Articles

When you hear the expression ‘Mad Scientist’, specific images come to mind. For me, it’s images from Disney movies - either in cartoon form or black & white movies. Although this image doesn’t match Darin Danelski’s appearance, as I toured around his work at U Brew U in Ocotomowoc, Wisconsin, that’s the idea that kept coming into my head. I went there to review Darin’s Brew-Boss electric brewing system and controller. But while there, I got to see all kinds on inventions Darin had created, or was in the process of developing. Darin Danelski As we talked about the Brew-Boss system, conversation would drift one way or the other and next thing I knew, Darin was walking me over to “check this out” or “let me show you how I tried to solve...

The brewing process comes in all shapes and sizes. Although there are many methods, ranging from simple extract brews to triple decocted lagers, at its core, the brewing process remains the same, each with their own set of unique challenges. Apartment-scale brewing is no different. Whether you're looking to start the hobby or setting up your first apartment brewery, consider the following tips as the finer points of the brewing process when practiced in an apartment or home with limited spaces. 1. Sizing the Boil Kettle to fit your Stove The standard homebrew batch size is five gallons, and although your apartment may be able to ferment and store five gallons of beer, your stove may not. There are two main factors, both related to your...

Crave that pungent hop aroma in your IPAs and Pale Ales? Enjoy coating your nostrils with sticky hop goodness? Want to achieve the dry hop character of The Alchemist's Heady Topper in your own beer? Below are 10 things you can do to enhance the aroma of your hop-forward beers. 1 - Use pellets According to research conducted by Peter Wolfe (Oregon State University) and Mitch Steele (Stone Brewing Co.), hop pellets are the most widely used dry hopping medium in the United States. While some brewers still debate whether pellets deliver the same "fresh hop" aroma as whole cones, there is one fact that cannot be debated (thanks to Wolfe): pellets show more rapid and higher overall extraction than whole hops. If you prefer to use whole cones...

I use two different methods for cooling 5 gallons of wort down after boiling it. One for summer brewing and one for winter brewing. Neither of these include a wort chiller, as I have not purchased one yet. I thought sharing these methods just might help a new or even an experienced brewer out. Let's say they are using or getting ready to use a wort chiller and it cracks or breaks. What do you do? Either one of these methods can be set up in minutes with minimum effort, saving the brewing day from being disaster. Both are extremely inexpensive and done without using an expensive wort chiller. They will take your 5 gallon wort temps down to yeast pitching temps in less than 20 minutes. Method One: To cool your wort down to yeast pitching...

I use two different methods for cooling 5 gallons of wort down after boiling it. One for summer brewing and one for winter brewing. Neither of these include a wort chiller, as I have not purchased one yet. I thought sharing these methods just might help a new or even an experienced brewer out. Let's say they are using or getting ready to use a wort chiller and it cracks or breaks. What do you do? Either one of these methods can be set up in minutes with minimum effort, saving the brewing day from being disaster. Both are extremely inexpensive and done without using an expensive wort chiller. They will take your 5 gallon wort temps down to yeast pitching temps in less than 20 minutes. Method One: To cool your wort down to yeast pitching...

If you never heard about the Quebec province of Canada, perhaps you'll be more familiar with one of its famous beer, La Fin Du Monde (translated to The End of the World) from Unibroue, the most awarded beer in Canada. This brewery has been the flagship for all microbreweries of the province for a long time. I can still remember the first time I drank a beer (which wasn't a Molson or Labatt), it was a Unibroue's Blanche De Chambly and it was at this very moment that my understanding of what a beer could be changed for ever. Unibroue's beers did not only contribute to the offer of high quality products in the province, it has inspired a new generation of microbreweries and brewpubs all around the county that have now matured and can now...

