We have all been there. Someone special’s birthday is just around the corner and our minds go blank when considering a gift. Well, here’s a great gift idea that will be easy on the wallet and always result in a very happy ending, a home brew kit.
Brewing your own beer at home is not a new concept. People have been brewing beer for as long as the United States has been a country, and in the 1970s President Jimmy Carter legalized home brewing. US federal law states that a person may brew up to 100 gallons of their own beer in a year, as long as it is used solely for personal consumption.
Like everything else, finding the right home brew kit can be a bit of a challenge. There are so many variations online these days that it can get quite confusing. However, if you keep in mind that there is no need to overpay for a homebrewing kit, you will quickly find the right kit at the right price. Home preparation kits are a lot like cars. You can always buy the fancier model, but be prepared to pay a premium for it. For beginners, buying an expensive home brew kit with all the bells and whistles could be a huge waste of effort and money. His first car wasn’t a Ferrari, so his first homebrew kit doesn’t have to be top of the line either. An old Ford will get you from point A to point B just as well as a new Ferrari will. The old Ford has a set of tires, wheels, an engine, and a steering wheel. So, just keep in mind that a beginner’s home brew kit will produce exactly the same beer as one of those expensive fancy kits, it will only cost about half the price. Below we’ve put together a quick list of must-have equipment when it comes to home brew kits, so here they are;
1. Food-grade buckets, at least two, one with a tight-fitting lid!
(make sure the pails are food grade HDPE)
2. Airlock
(a device that keeps oxygen out but allows CO2 to escape)
3. Thermometer
(without a thermometer, you won’t be able to monitor the temperature of the wort)
4. Siphon system
(an automatic siphon or syringe with siphon will work)
5. Hydrometer
(you’ll need this to test the gravity of your wort)
6. Test vials
(you will need it along with your hydrometer)
7. Racking stick
(used to siphon your wort between buckets)
8. Sanitizer
(an important step in home brewing)
9. Muslin or cheesecloth bags
(removes brewing hops and other particles)
That is all! Believe it or not, with this basic equipment you can easily prepare beer in your kitchen. Now there are a couple of other items you’ll need to consider, but they’re not typically sold with a home brew kit. Those items are;
1. A pot or kettle with a capacity of 3 to 8 gallons
(a 5 gallon batch is the standard so an 8 gallon pot is required)
2. A kit of ingredients
(sold by the same retailers, this is your recipe)
3. Bottles of beer.
(12 oz or 22 oz sizes, you will need 48 12 oz bottles for 5 gallons of beer)
The above auxiliary equipment is not expensive. It is usually purchased from your local brewery as bottles are expensive to ship and it is always possible for them to break during shipping.
Now, should you buy your home brew kit from your local brewery? Well, in short, the answer is “compare prices first”. Local breweries charge a premium for their homebrew kits simply because they have a lot of overhead. We have never seen a homebrew kit at a local brewery that was actually such a good deal. In fact, most kits sold at breweries are overpriced. Again, nothing wrong with expensive kits, breweries have to pay rent.
There are several sites online that sell prep kits at great prices. One that comes to mind is TheAmericanHomeBrewer.com, another is NorthernBrewer.com. Unfortunately, Northern Brewer doesn’t sell brew kits in all the different sizes, while with The American Home Brewer you can choose a brew kit in 1¼ gallon, 2½ gallon, and 5 gallon sizes. Northern Brewer, because it is such a large company, offers a larger selection of ingredient kits or recipe kits; however, for first-time brewers, this can be confusing. The American Home Brewer offers about 20 to 25 different recipe kits and that’s all you’ll need to get started. At Northern Brewer you will find more than 70 recipe kits.
We’ve compared prices from most major online retailers including Midwest, Northern Brewer, Bruhaus, Williams Brewing, E Krauss, and The American Home Brewer. After careful research, we can safely tell you that the best coffee brewing kits are on The American Home Brewer’s website. This is an honest opinion that has resulted from many hours of research. We do not work with or for The American Home Brewer, but we do buy from them quite often.
So there you have it. The next time you’re looking for a special gift and you’re out of ideas, consider a DIY kit. It’s a fantastic gift idea under $100 and you’ll definitely be the most appreciated giver at the party!