Brewing beer at home recipes. Beer with juniper berries

Beer is a popular drink due to its low cost, variety of varieties and walking distance. It is easy to buy a bottle or two to pass the evening with friends at any nearest outlet. However, can we be sure of its quality and the absence of harmful additives? Unfortunately, not always.

Most types of drink contain a huge amount of preservatives, dyes, flavorings and food additives. Live is no exception.

It is not necessary to give up your favorite alcohol, it is easy to prepare it yourself and be sure of the quality and safety of the product. Today we will talk about how to brew beer at home without equipment.

How to make beer at home without equipment

Natural beer, brewed by yourself and with love, has a rich taste and lush foam, and is also more healthy due to the absence of preservatives and other additives. Not a single store analogue can be compared with it in these indicators.

The main components of the drink are natural ingredients: malt, brewer's yeast, pure water and hop cones. And for its preparation it is not at all necessary to purchase expensive special equipment, you can completely manage with improvised kitchen utensils.

We will answer how to make beer at home without special equipment. From the mandatory inventory, a novice brewer should have:

1. Large saucepan (displacement depends on the volume of ingredients, preferably more than 30 liters);
2. A glass container or cylinder (in which the product will be fermented directly);
3. Thermometer (to track the temperature of the wort);
4. Silicone hose, narrow to drain the beer without touching the sediment;
5. A piece of gauze fabric (about 5 meters for making a bag for malt);
6. Bath with cold water (for cooling beer);
7. Bottles for spill with caps (plastic or glass);
8. Water seal;
9. Light plate, iodine for starch test in liquid.

Important: It is advisable to sterilize the equipment for brewing a foamy drink. Otherwise, the harmful microflora that got into the wort will spoil the process.

Another important point in brewing is the requirements for water quality. It must be clean, without impurities and odors. It is better to take spring or bottled. Making homemade beer yourself with it will not be much more expensive, and the taste will be much cleaner and softer.

Easy Hop Recipe

Homemade beer, brewed with one's own hands, means as much to a true connoisseur as a chocolate factory does to Willy Wonka. However, if there is no brewing experience, then it is worth starting with the simplest, so that the result exceeds expectations and inspires further experiments.

We offer a simple recipe on how to brew beer at home without hop equipment.

The following components will be required:

• Purified water - 27 liters;
• Hops (acidity not higher than 4.5%) - a little less than 50 grams;
• Malt - 3 kg;
• Yeast - 30 grams;
• Sugar - 200 gr. (per 1 liter of liquid - 8 grams).

All basic ingredients are easy to find in stores or specialized outlets, but there are some requirements for them:

1. Malt. It is better to purchase it from Czech or German production, because. domestic is much inferior in quality. Pay attention to the color, in a quality product it is white. The taste should be slightly sweet and the smell pleasant. If you buy ground malt, then the husk should not be damaged, it is a natural filter;
2. Hop. It can be bitter or fragrant, here everyone chooses to taste. But the color of the cones of a quality product must be reddish or yellowish;
3. Yeast. Be sure to take special beer and the highest quality. After all, the process of fermentation depends on them.

Cooking:

