Mr. Beer Order

I am officially obsessed. I placed a decent sized order today from Mr. Beer. I used a 10% coupon code that was mailed with a free stick on thermometer after I registered on the website. I found a Fallen Friar recipe that I want to do after the Whispering Wheat is done. I already have the two cans of Hopped Malt Extract from my previous variety pack and just need to order some additional hops. I will elaborate on some items, but here is a complete list of what I purchased:

Hand Bottle Capper
Metal Bottle Caps (Qty 144)
Spigot and Wand Assembly
Hydrometer & 10" Sample Tube
BrewTensils Package
2 Gallon Fermenter (Beer Keg)
Premium Refill 4 Pack
Muslin Hop Sack
Sterling Pellet Hops

I purchased the bottle capper and caps (Qty 144) because I wanted to start using 12 0z. glass bottles. I don't think there is anything wrong with the 1 liter plastic Mr. Beer bottles. I just wanted to have the option of bottling my beer in smaller quantities.

Without getting into too much detail right here, a hydrometer is used to measure the gravity of the beer. The ABV can be determined from calculating the difference between the reading taken before the yeast is added and the reading after fermentation has finished. It will be very helpful when I start doing all extract brewing.

I ordered the Premium Refill 4 Pack instead of the standard refills. Each refill has 2 cans of Hopped Malt Extract and no booster.

1 American Devil IPA
1 Pilothouse Pilsner
1 Sticky Wicket
1 Witty Monk

Problem Solved

After 1 more week at room temperature and only 1 day in the fridge, it tastes like a beer! The extra carbonating time at room temperature was all it needed. I'm eager to see how much it improves after more conditioning time.

Since the West Coast Pale Ale (WCPA) was a success, I just brewed the Whispering Wheat Weizenbier! I did not notice a cidery taste in the WCPA, so I used the booster per the instructions again. I will probably utilize a 2-3-2 rule this time around, allowing for that extra week of carbonation time.

Finally!

Disappointment... I was able to taste my first beer after a long awaited 6 weeks. Which turned out to be subpar. It was sweet, like a beer with a ton of sugar added to it (which essentially is what I did). It would have been much better suited for Edgar from Men in Black. In addition to the sugar sweet taste, it was also under carbonated.

I went to Home Brew Talk and Mr. Beer Fans to try and find where I went wrong. I did not find a lot of discussions that closely fit my situation, but there were a few posters who talked about temperature and how it affects the carbonation phase. Since my heat goes off during the day, the temperature in my apartment can drop down to 60 degrees. The yeast has a very hard time doing its job at this temperature. I posted a thread on the Mr. Beer Fans forum to see what they thought. The recommendation was to remove the bottles from the fridge for a week, then put 1 bottle back in for a day and then test it.

It was a relief being told that the beer wasn't ruined and that it probably just needed more time. I drank the rest of the sugar beer regardless. I had to, it was my first one!

14 More Days

My West Coast Pale Ale was in the fermenter for 14 days, and it just finished (i hope) carbonating for the past 14 days. The bottles are very firm which is a good indication that they are carbonated enough. Better yet, there were no bottle bombs! Now it is time to move the bottles into the fridge where they will condition for 14 days. During the conditioning phase, all of the CO2 that was produced in the carbonating phase is absorbed by the beer. You can try a beer after a few days conditioning, but everyone says the best results come from waiting the full two weeks (which I plan on doing).

Next Recipe

A couple of weeks ago I purchased the variety pack from Amazon that has 3 standard refills (Meaning 1 can of Hopped Malt Extract and 1 bag of booster). After reading so much about the potential negative affects of booster, I want to wait until I taste the West Coast Pale Ale before I brew one of these recipes. Also, I don't have any other bottles to use and do not want my next batch (leaning towards the Whispering Wheat) to linger in the fermenter for a couple extra weeks. The 3 recipes in the variety pack include:

Whispering Wheat Weizenbier
1 Can Whispering Wheat Weizenbier HME
1 Packet Dry Brewing Yeast
1 Pouch Booster
1 Packet No-Rinse Cleanser

High Country Canadian Draft
1 Can High Country Canadian Draft HME
1 Packet Dry Brewing Yeast
1 Pouch Booster
1 Packet No-Rinse Cleanser

Octoberfest Vienna Lager
1 Can Octoberfest Vienna Lager HME
1 Packet Dry Brewing Yeast
1 Pouch Booster
1 Packet No-Rinse Cleanser

Bottling Day

It looks like beer, and it even tastes like beer! Just like a warm, flat bud light. It even smells like an old bud light as well. The flat beer taste and clarity of the sample means it is time to bottle. If it tasted sweet or still looked cloudy, the beer would still need more time in the fermenter to let the yeast do some work.

