Newbie Question

Dec 23, 2007 3 Replies

My first batch is bubbling as we speak. Admittedly, it's from a kit, but you've gotta start somewhere.



My wife's not much of a beer drinker...more for me. And she's a little bit scoffing of the whole making my own beer thing. My dad and the drunken neighbor have been telling her tales of friends of theirs doing it in the



50's and exploding bottles left and right. Not to mention when those hillbillies went blind from drinking Fudd.

Anyhoo, I'd like to surprise her with taking a shot at brewing a Zima, Captain Morgans, Mike's Hard Whatever type thing. I call them wine coolers, but she really likes them. Thought it might make her a tad more positive to the project. I'm just not sure where to begin.



Any advice?



Thanx in advance,



Red The Ginger Gelding



My situation is nearly identical to yours, my wife doesn't drink beer, my first batch is ready to bottled maybe monday, I went blind from drinking fudd... well I guess that's where it ends. Anyway I guess I was just gonna say I think I would just buys those girls drinks and not try to make them. Maybe you make the hard cider but that might tie up precious bottles...

I think the best you are going to be able to do is make some hard cider or mead. You could go with a fruit beer but those can be really hit or miss. To be perfectly honest, I don't think those "alcho-pops" are brewed in a way that a homebrewer could replicate. I work for a company that specializes in making food flavors and I know we make some of the big brands of those beverages. To be blunt.. what we ship is barrels of syrups and spray-dryed powders that another company uses in their process and slaps a label on that you would recognize. I would go with PJ's advice and buy those for the ladies and focus on making yourself the good stuff.

You might even learn to like the cider. I drink more hard cider than I do beer.

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