DIY Kegerator

Building a kegerator doesn’t have to be a difficult project. There are dozens of good videos out there showing you how. Brewtoob has 31 "how to" videos on how to build your own kegerator. The following two videos show different techniques but work just the same.

This video was created by Doverworks. It features Steve from Riverwalk Brewing who shows us how to make a kegerator out of a freezer or old fridge. Steve’s own kegerator is a 4-tap monster. A nice DIY project.

This great video shows a completely different technique with an easy step by step set of instructions. This homebrew beer keg also features easy to add on beer taps similar to the one above.
How to build a kegerator the old school way! by Wilderness Outfitters of Appalachians.

Both of these videos and many more DIY projects are featured on Brewtoob. If you've got a few videos of your brewing experiences, upload them to our site and share your knowledge. Stop by and have a look and see what your fellow brewers are doing! 

Easy Belgian Tripel Extract Recipe

  -->

Belgian beers can be especially intimidating to the new home brewer.  They often have frighteningly foreign sounding names and complex tastes. The good news is that much of this taste, however, comes from the yeast. Yes, yeasts are the stars of Belgian style brewing, and (luckily) they’ll do most of the work for you. Belgian yeasts are fantastically complex – typically finishing with fruity and spicy notes.

If you already have a favorite Belgian beer, you may want to try harvesting the yeast from the bottle for your own brews. You’ll be surprised how much of the flavor is attributable to the yeast. For this brew, I used yeast harvested from a bottle of La Fin du Monde.

Furthermore, this recipe is as simple as any other beginner’s recipe with one simple caveat: steeping grains. I would always recommend steeping grains for in extract brewing. They’re a great way for a beginner to get a feel for dealing with less refined ingredients, and a fantastic option for anyone looking to customize an off the shelf kit.

Ingredients:

9.5 lbs Pislner stlye malt extract

.75 lb Belgian candy sugar (I’ve used table sugar with good results, too)

1 lb Carapils

2.5 oz Mt Hood Hops

Belgian Yeast (I recommend Wyeast 1214)

6 gallons of quality water

7.5 oz (for carbonating)

Additional Hardware:

A second fermenter for clearing and conditioning

Although I don’t always make a starter for my yeasts, I do recommend it for this brew. Start at least 24 hours before hand (if you choose to use a starter). There is a lot of work for the yeast to do here, and you want it to hit the ground running. If you detest starters, use two (or three) vials of wet yeast instead.

            Put three of the six gallons of water (in a sanitized container) into the refrigerator. Later, you’ll use this water to cool down the wort. Next, take your carapils and put it into a grain bag (pair of panty hoes, silk bag etc). Put the remaining three gallons of water into a five gallon pot, place the grains into the pot and put the heat to it. Make sure that your grains aren’t resting against the bottom of the pot.

            When the water reaches about 150 degrees, cut the heat. If you’ve got a lid for the pot, put it on. Allow your grains to steep for about a half hour. After the half hour has passed, remove the grain bag. Allow the bag to drain, but don’t squeeze! This will release more astringent flavors into the wort. Bring the wort to a boil.

            Once you’ve reached the boil, add your hops and two pounds of the malt extract. Of course, stir to avoid scorching. Boil for forty-five minutes before adding the remaining 7.5 lbs of malt and the Belgian candy sugar. Stir to integrate and boil for another 15 minutes.

            After the 60 minute boil has finished, place the pot into an ice bath until it cools to about 90 degrees. You can hasten the cooling process by adding the cooled water to a fermenter and mixing in the hot wort. This is what I did, but I used a plastic fermenter. I wouldn’t recommend this method for glass carboys – they’ll crack if faced with extreme temperature changes.

            At this point, you can take a gravity rating if you wish. I didn’t, but you should expect something between 1.07  and 1.08. This is a strong beer. Add your yeast and ferment at around 70 degrees.

Fermentation times may differ, but use gravity readings to tell when primary fermentation has stopped. Gravity readings measure fermentable sugars, and when you get the same number over several days, no more fermentation will occur without the addition of more fermentables.

When fermentation has stopped, transfer to a secondary fermenter. This adds time to the process, but it clears the look and taste of the beer. Allow the beer to sit in a cool, dark space for another two or more weeks. Bottle using 7.5 ounces of corn sugar, boiled and mixed into the fermenter before bottling. Make sure to use sturdy bottles, as this recipe is highly carbonated.

