Basic Beermaking

The Home Wine & Beer Trade Association is offering a free beermaking booklet to web site visitors, compliments of Briess Malting Co. To obtain the booklet, just contact us with your name and mailing address.

EQUIPMENT NEEDED

• 4-5 Gallon Stock Pot (stainless steel or enamel - do not use aluminum)
• Long Handle Spoon
• Primary Fermenter (minimum 6 1/2 gallon)
• Secondary Fermenter (5 gallon glass carboy) or Bottling Vessel (5 gallon minimum)
• Airlock & Stopper(s)
• Racking Tube & Siphon Hose
• Capper & Crown Caps
• Refillable Beer Bottles (48 Twelve Ounce)
• Bottle Brush
• Sterilant/Cleanser

OPTIONAL:

• Floating Thermometer
• Hydrometer & Test Jar
• Jet Bottle Washer & Faucet Adapter
• Siphon Hose Shut-Off Clamp
• Bottle Filler
• Carboy Brush
• Kitchen Strainer (free of cooking grease)

SANITATION
The most important aspect of brewing good beer is sanitation. Every piece of equipment that will come in contact with your beer must be cleaned and sanitized.

Use One-Step Cleanser/Sanitizer or some other proprietary product. Mix sanitizer according to package directions. Let equipment soak for at least 20 minutes and rinse thoroughly with tap water.

BREWING WATER
Tap water has a high chlorine content and should be pre-boiled. Boil 6 gallons of tap water uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes, cover and allow to cool. When cool, carefully siphon the water into sanitized containers. Bottled Spring Water (not distilled) may also be used and need not be boiled.

A water pH of 5-5.5 is desired for most beer styles. The addition of Gypsum or Burton Water Salts will lower the pH of your brewing water.

INGREDIENTS
The basic ingredients needed for 5 gallons of beer are:

• 5-7 lbs. of Unhopped Malt Extract
• Bittering Hops

or

• 3 lbs. of Hopped Malt Extract & 2-4 lbs. of Unhopped Malt Extract

and

• Aroma Hops (Optional)
• Yeast
• 5 1/2 Gallons of Water
• 3/4 Cup Corn Sugar (Dextrose) for Priming

OPTIONAL
Specialty Grains such as Crystal Malt, Toasted Malted Barley, Chocolate Malt, Black Patent Malt or Roasted Unmalted Barley are sometimes used to add color and flavor. These grains should be crushed with a rolling pin or heavy bottle to break open the husks prior to use.

Additives such as Gypsum or Burton Water Salts lower water pH.

Brewing adjuncts are sometimes used in addition to or in place of malt for specific styles of beer. Rice syrup, honey, wheat, flaked maize and flaked oats are just a few examples of adjuncts.

BREWING PROCESS
First, place 4 gallons of water in your freezer. This water will help cool your wort later.

If you are using any specialty grains add them to your stock pot with 1 1/2 gallons of water. Bring the water and grains up to 170 deg. F. When the water reaches 170 deg F turn off the heat, strain out the grains and discard them. Proceed as follows:

If you are using canned malt extract, warm the cans under hot tap water to aid in removing the sticky syrup inside.

In your stock pot, bring 1 1/2 gallons water (if you used specialty grains, use the water from which you removed the grains), the gypsum, and malt extract to a boil. Add bittering hops (if you are using them). Boil gently (stirring occasionally to prevent sticking) for 60 minutes. Add finishing hops (if you are using them) and boil for one minute.

Remove stock pot from heat. Pour the 4 gallons of ice cold water into your sanitized primary fermenter. Next, pour the wort (the unfermented beer solution) through a strainer into your primary fermenter. Attach lid to primary, install air lock without water and let wort cool to about 70 degrees F.

If you placed your remaining 4 gallons of water in the freezer prior to beginning your batch it will cool your wort very quickly. Also, placing your primary fermenter in a sink full of ice water aids in cooling.

Once the wort has cooled, stir vigorously to aerate and add yeast. DO NOT aerate wort until it has cooled. Re-attach lid and airlock to primary fermenter and add water to the airlock until it is about half full. Place the primary in a cool (60-70F) dark place and allow the wort to ferment.

Note: Fermentation will be evident in 24-48 hours when a foam (kraeusen) begins to form and pressure builds in your air lock.

After the initial active fermentation has slowed down (approx. 3 days), gently siphon beer off the sediment into sanitized secondary fermenter and attach air lock half filled with water. Place fermenter in a cool dark place and allow fermentation to continue.

When fermentation has ceased and the beer is clear (approximately 10-20 days), it will be time to prime & bottle.

The end of fermentation will be evident when there is no activity in your air lock, you no longer see bubbles rising to the surface of the beer and the beer is clear. Do not confuse clarity with color. When you first siphon the beer into the secondary fermenter it is very cloudy due to the suspended yeast. As fermentation ceases, the yeast begin settling to the bottom of the fermenter. You will see a "line of clearness" fall through the beer and there will be a layer of sediment on the bottom of the fermenter.

Note: If you are using a hydrometer, your specific gravity will remain steady for several days at a reading below 1.015.

Boil 3/4 cup of corn sugar in 1/2 cup water to make a sugar syrup. Allow the sugar syrup to cool. Siphon beer off the sediment back into the clean, sanitized primary fermenter. Stir sugar syrup into beer gently yet thoroughly. Siphon beer into sanitized bottles, cap with sanitized caps and let age in a cool (60-70F) dark place to allow time for carbonation.

In approximately 2 weeks your beer will be carbonated and ready to drink; however, it will continue to improve with additional aging.