• Pour water (25 liters) into the pan, heat up to 80 degrees (Do not forget to use a thermometer to measure the temperature);
• We prepare the malt bag: we fold the gauze in 4-5 layers to get a square meter by meter. We pour malt into the middle, tie it up and lower it into water for about an hour and a half. The temperature should be maintained around 72 degrees. The strength of the finished beer will be lower, but the taste will become much more intense.
• After the time has elapsed, it is necessary to conduct an iodine test for the presence of starch: pour about 10 ml onto a plate. decoction, add a drop of iodine. If the color has changed to blue, then boil for another 15 minutes. If by that time everything is ready, then 5 minutes at 80 degrees is enough;
• Now we take out the malt bag, wash it in the remaining 2 liters of water. Then we add them to the main volume of the liquid. This manipulation allows you to bypass the filtering process;
• Now let the resulting broth boil and add 1/3 hops to it. Half an hour later, the second part, after another 40 minutes - the remaining third. Boil for another 20 minutes.
• Now it is necessary to cool the beer very quickly (literally within half an hour to 24 degrees) in order to avoid infection with wild yeast. We transfer the pan to an ice bath (for the best effect with salt water), filter three times into another container through gauze.
• The next step is adding brewer's yeast to the wort. They must be diluted in accordance with the instructions on the package, then thoroughly mixed with the liquid. After we install a water seal and send it to a dark place for a week and a half to roam. The water seal will release bubbles of carbon dioxide. As soon as the process stops (there will not be a single bubble in a day), you can proceed to the next step. By the way, at the end of fermentation, the beer will acquire a lighter pleasant shade.
• To fill the drink with carbon dioxide, add foam to it and improve the taste, it is necessary to carry out carbonization. Add sugar to sterilized bottles (8 grams per 1 liter of beer). Now carefully pour the liquid into the container through the rubber hose, trying not to touch the sediment at the bottom of the pan.
• In order for the drink to "breathe", it is necessary not to add about two centimeters to the edge of the neck. We seal tightly. During this period, secondary fermentation begins, which will give the beer a final finishing touch.
• We also send the foam masterpiece to ripen in a dark place with a temperature not higher than 23 degrees (but preferably not lower than 20) for 2 or 3 weeks. After a week, the bottles should be shaken periodically.
• After maturation, such beer must be stored in the refrigerator.

As you can see, the recipe is quite simple and not labor-intensive. And all the time spent will more than pay off when you uncork the bottle and taste the results of your own work.

How to brew beer at home without equipment: video

Before cooking, we suggest watching a couple of videos on how to make beer at home without equipment.

Is it possible to brew beer at home without special equipment

Most beer connoisseurs would love to try making their own, but find that it can only be done with a minibrewery or other expensive equipment and don't want to spend the extra money.

And rightly so, because it is not. This myth is strongly imposed on us by manufacturers of such goods; by the way, you can also buy ready-made concentrate for making beer from them. But will it be natural and will it differ greatly from what is openly sold in any store? And given the cost of equipment and raw materials, the cost of such a drink will significantly exceed even the most expensive store varieties.

Do not rush to buy expensive appliances or run to the store for low-quality alcohol. Brew your own beer according to this recipe and appreciate its unique taste.

More interesting things on our website.

In addition to the selection of ingredients, it is very important to pay attention to the preparation of equipment for homebrewing. If you want to make a really high-quality and tasty drink, then you will need certain tools.

Necessary equipment for home beer

Professional brewers use:

• Scales and measuring cup for weighing;
• Wort preparation tank with a capacity of 5-10 liters;
• Meat grinder or manual mill for grinding malt;
• Sieve or gauze for filtering;
• Wooden spoon with a long handle;
• Large saucepan with a capacity of 20-25 liters;
• Fermentation tank with a tight-fitting lid or water seal of at least 20 liters;
• Glass bottles of 0.5 liters, preferably dark glass;

How to make homemade beer - basic ingredients

The main ingredients without which you cannot make this drink: malt, hops and brewer's yeast.

Malt

Before you can brew homemade beer, you must prepare the malt. The main ingredient that affects not only the taste and aroma of the drink, but also its quality. That is why the preparation of malt is a very important and responsible stage. It is prepared from grain crops - barley, wheat, rye and other cereals. Some of them need to be germinated beforehand, for example - barley, wheat. Without germination, corn and rice are used.

Hop

Every homebrew recipe contains hops. This plant is added to the drink not only to give it a special taste and aroma. It is hops that contribute to the formation of traditional beer foam. For brewing beer, only female inflorescences are used - cones collected at the end of August.

Brewer's yeast

Even the simplest homebrew recipe is rarely complete without this ingredient. Brewer's yeast is added to the wort for better fermentation. It should be noted that only pure yeast culture is used in brewing, which belong to the Saccharomycetaceae family and the Saccharomyces genus. The unique aroma and original taste of the drink largely depend on their quality.

Homemade Beer Recipes

You can purchase a ready-made kit with which you can try out a few simple recipes.

homemade

Knowing the basic recipe for how to make homemade beer, you can experiment and prepare a variety of variations of this drink. By adding new ingredients and changing proportions, you can create your own unique signature recipe.

