r/Homebrewing • u/larsga • 9h ago
r/Homebrewing • u/chino_brews • Mar 20 '21
New Brewer/Beginner Resources and FAQ (frequently updated)
reddit.comr/Homebrewing • u/AutoModerator • 16h ago
Question Daily Q & A! - October 18, 2026
Welcome to the Daily Q&A!
Are you a new Brewer? Please check out one of the following articles before posting your question:
- How do I check my gravity?
- I don't see any bubbles in the airlock OR the bubbling in the airlock has slowed. What does that mean?
- Does this look normal / is my batch infected?
Or if any of those answers don't help you please consider visiting the /r/Homebrewing Wiki for answers to a lot of your questions! Another option is searching the subreddit, someone may have asked the same question before!
However no question is too "noob" for this thread. No picture is too tomato to be evaluated for infection! Even though the Wiki exists, you can still post any question you want an answer to.
Also, be sure to vote on answers in this thread. Upvote a reply that you know works from experience and don't feel the need to throw out "thanks for answering!" upvotes. That will help distinguish community trusted advice from hearsay... at least somewhat!
r/Homebrewing • u/jimbonnet • 6h ago
Brewery Giveaway in Fountain Hills Arizona
Ive got an entire 50amp electric RIMS setup(3 vessel) 10 gallon, 2 deepfreezers which are converted to keezer(4 taps) and one fermentation chamber. Grain mill, multiple fermenters, many corny kegs, co2 tanks, quick disconnects, pumps, hosehead linux base brewcontroller and tons more.
All this stuff is clean and in my garage ready for someone else. I was heavy into the hobby and no longer am able to brew. If you are local come take a look!
All this stuff is free and if you want to take it all at once bring a couple trucks. Id like to give it to someone as a complete kit rather than part it all out if possible.
r/Homebrewing • u/pman773489 • 11m ago
Yeast Energizer...how to prepare?
I've been wondering about the best way to add yeast Energizer to my beer. I'm brewing a very big Belgian ale and I want to make sure I don't get a stuck fermentation. Do you dissolve it in water that was boiled and then cooled, or do you actually boil the yeast Energizer itself in water and then cool the mixture before adding? I've also seen some people say they just add the dry Energizer directly to their fermenter. Seems a bit unsanitary to me.in this scenario, I would be adding to the primary on day 7 or so
r/Homebrewing • u/blackarrow_1990 • 5h ago
Beer/Recipe Oatmeal Stout recipe review
Hello,
I do not have a great choice of english ales where I live but I drank today for the first time Samuel Smith Oatmel Stout and I really liked it. I am still a beginner and can not really tell what I liked, but the beer was at the same time little more bitter but it has some sweetness in it, roast flavour but not too much of it and it was very delicious and full.
I have some ingedients (not all of them from England) I would like to use to brew something similar:
Maris Otter 76%
Flaked oats 10%
Caramunich II 8%
Chocolate Rye 4%
Carafa Special III 2%
Mash for an hour at 67 C
Boil for an hour
Hop addition at 60 min to get some 25 IBU with East Kent Goldings
Whirlfloc
OG 12.8 P or 1.05
Ferment with S-04 at 18 C for two weeks, keg and carbonate (I also have US-05 and Nottingham but I guess they are too dry for this).
Water profile I could get with CaCl2 and some Gypsum is: Ca 98, Mg 7, Na 8, Cl 50, SO4 56. I can not get Ca lower while getting Cl and SO4 in line.
Thanks.
r/Homebrewing • u/JAKSX2 • 2h ago
Question First brew. Looks?
Hi, I just finished up a recipe from morebeer. And was wondering if a lot of sediment is normal? And if a darker wort color is natural
r/Homebrewing • u/Practical_Basis_3440 • 15h ago
wondering if I can utilize either rice water and/or rice bran in any part of brewing process
I buy bulk brown rice and "clean" it to get white rice, then rinse it a few times before cooking it. I do this very often and am left with a lot of rice bran and rice water from rinsing. I'm wondering if I can utilize this leftover bran and/or the rice water for brewing. I am familiar with how to make rice wine using rice but this time I'm just trying to utilize the leftover stuff. if anyone has any advice I'd appreciate it. thanks!
r/Homebrewing • u/atoughram • 1d ago
DIY Chiller
Built with mostly spare parts I had laying around, it brought the 28qt cooler full of water down from 68f to 33f in 30 minutes. I probably have $100 bucks into this thing.
r/Homebrewing • u/Delowi-Photography • 17h ago
Question Naturally carb cider in 64z minikeg
Just making sure I am not crazy, so I have an old 64oz "Mancan" minikeg. I did some research and it is rated to at least 50psi, so that's not a fear.
