I'm going to start brewing beer at home....

JLSIX did it. He was good at it. It was delicious, but I think he's too busy with work now. He can probably give you tips.

The mr. Beer kit is a good place to start and not very expensive

quote:

---

mr. Beer kit is a good place to start and not very expensive 

---

But the beer is nasty.

I homebrewed when I was at lsu. Made some pretty good porters. Haven't thought about it in years though. It was a blast, esp when there were three of us brewing all at once

quote:

---

thermostat control

---

This is going to be critical for almost every style of beer besides a few Belgians. OP, if you have the capability to keep a room in your house around 68 degrees, it would go a long way. Yeasts are living creatures and prefer specific temperatures to do their thing. Most of your ale yeasts are going to prefer anything from 65-72.

Darker beers like porters and stouts will hide a lot of imperfections in your first beer. My first beer was an amber ale. At the time I thought it was great, but if I had some now I'd call it dog shite. Another good option for beginners beers are saisons. Saison yeasts can operate at higher temperatures.

I have a want for home brew

I feel like it's a lot like rolling your own cigarettes... It sounds like a good, money saving plan, but it's not worth the headache

It's not about the product, it's about the process

Most people don't realize how much it costs. It's not beaucoup, but it takes a little bit of money. You're looking at about $100 to get through your first 5 gallon batch after equipment and ingredients. They do offer some 1-gallon kits that are a little easier on people who are curious to see if they like making beer or not.

Here or Here