Fry the mixture of grains in a dry frying pan until brown, you can use a regular baking sheet and roast in the oven. Grind the fried grains into flour in a meat grinder and mix with chicory. Pour the resulting malt into a large saucepan, pour three liters of water and bring the mixture to a boil.

Brewing homemade beer is a very important process, which will affect the taste of the finished drink. That is why it is very important to stir the mixture all the time with a wooden spoon so that it does not burn.

Remove the pan from heat, add sugar, zest from one lemon and hops, mix and leave in a warm place for several hours. When the infusion has cooled to room temperature, it must be filtered through several layers of gauze and poured into a fermentation dish. After three days, bottle the drink, close tightly and place in a cool cellar or refrigerator.

This recipe for making beer at home is one of the easiest and most affordable. It is perfect for those brewers who do not like to wait a long time - the drink will be ready in two weeks.

Royal beer

Royal beer is prepared on the basis of a ready-made drink. Homemade beer prepared according to a simple recipe, which has already been sufficiently infused and ready to drink, is poured into a large saucepan.

Pour sugar into the pan and fry over medium heat. Sugar should not just dissolve, it should turn into caramel. Since sugar should acquire a burnt taste, it must be stirred all the time with a wooden spoon, preventing combustion. While the caramel has not frozen, pour it with boiling water and mix very well.

Pour some water into a small saucepan, add ginger, coriander, chopped lemons and cinnamon to it, bring to a boil and cook for 20 minutes. While still hot, this broth must be filtered and mixed with burnt sugar dissolved in water. Separately, boil the hops - pour water, bring to a boil and cook for half an hour.

Strain the hop broth, mix with the previously prepared fragrant sourdough and pour into the finished cold beer. Mix everything well, cork with a lid and put in a cool place. To prepare this drink, a home-made beer recipe is used. If the beer has already been aged for two weeks, then the Royal drink can be tasted the very next day. If the beer is fresh, it will need to brew for 10-14 days.

Watch the video on how to brew homemade beer - the recipe is quite simple and affordable. But you must understand that the brewing process still requires attention and strict adherence to all rules and technologies.

Even to prepare a small amount of this drink, you will need a lot of free space - try to brew it in a separate, well-ventilated room. Before making homemade beer, make sure you have all the ingredients you need. In addition, you will need to free up space in the refrigerator or shelves in the cellar. You may also need additional equipment for beer at home: a funnel for filling bottles, a brush for washing dishes, and more.

Take your time and try the finished drink - the longer it is infused in a cool place, the more aromatic and tastier it will be. Serve well chilled in large glasses.

Beer recipes for home brewing. It is no secret that its taste, strength, bitterness level and many other indicators depend on the beer recipe. Homemade beer recipes can be found on the Internet in abundance, but I will try to collect only proven homebrew recipes. Brewing beer at home is not difficult if you follow the recipe exactly. The taste of the finished drink depends very much on malts, hops and temperature pauses. Naturally, in this section of the site, I will indicate such important and necessary data for the correct beer recipe.

First beer recipe.

In ancient Armenia, beer was usually made from barley. In ancient China, beer was brewed from sprouted rice, as well as from rice and fruits. European monks improved brewing technology by using hops as a preservative. If you have your own recipe, please send it to me.

March 26th, 2018 | admin

March 23rd, 2018 | admin

A classic homemade mead recipe. I can say right away that this mead recipe is not only classic, but also basic. And this means that on its basis you can create any other variations. So, mead is classic.

Since ancient times, people have been preparing beer at home, so there are a huge number of homemade beer recipes today. We will share with you the most successful ones.

simple beer

We cook forty-five grams of hops, filter through a napkin and add one kilogram of molasses to it. Boil, then pour into a barrel and cool. We prepare a dough of two hundred and sixty grams of yeast with wheat flour according to the same recipe that prepares a dough for pies.

When the beer has cooled and the dough is ready, it should be added to the keg, it should be corked well and the beer should be kept warm for six hours, and after another three days in a cold place.