A few weeks ago, I noticed this new product on the market from multiple online retailers. Unfortunately, my LHBS did not carry them nor was he interested in carrying them. Therefore. I threw caution to the wind and ordered both the 6.5 and 5 gal. Just on first impression, I love these things. They're not kidding when they say you can fit your arm down inside them plus cleanup is a breeze. And anyone who has ever used regular glass carboys will really appreciate that. They come with just about everything you need, with reasonably priced extras. Included in the packaging: 1 screw on lid 1 screw on cap 1 #5.5 drilled stopper 1 unique new airlock 1 microfiber cleaning cloth Extras you can buy include: A set of...

A few weeks ago, I noticed this new product on the market from multiple online retailers. Unfortunately, my LHBS did not carry them nor was he interested in carrying them. Therefore. I threw caution to the wind and ordered both the 6.5 and 5 gal. Just on first impression, I love these things. They're not kidding when they say you can fit your arm down inside them plus cleanup is a breeze. And anyone who has ever used regular glass carboys will really appreciate that. They come with just about everything you need, with reasonably priced extras. Included in the packaging: 1 screw on lid 1 screw on cap 1 #5.5 drilled stopper 1 unique new airlock 1 microfiber cleaning cloth Extras you can buy include: A set of...

So this question comes up a lot so I finally took the time and crunched the numbers. People often ask, 'how can I make my chiller more efficient?' An answer that commonly pops up is, 'add a wire to the inner diameter of the tube to increase turbulence.' I often chime in to say I am 90% sure that the flow is already turbulent, so adding a wire will do nothing. Well, I finally ran the numbers to see what kind of liquid flow rates we need to get turbulent flow in our chillers. To determine which type of flow exists in your tubing calculate the following: Flow rate of the fluid in GPM - Q Specific gravity of the fluid - G Pipe inside diameter in inches - D Fluid viscosity in centipoise - V Use the following equation to determine the...

So this question comes up a lot so I finally took the time and crunched the numbers. People often ask, 'how can I make my chiller more efficient?' An answer that commonly pops up is, 'add a wire to the inner diameter of the tube to increase turbulence.' I often chime in to say I am 90% sure that the flow is already turbulent, so adding a wire will do nothing. Well, I finally ran the numbers to see what kind of liquid flow rates we need to get turbulent flow in our chillers. To determine which type of flow exists in your tubing calculate the following: Flow rate of the fluid in GPM - Q Specific gravity of the fluid - G Pipe inside diameter in inches - D Fluid viscosity in centipoise - V Use the following equation to determine the...

Succeeding in a big beer city like Philadelphia can’t be easy. This is a town that sits alongside Portland, San Diego, and Asheville as one of the great beer Meccas in the United States, after all. While that means it’s packed with beer lovers, it also means there is a lot of competition. How do you rise above the pack and get noticed in a city that is already swimming in a sea of amazing beer? For the brewers at Saint Benjamin Brewing Company, it has been a combination of hard work, smart business, and tapping into the lessons they learned as homebrewers. Located in the historic Kensington section of Philly, Saint Benjamin is named after the city’s most famous denizen, Benjamin Franklin. Good ol’ Ben was known for many things, and one...

Today we will take a quick peek at SturmanburgBG's Tap-A-Draft - a small scale beer dispensing system available directly from the manufacturer or through many online homebrew stores. I ordered my system three months ago from MoreBeer.com, and I have used it exclusively for bottling and dispensing beer during that time. First Impression I've always enjoyed draft beer and I've never had the space or money to invest in a full keg system. When the package arrived, I felt as if I were getting a second Christmas (ignoring the fact that I had just had another birthday). The order arrived at my doorstep within two days using the "saver" shipping option, which was a pleasant surprise. Packaging The packaging my system arrived in was similar to...

Today we will take a quick peek at SturmanburgBG's Tap-A-Draft - a small scale beer dispensing system available directly from the manufacturer or through many online homebrew stores. I ordered my system three months ago from MoreBeer.com, and I have used it exclusively for bottling and dispensing beer during that time. First Impression I've always enjoyed draft beer and I've never had the space or money to invest in a full keg system. When the package arrived, I felt as if I were getting a second Christmas (ignoring the fact that I had just had another birthday). The order arrived at my doorstep within two days using the "saver" shipping option, which was a pleasant surprise. Packaging The packaging my system arrived in was similar to...

