What about BIAB kits? I'm just now starting to do my homework on these, so I don't know much, but I think that's the next logical step up from extract kits.
Have you been by your local homebrew shop yet? The good ones will have lots of information for you on that matter. If you are like me and live in the middle of nowhere you can start with Northern Brewer, More Beer, William's, Austin homebrew etc. Things like blonde ales, wheat beers, porters are always in season. As well as IPAs. More specific you could work on some Oktoberfest or your bigger Christmas beers and double bocks right now.
How beginner friendly? Have you done a partial mash? or at least used steeping grains with extract before? I think exposure to using grains at some level will make the prospect of an all-grain brewday a little less intimidating. My experience with grains was limited to steeping before I went to all-grain. My mashing process has many similarities from steeping and also elements of BIAB, so it was not a huge step for me, and that gave me some comfort factor and confidence. Chances are very good your first session will be an educational experience! If your basic processes (yeast management, fermentation control and sanitation) are sound, you will produce something that, while not perfect, will be enjoyable at some level. Brew and learn, and your beer will consistently improve. My first all-grain was a brew called "Centennial Blond" from Biermuncher on HBT forum. Pretty simple recipe and process... the biggest issue I had was estimating my extraction efficiency. I WAYY understimated my efficiency (by 20 percentage points) and wound up with a malt bomb. The beer was out of balance and under-hopped... but because it was my first attempt... I enjoyed it with all it's flaws. It was still beer... and it wasn't awful. I re-brewed the same beer a couple of weeks later, taking into account my system efficiency, and it was delicious! Cheers (in advance) to your first successful AG brewday!
Here is a simple Belgian ale, 6 gallons 15 lbs pilsen malt 2 lbs table sugar .75 oz Columbus 60 min .33 oz Columbus 20 min 1.5 oz saaz 7 min 1 oz centennial 1 min Wyeast 3522 with a starter 5 gallons mash water / strike at 164, mash one hour 5.5 gallons sparge og 1.080 fg 1.010 alc 9.4
If you have the basics down well... fermentation temperature control yeast pitching temperature control sanitation yeast pitching rates / starters full boil quick cooling of hot wort (i.e. do you have a wort chiller) KISS methodology ... then you're probably ready. Special emphasis on that last one, KISS methodology. Don't try to get complicated. Instead, try to simplify. Here's a suggestion for a first recipe: 11 lbs base malt (2-row, Munich, golden promise, Vienna, Maris Otter etc) 1 lb crystal 20 1/2 oz magnum at 60 (adjusted to about 45 IBUs) 1 oz cascade at 15 1 oz cascade at 5 2 oz cascade at FO 2 oz cascade DH Guaranteed to come out fantabulous.
60% Wheat Malt 40% Pils Malt 1.044 OG Mash @ 150*F IBUs to 12 for 90 minute boil Any German Wheat yeast strain at 70-72*F for just over a week Bottle to 3 vols CO2 Nothing like a yeasty Hefe on a warm Summer afternoon. And they make a great liquid substitute added to Bisquick for pancakes on Saturday morning (consumed with the beer of course).
My house IPA evolved out of Northern Brewers Chinook IPA All Grain kit. It is wonderful. http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/chinook-ipa-all-grain-kit.html
