Good Beginner HB Book Suggestions?

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Maveric777

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I am getting ready to put my 4th batch on this weekend. I have learned a "TON" simply from this site and talking with a good friend that brews as well. I have realized here lately that there is still so much I still don't know.

As of right now (and for a little while longer) I plan on doing simple extract brews from MoreBeer.com to learn what a basic/simple recipe will taste like and the processes of creating them (I do in fact plan on going to Partial Mash soon). My way of thinking is learn from the ground up. I am in fact very new to homebrew as well as trying different beers. I am/was one of those Coors Light, Miller Light, and occasional Shiner Bock drinkers not to long ago. My wife thinks I'm nuts because I am bringing something new home all the time to "Just Try" here lately....(She just don't get it...lol)

Well, I am looking for a good book that will explain to me what exactly everything is when it comes to beer. I get lost when folks talk about a lot of ingredients used in making a brew, different styles of beers, what exactly this or that should taste like, etc..... I do know how to do it, but not sure what everything else is. I think it is chocked up mostly to very little personal references, and lack of knowledge (or something like that...lol) I just need a good book (or books) to help get me on track.

Thanks for any input......:mug:
 
There are several good books that would be helpful for you. I always recommend "How to Brew" by John Palmer. I got that book as a new extract brewer, and I've "grown" into the parts that I didn't understand back then. Another good one is "Brewing Classic Styles" by Jamil Zainasheff and John Palmer. I just got it for Christmas, and I like it. It's mostly extract brewing (with some conversion for AG) and explains the style type, which each ingredient brings to that and gives the recipe for a good example of that style.

For sheer enjoyment, there is always "The Complete Joy of Homebrewing" by Charlie Papazian. He's the Father of Homebrewing, so it's a good read. It might not be as useful for practicality and understanding, but it's almost a prerequisite for brewing.
 
You can't go wrong with "The New Complete Joy of Homebrewing" by Charlie Papazian. Some of the information is a bit dated, but there is a wealth of information in this book. I've read it cover to cover several times.
 
I have both of the above mentioned books and as a complete noob, I'd rate it...

How to Brew
The Complete Joy of Homebrewing

Both good, but How to Brew IMHO is several notches above the other.
 
All of the previously mentioned books are great. Designing Great Beers by Ray Daniels is another great one. It's a little more on the technical side and geared more towards all-grain brewing but a very good resource. Check your local library for homebrewing books. I found about 15 titles at mine.
 
It depends what you're looking for. If you want a technical manual, pick up "How To Brew", if you want some lighter reading that's still full of good information, pick up something from Charlie Papazian.
 
I got both How to Brew and The Joy of Home Brewing #3 for Christmas and while both good I found that How to Brew was much easier to follow. IMO its laid out much better. I would just pick up both used or new. You can get both on Amazon for under $25 total, cant beat that!
 
Ahh Cool! I'll see if I can find "How To Brew" here local first. Bad enough I got to wait on the beer..... Kills me to think about waiting a beer book too...lol... I will check Amazon if no luck.

As far as what I am looking for is something to explain stuff like "What chocolate malt is" "What makes a beer a chocolate" "What a bitter beer is" etc....(thinking about ordering a bitter next just to see what the hell it is...lol)

I am a professional mechanic by trade. I fix things every day... I always say "You can't fix it right unless you know how it works".... Well, I can't help but want to go with that philosophy with my home brew. If I want to have a certain type of flavor, I need to know what the flavors/ingredients do and what they are. I am thinking once I get a better grasp on that I can make more educated attempts on my own personal brews. (I sure hope this paragraph makes sense...lol)

Thanks again for all the input yall!
 
Ahh Cool! I'll see if I can find "How To Brew" here local first. Bad enough I got to wait on the beer..... Kills me to think about waiting a beer book too...lol... I will check Amazon if no luck.

As far as what I am looking for is something to explain stuff like "What chocolate malt is" "What makes a beer a chocolate" "What a bitter beer is" etc....(thinking about ordering a bitter next just to see what the hell it is...lol)

I am a professional mechanic by trade. I fix things every day... I always say "You can't fix it right unless you know how it works".... Well, I can't help but want to go with that philosophy with my home brew. If I want to have a certain type of flavor, I need to know what the flavors/ingredients do and what they are. I am thinking once I get a better grasp on that I can make more educated attempts on my own personal brews. (I sure hope this paragraph makes sense...lol)

Thanks again for all the input yall!

Both of the books I have go into great detail about the actual ingredients so either one will tell you what you need. You should find both at any local brew shop or book store for $15-20 each. My partner also picked up a bunch of used "Brew" magazines on ebay for pretty cheap. I really like these magazines also they have lots of tips and recipes so I would suggest to anyone to look for these used magazines and pick up a few.
 
My plug for Brewing Classic Styles is that it's broken down by category, with a good explanation of each style of beer, so that you not only get a proven recipe for all the beers, you also have some guidelines that help you enjoy commercial beers too. Sure you can just go download the BJCP Guidelines yourself and learn a pretty fair amount of info, but having the details and description from an award winning brewer, along with a proven recipe for extract and AG, all together in one place is great.

I found the book informative, and enjoyable with Jamil's stories about the different recipes and beers fun to read.
 
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Brewing Classic Styles is great, especially if you listen to the Jamil Show podcasts that go with the recipes in the book, you get a really good understanding of what goes into each beer style.

Also, no need to wait on How to Brew, you can read the first edition online at How to Brew - By John Palmer of course you will probably want to pick up the new version when you can.
 
Also, no need to wait on How to Brew, you can read the first edition online at How to Brew - By John Palmer of course you will probably want to pick up the new version when you can.

Wow.... Thanks! I just got done reading the first few pages, and it seems to be what I am looking for. Definitely going to look for this one (or the newer version) when I head to the book store in a bit.
 
My short list in order of best to less best ;-)

How to Brew - Palmer
Radical Brews - Mosher
Brewing Classic Styles - Jamil Z and Palmer (if recipes are your focus, this could be on the top of the list).
Joy of Homebrewing - Papazian (yes, I put this last but only because I don't think the revisions have kept up with common understanding in this huge brewing community.
 
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