5 Wide Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 I received as a Christmas present last year one of those Mr. Beer kits. I put it away in a closet and forgot I had it. About a Month ago I remembered I had it so I fired it up. It came with two cans of Malt Extract, So I gave it a shot. The first one was a "Bohemian Lager" which sat in the little fermenter for 2 weeks, and has been in the bottles for 2 weeks. After that, the second one was a "Mexican Cervesa" which just went into the bottles. I haven't tried any of the Bohemian yet, and i'm not optimistic it's going to be any good, but who knows. It looks like the Mr. Beer kit is basically a gateway kit into the hobby though. Since then, i've upgraded to a 5 gallon fermenter, a glass carboy, a bottling container, and a slew of the tools of the trade. I've got 5 gallons of a Boston Lager going now, and the possibilities for crafting your own beers with this setup is much more enticing. Learning about bittering hops, finishing hops, and the combinations you can go with, the different sugars, it looks like it can be fairly addicting. Anyone else here into doing homebrewing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BringBackFergy Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 Very cool. I have always wanted to make some home brew. Is there a website you went to that sells the carboys, fermenter, etc?? Tell us how it goes. Sounds like alot of fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5 Wide Posted October 30, 2013 Author Share Posted October 30, 2013 Very cool. I have always wanted to make some home brew. Is there a website you went to that sells the carboys, fermenter, etc?? Tell us how it goes. Sounds like alot of fun. Not sure if you are local in the Buffalo Area, but I went to Niagara Traditions Homebrew on Sheridan Dr. http://www.nthomebrew.com/ - although if not local they still sell everything online. I just went in with a very small amount of knowledge I had from the Mr. Beer experience and talked to the guys there. They have kits they sell through there for around $100 which gives you everything you need to get started. Other than the kit, you need about a 2 gallon spaghetti pot to cook the malt and hops in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Poojer Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 i have done it for almost 30 years...took some time off but have started laying the ground work to get back into it...re-collecting equipment and trying to figure out the best way to brew in my small apartment Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim in Anchorage Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 I roll winos and grab the bottle. Just that easy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BringBackFergy Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 i have done it for almost 30 years...took some time off but have started laying the ground work to get back into it...re-collecting equipment and trying to figure out the best way to cook brew in my small apartment Poojer sounding more and more like Heisenberg every day..."that's glass grade yo". I roll winos and grab the bottle. Just that easy. A 40 ounce of malt liquor doesn't constitute "beer" does it?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim in Anchorage Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 . A 40 ounce of malt liquor doesn't constitute "beer" does it?? When you're on the Jones, Yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BringBackFergy Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 When you're on the Jones, Yes. Beggers can't be choosers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim in Anchorage Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 Beggers can't be choosers Ahh I learn every day new things I had no idea about. I never knew thunderbird and ripple where such fine wines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordio Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 I received as a Christmas present last year one of those Mr. Beer kits. I put it away in a closet and forgot I had it. About a Month ago I remembered I had it so I fired it up. It came with two cans of Malt Extract, So I gave it a shot. The first one was a "Bohemian Lager" which sat in the little fermenter for 2 weeks, and has been in the bottles for 2 weeks. After that, the second one was a "Mexican Cervesa" which just went into the bottles. I haven't tried any of the Bohemian yet, and i'm not optimistic it's going to be any good, but who knows. It looks like the Mr. Beer kit is basically a gateway kit into the hobby though. Since then, i've upgraded to a 5 gallon fermenter, a glass carboy, a bottling container, and a slew of the tools of the trade. I've got 5 gallons of a Boston Lager going now, and the possibilities for crafting your own beers with this setup is much more enticing. Learning about bittering hops, finishing hops, and the combinations you can go with, the different sugars, it looks like it can be fairly addicting. Anyone else here into doing homebrewing? My brother in law is really into homebrewing. He has a sweet basement with 3 taps hooked up behind his bar. We go over there every year for Thanksgiving & he always has 3 different beers going on the different taps. He usually does some kind of pumpkin spice beer & 2 others. He did this Apple Cidar one last year that would knock you on your a**. It was pretty strong. I am not a big fan of them but he loves to do it. Pretty funny my dad will have 5 or 6 of them every Thanksgiving over my sister's house & get pretty tipsy(I think some of the stuff he makes is pushing 8%) & my mom will give him the evil eye across the room(she doesn't drink). