Is homebrew any good?

Hi all,

I guess you can get a more novice question than this but here goes.. do you guys produce really good beer? I mean, brew that causes you to proudly turn your nose up at anything from a store or pub?

This is a really serious question. I really like beer but I really love making crafty artisan type things of good quality. I've known people that make their own wine but between you and me, it always tastes like grape juice with crushed aspirin in it.

My two favorite commercial beers are Pilsner Urquell and Newcastle. I like Guinness too but it's best in Dublin. If there was hope I could homebrew something close to any of these, I would gladly embark on the expense and effort to learn it and try try again.

I have this assumption that homebrew would taste much like the microbrews we have in the States, at best. Typically I don't like them due to sweetness and aftertaste.

Some good success stories or experiences producing good brews would really be inspiring.

Thank you,

- JoeB

Reply to
JB
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In a word, YES! The best beers I have ever tasted are homebrews. Some mine, some made by others.

On a whole it depends what your tastes are and what you want to make. If you want to make a beer that tastes exactly like Guinness then just go out and buy a Guinness. Its quite hard to match a commercial beer exactly. The really great part of homebrewing (to me at least) is that you can make beer that is exactly what you like. You say that microbrews are too sweet and have an aftertaste. Well then you can make up a recipe that isn't as sweet and has less hops to match your tastes. Think of it like any type of cooking. Homemade tomato sauce is always better than Ragu, but the Ragu is more convenient and nearly impossible to replicate exactly at home. Then again why would you replicate it if your recipe tasted better to you...

One other thing to state about homebrewing is that you can make up beers that are similar to foreign beers that either are not imported to the US or taste like crap once the make the slow boat ride here for England/Germany/etc and then get light struck in those $%^^&@ green bottles! Fresh brewed German Lagers taste NOTHING like Becks!

Reply to
Brian

Yes you can make great beer at home. Also, you may want to broaden your tastes a little bit and homebrewing can do that for you too. Not to offend, but Newcastle isn't exactly considered "good" beer in many circles. On the other hand, American craft brewers make some of the best beers around and you may grow to love "aftertaste" which is so often derided in marketing for mega-breweries. After all, if the taste is good, why not have it linger?

Basically it is up to you to take the hobby as far as you want. You can stick with malt extracts and steeping grains if that is what you like, or you can go all out and take total control and basically build a mini version of a commercial brewery in your garage.

Here is the requisite staring place, John Palmers online book:

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You might also want to check out a local homebrew shop (LHBS), find some brewers or a brew club and sit in on a few brew sessions. Homebrewers are a great bunch of people and are always willing to help someone else get into the hobby.

Good luck and have fun,

_Randal

Reply to
Randal

Other posters have given good answers. I'm going to answer some of your other items...

Yes, absolutely. (I'm not saying you would your first few batches... but it is possible and with some experience you can match or beat almost anything you can buy).

PU is a lager and those require a bit of care to make (ie., controlled temperature and longer aging times), however, PU is one of my favorites and I make a lager that is very close to, and as good as, PU. Newcastle is a British ale, and those are easier to make than light lagers like PU. It should be no problem coming close to Newcastle (or making a British ale you might like even better). Regarding Guinness, you can also make some very excellent stouts... they are, perhaps, one of the easiest styles to homebrew. Note that they may not be exactly like Guinness, but they'll be excellent. (Guinness actually comes in several different versions and some are easier to duplicate than others).

As another post said, YOU control the sweetness and (probably) "aftertaste."

Bottom line, you can get an equipment kit and first batch ingredients for around $100. In a few weeks you'll have an idea of what you can do homebrewing and how easy it is! If you try it, be SURE that your liquid extract ingredients are fresh. I'd start with a stout, then the British ale. Do a few batchs of those for experience. Later on, you can try the lager (ask back here for specific help with lagers when you are ready to make them).

Derric

Reply to
Derric

Not only is homebrewing fun and EASY (lots of people forget that part) the real thrill I get is from showing up at a friends house with a case or two and blowing away whaterver they have in the fridge.

Reply to
smokeweednow

I don't try and match commercial beers - too much work. However I CAN say that after 30+ batches of home brew I've made some pretty bad, alright, good, and really good beers. I've prbably made 15-10 batches of really really ood stuff. a friend thought some of my stout was the best he'd ever had.

