Originally posted by: shenaniganz
Making some honey amber and some red amber ales. How experienced are you HomeBrewerDude? Any tips or suggestions? I've done quite a bit of reading up on the subject in preparation for my first try, so I hope everything turns out. We're starting off with the easy stuff, maybe we'll get into lagers or all-grain if we have good luck.
I have been brewing for about 8 years.... i still do extract/partial mashes. i dont' have time to go all grain....though i have helped my neighbor brew a couple of all grain batches.
You're beer will turn out great. Just sanitize everything and use the recommended dilution of what ever you are using. If you are using bleach or iodophor/iodine then rinse yoru equipment very well. There is really only one way to screw up a batch of beer.... infection. in all my years of brewing, i have never ever had an infected batch. except for a honey mead which i forgot about was in the carboy...after two years it finally succumbed to something.
Do the amber first as the honey ale might take a little longer to finish....you will want to drink your first batch as soon as possibly, but try to let it age a bit... also, liquid yeasts can greatly improve your beer, though the dry yeast (coopers, etc...) aren't bad, especially for the money. i suggest you brew a coupel of batches within a week or two of each other... otherwise you will run out of beer before the next batch is ready.