            This is one of my favorite beers to brew. I brew this recipe (or one close to it) often, but my family and friends are always drinking it as quickly as I can brew it. The basic hops/grain elements of the brew are solid, but (again) the yeast is the star. I use this recipe whenever I want to test out a new Belgian yeast. I can compare more readily in light of the fact that these ingredients are widely available and consistent in potency and quality. Feel free to experiment, and happy brewing. 

Another great recipe by Matt Jones..writer and homebrewer. Cheers Matt from the gang at Brewtoob!

Homebrewing 101

There are hundreds of homebrewing videos out there. Brewtoob alone has 1000 to choose from. If you're just starting, it's hard to dig through all the information out there. Brewtoob has found a few good ones though and has just started a new category called Homebrewing 101. Here's a  few top picks from that category that we just love. Tell us what you think!

This one is by the American Hombrewers Association. It's super basic and a fun watch!

This next video, "Homebrewing 101" was created by Tim Corkum and his son Cody. You can find them on YouTube. The homebrewer is Chris Compagnone who does an excellent job explaining each process step by step. A perfect video for the beginner.

These and many more videos about homebrewing can be found on Brewtoob. If you're a homebrewer and would like to share your knowledge, tips and DIY projects, Brewtoob can now upload videos from users from the desktop AND from all mobile devices and we would love your articles or recipes too! Promote yourself, your business or your site..Brew it, Shoot it (or write it) and Share it! 

Green Tea Pale Ale Extract Recipe

This is a great extract recipe contributed to Brewtoob by Matt Jones. Thank you Matt for sharing your knowledge!

Brewtoob is a video sharing site for the home brewing community. We'd love your videos but if you're camera shy, we'd love your articles! Spread your word and share what you know!

Green Tea Pale Ale (Extract)*

Ingredients

Fermentables:

6 lb LME

1 lb DME

8 oz Carafoam

2 oz Special B

Hops:

1 oz Magnum (60 min)

1 oz Centennial (15 min)

2 oz Goldings

Other additions:

1 oz Green Tea* (15 min)

2 oz Green Tea* (after flameout)

*Quality bulk green teas are better than the bags. I recommend visiting an Asian market or quality foods store if you are able.

Yeast:

Wyeast 1450

            I’ve been making wine, mead and beer for over two decades. In that time, my methodology has ranged in complexity from apple juice and baking yeasts to growing and malting my own Maris Otter, but I still enjoy a good extract brew.  Too often all grain brewers can look down on extracts. They contend that the process lacks complexity. In my experience, this complexity is lost only in the process of brewing – not in the end result.

The ingredients for extract brewing are only marginally more expensive than all grain (although the equipment required for all grain is considerably more expensive) and the final product tends to be more consistent from batch to batch with extract.  Extract brewing is also a huge timesaver. It’s a great way to test out new ideas on a small scale without spending huge amounts of money and time on a larger grain bill for a brew that you might not like. Furthermore, if you’ve only done extract brewing, this is a great recipe to take another (albeit simple) step.

First, you’ll need to steep the specialty grains. These grains are different than base malts (which need to be mashed to release the fermentable sugars). The Carafoam and Special B will contribute to this beer’s body and mouth feel, but won’t significantly contribute to end ABV. Specialty grain malting is an easy way to add complexity and customize an extract brew.

Start by steeping the crushed grains (i.e. add grains to a steeping bag or a pair of panty hoes and put into the water) in ~160 degree water for around 30 minutes. Steeping (unlike mashing) is less scientific. Don’t fret your temps too much - anything between 145 and 165 is close enough for jazz. I steeped the grains in a few gallons of hot water, opting to add more water afterwards to reach my preboil volume. Smaller amounts of water make the temperature easier to control.

After about a half hour, I top off the kettle to just under six gallons. Even with extract I prefer to do full boils. However, if you lack the room in your kettle, you can always use distilled or sterilized water added directly to your fermenter to reach the five-gallon mark. Always use the best water you can find –for this I used mineral spring water that comes from a warm spring a short drive from my house.

Add your extracts and bring the wort to a boil. When it starts to boil, add in your 60 minute hops. Stir constantly and make sure the extract isn’t scorching and the kettle isn’t boiling over. I use a spray bottle with room temperature water to cool down hot foam overs.  After 45 minutes, add the 15-minute hop and green tea additions and boil for another fifteen minutes.