So you want to become a beer judge? Good for you! Not only will you be helping yourself by expanding your knowledge of beer, brewing and sensory evaluation but you’ll be helping others improve their brewing as well. An admirable goal! But how do you go about becoming a beer judge? You must first pass an online exam before moving on to a tasting exam. A visit to the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) website (www.BJCP.org) provides the curious with plenty of information to absorb. Understanding in detail the brewing, fermentation, finishing and bottling of a beer and what can go wrong at each stage and how these flaws can appear in the finished product are critical. So you’ve mastered all of that. Awesome! The BJCP Guidelines the...

I designed my very own induction brewing system that is based on a traditional 3 kettle system design. I wanted a way to brew great tasting beers, with the ease of brewing them in my basement. To do so I used 3 induction cookers and 2 pumps, powered by 3 dedicated electrical circuits run directly to my brewing area. I custom built my brew table from scratch since I couldn't find a table that matched exactly what I wanted. I also had to design a way that I could use the brew pots on the induction cookers without breaking them. I figured a brew pot full of wort or water would crack a standard 1800 watt glass top induction cooker. After searching the web for some ideas, on how to either build a base around the induction cookers, or how to...

Sweet red peppers, or capsicums, have a lovely and unique mild spiciness that lifts any meal, so let’s put it in beer. Firstly, it’s important to know that green peppers are actually immature, so they won’t have developed the full depth of flavor we want. Even though they’re usually a little cheaper, we don’t want the green ones today. How much should we use? Luckily, the sweet, peppery flavor transfers quite readily, so there’s no need to go too crazy. It’s also possible to use too much, which will pump excessive bitterness to the beer (strange since they’re ‘sweet’ red peppers, but who are we to question the brewing gods?). Let’s hold back a little and try to only give the finished brew a noticeable hint of the flavor to complement...

Until recently, if you wanted to homebrew lagers, you either needed a giant cave under your house, or you had an additional fridge/freezer of some sort, with a controller to switch the power on/off based on the beer temperature. For those that were used to “Throw it in a bucket in your basement and let the yeast work their magic!” a dedicated refrigerator may have been excess floor space and money they weren’t willing to spend. There is a lot of info out there on how to make a fermentation chiller out of a fridge/freezer, but not much on the alternative systems. So I set out to evaluate them to see how they worked compared to each other. They come at different price points, have different capabilities/limitations, and require differing...

I often find that when I am a launching into a project, it can be very helpful to know the background and history of what I’m doing. So I’ve decided to begin with various notes about mead, and the natural starting point should be the history. We’ll take a look at how we came across this beverage and perhaps even a touch of how it has influenced the world that we are currently living in. So let’s go back a few years. It Was a Way to Hide Honey At its most basic level it is merely fermented honey. But that causes a bit of a problem. When bees make honey they keep it at a low enough water content that it won’t ferment, so it won’t go bad. That way they have a good source of honey for whatever lies ahead (Winter etc.). Honey has been found...

First off, let me start by saying that I am in no way affiliated with Amazon. And while this post may sound like an Alec Baldwin commercial, I’m simply a fan of the Amazon Echo and, generally speaking, a fan of the emergence of personal assistants, chat bots, and conversational platforms. I do work in the software industry. and because I always look for ways to blend that intersection between brewing beer and technology, I thought this would be a fun article to write. For some of you who may not know what the Amazon Echo is, let me wax poetic for a few lines. The Amazon Echo is a $179 smart speaker that can contact Uber, order you a pizza from Dominos, stream music from Spotify, give you weather information, read the news to you, or...

