Brewing beer at home can be a great way to not only have an enjoyable hobby of brewing tasty, home-crafted beer, but it can end up saving a lot of money in the long run too.  For people who enjoy beer often, buying enough throughout the week can end up costing quite a bit of money.  After a person begins to collect all of the equipment to make their own beer, once they start brewing their own batches of beer, they will end up saving quite a deal of money compared to the cost of buying their supply every week.  Once this becomes a regular thing, however, one will be faced with a problem.

Once the batches of beer are properly brewed, something must be done with the beer to store it correctly.  A keg would be one of the ideal options, as it will keep the beer stored and cold as well as providing proper and quick carbonation.  This can also cost a bit of money, as several hundreds of dollars are usually spent in installing a keg system.  Everything from CO2 towers to provide air pressure and carbonation to canisters and towers of piping to draw the beer out of the keg.  One might even need to buy a kegerator, a special refrigerator designed to hold beer kegs, with a spout located at the top which will dispense all of the beer on command.

As one can see, this will end up costing quite a bit of money.  The cheaper solution, which will end up being more practical in many cases as well, is to bottle the beer.  With beer bottles, a person would be able to store beer in smaller serving sizes.  This can stop a person from drinking too much as well as give them the ability to take the beer with them to other locations.  This would not be always feasible with a keg.  Beer bottles, however, allow one to easily transport these bottles, give them away as gifts, and even personalize their beer bottles with special labels.

Bottling beer is easy, as one only needs to wash and sterilize the bottles before the beer is placed into them and sealed.  The bottles can be much easier to store in a refrigerator than a large, bulky keg.  Additionally, the bottles can be used over and over again, making them an investment that will save a great deal of money.  Once a person has a good supply of beer bottles, they will never need to buy bottles again.  They can be washed and sterilized forever, making sure that a person always has enough bottles to keep their beer supply fresh.

One of the more technical aspects of brewing your own beer at home is with using a hydrometer.  One of these little devices is important because it serves two functions during any brewing cycle.  Not only is a hydrometer important to know when the fermentation process is over, but it can also assist you in calculating the alcohol potential of your beer.  This can be important with letting you figure out how strong a beer will be when you serve it to your friends or guests.  The stronger the beer, the less you may want to hand out.

When you use a hydrometer, you will need to take a portion of your mixture and place it into a long tube.  From there, you will place your hydrometer into the mix.  The hydrometer itself is a cylindrical device which is weighted at the bottom.  While in the mixture, the hydrometer projects the liquid at a height which is measured against the density of the liquid.  This density is read on the hydrometer at the surface of the liquid and will help to determine a number of factors about the batch of beer.

Taking a reading before the batch has been fermented will let you measure the alcohol potential of the brew.  This, naturally, is a potential because it allows you to see just how much sugar is already located in the batch.  The sugar is what will turn into alcohol and knowing how much is there in the beginning is what will help you to determine how strong the alcohol content of your beer is.  It will also tell you what the original gravity of your brew is before fermentation.

After this fermentation process is over, during whatever length of time that it takes to complete, another hydrometer reading needs to be taken.  This will give you the final gravity of the beer and will also, in turn, allow you to determine the approximate alcohol content of your beer.  When you take the original gravity or the original alcohol potential and subtract from that the final gravity or alcohol potential, you will get a number.  The difference between these numbers will indicate how much of the sugar in the mixture was eaten by the yeast and turned into alcohol.  The number that you get is the alcohol content of the brew.  The lower the final gravity is, the higher the alcohol content of the beer.

Two important things to keep in mind, however, are that when getting a reading from your hydrometer, your liquid must always be around 60 degrees Fahrenheit.  This is what the water readings are based on with a hydrometer.  Additionally, if your final gravity reading is not at least a 65% loss, your brew has not fermented long enough and must be left alone for a longer amount of time.  This is what will provide the best brew possible.

When you are learning all you need to know in order to make your own beer, you will also want to know an important concept called “Making a Yeast Starter”. This is a method that you will use to prepare your yeast for the fermentation process by adding a small amount of yeast into the Wort. By doing this you are encouraging the yeast to multiply and create the right amount of yeast cells in order to create an ideal fermentation situation.