I used the Mr. Beer directions again and watched a YouTube video to get an idea of how the bottling process should flow. The 1 liter PET bottles that came in the kit need 2.5 teaspoons of sugar each. I am using regular table sugar to do this. Putting less than the recommended amount of sugar will result in under carbonated beer, while putting too much sugar in a bottle can result in a bottle bomb. The steps to bottle your beer is fairly simple. I sanitized my bottles, caps, and measuring spoons. A funnel is used in the YouTube video, but I did not have one and had no problem bottling without it. I filled each bottle with the 2.5 teaspoons of sugar before filling any of them. The tap flows a little slow, especially when the fermenter is almost empty. It took about 45 minutes from start to finish. I took my time and made sure I did everything correctly, and now I have 8 of these bottles carbonating for the next 14 days!

Recurring Themes

I've noticed two things that are continuously discussed on the forums. The first thing is known as the 2-2-2 rule, which everyone uses (contrary to Mr. Beer instructions) and whether or not you should use the booster as a brewing ingredient.

2-2-2 Rule: Each "2" in the 2-2-2 Rule refers to how many weeks the beer should stay at each stage. 2 weeks fermenting (which my West Coast Pale Ale is doing right now), 2 weeks carbonating in bottles at room temperature, and then 2 weeks cold conditioning in the refrigerator. The Mr. Beer directions state that the beer should ferment for at least 7 days, but 14 days is better. Given the low alcohol content (approx. 3.7% ABV) in the batch I have, it is possible to be done fermenting in 7 days, but unlikely. I am going to let it ferment for 14 days total (only 3 more) before I take a sample. Leaving it in the fermenter a little longer than necessary won't hurt anything, the general consensus is that it can only help!

Booster: The use of booster seems to be an ongoing debate. Some people hate it and will never use it again. While others will use it depending on the recipe, especially if they already have it on hand. Booster is made form corn syrup solids and is used as a brewing adjunct. Adjuncts are unmalted grains, such as corn, rice, rye, oats, barley, and wheat. Each pouch of booster adds about 1.3% abv per batch. Contrary to the Mr. Beer website, most forum members agree that booster slightly thins out a beer and can produce a cindery taste.

Refill Pack

I decided to order one of the standard refill variety packs because I am still unsure what type of beer I want to brew next. I found it on Amazon for only $30 ( and free shipping with amazon prime!). It is also an incredible deal since each standard refill is $15.95 + shipping on the Mr. Beer website. I want to try a few more of the basic recipes before I start adding hops or using various forms of extracts.

This variety pack should be delivered just in time to bottle my West Coast Pale Ale. I will need some of the no-rinse cleanser in the pack to sanitize my bottles and caps since I accidentally used it all during the brew stage.

Forums

Unfortunately, there isn't much to do while you wait for your beer to ferment. I found two great forums that are loaded with information and helpful members. I bounce back and forth between Mr. Beer Fans (for quality) and Home Brew Talk (for volume).

Home Brew Talk
Pro: The forum is huge. It seems like there is already a topic for everything. I've learned a lot from reading through questions that people have already asked.
Pro: A list of threads from the forum is always atop google search results.
Pro: There is a "Similar Threads" table at the bottom of each discussion, pointing you directly to other topics if the current thread you are viewing didn't have all your answers.
Con: Most members are not "Mr. Beer" friendly. Everyone starts somewhere, and not everyone wants to jump in to 5 gallon batches and steeping grains.
Con: There are membership costs. There is a free membership option, which allows you to post. There are two membership upgrades that you must renew annually. Upgraded memberships allow you to use an avatar, post pictures, search members, delete posts, and other various customizations. I don't see a reason to pay for a membership to any forum.

Mr. Beer Fans
Pro: Obviously, the forum is Mr. Beer friendly. Even though not every member still uses the Mr. Beer fermenter or ingredients, they support those who do.
Pro: It is free! Any member can post, upload pictures, have an avatar, etc.
Pro: I love the recipe section on this forum. It is divided into sub forums based on recipes with different ingredients (Mr. Beer ingredients, extracts, or all-grain).
Con: The forum search feature. You can only search for posts that are less than two years old. Additionally, if you search for two words, all posts with one of the words will show up, despite using "" or +.