As an entry level brewer I did little more than buy a Whitelabs vial, bring it to 70ish degrees, gave it a good shake and pitched it into a carboy full of cool wort. Voila! It worked. Eventually, curiosity, evolution, the desire for better beer, or whatever we are calling it today, took over and I started really researching and experimenting with my process. I quickly (after about 2 batches) made the switch from extract to all-grain. I soon realized how much I really didn’t know about brewing and how many areas of my process needed attention. I read through John Palmer’s How to Brew, and The Complete Joy of Home Brewing by Charlie Papazian. At the time, I figured the easiest change that I could make would be to start making yeast...

Have you ever considered how much jazz and brewing have in common? Both are art forms that evoke a sensory reaction across the spectrum from unpalatable to exquisite. Both are robust enough to invest decades into their study and still have more to learn. And finally, both are exponentially richer when there is improvisation. Yes, improvisation is a skill required of not only the greatest jazz musicians but also the greatest brewers. As musician Brian McKnight once said, "Jazz is all about improvisation and it's about the moment in time, doing it this way now, and you'll never do it this way twice." "But doesn't this go against all the articles and books about perfecting and replicating all the variables of brewing?" you might ask. Well...

Have you ever considered how much jazz and brewing have in common? Both are art forms that evoke a sensory reaction across the spectrum from unpalatable to exquisite. Both are robust enough to invest decades into their study and still have more to learn. And finally, both are exponentially richer when there is improvisation. Yes, improvisation is a skill required of not only the greatest jazz musicians but also the greatest brewers. As musician Brian McKnight once said, "Jazz is all about improvisation and it's about the moment in time, doing it this way now, and you'll never do it this way twice." "But doesn't this go against all the articles and books about perfecting and replicating all the variables of brewing?" you might ask. Well...

As we all know, we got into homebrewing to save money... (waits for laughter to die) Okay, homebrewing rarely saves us money in the long run, but that does not mean that we do not try to stretch our pennies wherever we can. One of the best ways of cutting costs and having the best and freshest ingredients is buying ingredients in bulk. However, buying in bulk creates its own set of problems: you are now on the hook to safely store and maintain the freshness of the ingredients. The Problem Malt and malt extract are easy to store, they have long shelf-lives and can be easily stored in airtight containers. Hops and yeast, on the other hand, are not so easy: oxygen and temperature can rapidly degrade their quality so special care must be...

There are few things in the homebrew world as enjoyable as growing your own hops. Being able to craft a killer pale ale or IPA with hops you grew yourself is not only fun; it’s one of brewing’s most enjoyable bragging points (and let’s be honest, we all like a small brag now and then). Unfortunately, not everyone is blessed with space enough to grow their own hops. These aggressively growing bines can climb to upwards of 30 feet tall, spreading out bushy limbs covered in the fragrant hop cones we know and love. Most growers built tall poles or trellises for their hops, which require materials and yard space. But here’s what you may not know: You don’t actually need a huge yard or sprawling acreage to grow your own hops. In fact, if you...

Kenny Sabine was always one to have a hobby or something going on in his spare time. In 2008, he found himself idling, and his daughter noticed. Since he was a lover of craft beer, and had been for many years, she thought a homebrew kit might be a good hobby. So she bought a 5 gallon starter kit for his birthday, and started him down a new path. After brewing with his 5 gallon set-up for a while, he migrated to a 10 gallon system. When he made that move, he found chilling in the snowbank no longer cut it, so he made an immersion chiller. As a retired HVAC contractor, he knew his way around bending tubing to his whims, so he was able to make a few concepts that worked well for him. Kenny Sabine In the Beginning: Unknowingly, a friend...

So far in my homebrewing journey, I have explored the three simplest levels of homebrewing. All have used malt extracts rather than mashed grains (mashing is the process of converting the starch in the grains to sugars). "Malt extract" is wort (unfermented beer) from grain that has already been mashed by a brewery and then condensed into either a syrup or a powder. Extract brewing is very suitable for stovetop homebrewing, generally using only one kettle and burner, and a relatively small volume of water to boil. Extract Brewing Kit The simplest extract brewing method uses pre-hopped extracts. That's what Mr. Beer is. There's no boil and no hop additions. Just heat water, dissolve the extract, cool, and stick in the fermenter. The...

