Congratulations on becoming a father! I was only doing extract brewing when I became a father. It's been a few years since I actually did any brewing, but I've been itching to get back into it.
this post was submitted on 29 Jun 2023
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Homebrewing - Beer, Mead, Wine, Cider
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"...but I’ve been itching to get back into it."
No time like the present! :)
Funny story, when I started, I was looking for a large glass carboy for cheap and someone suggested checking an antique store. I went to one nearby and found a perfect one for $20 I think? It had a very old sticker on it from a water company. When I got home I did some research online. Turns out the company was originally a beer bottling company and during prohibition they started to bottle water!
It would be lovely to get some nice glass carboys, but they're expensive here (Scotland), and the plastic bucket fermenters are just so easy to clean, it's hard to see past them. There's also the bonus that a 5 gallon bucket fits perfectly in the fridge I use for fermenting!
I’ve switched to aluminum conical fermenters. Much easier to clean and lighter than glass. They’re pricey though.
Yeah, I spend enough money on my other hobbies, this is supposed to be the cheap one!
Interestingly, I used to do extract brewing, then switched to BIAB, and now an all in one. I don't think BIAB really increased my brewing and cleaning time much.
With my All in One, I think I'm right back to my extract days in terms of time spent because I ferment right in the AI1. Very little cleanup. (Or at least the cleanup is spread out a lot more.)
I totally get that an AI1 system would be faster and easier, but for me it just defeats the fun of the hobby! I like the random variation because my temperatures are a bit off, or I forgot to add the hops at the right time. Don't get me wrong, I'm always trying to get it 'right' but I like the manual bits. I also do a lot of woodwork by hand for the same reasons, so I think it's very much a personal preference thing.
Wow are you me? I've been considering selling my equipment the last few months for this exact same reason. An 8 hour brew day isn't in the cards for me anymore with a 2 year old. I hadn't thought of swapping back to extracts. This would shave a few hours off the brew for sure. I made about 20 different recipes using extracts several years ago and noticed that the best ones tended to be lighter. I don't have any recipes since extract brewing is rather straightforward but after being spoiled with all grain for years I'd suggest sticking with ambers, cream ales, or similar. Always add a bit more hops than you would with all grain since extracts in large quantities can add a tininess that you want to control for. Thanks for the idea too!
If you have the money, consider an all-in-one system like Grainfather. Brew days can be 4-5 hours without rushing and most of the day can be handled via a programmable controller.
Ha! I can imagine it's a common experience.
Thanks for the tips, and a good shout about the hops, I'll bear it in mind. Amber ales tend to be my go to session beer, so we could definitely cope with making a few of those!
I'm genuinely not sure if the couple of hours saved will make it realistic, but it was the only way of significantly cutting the time down we could think of.
Good luck yourself. I'm really in my fatherhood journey, but enjoying it so far!
It's definitely a ride but a welcome and satisfying one for sure. Cheers!
I don't have any recipe suggestions, but https://www.homebrewfinds.com/ posts extract kits on sale regularly.
example https://www.homebrewfinds.com/morebeer-com-recipe-kit-deals/ https://www.homebrewfinds.com/morebeer-wine-kit-of-the-week/
Thanks! Definitely one to bookmark.
The joy of homebrewing has a section I think called "betterbrew" that is extract recipes plus specialty grains. That's how I started except through the Austin homebrew mini-mash recipes. You basically steep some blend of grains like crystal and carawheat in a strainer bag for awhile and then add the base malt extract after you have removed them.
I'm not sure my beer has gotten any better since going to all grain but there are more opportunities to make mistakes. So I also think about going back.
You can view the whole recipes on the ahb website by finding the click here for instructions link, like this one:
https://austinhomebrew.com/products/ahs-fall-esb-8c-mini-mash-homebrew-ingredient-kit
Thanks for the tip!
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