Now you can already bottle the beer.

plum beer

Mash six kilos of plums through a sieve, add a couple of bottles of water to them, pour in two hundred grams of wine and a solution of four kilograms of sugar. Boil everything. Then pour into a barrel, add water and three tablespoons of yeast. Put in heat so that the beer ferments. On the third day, add forty grams of lemon peel and insert a tube into the cork for free air movement. Let it brew for ten days and plum beer will be ready to drink.

Russian beer

In twenty liters of water we dilute four kilograms of honey, fifty grams of hops and boil for about an hour. We filter the wort into a barrel, add one hundred grams of yeast and let it brew at room temperature for a week without closing the barrel. Then the keg can be closed and put in a cold place, after two or three days the beer is ready to drink.

Table beer

One hundred grams of hops are mixed with fifty grams of raisins, two and a half kilograms of sugar and fifty milliliters of wine. All this is boiled, boiled for half an hour, filtered and topped up with three kilograms of malt with thirteen liters of water. All this is boiled again, filtered, add two tbsp. tablespoons of yeast and let ferment for a week.

Dark beer

We put eight hundred grams of stale crackers from sweet dough, four hundred grams of rye malt, two hundred grams of scalded dry hops, one hundred grams of sugar, 5 grains of ground black pepper, a little salt and yeast diluted with water in a saucepan. All this is cooked to a mushy state, then the pan is covered with a cloth and infused for a day in a warm place. Then the mixture is poured with five liters of boiled water, and another one hundred grams of sugar diluted in a glass. The mixture is stirred and put in a hot oven for a couple of days, after which it is taken out, the infusion is poured into another bowl, and from one to three liters of water is added to the thick. The resulting infusion is poured into the drained broth, filtered several times, boiled, skimmed off the foam, allowed to brew for a couple of weeks and then the beer is ready.

Ukrainian beer

We put eight hundred grams of white and black bread in an enameled pan, which were previously sprinkled with salt and crushed cloves, add six hundred grams of malt, a teaspoon of cinnamon, fifty grams of yeast diluted with water and pour three liters of water. Stir and let stand warm. Then add two hundred grams of hops, five hundred milliliters of boiling water and two tablespoons of sugar. Now add melted dark sugar, two tablespoons of soda and nine liters of water. All this is insisted for a day in a warm place, then filtered and filtered through filter paper. Then they are bottled and in a warm place they insist for another three days.

Hop beer

Fourteen grams of hops and twenty-five grams of yeast, as well as five hundred grams of malt extract are added to two glasses of sugar. Pour five liters of water and let it boil for an hour. Strain and add water again to the original volume. After that, yeast is added and allowed to brew at room temperature. Filtered, bottled insist for another week.

Velvet beer

To the crushed three kilograms of dried bread, a kilogram of rye malt, six hundred grams of wheat malt, fifty grams of yeast, five hundred grams of sugar syrup, one hundred and thirty grams of honey, three hundred grams of raisins, seven hundred grams of scalded hops are added. Dilute with boiled water to a state of porridge and insist in a warm place for six hours. After that, thirteen liters of boiled water are poured into the mixture and insisted for another day, then the infusion is drained, three liters of water are added there and insisted for another couple of hours. Both infusions are poured into one bowl, filtered, bottled and infused for twelve days.

Homemade beer

We take one and a half kilograms of rye and barley malt, add two and a half kilograms of rye flour. Scald the composition with boiling water to make a thick dough. Knead, pour into molds and put in the oven, bake until reddish. Then we put it in a barrel, fill it with twenty-five liters of water and leave it alone for now. Now we take eight hundred grams of buckwheat flour, two hundred grams of yeast, make the dough in water and let it rise. Now grind, pour into another cask, top up with strained malt solution and let it brew in a warm place until fermentation. When the yeast floats, you can bottle it and transfer it to a cold place to infuse.

