We need your help now

Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.

You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.

If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.

7 handy tips to get you started with homebrewing

We’ve got you covered.

LAST WEEK, WE introduced the Smithwick’s Homebrew Challenge.

In case you missed it, here’s the gist: apply on the Smithwick’s Homebrew website to register as an entrant in the competition, they’ll send you some hops, and you can then get brewing a Christmas ale.

Winners will be whittled down and selected by Master Brewers and members of the National Homebrew Club, with two lucky entrants getting to brew in historic St James’s Gate and have their brews tasted and voted on by the public.

So we thought we’d give a leg-up to all the would-be and amateur homebrewers out there reading TheJournal.ie, with some solid tips recommended to us by the folk in the National Homebrew Club.

Take notes…

1. Start simple

Resist the urge to dive straight into brewing a high alcohol or highly hopped beer. Brewing a simple pale ale, porter or stout will make it easier for you to find your footing and figure out what went right (and what didn’t) once the beers are finished. There’ll be plenty of time to experiment in the future. Grab your own homebrew kit over at homebrew.ie.

Batch #2: Regrets.. Daquella manera Daquella manera

2. Next to Godliness…

Sanitation is the most important part of making good beer. Bad sanitisation can ruin your whole batch – make sure your equipment is cleaned, then sanitised.

IMG_9465 Colby Perry Colby Perry

3. Hit the books

Brewing is an ancient skill and has been around for over 7000 years – it follows that there’s a lot of wisdom out there on the subject. Spend some time online, pick up a home-brewing book, and get in touch with other brewers to exchange knowledge. It can only mean your beer gets better. Check out the National Homebrew Club website for guides on your first brew.

Batch #4: Castaña Supreme Daquella manera Daquella manera

4. The shopping list

It goes without saying that the right and properly-stored ingredients are key to a successful brew. Fresh is best. Yeast should be kept in the fridge, grains in a cool dry place, and hops in the freezer. Hops, malt extract, yeast and crushed grains should be used quickly, as they have a limited shelf life.

hops Smithwick's Smithwick's

5. Temperature is rising

Temperature control is very important. Making beer is art – but it’s also chemistry. Each yeast strain has a narrower optimal temperature range. You can find the recommend fermentation temperature for each strain on the manufacturer website – plus lots of ways to control temperature.

brewers Smithwick's Smithwick's

6. Patience is a virtue

Yeast takes time to work. Once your beer is bottled or kegged, it generally needs at least two weeks to carbonate and condition before it’s ready to consume. A lot of times, your brew will taste better after further cold conditioning in the fridge too.

Daquella manera Daquella manera

7. Club together

Join your local homebrew club – there are lots of meetups all over Ireland. They’re a great place to meet other brewers, share beers, get feedback and figure out how to improve your process. Check out the National Homebrew Club forum to find out where you nearest meetup is.

homebrew National Homebrew Club National Homebrew Club

To enter the Smithwick’s Homebrew Challenge, people must be over 18 and they can apply online at www.SmithwicksHomebrewChallenge.ie. Each applicant will be sent 100g of Admiral Hops to get them started, subject to availability. Magnum, Challenger, UK Goldings, Willamette or Saaz Hops can also be used for this competition.

The judging panel will include Smithwick’s Brewers and members of the National Homebrew Club. If you would like further information about homebrewing and to pick up some tips visit www.nationalhomebrewclub.ie.

Close
24 Comments
    Install the app to use these features.
    Mute Chris Finn
    Favourite Chris Finn
    Report
    Jun 11th 2017, 9:20 AM

    Ads. This thing about privacy. I don’t get the paranoia. I’m open to being shown why I’m wrong.

    You get an often incredible free service and the cost of it is, somewhere on your Facebook feed you get ads of things you’d actually be interested in rather than ads for things you’re not into. To me that’s an improvement. Also the article says that has a value as if to say we’re not getting something back. Well you are getting something. Free cloud storage search engine use, photo storage, social media platforms, outstanding high performing apps and software that doesn’t come cheap.

    If you complain than use a different browser, and don’t use googles free browser or facebooks free service and complain. If you want privacy there are options

    34
    Install the app to use these features.
    Mute Chris Finn
    Favourite Chris Finn
    Report
    Jun 11th 2017, 9:23 AM

    @Chris Finn: also this privacy thing. No one cares about you or names you ndividually there are 7 billion yous on the system. None of it is shared. The paranoia makes me cringe sometimes

    Literally the only cost is you get more customised ads big deal. You also get incredible free infrastructure from internet companies.

    Anyway if even you can’t get past all the above you have an option of not using these services. No one is forcing you so how could people complain.

    20
    Install the app to use these features.
    Mute Darren Doyle McCormack
    Favourite Darren Doyle McCormack
    Report
    Jun 11th 2017, 9:14 AM

    The female porn directors name is Erika Lust…..brilliant.

    63
    Install the app to use these features.
    Mute Neville Patterson
    Favourite Neville Patterson
    Report
    Jun 11th 2017, 9:26 AM

    @Darren Doyle McCormack: the Tennessee senator who had something to say about it is named as Mae Beavers! You couldn’t make it up.

    36
    Install the app to use these features.
    Mute Les McQueen
    Favourite Les McQueen
    Report
    Jun 11th 2017, 9:31 AM

    @Darren Doyle McCormack: Lust was born Erika Hallqvist in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1977. You hardly thought it was her real name?

    51
    See 1 more reply ▾
    Install the app to use these features.
    Mute Pat Mustard
    Favourite Pat Mustard
    Report
    Jun 11th 2017, 10:23 AM

    @Darren Doyle McCormack: I suspect that’s her ‘industry name’ Darren

    12
    Install the app to use these features.
    Mute Jed I. Knight
    Favourite Jed I. Knight
    Report
    Jun 11th 2017, 2:52 PM

    Just read The Assad Files and watched a YouTube video on the same topic, harrowing stuff but a story that must be told.

    2
Submit a report
Please help us understand how this comment violates our community guidelines.
Thank you for the feedback
Your feedback has been sent to our team for review.