JB wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com:

Reply to
lucky4fingers

October 29th of last year I finally jumped into homebrewing after a year of reading and talking with others that have done it now and then. Batch 1 (English Pale Ale) is gone, 2 (Marzen) and 3 (Irish Dry Stout) are being drank now and 4 (Imperial Wit) is in the secondary, 5 (Marzen)is in the primary.

I have been buying singles of different types of beer for a while taking note of what styles I like most. I homebrew in those styles.

Homebrewing is pretty easy if you follow the steps and maintain a clean environment. I am quite pleased with all of the results so far, the Marzen is so good I plan to keep brewing it to always have it on hand.

There is nothing wrong with commercial beer, there are some local joints that have GREAT beer which I enjoy, but I have grown to prefer a bottle of my own.

Reply to
Tpeters

Try and try again. If you make a batch or have ever tasted someone elses batch that you didn't care for then try a different recipe. With an unlimited possibility of malts, hops, additives, yeasts, and even water & temp variables there is a homebrew out there for even the hardest critic. I even made an ale once that my wife kinda liked and she flat out hates ale.

As for most of my creations... once I drink one of mine I just cann't follow up with an average store brand. The quality and taste of mine wups the living daylights out of most comercial brews without spending more than $8 a six pack. For the record, labor excluded cause I don't consider it work and without sitting down to do some serious mat, one of my brews probably runs around $5 to $6 a six pack just because I likes mine very strong. Avg 8% by volume with lots of body and plenty of hoppiness.

Reply to
dlihcsnatas

Absolutely. I make ales, meads and sparkling wines. I get the flavors *I* like, and many other people like them too. I have turned a considerable number of people who previously had only drunk bud/miller/coors/michelob into beer aficionados. I have even turned people who did not drink beer/ale at all into fans.

When I go to holiday parties/barbecues or other events, people ask me if I'm going to bring some more of *my* brews. I was never one who sought popularity but my brewing has certainly made me a wanted man.

It takes some time and care, you don't just dump a bunch of stuff in a pot and expect something good to come out of it, but it isn't all that difficult either. You just have to know what you like, and/or be willing to experiment to find it.

My first brew (a sparkling strawberry/raspberry gingermead, loosely based on Papazian's recipe) was an overwhelming success. People wanted to know where I bought it, and were disappointed to learn that the entire quantity available in the world was just what was there.

Reply to
Zaphod Beeblebrock

if you get the right equipment, and the skills, you can make beer that is more to your liking than anything you can buy.

Since the equipment is usually non-refundable, my best suggestion is find your local homebrewers and brew with them before you buy ANYTHING.

Step 1:

find your local homebrew club, attend the local group's meetings. people will share beer freely. find some you like and see if you can brew with that guy.

Try to find someone who knows how to make all-grain beer, but then again let your taste buds be your guide.

Step 2:

once you can make beer that you enjoy, get a kegging setup.

You do NOT have to learn this craft alone, and most homebrewers LOVE to brew with company.

once you have developed the skills you can decide whether to invest in equipment, and by then you should have brewed with enough people to know what you need and what you do not.

Step 3: after that, someday be sure to teach someone else the fine art of brewing quality beer.

JB wrote:

Reply to
Adriel Ickler

"JB" skrev i meddelandet news: snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com...

I bought a kit - very easy, just warm it up and put it in the basement for a week - and got an excellent stout. I think it was called Cooper's Stout, from down under. The downside is that it takes another 2-5 months in the bottle before it gets really good and blends out the "unbalances" in the taste, but after that it's great! I see three upsides:

  1. I made it.
  2. It didn't cost anything (almost).
  3. It tastes better than many stouts made by micro breweries and even some in the store!
  4. Friends are impressed.
  5. No effort needed except for washing the bottles. That takes 1-2 hours.
M
Reply to
Marcus Räder

Hi all,

I guess you can get a more novice question than this but here goes.. do you guys produce really good beer? I mean, brew that causes you to proudly turn your nose up at anything from a store or pub?

This is a really serious question. I really like beer but I really love making crafty artisan type things of good quality. I've known people that make their own wine but between you and me, it always tastes like grape juice with crushed aspirin in it.

My two favorite commercial beers are Pilsner Urquell and Newcastle. I like Guinness too but it's best in Dublin. If there was hope I could homebrew something close to any of these, I would gladly embark on the expense and effort to learn it and try try again.

I have this assumption that homebrew would taste much like the microbrews we have in the States, at best. Typically I don't like them due to sweetness and aftertaste.

Some good success stories or experiences producing good brews would really be inspiring.

Thank you,

- JoeB

Reply to
Vater

Reply to
peterlonz

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