Homemade dark beer

We mix five hundred grams of oats, barley, wheat, rye, thirty grams of chicory, seven hundred grams of sugar, five hundred grams of hops, zest from one lemon and ten liters of water. The grain is roasted, ground, chicory is added and boiled with some water. Then add all that is left of the water, sugar and hops with lemon zest. They insist for several hours, filter, bottle and carry to the cellar.

affordable beer

Pour two hundred grams of hops, six glasses of ground malt into a clean bag, rub well and mix. Then you need to pour this mixture into twelve liters of water and boil. Then pour into a barrel and let it brew. This is must. While it is cooling, prepare a dough from a bottle of yeast and wheat flour. When it rises, pour it into the wort and leave it warm for six hours to ferment. Then we bottle it and transfer it to the cellar for three days.

Video lessons

In this article, we will analyze the basics of making grain beer at home and find out what is required for this and how we will achieve this so that your first homemade beer still turns out and you can treat and surprise your friends and people close to you.

There are four main ingredients to make homemade beer - water, fermentable ingredients (malts, sugars, extracts, etc.), hops and yeast. These are the main ingredients without which we will not get beer. But for some styles of beer, different additives may be used. All these ingredients, as well as equipment, which I will write about later, can be bought in specialized home brewing stores, which are now available on the Internet.

There are two main ways to brew beer: extractive(simpler) and grain(a little more complicated, but better and more reliable). In extract brewing, special malt extracts are used instead of malt, I will focus on them later and in this article we will take a closer look at both methods of brewing beer. Which one to choose is up to you.

Necessary equipment for making beer at home

In order to produce 20 liters of beer, in addition to the ingredients that I described above, we need some equipment, and in parentheses I indicated in what method of preparation it is useful:

1. Malt mill (only for grain, but optional)
2. Enamelled or stainless steel mashing and filtering vessel 20 liters, equipped with a drain cock closer to the bottom of the container and with good thermal insulation. A plastic thermal container may be suitable, but with a drain cock at the bottom is the same (grain only)
3. False bottom or mash filter system to be installed in the mash and filter tank (grain only)
4. Additional capacity for heating water 10 l. An ordinary pan for heating water with a ladle for taking this water and pouring it into another container (only for grain brewing)
5. Wort boiling tank 30 l. An ordinary stainless or enameled container where the wort with hops will be boiled and for convenience it is better to mount a tap closer to the bottom to drain this wort into the fermenter for fermentation (for grain or extract)
6. Chiller for rapid cooling of wort (for grain or extract, but optional)
7. Fermenter - a plastic container or a glass bottle for fermentation 25-30 liters with a water seal
8. PET bottles for bottling finished beer, but glass ones are better (for grain or extract)
9. Siphon or hose for overflow from container to container (for grain or extract)
10. Thermometer (for grain or extract)
11. Scales for weighing ingredients (for grain or extract)
12. Spatula-mixer (for grain or extract)
13. Hydrometer (for grain or extract, but optional)

As you can see from this list, grain brewing will require 13 positions, and extract brewing four less. In addition, at least one gas burner or stove (electric, induction or gas) is required for cooking. This list is not a panacea, since you can choose slightly different equipment or make a better one if you have certain knowledge and experience. If you like to cook and then enjoy the result, all these costs will quickly pay off.

Technology for making beer at home

There are many styles of beer in the world. You may want to cook some of these at home. You can learn about styles and choose your favorite from our styles catalog, as well as select the appropriate recipe and you can start brewing your delicious beer.

The technology of making homemade beer itself consists of seven main stages.And let's take a closer look at each of them.

1. Crushing grain (malt)

The first step in the production of beer is, of course, grain crushing. The meaning of which is to crush the grain, trying not to damage its shell (husk). The casing contains tannins (tannins), which during the subsequent process mashing may pass into the must, which may adversely affect its organoleptic properties. Online stores sell special grinders for homebrewers. They consist of two rollers that rotate towards each other, breaking grain passing between them. Fine or coarse grinding can be obtained depending on the adjustable distance between the rollers. The finer the grind, the more sugars can pass from the grain into the wort, but the filtration (separation of the mash from the wort) will be worse and longer. Therefore, it is necessary to choose the golden mean between these grindings.

