How do

[Danny(00833827)]

hi folks, a newbie here, getting ready to do my first* kit, gathering info on recipe, procedures, technique, various pitfalls, etc. - gotta say there are some great online resources such as this one. Prepare for many stoopid questions from me!

*Did one years ago, pure muck:-( lets hope i can improve on this.

[CB_Phil]

Welcome to the forum & the boat, Im always firing up stupid questions, but some great help on here

[Garry]

Welcome aboard 


Have a look in the Kit Brewing forum, there's some great how-tos to get you started. The Coopers kits are good quality and easy use.


What was the kit you used before?

[Danny(00833827)]

thanks guys -

it was that long ago i cant recall, from researching things here the last while, reading things like how critical temperature and sanitizing everything is, i would guess the results were completely my fault - i guess i opened a can, pack of sugar, left in an old bucket for a week - no science of hydrometers, gauging temperature. Still drank it though

This time I am prepared. Starter kit, Canadian Blonde from Coopers, 1kg of DME - toying with the idea of a bit of honey, maybe some dry hopping? who knows! One beer i would love to emulate is the Donegal Blonde, its a big favorite of mine right now. But its a learning curve. Lets get a few kits under my belt first, eh?

[Garry]

Sounds like you've being doing some research already! I'd keep the first kit as simple as possible, maybe leave the dry hopping and honey for the next one? I've used honey on a stout kit before and it turned out nice.


The DME can clump up with steam so try the following (from LordEoin);

• Place the FV on the floor and add the dry fermentables - sugar and dry malt
• Add 2 liters of water off the boil
• Fill and boil a kettle of water
• Pick up the FV and swirl, alternating direction occasionally until all the malt power is disolved completely. You can stir this in, but you're more likely to get clumps of malt, upset gravity readings, and a broken heart.
• [/l][/l]

[/list]

[LordEoin]

Welcome.
Any questions, just ask

[Danny(00833827)]

good tip - thanks guys!