Best homebrew you ever had?!?

the one I am drinking at that time. or the next one...

Way too many good homebrewers around here to pin one down. We've got one guy in Heart of the Valley, who is probably the most consistent in brewing great beers. He has a goal of winning 1st places in every style category and he will do it.

The best and only homebrew I've ever had was from a guy who runs a tiny shop an hour and a half drive from me, the only person I've been able to find close by. I drive forever through the middle of nowhere, past the boondocks, out to the sticks, and then I turned left at timbucktoo. I finally get to the driveway, pull up and it's a nice little brick house, well tended, kinda stiff looking. A guy steps out in a button up shirt and slacks and asks if he can help me, I said "yeah, I'm looking for a brew shop" to which he replies, "Oh, you mean The Beerslayer... He's the next house over." So I drive to the next house along what used to be a lawn but looks like it turned into a barely used twin track of dirt to a little trailer with a 12x20 shed near it. Hops growing up some cables 30' in the air and I thought to myself "Now you're in the right place"

The guy comes out "Bob" was his real name, introduces himself and shows me around. Really nice guy, kinda weird but then again I'm pretty weird too in my own way I'm sure. Shows me inside his shop, well lit, 4 beers on tap, he helped me put together a grain bill for a mild I wanted to try and offered to taste what he had on tap. I had barely eaten anything for breakfast and I'm a whopping 130 lbs. His "tastes" were pints. One of them was a mild at 3.5% alc, another was some Raison I think that's the name and it was around 12%, the other two I don't really remember, but they were good. But the English Mild he made was so good I wanted to just take a bath in and drink the tub dry. So on my way home I stopped and bought a huge burger and some coffee... Next time I'm going on a full stomach to help delay the buzz He gave me the recipe and filled it too haven't had the time to brew either but hopefully I'll be able to try one of em saturday after next when my primary is free.

English Mild

OG 1.036
TG 1.009
Alc% 3.5
IBU 15.7
SRM 17.9

3 lbs Marris Otter Pale Malt
3 lbs Muntons Mild Malt
1 lb Wyermann Caraamber
0.5 lbs Weyermann Cara Aroma
0.5 lbs Muntons Dark Crystal

0.5 oz Kent-Goldings 5.5% 60 Mins
0.5 oz Kent-Goldings 5.5% 15 Mins Finishing
1 Whirlfloc Tablet

Safale S-04

Boil Time 60 mins
Primary 7 Days at 68 F
Secondary 7 Days at 68F

Mash Procedure
Mash Efficiency 70%
Add 2.60 Gals water at 179 F to heat mash to 158 F
Add 0.73 Gals water at boiling to heat mash to 168 F
Sparge with 3.8 Gals of water to yield 5 Gals to primary

Water absorbed by grain: 0.80 gallons
Water Evaporated during boil: 1 gallon

The first year I started brewing (1998 or 97, I seem to recall) I made an enormous wee heavy. I tasted it after a few months and it was disgusting, so the bottles stayed with me over the course of three or four moves, until five or six years after the brew date. On a dare, the guy I brewed it with cracked one open, and it turned out to be the best wee heavy I've ever had. Don't remember the recipe, it was just smooth, malty, big, not sweet, and wickedly strong.

Wish I still had some

Oh God! That's like trying to pick the best sex you've ever had.


There's that oaked Robust Porter I had with the New York steaks and all the trimmings.

No wait maybe that honey laced Blonde Ale I had with some friends in the middle a the Alaskan wilderness after a long day on trail.

Or it could be the that Holiday Ale I brewed last year for the company Xmas party. Wow that was a great party.

Then again it could have been that glass of Wolf's Ale I just quaffed.

I've only tasted homebrew from one other person and it was infected so the best homebrew I've had is my own. I just recently brewed a Calico Amber Ale clone which I'm pretty proud about. Nice and malty, fruity in the nose and a nice firm bitterness in the backend. I also brewed last summer a spiced fruit old ale which I'm aging for a while. Got about a dozen bottles left. It's trully amazing. I've never tasted anything like it. Two years ago, I also brewed a chocolate mint stout which turned out spectacular. I would have a hard time deciding which one is best. They're all pretty good in their own respect.

I think that my favorite homebrew is the one that I'm drinking now. I still feel that I'm new at this craft, but as I sit here drinking a bottle of my newest Amber Ale, batch #63, I get the feeling that I'm getting pretty good at brewing beer now.

The best beer I've drank of any kind ever is Bourbon Vanilla Porter I have kegged right now. I only hope it turns out the same the next time I brew it.

I'm going to go with a weizenbock brewed by Kerry Martin that I sampled at an Austin Zealots meeting, followed closely by AnOldUR's Maris Otter/Centennial SMaSH.

david_42 said:

Way too many good homebrewers around here to pin one down. We've got one guy in Heart of the Valley, who is probably the most consistent in brewing great beers. He has a goal of winning 1st places in every style category and he will do it.

Click to expand...

Category like 1, 2, 3 or subcategory? The later would be impressive in a relatively small number of years.

My friend made a "quad stout" and it was delicious. Best stout I have ever had. I don't know the recipe, but I know it was extract.
I did a brewers best Imperial Pale Ale for my first ever batch. It is supposed to be an Arrogant Bastard clone. It was one of the best I have ever done (6 batches under my belt in 6 months).

I have kept 1 bottle from each batch so far, and I plan to fill a 24 case with 1 of each kind of brew, and then have a day where I invite a select few friends over to drink them.

I am on my lunch break at work and called the lady to put 2 hefs, 2 ipas, and 2 cream ales in the fridge for when I return home. All this reading about home brews makes me think I am going to forego the gym during the day tomorrow and stay up late playing Heroes of Newerth catching a buzz. . . .

the best i have ever tasted was my first attempt at a lager. done with no temp control in may garage this past spring. it was a partial mash munich helles that turned out fantastic. it was everything i love in a beer, well balanced, malt forward, and delicious. i just kicked myself for only doing a half batch. I'm getting a free fermentation fridge soon, and will try to brew it again all grain, fingers crossed.

never had anyone else's homebrew, but i'd love try some.

my uncle's baltic porter.