Amount of Yeast Needed

For most home brews, you will need to produce approximately 3.75 billion active yeast cells for only 5 gallons of ale. You will need even more than that for a Lager due to the fact that the process of fermentation lasts longer and is usually kept at colder temperatures. Because of this you will need to increase the amount of yeast so that you will have enough cells for the optimum fermentation situation.

Generally the rule is that if you have a bigger starter, the more reproduction you can expect because you have more sugar to create fuel for the process.  Some brewing books will have mathematic formulas and research that will show you how to calculate the proper amount of starter you will need, however the easier way is to simply purchase a pitching rate calculator.

Prepare your Wort

The next thing you will need to do is to make some Wort for use in the starter, you will need this to feed your yeast, and to help you gage whether you will need table sugar in your starter. You will also want to take into account that it will also have to eat the sugar from the beer sugars (like maltose), having too much sugar may prove to be detrimental to your yeast and may cause them to give up on the fermentation process long before your beer is ready.

The next thing you will need is the right equipment which means a glass container, airlock, foil, and a stopper in order to get started with this process. You will want to boil your Wort and cover quickly when done to keep bacteria out, cool at room temperature. Be sure to clean your equipment to be used at a later date.

You will also want to ensure that the temperature you use for your starter should be the one you use before fermentation. You will want to add a small amount of yeast to your Wort so that you can start growing yeast cells. Lastly keep you starter covered, you would not want to have some bacteria ruin your beer.

When you have done this you may want to add yeast nutrient at this point it is to ensure that levels optimum for the fermentation is available.

Give your Starter Oxygen

In order for your active yeast to continue reproducing quickly, you will need to get oxygen to your starter fermentation. The right amount of oxygen will cause your starter to maximize in the quickest amount of time.  Shaking your starter will help you when you are trying to give it more oxygen. Some enthusiast may even recommend the purchase of an aquarium pump to give it more oxygen. Making sure your Wort is oxygenated is the best way of ensuring that your yeast will reply.

Over all the most important thing is that when creating a starter is the way to ensure that you are able the right amount of yeast to ensure that your beer has the right taste and consistency.

Sometime during the fermentation process, you will need to transfer (rack) your beer to another vessel so that your liquid is clear. When doing this it is important that you not expose it to the air or to other bacteria. That is why it is important that you learn the proper way to siphon your beer. This will help you to create delicious, and clear beer.

Since most people use carboys for brewing at home, you will find that they do not come with a spigot. This means that you will need to learn the proper siphoning technique. The first step to this process is to have the proper equipment. To siphon beer from a carboy, you will need either a racking tube (plastic transfer hose).

The best siphoning happens when your hose is at the very bottom of the carboy, the closer to the bottom the better. This helps to keep air bubbles out to the hose, and increases your efficiency level. Air bubbles will slow down or even stop the flow of your liquid; it may even oxidize your beer, which will destroy the mix.

While there are many different ways to start your siphon, not every one is good when you are brewing beer at home. The best method and by far the easiest is by simply sucking on the end to get a flow going, however this may cause your beer to end up with contaminants from your mouth. To fix this problem beer brewers say that creating a false end on your hose is the best way to keep out contaminants. You add the hose to such the liquid into the hose, and then remove it quickly once the flow starts.

Another way to such the liquid into the hose and start a good flow is to use a turkey baster, put one end into the hose and with one good inhale you can get your liquid flowing and be able to remove the beer without adding any contaminants.

Yet another way to get the liquid moving is to fill up your hose with water before you connect it to a racking tube. Once you have connected the hose (the tube should already be inside the carboy) then you drop the end into the hose into the new vessel, this will get the flow going right away. You may need to practice this procedure quite a few times before you get it going good. And you will not need to worry about the little bit of water that will be in your Wort.

One more idea would be to buy a piece of equipment known as a siphon starter. With this item you simply add it to your transfer hose and shake, the fluid will rush to the ball bearing and this will get the liquid flowing.

Lastly you can buy the liquid pump, this cost more than all the other options however you will be able to quickly and easily transfer your beer. You must however ensure you have the right size hoses.

