If brewing your own beer at home sounds like something you’d enjoy doing, the best way to start is to dive in headfirst. While brewing beer is a delicate science, it isn’t so complicated that you won’t be able to do it without training or instruction. First-time brewing kits can make it simple to get started, but they don’t tell you everything you need to know. Be careful not to fall into these mistakes that first-time home brewers often make if you want to see success quickly.
Using Poor Quality Water
No matter how carefully you read your brewing instructions or how expensive your equipment might be, your ingredients are the most important parts of your success. Despite everything that you need to make beer, its largest ingredient is still water. This means that your water’s quality is absolutely crucial to the beer’s quality. Tap water straight from the faucet will make terrible beer; stick to purified water or boil your water for a while before beginning.
Going Too Complicated Too Quickly
If your favorite kind of beer is something more complicated like a porter or a stout, you might want to stick to a beer that won’t overwhelm you too quickly. Ales are common first beers for home brewers because the margin for error is larger and they don’t require too much extra attention to small details. A fairly common mistake for new home brewers is trying to get complicated right off the bat. Learn your basics first and then use them to build upon as you venture into more complicated beers.
Being Impatient With Fermentation
Patience is a virtue when it comes to brewing beer. You should learn what factors influence beer fermentation rates. You’ll likely be excited to try your first beer as soon as possible, but you’ll need to show some restraint if you want it to taste good. Even simple beers require quite a long time to fully ferment, especially if you’re making them in smaller batches. Trying to rush the fermentation process will give you a weak-tasting and unsatisfying end product.
Not Properly Cleaning and Sanitizing
Between batches of beer, you need to be sure that you fully clean and sanitize your equipment. Cleaning means removing everything left over that’s visible from the equipment, but sanitizing means removing the microorganisms that can stick around after you’re done cleaning. Without proper sanitation, you risk contaminating your next batch of beer. This won’t just make it taste worse, it can actively harm your health if you’re unlucky. Take the time to deep clean your equipment and you’ll have better beer for each brewing process.