If there is no desire to spend money on buying a crusher, then you can grind the malt with a rolling pin or a glass bottle on the kitchen table (as in the photo). This is a more costly process time and labor intensity, but less expensive. You can buy pre-crushed malt from your homebrewing ingredient supplier. However, keep in mind that after crushing, the grain undergoes oxidation, which reduces the shelf life to a minimum. Therefore, it is advisable to use crushed malt in the near future after grinding (up to two weeks).

2. Mashing and methods

Next, the grinding is mixed with prepared water, followed by holding the resulting mass (mash) in various temperature ranges. Usually these are pauses at temperatures from 40 to 73 0 C. This is necessary for the transition of all valuable components (extracts) from grain into water, and the process itself is called mashing. The choice of temperature breaks depends on the quality of the grain used, as well as on the type of beer produced. During mashing, the splitting of grain substances occurs. enzymes and dissolving them in water.

• You will learn how to properly prepare water by visiting the articles section: Water treatment
• To learn more about mashing and temperature breaks, see the articles: Theory and Practice of Mashing and A Handbook of Temperature Breaks

Homebrewers use several mashing techniques:

A) Infusion mashing (infusion method) . Malt is mixed with heated warm water, and then the resulting mass is heated to the required temperature pauses, for example, on a gas stove or low-temperature electric heaters, or by adding boiling water to the mash. Then there is an exposure of the congestion (temperature pause). For some brewers, when using enzyme-rich malt (highly dissolved), one pause in the temperature range of 65-73 0 C is enough.

• See also the article: Grain brewing with an infusion mash

b) Decoction mashing (decoction method) . This is a more labor intensive process and more costly, and less common in home brewing. Its meaning is to boil a certain amount of grain by boiling a separate part of the mash, followed by mixing the boiled mass with a part of the mash that has not been boiled. After mixing, the total mass is heated to the required temperature pause and maintained as in infusion mashing. Then again take part of the mash for decoction with subsequent mixing. And so they do until the total mass of the mash is heated to the temperature of the end of mashing (75-78 0 C). Depending on the number of decoctions, there are one, two and three decoction methods of mashing. This method is useful when working with raw materials of low dissolution or for special types of beer. For example, Czech Pilsner or German Bock.

• Read the article: Decoction Mashing in Beer Recipes

V) Mashing in bags. The simplest way to carry out grain mashing, less laborious, but the mashing efficiency and the quality of the resulting wort is considered not the highest. The ground grain products are placed in special bags, which are then placed in a bowl with prepared mash water, where the process itself takes place. At the end of the process, the bags are removed along with the undissolved grain, and the resulting wort is boiled with hops. IN
as a result of this process, filtering is excluded, i.e. separating undissolved grain particles (grains) from the wort, which reduces the total brewing time by 1-2 hours. But as already mentioned, the wort using this technology turns out to be more cloudy, which of course can affect the quality of the finished beer to some extent. It also reduces the efficiency of the transition of extractives into the wort, which requires more grain for boiling and the preparation of a more liquid mash, compared to traditional methods.

• Read the article: Bagged Beer Brewing (BIAB)

G) extract method. Here, the use of malt is excluded, and the basis of the resulting wort is ready-made malt extracts, which are mixed with prepared hot or boiling water. There are dry (powder) and liquid malt extracts (concentrates) . Dry extracts are only unhopped, while liquid extracts are either hopped or not. If hops are used, then boiling the wort with hops is completely eliminated. The advantages of the extract method lie in the absence of additional equipment, since mashing and filtering of the mash is completely absent here, and the process of obtaining the wort is greatly simplified and reduced in time. The disadvantages include an increase in the cost of finished beer due to the high cost of extracts, as well as its quality can vary greatly, and not always for the better compared to traditional grain brewing. The disadvantages also include the limitation of the brewer in the choice of ingredient, which reduces the improvisation of the brewer when preparing certain types of beer.

To learn how to make beer from extracts, read the article: ​

• Making beer from extracts at home

e) Partial mash. This is a semi-grain or semi-extract mashing method, where the main amount of the wort is obtained using malt extracts, and the rest by mashing malt, for example, in order to tint the main wort or give it more palatability. With this method, usually coloring malts in bags are soaked in hot water at 68-78 degrees. And then the resulting wort is added to the main wort obtained from the extracts.

