Basic Brewing Audio/Video Podcast & DVDs BBR

4 of 5 | May 16, 2009 at 02:14 PM

Price: $34.00

Pros: - Very, very informative for new brewers

Cons: - Can be a bit dry - A bit limited on the information for advanced users

Recommended? Yes

I used these DVD's to learn how to move to all-grain brewing -- they were a ton of help. To see the process goes a long way versus just reading/hearing about it. Same goes for brand-new brewers -- these guys will tell you exactly what you need to hear without overwhelming you. They can be a bit dry at times, but they are enjoyable to listen to.

If you are already going all-grain or have a friend, I'd probably skip these DVD's. After I did my first all-grain batch, I haven't viewed it again.

I feel the same way about their podcasts -- very informative, but once you become an intermediate/advanced all-grain brewer, I'd suggest that you move to the Brewing Network for your listening pleasure.

5 of 5 | March 20, 2009 at 06:28 PM

Price: $0.00

Pros: its the NPR of brewing

Cons: its not the Opie and Anthony of brewing

Recommended? Yes

James Spencer is awesome..i love the podcasts ( perfect for my commute) its the NPR of beer.
if you like that , i tried the Jamil show..not for me..

4 of 5 | December 7, 2006 at 10:23 PM

Price: $34.00

Pros: Professional attitude, voice, and character to the shows

Cons: not much

Recommended? Yes

Before questioning my bias, let it be known I'm not gaining anything from writing the review...

I'm quite amazed with what this guy is doing. He has become a celebrity in his own time just by traveling America to tackle all the questions that a home brewer thinks of. From the simplest conundrums to the most detailed debunking of brewing myths James is there. Two things makes this guy instantly enjoyable, 1) his professional journalistic abilities brought to the brewing hobby, 2) his insight and determination to bring the mystic art of brewing into the clear. I might also add he can be quite humorous at times. He does a great job hosting audio and video pod casts packed full of knowledge that keeps me listening to the point where I no longer have music on my ipod His cohost Steve Wilkes also poses a perfect pair to James and their myriad of adventures. I've learned plenty from the volumes of books I've read from the "fathers" of home brew, but until you let James drill them live about pressing brewing questions there is no real way to learn about the art.

Once the purchase of my ipod I can not separate from his pod casts and the knowledge that spills forth. Even if you already think you know 100% about the topic of the current pod cast, stay tuned, its full of goodness... especially the mail bag. He does a very good job at corresponding his mailbag... to the point where his own listeners answer questions of previous questions. If you keep on his pod cast for every episode, then you find this very enlightening.

Lets move onto his DVD. This man makes his living off of people buying his instructional DVDs (the only thing that brings cost to his services). I personally bought the DVD to support his efforts, and actually found them to be quite useful. This DVD is very well made, and it eliminates the intimidation factor from learning how to brew... which can be very overbearing, especially to allgrain brewing. If you are to introduce anyone to brewing, I would use these DVDs first, then a good book by Charlie Papazian, or John Palmer.

He also does a real neat trick with the All Grain DVD. You can choose what type of Mash, and type of Sparge you do from your DVD remote. This way its like having 4 instructional DVDs instead of one. Also be sure to check out the outtakes

If you take brewing as dear to heart as I do, then you should check out his podcasts and video podcasts... they are free, you only gain from them! If you couldn't tell, I'm a big advocate of James Spencer and what he is doing... so spread the good word.