Whatever you decide is the best method for your home brew transfer, it is important that you get comfortable with it so that you are doing it correctly every time. The smoother your transfer process, the less occurrences you will have of contaminates entering and destroying your beer. You will also have cleaner and tastier beer.

When you are deciding on home brewing as a hobby, one of the most important things you will need to know is the basic ingredients for making your beer. Beer is usually made up of some very basic ingredients that when mixed a certain way will create very different beer types. Choosing the right ingredients for your home made beer will give you the type of drink you desire.

Ingredients

Adjuncts

In the world of brewing, an adjunct is either rice or corn which is used to produce sugar that can be fermented. This ferment will not have any additional flavors or any extra body to the brew. Another thing about adjuncts is that in most cases it takes the place of other products. It takes the place of malt extract or just plain malt; it is much thinner than these products and will produce a milder tasting beer than using malt.

Hops

When making beer, may people will want to add hops in order to season their beer and make it bitter. Hops take out some of the sweetness that would otherwise come from the malt. Hops are usually added when you have finished boiling the mix. Should you feel that you do not have enough of the hops, you may want to add additional hops to the mix. Hops are flowers and you can buy them as whole flowers or by getting the pellets. Hops come in a wide variety of flavors so that you can choose just the right kind, to make a beer to suit your style.

Malt

Most recipes on the market that people use to make home made beer are malt. Malt comes in many different variations so that you can make many different kinds of malt. While it is possible to make beer at home without malt, it is one of the recommended steps for home brewing.

Malt Extract

Made from either malted barley or a form of malted wheat, malt extract is used to provide the right amount of sugar that is needed in the development of the yeast you will use in the fermentation process.

Water

Most of the ingredients available in your beer, water by far is the most prominent making up most of the volume of the beer. You may use tap water for this process, however for the best results you will want to use one of the many bottled waters available. When choosing bottle water you will also need to keep in mind that having mineral water will severely affect beer so steer clear of any water that has mineral content.

Many people drink beer, some drink it as a social drink, while others will want a cold beer to help them relax when they get home. A true beer enthusiast looks forward to the prospect of making the frothy brew right in their own home.

Home brewing is a great hobby that can be done inexpensively without buying a whole lot of equipment (although there is tons of equipment available to more enthusiastic beer brewers). Home brewing can be fun and relaxing, and there is nothing like the feeling of having that first glass of the beer you made yourself.

Getting Started: Equipment

When you are ready to start the beer making hobby, the first consideration the brewer will have is finding out what minimum equipment they will need in order to make their own home brewed beer. You can buy a beer making kit for approximately $75 – $50 or you can collect a small effective collection which should include:

• A big Pot: A 3-5 gallon pot is the perfect size. With this size, you will get all the ingredients you need in it and you will prevent any chances of spilling.
• Tube (and possible a clamp): This is used for siphoning the beer and you can also use it to bottle the beer. The best tubing to use for beer is the 6 ft food tubing.
• Fermenting Bucket (Carboy): You will need a bucket (preferable 5 gallons) that has a lid or you may buy a glass carboy. The best option is buying the carboy, it is easier to clean and will not leak while it is aging.
• Air Lock: Ensure that it fits securely on your carboy, so that no air or bacteria enters the mix.
• Thermometer: This should be a floating the thermometer that can measure 0-100 C or 32-220 F
• Bottles:  For this particular guide you will need 2 dozen, 12 ounces bottles or one 5 gallon jug. Try not to use the kind of bottles that have twisting caps. Cork capped bottles are a better choice.
• Bottle Caps: You will need to buy about 50 caps to ensure you have enough caps for your 2 dozen bottles
• Bottle caper- a device made specifically for capping your bottles
• Sanitation Solution – Bleach can be used,  if you are on a budget or you can buy Iodophor

Ingredients

The next step is to gather the ingredients. Before doing this, it is best to find a really good recipe. Recipes are available in just about any beer type including light beer and will give you step-by-step instructions on how to make the beer. The minimum ingredients include.

