Check your kit. Check kit contents against Kit Inventory Sheet. If you will not be brewing immediately, refrigerate yeast and hop pellets.

Incubate Wyeast in advance.* Wyeast Cultures require 6-8 hours of incubation for every week past their manufacturing date, or 24 hours for every month past their manufacturing date. A manufacturing date code is stamped into the bottom seam of each Wyeast Culture. To incubate Wyeast, place the foil packet on a counter. Feel it carefully and locate the bulging area inside the packet. Inside this bulge is sterile brewers wort (unfermented beer), which provides food for the yeast. Smack the packet and break open the inner nutrient pack. Shake well, and leave the packet at room temperature (ideally 78 degrees). Wyeast is ready to "pitch", or add to your wort, when the packet has swelled over one inch thick. Northern Brewer guarantees that Wyeast Cultures will swell to one inch thick in under seven days, or we will replace the yeast free of charge. Please call us, and have your receipt handy.

*If you chose to substitute White Labs or Wyeast "Pitchable" yeast tubes, no incubation is required.

Crush specialty grains. If your Beer Kit contains a specialty grain mix, crush the grains. Transfer the crushed grains into the supplied muslin grain bag. Tie the open end into a knot. The easiest way to crush grains at home is to place the grains into a large Ziplock freezer bag and crack the husks open with a rolling pin. Northern Brewer can also pre-crush your specialty grain mix, if desired.

Heat water. Heat 1½ gallons of drinking water in the brewing pot, which should be at least 2½ gallons total capacity. Soak the containers of malt extract syrup in warm water. This will soften the malt syrup, and allow it to flow more easily.

OPTIONAL: The Kit Inventory Sheet has a simple water recommendation for the style of beer you are brewing. If your kit recommends hard water, you may wish to use commercial "Spring Water". If your kit recommends soft water, try distilled or reverse-osmosis water.

Steep Specialty Grains. Steep the grains in the heating water like a tea bag. Remove the specialty grain mix when the water starts steaming (approximately 170° F if you have a thermometer).

Add Malt Extract. Once the water comes to a boil (and any specialty grains removed), remove the kettle from the stove. While stirring, add the malt extract syrup. Once the syrup is dissolved, return the kettle to the stove and begin heating. The malt-water solution is now called "wort".

BOIL OVER WARNING: Watch the pot carefully! Boiling wort will froth considerably, and the froth may rise rapidly and unexpectedly. A boil over can be extremely messy. If you notice the foam rising quickly, remove the pot from the burner immediately!

Add other ingredients. Once the wort returns to a boil, set a timer to 60 minutes. Add all other ingredients (except the small bag of corn sugar) to the kettle at the times specified on the Kit Inventory Sheet. All times on the Kit Inventory Sheet are listed in minutes before the end of the boil. For example, adding an ounce of hops "60 minutes before the end of the boil" means that you will add that ounce of hops as soon as the wort begins to boil. Likewise, adding an ounce of hops "1 minute before the end of the boil" means that you will add that ounce of hops 59 minutes after the start of the boil.

Always watch for frothing after each ingredient is added! Pellet hops, dry malt extract, and other sugars can cause renewed frothing after they are added.

Cool the wort. After 60 minutes of boiling, remove the kettle from the burner. Cover the kettle with a clean lid. Fill a sink with cold water and ice. Immerse the kettle in the ice water for 15 to 20 minutes. Do not put ice directly into the kettle. As the ice melts and the water heats up, replace as needed.

Sanitize fermenting equipment. As the wort is cooling, make up a sanitizing solution. One Step (recommended) can be prepared by dissolving one tablespoon of powder per gallon of lukewarm water. Three to four gallons of sanitizing solution are normally adequate. Carefully sanitize the primary fermenter. Ensure that all interior surfaces are in contact with the One Step solution for at least one or two minutes. Pour the remaining sanitizer into a clean sink or a wash tub. Sanitize all other items that will come in contact with the wort, including funnels, fermentation locks, and rubber stoppers. Note: B-Brite and bleach each require 30 minutes of contact time to sanitize. If using these sanitizers, adjust procedures accordingly.

Fill primary fermenter. Fill the sanitized primary fermenter with 3 gallons of cold water. Pour the chilled wort into the primary fermenter. Leave any sediment in the bottom of the kettle. If necessary, top up the primary fermenter to five gallons with water.

Pitch yeast.* Add or "pitch" yeast to the primary fermenter when the temperature of the wort is 78° F or lower (not warm to the touch). Immerse the liquid yeast packet and a pair of scissors in a One Step solution for 1-2 minutes. Hold the foil packet upright and make a small cut in the top Wyeast pouch to release pressure. Continue to cut off a corner of the packet. Carefully pour the yeast into the primary fermenter.

*If you have a White Labs "pitchable" yeast, just shake it up and pour it in.

Attach fermentation lock. Add approximately 1 tablespoon of water to the fermentation lock. Insert the lock into rubber stopper, and attach to the primary fermenter. If the stopper "pops out" of the glass carboy, wait for it to dry and re-insert. Do not force the stopper into the carboy; it can pop through. Many plastic-style primary fermenters have a grommeted lid, and a rubber stopper is not necessary.

Fermentation. Place the fermenter in a dark area, approximately 68-70° F degrees. Active fermentation may not begin for 24-48 hours! Once the beer begins to produce carbon dioxide (evidenced by bubbling in the airlock), the temperature may be reduced if required. To determine optimal fermentation temperature, refer to the Wyeast Specifications listed on the Kit Inventory Sheet.

OPTIONAL: A two-stage fermentation will result in a clearer and cleaner-tasting beer. Siphon the beer into a sanitized glass carboy after the foam on top of the beer has fallen. Leave as much sediment as possible in the primary fermenter. Most ales will be ready to transfer to secondary after 5-7 days; most lagers require 14 days or more in the primary. Once the beer is safely in the secondary fermenter, it can remain there for up to a month (or longer, depending on alcoholic strength).

Bottling. Fermentation may be complete after 14 days, but may take longer. If you have a glass fermenter, you may bottle as soon all bubbling in the fermentation lock has ceased. Plastic fermenters are not air-tight, and this is not an adequate way to determine if fermentation is complete. Users of plastic fermenters should take hydrometer readings on two consecutive days. If the readings do not change, the beer is ready for bottling.

Sanitize siphoning equipment, a bottling bucket, bottle fillers, bottle caps and all beer bottles. IMPORTANT: Measure out 3/4 to 7/8 of a cup of corn sugar from the bag of priming sugar. (The bag contains 1 cup of priming sugar.) Make a priming solution by combining sugar with one pint of water in a small saucepan. Boil 5-10 minutes to sanitize. Pour the priming solution into a five gallon bottling bucket.

If your beer kit contains a Natural Fruit Extract, pour it directly into the bottling bucket.

Carefully siphon the fermented beer into the bottling bucket, leaving behind as much sediment as possible. Stir gently to promote mixing. Fill and cap bottles.

Conditioning. Allow bottles to condition at room temperature for 10-14 days. Chill and serve as desired.