How To Brew Beer at Home

Instructions for Making Homemade Beer

stovetopStep 1: Bring up to 2 gallons of spring water or good tap water to a boil on your stove top. Remove from heat and cover.Leave to slowly cool to 160F to 168

addgrainStep 2: Put cracked grains in saucepan with one quart of water and heated to 160F to 168F

Steep for 45 minutes in a small cooler or in a pot (in the oven or on stovetop) this will bring down temp

Step 3: Place a colander or strainer over your 4-5 Gal. kettle. Pour grain into colander or strainer, and rinse (sp

Step 4: Pour the liquid malt extract in making sure to rinse out the container to get all of the malt. 

Resume boiling. ( total time: one hour) and add the burton salts or gypsum and half of the bittering hops

At 30 minutes into the boil add the other half of the bittering hops. At end of one hour boil, add aroma hops and let stand for 15 m

Step 5: Put 3 gallons of very cold water in a sterilized primary fermenter and carefully pour the hot wort into it. This should be stirred or swirled, to bring the temperature down. Top up to 5 gallons with more cold water. If still above 85F run a cold water bath around fermenter, or use a wort chiller. When temperature is between 68F and 80F take a hydrometer reading (original gravity) and write it down. Now activate your yeast in 8 oz. of luke warm water and add the activated yeast. Stir to aerate. Put the lid and airlock on.

Step 6: Ferment at room temp for 3-4 days then siphon over into 5 gallon glass carboy secondary fermenter. Top up to neck of carboy with more water if necessary. Ferment for another 7 days. Take hydrometer reading (finishing gravity) and if low enough, prepare to bottle the beer into sanitized bottles (as many as 53-12 oz. or 40-16 oz.).

Step 7: Bottling procedure entails making a priming syrup of 3/4cup corn sugar and 8oz of water. Bring the water to a boil, shut off heat then add sugar and stir well. Transfer (rack) beer from secondary fermenter into a sterilized bottling bucket and stir in priming syrup, mixing well. Siphon beer into bottles and cap them.

Allow to sit at room temp for two weeks before chilling for consumption.
Store cool to stabilize beer after it becomes carbonated.