MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
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Fancy having a go at brewing my own ale. Had a quick look and theres bloody loads of kits on the market,can anybody please recommend a good one for a complete beginner.
plus any handy tips etc
cheers
I have used the woodfordes kits and they are gewat. you can buy a complete starter kit which has everything you need. don't buy from the online homebrew company though. they are a bunch of cowboys that use low prices to get you to place the order but then don't deliver. They show items as in stock which never are. I ordered over Christmas and I cancelled this week as they had not delivered. They are niwvtelling ne it will take 2 weeks for the refund.
starting from scratch, I'd recommend pretty much anything by Coopers depending on the style you're after.
more help at www.jimsbeerkit.co.uk
You'll also need a fermenting bin, or two; a paddle, hydrometer & trial jar, siphon tubing and enough bottles to put it all in when it's finished. If your Fermenting Bin lid has a hole, fit a rubber grommet & an airlock to keep the nasties out (wild yeats, vinegar bacteria, and many other things that love beer but make it unpalatable to humans)
If you don't have a local homebrew shop (LHBS) then Tesco Direct are doing the Coopers Microbrewery which contains everything you need to get started; if you do have a LHBS then please use them, they really do need your support
Finally, cleanliness really is next to godliness when it comes to brewing. clean everything that's likely to touch the beer, then make sure you give it a REALLY good rinse. yeast & bleach don't make happy bedfellows
Finally, you need somewhere warm to brew it and do the secondary fermentation (in the bottles, makes it fizzy), somewhere cool to store it for at least two weeks after the above has finished, and LOTS of patience. Kit beers can take up to 2 weeks to ferment depending on temperature, plus 2 weeks in the warm for the secondary fermentation, and another 2 or more weeks in the cool for bottle conditioning.
do NOT keep peeking in the fermentation bin, you'll let the nasties in
+1 for Woodfordes. I've tried a couple of their brew's and they've been great.
I've also used the homebrew company, although it was only once and they were OK, item was in stock and delivered ontime. However I now use my local homebrew shop. The forum on the homebrew company website is a useful stop as its quite active, might be worth a look?
Some Wilkinson's shops also stock home brew equipment.
Shop around for a kit, Tesco do one cheap I think, not sure if it has a keg. I got a deal from the maligned retailer above-kit plus Wherrys for £60, tasted great. 2 free further brew kits too, but £5 postage makes the £8 kit you get less of a bargain.
MY local shop has good prices and great advice so I doubt I'll shop anywhere else now.
WOrth a try if there's one local to you.