Brewmaker Essential Beer Kits

Read these instructions carefully and in full before you start. The preparation process is essentially the same for all beer types, but the amounts of sugar and water are different for the various types. Brewmaker Essential beer kits are very easy to use. The most important thing is to ensure that everything you use is absolutely clean.

1. Sterilise Fermenter & Stirrer along with any other equipment.

2. Stand your malt can in hot water for 5 minutes to soften the contents. Then start boiling 3.5 litres (6 UK pints) of water.

3. Open the malt can & pour contents into your cleaned & sterilised fermenter.

4. Add 2L of boiling water to your fermenter.

5. Add 1kg (2.2lbs) of Brewing Sugar (Granulated Sugar can be used as an alternative).

6. Thoroughly mix the contents of the fermenter to dissolve the Brewing Sugar & malt extract.

7. Add cold water to bring the volume up to 5 UK gallons, ensure the contents are well stirred.

8. Sprinkle the yeast onto the surface of the beer, no need to stir.

9. Cover the fermenter with appropriate lid, place in a warm area (18 - 21c) & leave to ferment.

10. Fermentation will be complete once bubbles cease to rise (typically after 6 days), or if you use a Hydrometer, when the gravity remains constant at a figure below 1.008.

11. Use a hydrometer to determine the specific gravity. Your beer is ready for bottling if:

• There is no more activity in the fermentation bucket and
• The measured SG is more or less equal to the expected SG (see table below) and
• The SG has been stable for 48 hours.

12. Syphon the beer into strong plastic/glass bottles or a pressure barrel, we recommend using an Auto-Syphon to avoid disturbing the yeast & sediment at the bottom of the Fermentation Vessel.

13. Add half a teaspoon of Brewing Sugar per pint to each bottle (or a maximum of 85gms (3oz), per 5 gallon pressure barrel).

14. Cap & seal the bottles securely & stand the bottles or pressure barrel in a warm, dark place for two days.

15. Finally, move the bottles or pressure barrel to a cool place for 14 days, or until the beer is clear for drinking.

Observe the following rules to avoid the risk of exploding bottles or kegs:

• Use only pressure-resistant and reusable beer bottles free from scratches and cracks.
• Do not rely solely on a fixed fermentation time or the bubbling of the airlock. Always measure the initial and final density of the beer.
• Never add too much sugar when bottling.
• During the second fermentation, store bottles and kegs in a separate, closed room, with a stable temperature and preferably not in busy areas.
• Never store filled beer bottles or kegs where they are exposed to direct sunlight.