• 6 lbs of pale malt extract (un-hopped): Most times they are found in 3lbs cans. You may also is Dry Malt Extract is Pale Male extract is not available.
• 2.25oz Hops: For this guide we will use “East Kent Golding’s Hops” through there are many different types of Hops. Use of Hops is to give the beer its bitterness.
• Yeast: The recommendation is to use liquid yeast (for this guide, you will use, “White Labs California Ale Yeast”) Using liquid yeast produces the very best beer.
• 2/3 cup Corn Sugar

The Process

• Step 1: You will need to boil the pale malt extract and the hops, in water. You will want to do this for about an hour.
• Step 2: You will need to cool the mixture until it reaches room temperature. You will want to then siphon the mixture to your carboy (Fermenter), add water to the mix, till it reaches the 5 gallon mark. When your mixture is at room temperature, then you will want to add yeast. Ensure that the area you are using is clean and everything is sanitized, this is important because at this point, the “Wort” can be infected with bacteria. That will ruin the beer. Next seal your fermenter with an airlock. This fermentation process will take approximately 1 to 2 weeks
• Step 3: In this step, you will prime and bottle the beer. When beer is done with the fermentation process, you will first siphon it to another container to get it ready for bottling. Than you will add the corn sugar (or priming sugar) to the beer. Lastly, you will siphon the mixture into each of the bottles, and cap them using the capping device.
• Step 4: In this step you will need to bottle the beer and let it age for approximately 2 to 6 weeks. During this time the yeast will continue to ferment the beer, turning carbon dioxide and carbonating your bear. After a few months of aging it will be ready to drink.

Once you have completed the aging process, your beer will be ready to drink. Pop the bottle into your refrigerator, so that it gets cold, open it up and drink your cold and delicious home brewed beer.

A microbrewery is a great way for you to have a great time brewing your own beer. People will often pay for this beer as well, as anything which is homemade is better than something corporate. Therefore, with time, patience, and a little investment, you could begin your own microbrewery for profit and fun. Many people will begin their own microbrewery within their home, perhaps in a basement or in a garage. Many small batches can be stored in this area for lengths of time and these areas are often cooler, which is an important step for successful brewing. If you want to expand your business, however, you will need to figure out the best way to expand.

Brewing from home only takes a few pieces of equipment. Many people will do it in their spare time, as a hobby. With the right combination of grains, water, yeast, and storage equipment, you could begin to brew your own batches of beer. There are plenty of resources available who wants to learn how to make their own batches of beer. This is a wise way to begin, if starting a microbrewery sounds like something you might be interested in. You need to know if this is something which can hold your interest long-term as well as knowing if you are any good at it. Once your first batch of beer has been made, try it out. If it tastes good, pass some off to friends and family. You can get a true evaluation from them.

If they like the batches that you make, you can begin charging for them. You could take these beers to local retailers and depending on your state’s laws, you may be able to sell these beers through local vendors. Since you will not have too many batches of beer at any one time, you would not want to take your business too large. This could make you not have enough products to meet the demand and you could end up upsetting the vendors you are working through. Instead, if you keep your microbrewery small, you will be able to make some money based on your output of supply.

Once there is the demand for more of your beer, however, you may want to consider the possibility of taking your microbrewery professional. You could find a building, buy professional brewing equipment, and start selling your beer as a living. Stainless steel tanks can be bought that allow you to brew, pressurize, and refrigerate your batches of beer. You can also buy machines which will help to bottle and label your beer, making it fit for selling to the public. Once you know that you will be able to succeed at brewing your own beer, it can be a fully rewarding experience!

Old Towne Inn, Suffern, N.Y.

For those of us in the younger crowd who feel they have grown out of (or perhaps never were a part of) that “club-it-up” bar scene, we’re always aching to find a place that’s mellow, rustic, but not full of oldies either.

The Old Towne Inn in Suffern, N.Y. on Franklin Turnpike is one of those bars where a hip jukebox meets a more mature younger generation. For those who just didn’t feel like going to Hoboken with their four-inch stilletto heels on a Saturday night, you can still hear dance music and get your groove on without having to deal with overly drunk city crashers. And for those who want a taste of the 70s, rest assured you’ll hear some ACDC before the night is over.

The bar area is small with about three tables on one wall and the bar itself on the other with little room in between. But there’s a backroom restaurant you can retreat to for a bit of relaxation and a different sort of intimacy.

Beers on tap include Blue Moon and Sierra Nevada for those who won’t settle for a Budweiser.