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A typical batch of homebrewed beer is five US gallons (19 l) in volume, which is roughly enough for two cases — or 48 12-ounce (355 mL) bottles — of beer. In Britain homebrew is typically produced in 5 Imperial gallon (23 l) batches. In Australia, which has a strong homebrewing culture (due to both historical consumption patterns and the presence of the Adelaide-based Coopers brewery & their large associated homebrew business), a standard batch is 23l.

Typical homebrewed beer is produced by boiling water, malt extract and hops together in a large kettle and then cooling the resulting wort and adding yeast for fermenting. Advanced homebrewers make their own extract from crushed malted barley (or alternative grain adjuncts like wheat, oats, corn or rye) by a more complicated process of mashing the grain in hot water. In both cases, the wort is boiled for between 15 min and an hour (however if a brewer is creating the wort from grain or wants proper hop characteristics, it is from 60 mins upwards), to remove some volatile impurities, dissolve the character of the hops, and break down some of the sugars. The wort is then cooled down to pitching temperature (70-75 °F or 21-24 °C- but if it is possible, 18C-20C is best). Quick cooling and isolation from the ambient atmosphere is needed to prevent early bacterial contamination or oxidation of the wort. Often, cooling is hastened by the used of thermal heat exchangers, informally, wort chillers, which often consist of copper tubing immersed in the wort, through which cold water flows. For larger volumes of wort, a counter-flow wort chiller can be used, in which the hot wort flows through copper tubing which is jacketed by a second tube (often garden hose) through which cold water is run in the opposite direction from the wort's flow. A more primitive and ineffective method is to immerse the pot in a sink full of ice water.The cooled wort is poured into the primary fermenter in an aggressive manner, so as to aerate the wort; sufficient oxygen is vital for the yeast's growth stage. Advanced homebrewers may further oxygenate the wort by bubbling filtered air or even pure oxygen through the cooled wort. The yeast is then pitched (sprinkled or poured) into the wort. If a dried yeast is used, some brewers rehydrate it first to reduce 'lag time', or the time taken before the yeast starts working. Although more expensive than dry yeasts, a number of liquid yeasts are also available, offering a range of flavor characteristics that allow the brewer to more closely approximate various beer styles.

Primary fermentation takes place in a large food-grade bucket or carboy, sometimes left open but often stoppered with the carbon dioxide gas produced venting through a fermentation lock. During this time, temperatures should be kept at optimum temperature for the fermentation process. For ale this temperature is usually 65-75°F / 18-24°C, and for lager it is usually much colder, around 50°F / 10°C. Starting within 12 hours and continuing over the next few days a vigorous fermentation takes place. During this stage the fermentable sugars (maltose, glucose, and sucrose) in the wort are consumed by the yeast, while ethanol and CO2 are produced as byproducts by the yeast. A layer of sediment, the trub, appears at the bottom of the fermenter, composed of heavy fats, proteins and inactive yeast. A sure sign that primary fermentation has finished is that the head of foam (krausen), built by bubbling of CO2, falls.

Often, the beer is then racked (siphoned) into another container, usually a carboy, for aging or secondary fermentation. Racking is done to separate the batch from the afore-mentioned trub so that it is not used as food, as this can give the beer an off-flavor. During secondary fermentation some chemical byproducts from the primary fermentation are digested, which considerably improves the taste. Secondary fermentation can take from 2 to 4 weeks, sometimes longer, depending on the type of beer. Some homebrewers will keep the batch in the primary fermenter, called single stage fermentation, for the entire process and simply put up with any off flavors. This eliminates the need for a second container, reduces labor, and reduces the likelihood of contaminating the batch with bacteria, or oxidizing it, during transfer to the second container. This is a good beginner strategy, especially for those not skilled with racking.

Once this secondary fermentation is finished, the beer is ready for carbonation. There are two methods of carbonation. The first method does not require much capital expenditure per batch but is more time consuming. About 3/4 cup of corn sugar (dextrose) or other fermentable sugar is added to the beer, which is then transferred to bottles and then capped, or placed in a keg. The fermentation of the priming sugar in the closed container by left-over yeast suspended in the beer causes the carbon dioxide to be forced into solution in the beer. This takes 1-2 weeks. The second method involves pressurizing carbon dioxide into the beer into a special type of keg - either a Cornelius keg, the kind used in restaurants for soda storage, or a pressure barrel. Canisters of carbon dioxide, or soda chargers, can be released into the pressure barrel directly. The carbonation process then occurs almost instantaneously.

Using the first carbonation method, sediment will remain at the base of the bottles after completion. At this point it is referred to as the dregs, and an experienced homebrewer learns how to decant the beer, with minimal contribution to the taste of the beer in the mug. Some wheat beers, however, demand the sediment be rotated through the beer before it is served.

Conditioning takes place at the same time as carbonation, so are many times referred together. Conditioning is the further aging process which takes place in the final container in which the beer will be served (bottle or keg).

During all stages attention to sanitation is essential. All items that come in contact with the wort or brew, must be soaked in a sanitizing solution and thoroughly rinsed, or immersed in boiling water.There are homebrewing kits available that eliminate the need of the first stage – boiling of the wort. These kits, sometimes known as "beer in a bag", contain prepared wort (sometimes concentrated) and yeast, so all the homebrewer has to do is the fermentation. Generally, the quality of beer from these kits is not on par with beer made from all-grain or even malt extracts.

Additional steps can be taken to add different flavors. Specialty grains, barley grains that have been malted, are commonly steeped to add flavor, body and color at the beginning of brews. Sometimes hops are added at later stages for aroma and flavor, or dry hopped, (added just after secondary fermentation). Malto-dextrin, oak chips, and numerous other flavoring can also be experimented with.

There are several instruction books available. Some are more detailed than others, but homebrewing can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. The basic process does not require a great deal of technical knowledge, and the results are very much under the control of the brewer.

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