• Read the article: Partial Mashing

3. Filtering the mash and getting the wort

At the end of the mash, the mash is filtered to separate the wort (the liquid part of the mash) from the grains (undissolved malt particles). This applies only to traditional grain methods. The grain mash passes through the mesh bottom (false bottom), which was originally installed at the bottom of the pan, and the grain serving as a filter material falls on this false bottom, and the wort passing through the filtering settled layer is separated fromsuspensions that did not dissolve in it, acquiring a transparent and crystal luster.The filtered wort is drained through the lower tap located below the false bottom and collected in a separate vessel, where it is subsequently boiled with hops.Homebrewers also use homemade collectors made of copper tubes with slots to drain the wort (see photo).

Usually mashing and filtering is carried out in one universal tank equipped with a filtration bottom or a collector system. At the end of filtration, the grain still contains enough extractive substances, which should be washed out by portionwise addition of hot water (75-78 0 C). To do this, in a separate bowl, water heated to the required temperature and then sprayed on top of a slightly bare pellet. This water, passing through the thickness of the grains, captures remaining with you extractives. Water turns into saccharified wort, which is then mixed with the general wort, slightly diluting it and bringingto the required density before boiling.

• Comparison of a false bottom with a collector system: pros and cons, as well as principles in production of collector systems.
• Shot washing methods

4. Boiling the wort

After the complete collection of the filtered wort, it is heated and boiled for 60 to 120 minutes, with the addition of portions of hops.

The purpose of boiling with hops is:

1) Sterilization of the wort. During boiling, all microorganisms and enzymes that can adversely affect the taste of the finished beer are killed;

2) Hopping the wort to give it a characteristic hop bitterness, taste and aroma of hops;

3) Evaporation of unwanted malt components from the wort (DMS) that can impart sulfur and boiled corn flavors to the beer;

4) Coagulation of protein substances that give turbidity to the wort, and after boiling they precipitate, thereby making the wort more transparent with a pure taste.

Hops are usually added at the beginning of the boil for bitterness, 10-20 minutes before the end of the boil for flavor, and at the very end of the boil for aroma. aromatic substances in hops evaporate quickly, and bitter substances (alpha acids), on the contrary, better pass into the wort with a longer boil.

Articles to help with boiling:

• Boiling the wort

5. Cooling, separation of suspensions, aeration and sowing of yeast

At the end of boiling, it is necessary to cool the wort to fermentation temperature. There is one simple rule for this: the faster it cools, the will be higher the quality of the finished beer. The simplest but slowest way to cool down is to lower the cauldron of hot wort into a bath of ice water. But for even better and faster cooling, home brewers use a special device - this is a chiller, which is immersed in the wort, and cold water passes inside the chiller, thereby cooling the wort.

The wort is then transferred from the cauldron to the fermentation tank, where it will be fermented with yeast. To do this, a tap is opened on the boiler, which is a couple of cm above the bottom of the container, so that it is possible to separate (decant) the clear wort from the bruh (settled suspensions of malt protein and hops). Also, the wort is drained from the boiler, passing through a fine-mesh strainer or nylon stocking / gauze, to more successfully remove these suspensions and reduce the loss of wort in the boiler, then the purified wort enters a clean, disinfected fermentation tank, in which aeration takes place (wort enrichment with air).

Cold wort is drained from about a meter height into a fermentation tank, thereby gurgling, mixing with air and being saturated with it (aerated). The oxygen contained in the air is needed by the yeast for reproduction, so there should be enough of it. You can additionally aerate the wort by shaking the fermentation tank, stirring the wort with a slotted spoon or a whisk. Also online stores sell special devices called wort aerators.

Yeast is introduced into the fermentation tank at the beginning of the overflow of the wort. This helps to prevent the development of foreign microflora. Since yeast is a living preservative, which, after being introduced into the wort, does not allow the development of other microorganisms that can spoil your beer, inhibiting their vital activity. Also, with early introduction, they will be able to consume more oxygen necessary for their reproduction. Yeast pitching rates are also important, and they may differ for each type of beer, so for a more accurate calculation of their amount, use our online yeast pitching calculator.