So for a gallon(ish) leaving headspace I will use 22grams of priming sugar? And leave it for 2 ish weeks than refrigerate the night before serving.
Will I still be able to remove the screw off lid? Fine if I need vice grips. The lid doesn't have a pressure release valve, but with the pressure being well below the working rating I am not worried about a bottle bomb, just wanna make sure I can open the damn thing.
r/Homebrewing • u/HohepaPuhipuhi • 18h ago
Beer/Recipe Dark Lager water profile
I'm putting together a dark lager for my next brew. I'm love dark beers, especially Irish Stouts, but after trying a local dark lager, I have a new obsession.
So what water profile are we using for this beer?
Do I try to emphasize the malty character? Or just stick with a low mineral lager profile? I assume that's what they were traditionally brewed with?
Tasting the beer itself, I really can't tell which it is. It is a very "crisp" beer, so I'm leaning towards a low mineral lager profile.
The recipe is basically pilsner, munich and carafa 3 malt. Finishing at 1.007 at an abv of 5, if that helps. Also, an IBU of 22ish
Any thoughts or experience much appreciated.
Cheers
r/Homebrewing • u/Limp_Perspective_355 • 17h ago
Question Is alcohol tolerant yeast impervious to disinfectants?
Dumb question but it’s my first time using champagne yeast & I didn’t think about it until after I already started a batch. I know I could google it but I figured the responses would be more entertaining on here.
r/Homebrewing • u/BackchatLeslie • 1d ago
Cider to Vinegar pipeline?
Hello friends, newbie here,
I've made a small batch of about 4 litres of (hard) cider in a demijohn. It all seemed to be going well, left it alone for 2 weeks, the bubbling through the airlock went from super active down to very very slow. After 2 weeks, i opened the bung, took a sample for a gravity reading and a cheeky taste, with decent sanitisation, It was as i would have expected, I think the gravity was about 1.002? if I'm reading the hydrometer correctly, right at the top, squarely in the yellow section labeled 'bottle'. Also tasted like cider (pretty rough, quite acidic but I was satisfied). I believe the ABV to be in the 8% range. Alas bottling that day was not convenient, so it's been sat a few more days,
My concern is that since then, the bubbling through the airlock has become much more frequent. I didn't expect there to be enough sugar left in there to keep fermenting much longer. And it certainly hasn't gotten any warmer in my flat. So I'm worried that checking the gravity has introduced oxygen and/or whatever it is that starts the process of turning it into vinegar. One possible explanation is that I tipped some of the airlock liquid out, do you reckon that having less liquid in there would increase bubble frequency? Even so, I wouldn't expect it to continue consistently once the gravity got so low?
I have just taken another gravity reading and it's not really moved as far as i can tell, and it still tastes fine (as fine as it was) so that's reassuring at least.
TLDR how likely is it that i accidentally triggered a secondary ACV vinegar fermentation in the 2 minutes exposed to air that it took to check gravity? I thought it was fermented dry but bubbling through the airlock has increased in frequency
r/Homebrewing • u/Strict-Chicken-566 • 1d ago
Philly Sour Yeast and Vegetable Fermentation
I’d like to share my experience using Lallemand Philly Sour yeast for fermenting vegetables, maybe it might help someone else.
I grow my own chili peppers and have tried fermenting them several times in the past to make hot sauce. However, the results were always disappointing—both the taste and aroma were off, with "funky" notes that I disliked. As everyone probably knows, vegetable fermentation at home usually relies on "spontaneous fermentation," trusting that the wild local yeast and bacteria will yield something edible, tasty, and healthy. After my failures, I assumed the wild microbiota in my home would always produce those unwanted flavors, so I set vegetable fermentation aside.
That changed this summer while brewing a Berliner Weisse. To keep things simple, I used Philly Sour yeast, when it struck me: couldn't this yeast be the solution to my hot sauce problems? Why wouldn't it break down the sugars in chilis and other vegetables the same way it does with wort? I tried to google if anyone had tried this before, but didn't find anything. So I decided to test the idea.
I used 0.5-liter jars, filling each with chopped chilis, garlic, spices, and a 3% salt brine. I just sprinkled a small amount of Philly Sour yeast on top and placed the jars in a warm spot (kitchen counter).