Few things get a beer geek ready to talk your ear off than name-dropping a sour beer or two. Sour beers are more of a distinct continent on Planet Beer than a style as there are many styles of sour and/or wild ales. It’s a world countless homebrewers want to dive into, but also one they may find a little intimidating. Between strange microbes, lengthy fermentation times, the risk of contaminating your equipment you’d be forgiven for thinking that brewing sours is difficult. The good news is, brewing sours isn’t all that much different than brewing any other beer. You brew, you pitch, you wait, you package. The only thing different are the details. Consider some of the DO’S and DON’TS below and you’ll find yourself navigating the...

First I would like to give you a little background about myself. I have been brewing beer for only about a year now and it's been all extract and mainly kit beers. I recently bought a new kettle and some other equipment so I'm moving to all grain BIAB. I gave up bottling several months ago and moved into kegging. I cannot count how many different batches of beer I've done but it's been a lot. I've discovered that in this short amount of time that I can save a significant amount of money by making some modifications. I can also make some extremely good beers in the process. A good American style IPA is currently my favorite. The reason that I decided to write this article is to help the beginning brewer save some cash and make a...

Homebrewing is a hobby that can be as complicated or as simple as you want it. And homebrewers are likewise varied in what aspects they enjoy most. There are those that are just out to do something different than the norm, those that love to build and create sophisticated custom brewing systems, and those that have a passion for trying to create a beer they’ve imagined in their heads. All-in-one all-grain brewing systems are starting to pop up everywhere. People have varied reactions to them based on the type of homebrewer they are, and what aspect of the hobby excites them most. For the extract brewers, the draw is obvious, as the marketing promotes them to be as easy and quick as extract brewing, but with the full creative control...

Last year, when my wife was part of a group that was planning a couples’ baby shower for my brother and his wife, they came up with the idea of having me brew a beer for the occasion. If you’re reading this, then I assume you’ve been in this position before, or you’re now finding yourself needing to brew beer for an event of some kind. In this guide, we’ll walk through all the different things you need to take into consideration when planning to serve homebrew at a wedding, poker party, or other type of get-together. Is It Legal? Before you can commit to brewing beer for an event, you need to check your local laws and ordinances and make sure that it’s legal. For smaller, in-house gatherings, there should be no problems. However, if...

HomebrewSupply.com is running another awesome giveaway to the homebrewing community. This time, they're giving away this bad boy. A Spike Brewing 10 Gallon Kettle with Ball Valve and Thermometer About the kettle, and Spike Brewing: Spike Brewing has revolutionized the world of brewing with their top-of-the-line brew kettles. Made from the best 304 stainless steel, this kettle features a 1.2 mm thick wall, making it the thickest kettle on the market. Spike went all the way to provide the best product possible, so they welded the fittings that are included; that means no more leaky, low-quality weld-less fittings! For all of you induction brewers, we have some good news for you! This kettle comes induction-ready, with a 5 mm tri-clad...

In part one, I gave an overview of all the brewing systems that are reviewed in this second part. Blichmann BrewEasy 5-Gallon 240V Blichmann BrewEasy The BrewEasy system follows the “some assembly required” concept. Arriving in multiple boxes, it took several hours as I jumped back and forth between multiple instruction booklets to get it all together. The system was their “5 gallon” set up, meaning it’s sized to make 5 gallon batches of beer. There’s a 7.5 gallon mash tun with false bottom, and a 10 gallon boil kettle. The 2 are stacked on top of each other, and with some custom-built equipment that it comes with, they fit together nicely with a gravity feed from the mash tun up top to the boil kettle below. There’s an electric pump...