First Brew

The kit arrived just in time for the weekend! I put the bottles, caps, and sticker labels away since I do not need them today. In addition to the supplies that came with the kit, I laid out a can opener, measuring cup, spatula, whisk, and a large pot to boil the water. Now its time to brew the West Coast Pale Ale! The online version of the Mr. Beer directions that came with the kit can be found here. Before starting, I read the directions to make sure I had everything I needed. I actually read them twice (and still managed to mess up early on).

Step 1: Assemble the fermenter. This is as easy as attaching the spigot. Be careful not to over tighten the spigot in this step. I read some reviews cautioning about this because it can crack the fermenter, but you obviously want it tight enough so it will not leak!

Step 2: Sanitize. I have been reading a lot more of the forums this past week and everyone stresses how important it is to sanitize your equipment. The directions say to Sanitize all equipment that comes in contact with your beer.

The kit comes with a simple no-rinse cleanser. I was wary the "no-rinse" aspect would affect the beer, but figured it couldn't have negative implications since it was included with the kit. The directions tell you to fill the fermenter to the 4-quart mark on the back of the keg and add 1/2 the pack of no-rinse cleanser, I dumped in the whole pack... You need the other half to sanitize the bottles, caps, etc. when it comes time to bottle the beer. I will just have to pick up another sanitizer before then. I added an extra 4-quarts into the fermenter to make the sanitizer to water ratio correct. I placed the utensils into my boiling pot and added half of the sanitized solution since I had "extra" and let it sit for 10 minutes.

Step 3: Brewing. I broke the brewing process into a few substeps.

3.1 After you have emptied out all of the sanitizer, the next step is to fill the fermenter to the 4-quart line again with water. I just used tap water since mine tastes great. The directions suggest using bottled spring water or charcoal filtered water if your tap water is undrinkable or has a bad taste/smell. The yeast is shipped under a plastic lid on the can of Hopped Malt Extract (HME). Remove the lid and yeast, and place the can of HME into a bowl of lukewarm water. This will loosen the syrup making it easier to poor and get out of the can.

3.2 Mixing in the booster can be a little annoying. Constantly stirring the water is key, while slowly pouring the booster powder. The powder crystallizes immediately. I started using a whisk to dissolve the booster, but switched to a rubber spatula for two reasons. I didn't want to scratch the bottom of my pot and it was easier to mash the booster crystals against the side, allowing them to dissolve easier.

3.3 Once the booster is fully dissolved, bring the pot to a boil, then remove it from heat. Open the can of HME and pour it into the water. It’s really sticky, but try and get as much out as possible using the spatula. Once the HME is added, the mixture is now called the wort.

3.4 Pour the wort into the fermenter. Bring the volume of the keg to the 8.5-quart mark by adding more cold water. I used the whisk to stir vigorously (as described in the directions) and mix the wort. Sprinkle the yeast into the fermenter, and let it sit for five minutes. Then, stir vigorously and screw on lid (this is called pitching the yeast and begins the fermentation process).

That's it! I placed a piece of cardboard underneath the fermenter just in case it leaks. The directions say to place the fermenter out of direct sunlight, in a location with a consistent temperature between 68°-76° F. The heat my apartment goes off during the day, so I hope the temperature drop doesn't negatively affect the outcome of the beer.

Home Brew Kit Ordered

Today I ordered the Mr. Beer Premium Edition Kit (which sells for $50 plus shipping) off of Woot, where I got it for $20 + $5! I read some reviews from Woot and various homebrew forums, concluding that a Mr. Beer Kit was the best place to start this venture (especially at more than 50% off, this deal was impossible to pass up).

Based on reviews, here are the reasons I went with a Mr. Beer Kit :

Size: The fermenter is 2.5 gallons and about 14" deep X 9" wide X 10" high. Some other kits I looked came with 5 gallon buckets and larger. With a smaller fermenter, you will get smaller batches of beer. I liked this because I would be able to try more recipes at a cheaper cost. I could experiment in different ways at half the cost of the bigger kits.
Customer Service: Every review I read that involved Mr. Beer customer service was excellent.
Simplicity: I read the directions on Mr. Beer recipes verses some other kits, and it seemed like the easiest way to learn about the brewing process. Some kits start with grains, hops, etc. The kit I ordered comes with just one can of extract, and there are many refill packs that just involve the extracts as well.
Price: This one is obvious. I couldn't pass up the deal that Woot had.

Here is a run down of what is included in the kit. Everything can be seen in the picture to the top right:
1 Fermentation keg
1 Standard Refill pack
8 Reusable Plastic 1-Liter Bottles
8 Labels with MR.BEER® Logo
1 Brewing with MR.BEER® -- Brewer's Guide
1 Instructions