Homebrew

Do you do it? Have you done it? How do I do it...?

[vincevincevince]

I'm looking for simple reliable home brew solutions and the advice and feedback of members...

Have you made home brew in the past? How was it? What was the easiest recipe you used?

Here in Malaysia, I can't get hold of malt, beer kits, cheap apples or reasonably priced grapes. Things which don't use these are highly favoured!

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

I used to be quite good at both beer and wine. I made all sorts of ales and lager beers but if you can't get malt you're sunk as far as the beer is concerned.

You can make wine from just about anything. The crucial thing is sterilisation and ensuring that no bad bacteria get into the must.

What you need is a good book on this. Try Googling "H. E. Bravery". He was on old gentleman, long since deceased, who wrote these books back in the fifties and sixties I believe. I learned just about everything from one of his books. He provides recipes that can be easily adapted for different fruits.

One of the problems of making your own booze is providing a suitable environment for fermentation. In the UK we used to use fermentation cabinets but you will have no such problems in Malaysia. ;)

P.S. My daughter just moved to Singapore about six weeks ago. My wife and I intend visiting her in September or October. While there we are going to go somewhere else for a week. Malaysia, being on the doorstep, is one option. Any recommendations?

[timster]

Well, you could brew mead. All you really need is honey, water, and yeast.

On the other hand, I have to say that none of my home-brewing friends brew a mead I will take 2 sips of. They tell me it's an acquired taste.

One other heads-up is that most home-brewers I know are single guys. Brewing tends to stink up a house more than most wives/girlfriends (in my experience) will tolerate.

[Dabrowski]

I always wonder, if something is an aquired taste, why bother? If you don't like it, don't drink it.

[grandpa]

Once one has acquired a taste, say for good scotch, one is generally pleased. I'm not sure I would personally be so pleased with a taste for mead -- to each his own.

[vincevincevince]

Mead does sound a good idea, and although I don't keep bees, honey is surprisingly affordable. I've made homebrews before when I was in the UK, but I just can't seem to find the ingredients for the traditional types! Mead sounds... very monastic! Not sure why.

[DrDoc]

Homebrew ... tea? :)

[timster]

Hmm, DrDoc may be onto something...

"Malaysia mead" with tea spices, local honey, and maybe unripe mango for acid -- don't know if something like that's been tried before, but it sounds intriguing.

Keep us up to date if you would, please?

[vincevincevince]

timster, that's an interesting idea. I picked up a kilo of honey today and will see what I can do with it as a test. Reckon the tea, mango etc. need to be in there during fermentation?

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

I think this link will be OK :)

[google.co.uk...]

[zulu_dude]

I've just recently started brewing my own ginger beer- not alcoholic, but incredibly tasty!

Very simply, just grate 120g of ginger root, squeeze 3 lemons, add 3 cups of sugar and a teaspoon of yeast to 4l of water- leave for 24hrs, decant into another container (being sure to leave the yeast on the bottom of the container) and enjoy!

I'm hoping to graduate to beer and wine in the near future- practising on ginger beer first :)

[vincevincevince]

Mead looks like it will be the answer! Not only have I found a source of cheap local honey (the 'night market'), but the product should be nice.

I've just racked a test-batch of two gallons and it already tastes pretty good at this stage. I used a recipe based on honey, tea and cloves. Going to add cayenne pepper to the next batch!

In short - thanks timster - great advice! If you're in Kuala Lumpur any time soon I'll pass you on a bottle.

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

Cayenne pepper?

[vincevincevince]

Cayenne pepper is great mixed with other spices, it's basically a type of chilli powder. I put it in coffee and tea to great effect! That's why I reckon having it in mead will work well... slightly hot spiced mead

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

I know what it is, I was just wondering if it had a place in wine making?

[vincevincevince]

BeeDeeDubbleU, I will let you know in a month or so :)

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

A month?

Oh I get it ... your making a vintage wine. :)

[Dabrowski]

Month? Vintage?

I thought vintage in wine terms was about 40 years?

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

Joke :)

[moose606]

I like to keep it simple. Only four ingredients in my basic beer recipe: Water to 6 gals, 6# malt extract, 4 oz. whole hops, and 1 pkg dry ale yeast. Ferment for two weeks, siphon into keg, add 1 cup brewers sugar for priming, seal keg, and purge with C02. Leave at room temp for 2 weeks, then place in fridge for conditioning. Like a fine wine, this just gets better with aging. Enjoy!:)