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloBud Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 My brother in law is really into homebrewing. He has a sweet basement with 3 taps hooked up behind his bar. We go over there every year for Thanksgiving & he always has 3 different beers going on the different taps. He usually does some kind of pumpkin spice beer & 2 others. He did this Apple Cidar one last year that would knock you on your a**. It was pretty strong. I am not a big fan of them but he loves to do it. Pretty funny my dad will have 5 or 6 of them every Thanksgiving over my sister's house & get pretty tipsy(I think some of the stuff he makes is pushing 8%) & my mom will give him the evil eye across the room(she doesn't drink). That's why the local establishments pour into various sized glasses. Higher the ABV the smaller the glass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chef Jim Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 I've never done it but always wanted to make either beer or wine. Well I am now on the wagon so that is way on the back burner. But I will tell you this from making my own cheese and cured sausages. You will make some mistakes and you will also make somethings that will surprise you. Bottom line these types of things are great hobbies that will greatly reduce your cost of consumption. I spend about $15-20 on cheese or sausage making that would cost me 10 fold if I bought them made in the store. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BringBackFergy Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 I've never done it but always wanted to make either beer or wine. Well I am now on the wagon so that is way on the back burner. But I will tell you this from making my own cheese and cured sausages. You will make some mistakes and you will also make somethings that will surprise you. Bottom line these types of things are great hobbies that will greatly reduce your cost of consumption. I spend about $15-20 on cheese or sausage making that would cost me 10 fold if I bought them made in the store. I wanted to make my own sausage with venison. I figure I'd buy some pork (pork butt I guess) to mix with the venison for some fattiness because venison is so lean. I've scoped out sausage stuffing machines but always wonder if you can buy natural casings or are they artificial?? What do you use? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanker Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 Haven't done it in quite some time, but here's where you can get a lot of information and all the equipment and ingredients you need. http://morebeer.com/ The real deal: MoreBeer.com Kits and easy goin': Mr. Beer Beer, wine, cheese making and other info, equipment, and ingredients: The Grape and Granary While I'm at it - here's a sausage making site that some of you might enjoy. I'm going to try making some Irish bangers. On another note, a coworker of mine just got into moonshining. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Poojer Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 i used a kitchen aid mixer with the meat grinder and sausage attachments, plus i have a ronco pasta maker/sausage maker and they both work perfectly fine. Any decent supermarket will have natural casings and they are very inexpensive and you get a ton...it's fun to do...i may actually make some in the next week or so I wanted to make my own sausage with venison. I figure I'd buy some pork (pork butt I guess) to mix with the venison for some fattiness because venison is so lean. I've scoped out sausage stuffing machines but always wonder if you can buy natural casings or are they artificial?? What do you use? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BringBackFergy Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 i used a kitchen aid mixer with the meat grinder and sausage attachments, plus i have a ronco pasta maker/sausage maker and they both work perfectly fine. Any decent supermarket will have natural casings and they are very inexpensive and you get a ton...it's fun to do...i may actually make some in the next week or so Thanks. Good info. Much appreciated. Haven't done it in quite some time, but here's where you can get a lot of information and all the equipment and ingredients you need. http://morebeer.com/ The real deal: MoreBeer.com Kits and easy goin': Mr. Beer Beer, wine, cheese making and other info, equipment, and ingredients: The Grape and Granary While I'm at it - here's a sausage making site that some of you might enjoy. I'm going to try making some Irish bangers. On another note, a coworker of mine just got into moonshining. Thanks Nanker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanker Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 Never use artificial casings! They're not natural. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chef Jim Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 I wanted to make my own sausage with venison. I figure I'd buy some pork (pork butt I guess) to mix with the venison for some fattiness because venison is so lean. I've scoped out sausage stuffing machines but always wonder if you can buy natural casings or are they artificial?? What do you use? You will definitely want to add some pork fat to the mix. I use natural casing (hog middles) and actually get them from a local company back in Buffalo. I've been trying to get my WNY friends to send me some venison. Are you looking at fresh or cured sausages? http://www.sausagemaker.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BringBackFergy Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 You will definitely want to add some pork fat to the mix. I use natural casing (hog middles) and actually get them from a local company back in Buffalo. I've been trying to get my WNY friends to send me some venison. Are you looking at fresh or cured sausages? http://www.sausagemaker.com/ Fresh sausage. Not hot but sweet, maybe some sage or other seasonings to make it good with pasta/oil/garlic, marinara sauce, bar-b-q, etc. Also planning on making some breakfast sausage with it as well. Damn, that website has everything. Very nice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chef Jim Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 (edited) Fresh sausage. Not hot but sweet, maybe some sage or other seasonings to make it good with pasta/oil/garlic, marinara sauce, bar-b-q, etc. Also planning on making some breakfast sausage with it as well. Damn, that website has everything. Very nice. Here's the website you need to use for sausage recipes. This is the best site I've ever seen. Great recipes that work. http://lpoli.50webs.com/ If that site doesn't give your sausage a boner you shouldn't be making sausage. Edited October 30, 2013 by Chef Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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