After ~2 weeks, I drained the excess liquid, pureed the chilis in a food processor, passed the mixture through a sieve and bottled.
The result: it worked just great! There were no funky off-flavors at all, just a clean heat and acidity, and the fruitiness of the chillis. Later, I used the same method to ferment cauliflower with carrots and jalapeños, which turned out just as good.
Of course, this experiment doesn't meet even basic scientific standards since I didn't include a control group. It's entirely possible that this year's wild bacterial and yeast strains were different and that the results would have been fine without Philly Sour. Testing that will have to wait for another year, though, because thanks to a rainy summer, this year's harvest was rather poor.
As a sidenote- I usually have problems with kahm yeast in my vegetable fermentations- this time it didn't show up at all. If that has anything to do with Philly sour is of course up for debate, but my guess is that kahm might have been out-competed.
r/Homebrewing • u/MemeBeamBeanz • 1d ago
Question I need tips and advice for making a nice carbonation in bottles with secondary ferm
So I've brewed for half a year now. Around 10 batches. I've gotten to the point where I make nice beer people like which is nice and for the first time i kegged the last beer and it went amazing. The carbonation was so nice and I got rid of the yeasty taste that sometimes is in bottles. But the few i bottled from this batch and primed with 3 sugar tablets, (where only 2 was recommended for 0,5 liter bottles) went really flat... I've had this issue quite a lot with my last couple of batches. In the past I've had some decent carbonation every now and then, but ultimately they always been kinda flat.
Info about my secondary fermentation:
20 ° celcius stable for 2 weeks once bottled. I always use carbonation drops / tables from the homebrew store and use the recommended amount. Sometimes I have waited 3 weeks no difference.
I always store at least 24 hours in fridge before pouring or more. I often feel no difference.
I mainly use saf ale 05 and 04 or lallemand neipa yeast.
What do you guys do? More sugar? Is there something I'm missing?
r/Homebrewing • u/Closman64 • 1d ago
Question Emergency sugar use
No priming sugar...I lost it. Looked everywhere. I know I can use table sugar to prime but I do NOT have a scale so I measured a cup and a scant quarter. Some say it must be weighed.....I do not have a scale and no car this weekend. How much is safe to prime a 5 gallon batch of Hefeweizen?
r/Homebrewing • u/AwesomeDeryck • 1d ago
[Recipe Sanity Check] Cookie ESB, anyone?
Hey everyone,
I went and added some speciality malts into some orders for shits and giggles with no prior plan what to actually brew with it: 250g of Viking Cookie Malt, 250g of Viking Caramel 400.
Since I also have some Aromatic Amber Malt leftovers, I was thinking of either doing a pastry Brown Ale or ESB (veering slightly toward the latter). Anyone wanna chime in? Would be much appreciated; my questions are down below, but first my recipe so far...
CHOMP BOX v1 - Cookie ESB
Method: All Grain
Batch Size: 23L Mash / 5L Sparge / ~23L Fermenter / ~19L Post-Ferm
Equipment: Speidel Braumeister 20L
Grain Bill:
- 4.5kg (85,7%) Maris Otter Pale Malt
- 250g (4,8%) Dingemans Amber Aromatic Malt
- 250g (4,8%) Viking Cookie Malt
- 250g (4,8%) Viking Caramel 400
Estimated Color: 28 EBC
Hop Bill:
- 30g Challenger (or similar) @ 60min
- 25g East Kent Golding @ 15min
- 25g EKG @ 0min (Hopstand @ 80°C for 15-20min)
Estimated IBU: 31
Mash Profile:
- Mash in @ 35°C
- Single Infusion Mash, 60min @ 67°C
- Mash Out: 10min @ 78°C
Estimated ABV: 5,0%
Yeast: 1pckg Mangrove Jack's M36
Fermentation Profile:
- Active Fermentation: 3d @ 19°C
- Ramp up: 3d @ 20-21°C
- Diacetyl Rest: 4d @ 21-22°C
- Cold Crash: 2d @ 2°C
Carbonation: 1.8 Vol. (Kegging)
Water Profile (untreated local tap water - naturally free of chlorine)
- Calcium (Ca²⁺): 75.7 ppm
- Magnesium (Mg²⁺): 14.2 ppm
- Natrium (Na⁺): 14.6 ppm
- Sulfate (SO₄²⁻): 73.0 ppm
- Chloride (Cl⁻): 27.0 ppm
- Bicarbonate (HCO₃⁻): 196.8 ppm
- Total Hardness: 248 ppm
- Total Alkalinity: 161 ppm
- Residual Alkalinity: 98 ppm
Ratio SO₄²⁻/ Cl⁻: 27.1 : 1
--> Add in 3.5ml Lactic Acid (80%) for a presumed mash pH of 5.42.
