep the wherry for a while longer then ditch if it doesn't improve.
Perhaps its got infected somehow. Try and keep extra clean next time and perhaps use bottled water. Sainsbury do value water 2litres for something mental like 8p a bottle. How they can bottle it for that I don't know.
Fermenting:
Conditioning:Pale with Styrians
Drinking:Cascade Pale Ale, Summer Lightning
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Hi Greg,
Yes, we do like that kind of beer - Bateman's 'Victory' is our favourite if you know it. Really don't know what went wrong with the Wherry. Annie and I are both ex food workers with all the hygiene certificates, so cleanliness shouldn't be a problem, but something definitely went wrong. I'll keep the wherry till the next one needs the barrel, the if it's still no better . . . .
Might try the Sainsbury's value water, though. We have a branch nearby.
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Well chaps, I must report a definite improvement in the brew. My better half drew a sample this evening and it was quite good - much clearer than it had been and with a bit of life in it. She turned the tap only a little so it ran slowly, taking quite a while to fill a half-pint glass. It immediately looked better, and on standing for a couple of minutes was quite an attractive drink. Things are looking up!!
Cheers,
Pete
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Result! 'Good things come to those who wait,' as some tastless irish muck said.
Posted 1 year ago by Admin
A few days can make a huge difference to a home brew, especially when you are using a bottom tap keg as the whole things has to clear before it reaches the tap.
Glad you hung on in there and so glad its turned out well.
Happy Days!
Fermenting:
Conditioning:Pale with Styrians
Drinking:Cascade Pale Ale, Summer Lightning
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Hmmmm...
Hmmmm...
Hmmmm...
(that's me trying not to be offended on behalf of 4.5 million people and 250 years of a certain biere noire d'Irlande).
Conditioning (Bottles): Sam Adams Boston Lager Clone
Drinking (Bottles): Sierra Nevada Pale Ale Clone
Drinking (King Keg): McMullen's Country Best Bitter
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Ha ha! Ireland is lovely, but any beer that needs to be super chilled to be palatable is on dubious ground!
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Fair point
Thing is, when you get a good pint of the stuff, you feel like you've just scored the winning goal in the World Cup final (or just scored with Scarlett Johansson). Problem is, all too often bars such as my local think it's okay to charge £3.40 (I kid you not) for a version that's sub-standard at best. Now THAT is where overpriced muck is the first phrase that springs to mind.
My other sore point about over here is, we're so limited in our variety of beers in 90% of pubs, the Guinness HAS to at least be palatable, or it's whiskey for me (closely followed by lights out).
Honestly, I promise to log on some day and talk about how great something is, for a change
Conditioning (Bottles): Sam Adams Boston Lager Clone
Drinking (Bottles): Sierra Nevada Pale Ale Clone
Drinking (King Keg): McMullen's Country Best Bitter
Posted 1 year ago by Member
Agree with the 90%. Fortunately my local (The Wellington Inn, Hull) is a bastion of good taste with over 100 bottled beers, a bunch of hand pulls at any one time and some good Scotch to boot!
If it helps...a friend of mine who owned pub a while back always claimed the old adage that 'Guiness doesn't travel' was more to do with the length of pipe between barrel and tap rather than distance from St. James' Gate. He used to keep the barrel right under the bar and always poured a good pint!
Posted 1 year ago by Member
When I was in Ireland (Achill Island) nearly all the pubs had the Guinness barrel under the counter, exactly as you say blackhatchetboy.
I must admit though, since all Guinness brewing has moved back to Ireland, the pint has suffered. Doesn't have the fullness it had before. Maybe both are right, distance traveled from brewery and distance to the tap? Can't see how that helps in Ireland though .. still has to travel fair distances.
(with grateful thanks to the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers and slightly adapted)
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