When the 60-minute boil is over, cool down your wort. I used an immersion chiller (and used the hot water runoff to do a load of laundry), but feel free to use a sink filled with ice or whatever you can find – always be resourceful! When your wort is still hot (but not boiling) add the other two ounces of green tea. You want to make sure that the green tea isn’t heated to the point where bitter and astringent tannins are released.

When the wort is cooled, add to the sanitized fermenter. I just added the yeast without a starter (as I usually do,) but use a yeast starter if you feel you must. Add your dry hopping additions and ferment for a week at ~65 degrees. I also allowed two weeks for clearing and settling at ~50 degrees (in my basement). I kegged and force carbonated this beer, but obviously you can use corn sugar and bottle, too.

This beer is one of my favorites. Despite the fact that all the ingredients are inexpensive and readily available, the end result is something quite unique. The base beer is essentially pale ale – my favorite beer style. I feel the amount of green tea in this recipe gives a subtle under taste that you are able to find if you’re looking for it. It blends nicely with the floral attributes of the hops, and allows for a somewhat more refreshing finish. Still, some may find this brew somewhat bitter. If you dislike a high IBU pale ale, try adding only .75 ounces of Magnum when the boils starts.

Notwithstanding, feel free add or subtract the amounts of green tea – or even try this technique with other beer styles. The choice is yours and the possibilities are limitless. Happy brewing!

*NOTE: If you simply must brew this all grain, try the following rather than the DME and LME;

10 lbs of pale 2-row           

8 oz Carafoam

2 oz Special B

Matt Jones

Resources for the Homebrewer

 Brewtoob.com is a video sharing site for homebrewers.  We are proud to provide an expert resource for picking up tips and for those just learning how to brew beer at home. Our videos are streamed from all over the Internet on subjects like kegging, beer kits, recipes, DIY projects and more. Registered users can upload their videos from their desktop or mobile device. Brewtoob also welcomes articles from homebrewing and craft beer writers and bloggers.

Like anyone, Brewtoob had to start somewhere. If you’re interested in learning more about homebrewing, Brewtoob highly recommends starting with The American Homebrewers Association.

Whether you’re a seasoned all grain brewer or a first timer looking for an easy homebrew recipe, you’ll be certain to find helpful resources at the American Homebrewers Association website.  For over thirty years, the American Homebrewers Association has been shining a spotlight on home brewing. Today, it has over 30,000 active members around the globe and decades of shared experience available in its archives.

            The site is regularly updated, so you’re certain to stay well-informed of all the exciting happenings in home brewing. Click through the easily navigable pages to see the latest trends in ingredients, learn about evolving methods, drool over dream brew setups and browse brewing philosophy from the most accomplished home brewers across North America. You’ll also find extensive coverage of the most widely respected beer festivals and competitions across the United States and Canada.

            The American Homebrewers Association website also hosts an active web forum where members direct the discussions. This is a great place for you to swap recipes, troubleshoot problems or to talk about anything with people who love brewing beer as much as you do!  The members are friendly, and most will take the time to help beginners with questions. Similarly, experienced brewers are also sure to come away from this forum with a new appreciation for even the most time honored techniques and ingredients.

If you’d rather make friends in your hometown rather than on a computer, the American Homebrewers Association can help you with that, too. Use the community and calendar sections of the website to find a local homebrew club meeting, a local brew shop or even a local brewing competition. The AHA has chapters across the nation. Even if you don’t find an active club near your home, you’re still likely to find another member in your vicinity; you can start your own chapter or just find a friend with whom you can brew.

            The association also has a long tradition of hosting several in person events. Throughout the year you’ll find educational brew events, meet-ups, a national conference and several high profile competitions.

If you’ve got your setup dialed in, you can join the largest international homebrew competition in the world. The National Homebrew Competition starts with preliminary judging in ten cities around the nation. There were almost 8,000 entries in 2012! Another competition hosted by the association, the Great American Beer Festival Pro-Am, offers a handful of lucky home brewers the chance to have their recipes to brewed by a commercial brewery!

            While many of the site’s resources are offered free of charge, becoming a member certainly has benefits. With a modest fee, you’ll get six issues per year of one of the nation’s finest homebrew magazines plus unfettered access to the webpage and the experts that make up the American Homebrewers Association. I would highly recommend it. Happy brewing from Brewtoob!