New at brew

[Marqui Costa Rica]

Hi All

I'm kind new on this, I have done beer twice. My first time was not that bad. But the 2nd time was awful, the beer at the end was like sour. My guessing is that was contaminated at some point. I'm looking for an easy recipe which I could duplicate and get practice. If you now some, that would be great

Thanks

 

[Steve Ruch]

Extract or all-grain?

 

[Hawkbox]

Sour usually means an infection. I made the mistake of suck starting a siphon on an early batch and some of the bottles were sour, most likely from the bacteria off my mouth.

The all-grain vs extract question is good. For extract you can take 2kg of whatever DME (Dry malt Extract) you want, mix it with water, toss yeast and it will make beer. It won't be fantastic beer but it will be beer, it's how I did my early batches when grain intimidated me.

 

[Marqui Costa Rica]

Hi both

Will be with grain, I thought the same with the extract so I went all in with grain. The funny part is that my 1st batch I thought was not going to be drinkable but it was it. the 2nd batch I thought the opposite I had more carefull more exact with the temperature but was not drinkable hehe. So yes the answer will be with grain

 

[Nosybear]

Hi both

Will be with grain, I thought the same with the extract so I went all in with grain. The funny part is that my 1st batch I thought was not going to be drinkable but it was it. the 2nd batch I thought the opposite I had more carefull more exact with the temperature but was not drinkable hehe. So yes the answer will be with grain

I've won gold medals with extract beer. I'd recommend you stay with extract, particularly after what was likely a sanitation problem. Limit the number of things that can go wrong and solve one problem at a time.

 

[Bubba Wade]

Something like an English Brown Ale is a good place to start. You can use dark malt extract, one hop for buttering, and a very forgiving yeast like Safale S-04.

 

[Craigerrr]

Something like an English Brown Ale is a good place to start. You can use dark malt extract, one hop for buttering, and a very forgiving yeast like Safale S-04.

We normally don't butter our beers, at least we try not to

 

[Marqui Costa Rica]

What about an American Pale Ale that I found here
Batch size 5.5 Gallons

8lb American - Pale 2-Row
2 lb American - White Wheat
1 lb American - Caramel / Crystal 60L
Hops
0.50oz Simcoe
0.50oz Simcoe
1.00oz Simoce

 

[GFHomebrew]

What about an American Pale Ale that I found here
Batch size 5.5 Gallons

8lb American - Pale 2-Row
2 lb American - White Wheat
1 lb American - Caramel / Crystal 60L
Hops
0.50oz Simcoe
0.50oz Simcoe
1.00oz Simoce

That looks solid.
As above its anything post boil you need to keep an eye on.
Remember anything that touches the fermentor needs to be cleaned and sanitised.

 

[Megary]

And, if at all possible, don’t brew with chlorinated water. If your brewing water has chlorine/chloramine in it, then you are making beer with an off-flavor built in from the get-go.

Good luck.

 

[Bubba Wade]

We normally don't butter our beers, at least we try not to

The modern curses of autocorrect.

 

[SabreSteve]

We normally don't butter our beers, at least we try not to

Butter beer actually sounds kinda interesting...
I currently have blueberry pancake beer in the fridge but it doesn't have any butter, atleast I don't think so.

If you're doing all grain and worried about consistency I'd suggest a SMaSH (single malt, single hop) recipe until you get your process down. Then again your recipe does look pretty simple so it might be ok. If you wanted to make a SMaSH you could just up the 2-row, cut the other grain and you'd still likely have a pretty tasty beer.
I'll leave the recipe up to you but definitely sounds like sanitation is a concern. Make sure you have and utilize a good cleaner (like PBW) and a good sanitizer (like Starsan). Keep in mind cleaning is not sanitizing and sanitizing is not cleaning. Cleaning is making sure your surfaces are clear of dirt, debris, oils and residues. Sanitizer then removes the bulk of harmful microbes (but not 100%) but it can't kill what it can't reach which is why cleaning is so important. Clean everything that you use for brewing and sanitize everything that comes into contact with your wort after the boil. I clean most of my stuff the day or days before brewing or bottling and let it all drain/dry upside down till brewday. I then sanitize as close to using the equipment as possible. I keep a 5; gallon bucket of Starsan that I use for multiple batches. You can reuse it as long as it maintains a PH of 3. I also keep some in a spray bottle for quick use. I've only ever had infection at bottling, limited to a few bottles. If it's an entire batch I'd make sure your fermenter is clean and free from scratches before using it again.

 

[sbaclimber]

....and I just thought Bubba was a big Harry Potter fan.

 

[SabreSteve]

....and I just thought Bubba was a big Harry Potter fan.

Wait that's a thing?

 

[sbaclimber]

Wait that's a thing?

yup
Ref: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fictional_universe_of_Harry_Potter#Butterbeer

 

[Donoroto]

Sour usually means an infection

@Marqui Be sure to read this post, it explains your situation perfectly.

Welcome! Your next beer will be great, no matter if it is extract or grain (or both!).

 

[Craigerrr]

@Marqui
Disregard all of the chatter here about butter flavor.
We are all joking around about the butter, at least I am.
@SabreSteve might be thinking about adding it to his blueberry pancake beer... Blech!!!!
It is called Diacetyl, and it is an undesirable off flavor in most beers.
It is actually an ingredient in butter alternatives.

 

[SabreSteve]

@Marqui
Disregard all of the chatter here about butter flavor.
We are all joking around about the butter, at least I am.
@SabreSteve might be thinking about adding it to his blueberry pancake beer... Blech!!!!
It is called Diacetyl, and it is an undesirable off flavor in most beers.
It is actually an ingredient in butter alternatives.

I was just going to melt some butter in a shot glass in the microwave and then pour it into my beer like a boiler-maker...

 

[Craigerrr]

I was just going to melt some butter in a shot glass in the microwave and then pour it into my beer like a boiler-maker...

 

[sbaclimber]

I was just going to melt some butter in a shot glass in the microwave and then pour it into my beer like a boiler-maker...

There is actually a traditional new years eve parlor game here that has a similar effect (albeit in earlier times with lead, instead of wax):

mmmmm, yummy!
"waiter! I believe there is a booger in my beer..."