All equipment that comes into contact with the product after cooling should be perfectly clean and disinfected in order to minimize the risk of contamination of the beer with bacteria and so that all your work and money spent on brewing are not in vain. There is nothing more offensive when you notice that your entire batch has been spoiled and an unpleasant sour taste has appeared in the beer. On our website there is a series of articles dedicated to cleaning and disinfection of brewing equipment and beer containers.

After complete overflow of the finished wort into the containerfor fermentation (plastic bucket or glass bottle), it is closed on top with a lid (or cork) equipped with a water seal. A water seal is necessary to remove excess gas generated during the fermentation process. In addition, it does not allow air to enter the fermentation tank and thus prevents microbes from entering the drink. Next, we wait for the first bubbles of carbon dioxide to appear from the shutter, which can be considered the beginning of fermentation. This usually happens 8 to 16 hours after the end of the overflow.

For more information read:

• Cooling the wort with an immersion chiller.
• Wort aeration at home
• Explanation of the rate of introducing yeast into the wort
• How to make a starter at home
• Cleaning and disinfecting brewing equipment (three-part article)

6. Beer fermentation

The beginning of the release of carbon dioxide from the water seal is the beginning of fermentation. The yeast multiplied and spread throughout the wort and began to eat its sugars and release carbon dioxide and alcohol. This magical process caused by yeast turns your wort into beer and is called alcoholic fermentation.

There are two types of fermentation: bottom (lager) and top (ale). Bottom fermentation takes place at lower temperatures from 8 to 15 degrees and it lasts about two weeks. And top fermentation, in turn, lasts about one week at temperatures from 15-30 0 C, which is much faster. The faster the fermentation rate and the higher the temperature, the more the yeast forms other by-products in addition to alcohol and carbon dioxide, which give the beer fruity or phenolic flavors (esters). For this reason, lager beer is more neutral in aroma and taste, while ale, on the contrary, is characterized by some fruitiness and piquancy.

From the beginning of fermentation to its end (when the water seal stops bubbling), it should take about 1-2 weeks, depending on the type of yeast and the method of fermentation (lager / ale). You just have to wait for the process to complete, as well. At the end of fermentation, when the yeast has consumed all the edible sugars, it will be necessary to withstand more a couple of days young beer in your fermentation containers . This is necessary in order to give the yeast time to process all the unwanted components (diacetyl and others) that they have developed during fermentation. These components are not desirable in almost any beer. priming calculator. Next, place the hermetically sealed bottles in a cool (16-20 C) and dark place and keep them there for at least two weeks. The remaining yeast in the beer will eat the added sugars, which will lead to the release of carbon dioxide, which, due to tightly closed bottles, forms pressure in them and saturates the beer with the necessary gas. This is carbonization. It is advisable to keep beer in bottles for a month, or even two, then its taste will become even smoother and richer, and the beer will acquire good transparency. Then the bottles can be carefully (without shaking the sediment) moved to the refrigerator and then the beer is tasted.

For more information read:

• Step-by-step instructions for preparing the primer and bottling
• Beer carbonation (priming) calculator
• Ten tips for carbonizing beer

8. Beer tasting

Well, the final and perhaps the most enjoyable stage in brewing is the tasting of the finished beer. Cool it before serving to 5-10 0 C. Get out your favorite clean and dry glasses. Pour the beer into the middle of the glass in a slow stream. Carefully study the resulting foam and how long it will last in your glass. Put your nose to the head of foam and appreciate the aroma of your beer - how fresh and pleasant is it for you? Visually inspect the glass of beer for transparency and carbon dioxide formation - is the appearance aesthetic? Try to drink the contents of the glass in 3-4 sips to better appreciate its taste - do you like it? As the glass is empty, inspect it - are there foam rings left on its walls? Let your tasters taste the beer and let them describe their opinion. Study the literature and articles on our website, improve and systematize your knowledge, hone your skills and you will notice how your beer gets better and better with each batch!

That's all for now. If you have questions, ask them below. I will be glad to help you and good luck with your brewing.