Rules are made to be broken. Admittedly, I may be a little biased in that regard. I grew up in a household that leaned towards punk rock rather than Pat Boone, my teachers wondered when I was finally going to straighten out (answer:32), and speed limits were more suggestions than limits. That same slightly reckless philosophy applies to my love of beer and, more importantly, to my love of making beer. Oh, make no mistake; I am a great admirer of well-crafted, perfectly executed examples of classic beer styles. In many ways, I lament the way today’s craft beer world doesn’t fully appreciate a perfect English bitter or simple brown ale. But when I’m standing over a hot kettle or about to open a bottle representing the fruits of my labors...

One of my favorite aspects of home brewing is the ingenuity that can be used throughout the process. Some people have the finances to buy the biggest and best equipment, some like me do not. For me, the fun comes in when I can use some ingenuity to come up with a way to do something cheaper and easier to produce a better beer. In my progression as a home brewer I reached the point of aeration. "Yeast needs between 8 and 10 parts per million (ppm) of oxygen to properly reproduce in the lag phase. A level of 8 ppm is achievable using air alone (which is 21% oxygen), but achieving a higher level requires a tank of pure oxygen." (Brad Smith) So 8 ppm is the ultimate goal of aeration without using pure oxygen. There are several great devices...

One of my favorite aspects of home brewing is the ingenuity that can be used throughout the process. Some people have the finances to buy the biggest and best equipment, some like me do not. For me, the fun comes in when I can use some ingenuity to come up with a way to do something cheaper and easier to produce a better beer. In my progression as a home brewer I reached the point of aeration. "Yeast needs between 8 and 10 parts per million (ppm) of oxygen to properly reproduce in the lag phase. A level of 8 ppm is achievable using air alone (which is 21% oxygen), but achieving a higher level requires a tank of pure oxygen." (Brad Smith) So 8 ppm is the ultimate goal of aeration without using pure oxygen. There are several great devices...

You enter the festival and the fragrant aroma of hops and complexly aged beers delightfully fills the air. With oh-so-many varieties to try, you feel just like a kid in a candy store all over again… Beer fest has finally arrived! In order to survive the thirsty clusters of avid beer lovers and homebrew connoisseurs, not to mention the tantalizing array of mouth-watering liquid treats, there are some key points to take heed to, no matter the size or location of your next beer festival. Things like tasting order, cleansing your palate, small snacking, scoring beers, taking notes, eluding the crowds, and the sheer importance of a designated driver are all things to take into account and plan for. These simple yet essential tips and tricks...

It’s time; your brewing has advanced to kegging beer, and you need a way to chill and dispense those kegs. You have some options, including making a kegerator out of a small refrigerator or a larger kegerator from an upright refrigerator, or...a keezer. A keezer (kegerator/freezer) is usually a chest-type freezer on which a wooden collar is attached, and through which faucets, CO2 lines, and electrical/thermostat controls may be run. Before you jump keg-first into keezer building, here are some of the issues you need to address. The Freezer Top loading chest freezer converted into a keezer - photo courtesy of groovepuppy Sometimes you luck into a freezer you can use–I did. If you have one already, some of your choices are...

You hear it over and over again - controlling the fermentation temperature is the key to great tasting beer. And it's true. A glorious brew day can be ruined by forgetting about your beer once it enters the fermenter. Don't neglect the cold side! On this topic I get business school flashbacks of management guru Peter Drucker's famous quote being drilled into my head - "What gets measured gets managed." So let's talk about measuring your fermentation temps. Like many things in life, doing a little something is far better than doing nothing. Even just being aware that your fermentation temperatures are important is a step in the right direction. Trust me - not everyone takes this step. Now you're aware and you start to pay attention. You...

1. How did you start brewing? It started, I believe, when a house guest brought me a copy of Home Brewing Without Failures by H. E. Bravery. That was a long time ago when some specialty wine shops kept a few cans of Muntons extract, a couple of packs of dry yeast and a few envelopes of hops pellets on shelves in the back of the store. There was no AHA, no HBT and no White Labs or Wyeast but even so that beer tasted pretty good (though today I would probably spit it out). 2. What's your favorite beer? I really don't have a favorite. I can appreciate any beer that is well made though I am especially attracted to crisp, clean lagers be they Pilsners or Bocks or anything in between. A well-made Kolsch or a fresh wheat beer that shows...