Questions:
- Anyone got any experience with the Cookie Malt? Will that plus the Aromatic plus the Caramel be a hat on a hat on a hat?
- Anyone got any experience with the M36? I read that it'd provide a nice, medium-heavy but still dry body which would balance the overall sweetness of the malt - though I have no real world knowledge to back that up.
- Any thoughts on the hops? I'm on the low end of the ESB IBU scale, but don't know how more of the stuff would play with the grain bill.
r/Homebrewing • u/KaleidoscopeOwn1966 • 23h ago
Question Help me out please
I need to know how to install nds games cheats. I really wanted to replay Bakugan Battle Brawlers but you can't have all the bakugans, because in one version you get Warius and in the other you get Ravenoid and Manion. I want to get all of them. Anyone? help?
r/Homebrewing • u/AutoModerator • 1d ago
Question Daily Q & A! - October 17, 2026
Welcome to the Daily Q&A!
Are you a new Brewer? Please check out one of the following articles before posting your question:
- How do I check my gravity?
- I don't see any bubbles in the airlock OR the bubbling in the airlock has slowed. What does that mean?
- Does this look normal / is my batch infected?
Or if any of those answers don't help you please consider visiting the /r/Homebrewing Wiki for answers to a lot of your questions! Another option is searching the subreddit, someone may have asked the same question before!
However no question is too "noob" for this thread. No picture is too tomato to be evaluated for infection! Even though the Wiki exists, you can still post any question you want an answer to.
Also, be sure to vote on answers in this thread. Upvote a reply that you know works from experience and don't feel the need to throw out "thanks for answering!" upvotes. That will help distinguish community trusted advice from hearsay... at least somewhat!
r/Homebrewing • u/Spartan5006 • 2d ago
Question Week old yeast starter, still good?
Hello,
Saturday of last week I made a yeast starter with malt extract and german lager yeast. I put it in my fridge at 65F and then promptly injured my back to the point where I could not brew.
It has just been sitting in my fridge for a week now at 65F, do you think it would still be good to cold crash, decant, and add to a beer on saturday or Sunday? Or do you think it has lost viability?
It was a 1 gallon starter, because I wanted to save some to experiment with storing yeast frozen with glycerin and such.
Thanks for any advice you can provide.
r/Homebrewing • u/Lizardsandrocks • 2d ago
Robinson's Trooper bottles
I found some Robinson's Iron Maiden line of beers in a Walmart in Northern Mexico of all places, some versions I've never never seen in the US. They appear to be bottle conditioned, with plenty of sediment. Internet says they arent bottle conditioned, but the recipe uses Robinsons house yeast, which I love. Ill try to harvest, but does anyone know if IPA (blue label) and Pale Ale (green label) are in fact bottle conditioned and with what yeast?
Im sure there likely isnt any more info out there, but thought id try
r/Homebrewing • u/No-Knowledge-1008 • 2d ago
Question Walnut pilzner
Hi. Im pretty new to beer brewing, but I want to experiment a little with it. I have pilzner brewkit from coopers and some of fresh walnuts. I want to add them without skin to the beer to add some new tastes. What is the best way to add them? I heard adding them durning the fermentation can add too much oil to the beer. Is it big problem? The other way I heard is making extract from walnuts and vodka and next freeze out the oil from it. Is it the better way? How vodka will change the taste of the beer?
r/Homebrewing • u/AutoModerator • 2d ago
Question Daily Q & A! - October 16, 2026
Welcome to the Daily Q&A!
Are you a new Brewer? Please check out one of the following articles before posting your question:
- How do I check my gravity?
- I don't see any bubbles in the airlock OR the bubbling in the airlock has slowed. What does that mean?
- Does this look normal / is my batch infected?
Or if any of those answers don't help you please consider visiting the /r/Homebrewing Wiki for answers to a lot of your questions! Another option is searching the subreddit, someone may have asked the same question before!
However no question is too "noob" for this thread. No picture is too tomato to be evaluated for infection! Even though the Wiki exists, you can still post any question you want an answer to.
Also, be sure to vote on answers in this thread. Upvote a reply that you know works from experience and don't feel the need to throw out "thanks for answering!" upvotes. That will help distinguish community trusted advice from hearsay... at least somewhat!