Red Train's Brewing Process
For Most Ales

Talk to 10 different people about how to brew beer, and you'll hear about 10 different ways to do it. Everybody seems to do one thing or another differently than the next guy. Shortcuts run rampant throughout the homebrewing world.

The method we use eliminates the common shortcuts which can cause an inferior product. Our process delivers a simple yet high quality product.

Of all the different methods and shortcuts across the spectrum of home brewers, there is one rule that must be followed by all... Cleanliness! All equipment and hands MUST be thoroughly sanitized throughout the whole brewing process.

The following process is for a 5 gallon batch of premium grade Ale.

Now on with the brewing!

1) Purchase 7 gallons of purified water. (Purified water is a must...No exceptions!

DO NOT USE TAP WATER! Even if tap water is boiled it still contains a chemical called Cloromine. It will give you an undesirable "off" taste.

(Who can forget all the popular beer commercials of yesteryear when all the breweries credited the quality of their beer to the "natural spring water" that they used)

2) Put 6 gallons of purified drinking water into an 8 gallon ,or larger, stainless steel or enamel pot, and begin heating to 150 degrees. (You'll want an extra gallon of purified water standing by for later use).

It is desirable to brew the full amount of water from the start, thereby not having to add any in the carboy after the brew. Of course if your brewing kettle is not large enough, or your heat source is not capable of bringing to boil that much water, then you will need to start with less water and add the rest to the carboy later. Brewing with all the water will give you a better hop yield and there will be less chance of bacterial contamination.

3) Prepare your grains by putting them into a steeping bag.

4) Put the bag of grain in the 150 degree water. Steep (extract the essence of ) your grains for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

5) Remove the sack from the pot and put it into a kitchen strainer. While holding it over your pot,  and while squeezing the bag, trickle 2 cups of warm purified water over the bag to rinse out the remaining sugars.

6) Now bring the liquid to a "rolling" boil with the lid only 1/2 way on.

7) Remove the pot from the heat. Stir in the malt extract syrup, dry malt or rice extract. If using lactose or other powder dextrins, add them at this time also. (This does not include priming sugar) Be careful not to let the malt scorch to the bottom of the pot.

8) When malt is fully dissolved, return kettle to heat and bring to a rolling boil once again. Careful not to let it boil over!

9) The total boiling time of the brew will be 1 hour. Put the lid on, leaving a small opening for some steam to escape. Boil the wort vigorously (rolling) for 15 minutes scraping the residue off the insides of the pot a few times, then throw in the boiling hops and any ingredients unique to the style of beer you are brewing. I.E. Oak chips for India Pale Ale.

10) Add Irish moss during the last 15 minutes of the boil. Add any finish hops during the last 5 to 10 minutes of the boil.

11) Shut heat off. Your wort is now complete.

12) Cool off the wort as fast as you possibly can! Use a copper emmersive coil. (If you can't get a copper coil, placing the pot in a tub of ice is acceptable) With either method be sure to stir constantly while cooling.

Cooling is the second most critical step in brewing a great beer...Remember cleanliness is the first! The reason it's necessary to cool the wort down quickly is so that it will achieve a cold break to coagulate proteins and reduce your lag phase (The highest contamination period), and also to stop CMS production at temps above 100 degrees.

The immersive copper coil is your best bet! You just hook up one end of the coil to a garden hose coming from any water faucet. Another garden hose is connected to the other end of the coil to channel off the exhausted water.

Cleanliness is now at it's most vital point!! The cooling down step is where proper sanitation is critical because bacteria kicks in at temperatures 40 degrees on up. You are now bringing the wort into the neighborhood of  75 - 80 degrees for the duration of the process. (Bacteria's favorite temperature range)

13) After cooling down the wort, whirlpool it with a sanitized spoon, cover it and let it sit for 20 minutes.

14) Siphon your wort into your glass carboy fermentor, DO NOT POUR THROUGH A FUNNEL. Tap the insides of the carboy with the end of the siphon tube in order to aerate the wort.

Siphoning the wort into the carboy is recommended over pouring through a funnel for the reason that you will get less trub into your fermentor. Trub produces amino acids and fusel alcohol. This along with the yeast by products can give you an "off" flavor as well as cause headaches. 

15) Hydrate dry yeast 15 minutes in sterile purified water 75 - 85 degrees. Add your yeast when your wort's temperature is between 75 - 80 degrees.

16) Aerate your wort a little more by shaking the fermentor vigorously for 2 to 3 minutes at a time. Do this a few times during the first few hours in the fermentor. NOTE: After fermentation has started DO NOT AERATE! Any splashing or aeration at this time will oxidize your beer, resulting in off flavors. Ferment beer using standard fermenting and racking techniques.

(Secondary fermentation is acceptable, but is not necessary unless you plan to ferment longer than 2 weeks.)

(Ales ferment 10 - 14 days at 58 - 74 degrees, Lagers ferment in 5 - 7 days primary, 7 - 14 secondary at 45 - 58 degrees.)

17) After beer has fermented, prepare gelatin by adding it to 1 pint of cold water and gently heat and stir until dissolved. DO NOT BOIL! Add to beer in the fermentor and let it clear for 1 - 2 days in the carboy before bottling. Let it be known that if you get greedy and over clear the beer in the secondary fermentor the beer will not have enough yeast to carbonate in the bottle.

18) Prepare priming sugar or dry malt extract by boiling with 2 cups of purified water for 10 minutes. Pour boiled water solution into bottling vessel. Siphon the beer from the secondary fermentor to your bottling vessel. Sugar will be mixed evenly. Fill all your bottles and then cap. Allow bottles to condition at room temperature for 7 - 10 days before chilling and serving.

19) The unveiling! Or in this case, the uncapping, of your home brewed beer!

  Enjoy! 

"People make wort, yeast makes beer"