1. How did you start brewing? It started, I believe, when a house guest brought me a copy of Home Brewing Without Failures by H. E. Bravery. That was a long time ago when some specialty wine shops kept a few cans of Muntons extract, a couple of packs of dry yeast and a few envelopes of hops pellets on shelves in the back of the store. There was no AHA, no HBT and no White Labs or Wyeast but even so that beer tasted pretty good (though today I would probably spit it out). 2. What's your favorite beer? I really don't have a favorite. I can appreciate any beer that is well made though I am especially attracted to crisp, clean lagers be they Pilsners or Bocks or anything in between. A well-made Kolsch or a fresh wheat beer that shows...

Hello everyone, and welcome to our first "product spotlight". In these articles we are looking to shine the light on some of the new or up and coming products available to us homebrewers. This spotlight features HOPTOPs, a new product which is an airlock created to fit on mason jars. Let's dig in. HOPTOPs offer a new way to ferment things. The History and Beginnings of HOPTOPs I asked the creator of HOPTOPs about how they worked, and got some interesting history in the process. HOPTOPs come apart for easy cleaning, and are dishwasher safe. So fermentation airlocks go way back to none other than the prolific inventor Leonardo Da Vinci. I just saw an original glass version of a Da Vinci air lock in use storing some Chianti Classico in...

One of the most important parts of the homebrewing process is cleaning and sanitizing your equipment. As many a homebrewer can attest, there is an increased risk of off-flavors and/or infection when the necessary precautions are not taken. Taking a little bit of time to ensure sanitation can mean the difference between a great batch of beer and a batch that has to be dumped. The first thing you should do is clean your equipment before it comes into contact with any cold-side wort. The sanitizing you do later will be more effective on a clean surface than a dirty one. Avoid using common household cleaners (such as dish soap), as they can leave residues that will impart unwanted flavors into your beer, and can affect head retention. Many...

Hello all! I'm new to this whole homebrewing thing, and I'm also a starving college student in the midst of his undergrad program. As such, and as someone that highly enjoys the sport of drinking, one night my friend and I decided we should be able to make our own cider for less than $30.00 including materials. On New Year's Day, we went to Wal-Mart, and with our measly little budget, we began to shop. The first thing on our list was a container. In the sporting goods section there was a BPA-free 5 gallon water jug for $10. While that took up a third of our budget, it was worth it to us to pop for BPA-free, and they had no glass containers. Next was the liquid. We pushed our cart over to the juice isle, and they had bottles of 100%...

Hello all! I'm new to this whole homebrewing thing, and I'm also a starving college student in the midst of his undergrad program. As such, and as someone that highly enjoys the sport of drinking, one night my friend and I decided we should be able to make our own cider for less than $30.00 including materials. On New Year's Day, we went to Wal-Mart, and with our measly little budget, we began to shop. The first thing on our list was a container. In the sporting goods section there was a BPA-free 5 gallon water jug for $10. While that took up a third of our budget, it was worth it to us to pop for BPA-free, and they had no glass containers. Next was the liquid. We pushed our cart over to the juice isle, and they had bottles of 100%...

Summer, the season of backyard barbecues and beer. Many people have their “go-to” summer beer, but with the rich history of summer beers and the plethora of options to choose from today, it can be a great time to try something new. It’s only fair to start off an article on summer beers with Germany, the country that gave birth to the lagering process that produces the majority of all beer consumed today. Before the invention of refrigeration, beer had to be lagered in the icy winter conditions and wasn’t ready to drink until the warmer months. Many of the popular styles today, such as Pilsner, are as a result of this cold treatment. Some of the most well-known styles are below: Kӧlsch Originally from Cologne, Kӧlsch is an all-barley...