# The home brewer thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 30, 2000, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-home-brewer-thread/35116 "2000-09-30T05:15:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Gatsby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@Gatsby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatsby)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2000, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-home-brewer-thread/35116/1 "2000-09-30T05:15:27Z")
Ok, it’s fall. Time to start brewing! I’m kind of a hack brewer. I use extract , kind of pick ingredients willy-nilly at the brewer supply store, and never keep track of recipes. I like additives (ever try adding a pot of strong coffee to a porter? Good stuff! Sometimes a little honey is good. Dark corn syrup is nice for a caramel flavor in a brown ale). I usually use two cans of extract and a three pound bag of the dried stuff, plus plenty of fresh hops (sometimes plugs, never those nasty little pellets) and always start off the wort by boiling some cracked grain. I ferment in a 7 gallon bucket. I’ve tried all grain brews before, but never noticed a significant difference in the results to justify buying the extra equipment and spending the extra time on all that boiling and sparging. Enough rambling. Who are the brewers on the board? What have you got (or plan to have) in your hopper? I’m thinking I’m going to start off the season with another one of those extra hoppy coffee porters. Drunk and wired with one drink! What a beverage! ---
**Author:** ![Zenster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/cdc98d/32.png) [@Zenster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zenster)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2000, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-home-brewer-thread/35116/2 "2000-09-30T05:33:24Z")
This is Great **Gatsby**! I just bought a five gallon glass bottle the other day. I’ve fermented hard cider, but I’d rather make a batch of really fine pilsner or lager. Either a Cascade, German, or Czech type of hops is what I have in mind. Visit my recipe [thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=39219) to have some fun. Please trade some advice if you would… ---
**Author:** ![Gatsby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@Gatsby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatsby)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2000, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-home-brewer-thread/35116/3 "2000-09-30T06:19:02Z")
Zenster, Glass carboys look cool whilst fermenting, but are a major pain in the ass to clean. I prefer my 7 gallon bucket that I can clean with a sponge and some bleach and water, and yields an extra case of beer at bottling time. I prefer my beers amber to black. If you have a style in that range that you would like to hear my experiences about, let me know. The recipe thread was way too long for me to wade through. The only thing I can cook is beer, which for some reason smells exactly like artichokes. Maybe I should try cooking artichokes some time. Na, rather cook beer. There are many good books on the art of home brewing, and I don’t claim to be any kind of expert, but if you have any questions, I shall do my best to help. ---
**Author:** ![TVeblen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@TVeblen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVeblen)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2000, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-home-brewer-thread/35116/4 "2000-09-30T07:11:03Z")
::dons cloak of grateful consumer–in all senses:: Know who needs to be in on this discussion? **beagledave**. He’s an avid–and dedicated–home brew-meister. Let’s just say Chris and I rendevoused (which isn’t a verb) with Dave. The hound wasn’t present, the wandering inflatable 6’ penis was, but amidst the frivolity great discussions ensued about worts and yeasts and all kinds of stuff grateful drinkers don’t _ever_ want to think about when quaffing a brew. Don’t _wanna_ know about sugars and what yeasts excrete to make beer, Veb ---
**Author:** ![Gatsby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@Gatsby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatsby)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2000, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-home-brewer-thread/35116/5 "2000-09-30T08:15:14Z")
Yeast is our friend. It eats sugar and shits alcohol. Could there be a more noble life form? ---
**Author:** ![Kricket](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f14d63/32.png) [@Kricket](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kricket)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2000, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-home-brewer-thread/35116/6 "2000-09-30T16:29:09Z")
Hey, are you trying to round up more people to make beer for our little resturant/bar we were discussing? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Aglarond](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c77e96/32.png) [@Aglarond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aglarond)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2000, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-home-brewer-thread/35116/7 "2000-10-02T12:54:58Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Gatsby \* > \*\*Yeast is our friend. It eats sugar and shits alcohol. Could there be a more noble life form? \*\* Mind if I use that as a sig? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![beagledave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6de8d8/32.png) [@beagledave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beagledave)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2000, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-home-brewer-thread/35116/8 "2000-10-02T16:25:15Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by TVeblen \* > \*\*::dons cloak of grateful consumer–in all senses:: > > Know who needs to be in on this discussion? **beagledave**. He’s an avid–and dedicated–home brew-meister. > \*\* Ahhh…it has been awhile since I fired up the propane tank. I just tapped a corny keg of oatmeal stout …it is DEE-LISH…next on tap is a nice Pumpkin Ale that should go well with the Thanksgiving Day fixins in our house. I’ve been brewing about 3-4 years…switched to all grain last fall. Unfortunately, our local home brew shop went out of business right about the time I switched to all grain. I get my stuff from Northen Brewer now. i can never find enough people to help me drink my homebrew…so it takes me at least a month to go through a keg…if you ever pass thru Davenport… 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Olentzero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90ced4/32.png) [@Olentzero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olentzero)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2000, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-home-brewer-thread/35116/9 "2000-10-02T17:32:55Z")
I know a couple folks that used to homebrew and by God, I’d love to do it myself! What books/resources might be ideal for someone who’s just starting out? ---
**Author:** ![beagledave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6de8d8/32.png) [@beagledave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beagledave)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2000, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-home-brewer-thread/35116/10 "2000-10-02T18:23:18Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Olentzero \* > \*\*I know a couple folks that used to homebrew and by God, I’d love to do it myself! What books/resources might be ideal for someone who’s just starting out? \*\* online…try [http://www.brewery.org](http://www.brewery.org) books: there are several good ones…most people sugest The Joy of Home Brewing by Charlie Pappazian(sp?) as a good breezy intro If you don’t have a local homebrew store…the [brewery.org](http://brewery.org) site has links to online retailers. Start simple with something like a brown ale (use extract)…and remember the official motto of the AHA “Relax, Don’t Worry, have A Homebrew” ---
**Author:** ![The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Devil_s_Grandmother)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2000, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-home-brewer-thread/35116/11 "2000-10-02T20:37:17Z")
I do a lot of homebrewing, but mostly mead and ciders. I make beer for friends, but don’t drink much of it myself. What I really love is recreating historical brews. I mostly do medieval / renaissance brewing, but lately I’ve been looking into American Civil war-era brewing. I just moved and discovered I’ve got about 80 pounds of honey, so it’s going to be all mead all the time for my house this fall. ---
**Author:** ![Balance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2000, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-home-brewer-thread/35116/12 "2000-10-02T22:52:26Z")
I’m a dedicated mead brewer myself. I use the basic recipe from Pappazian’s book (antipodal) and jazz it up with spices and fruit juices. Unfortunately, my friends drink faster than I brew…mead takes _so_ long to make! Time to fire up another carboy.