Hey all....I've been lurking around here for a few weeks and have recently decided to take the plunge a couple weeks ago.
To start I have never been a beer drinker. There was no real reason for this, other than I had never aquired a taste for beer in my younger drinking days. For the better part of 12 years I've been primarily a boubon drinker. My only experience with beer would be an occassional $8 cup at a ballgame.
Several months ago a friend brought over a couple premium beers ( I couldn't even begin to tell you what they were at this point) and I sampled a bit, they were extremely bitter, and I could taste a hint of chocolate in one of them. I didn't enjoy the EXTREME bitterness but I could tell there was something to the flavor that I could enjoy
Since I never enjoyed "popular" beers like bud and millerlite etc, I figured the "beer snob" stuff wouldn't suit my pallet. I started by buying a 6 pack of Sam Adams, it was still a little bitter for my tastes but I did enjoy the taste. I next experimented with a "semi-local" pale ale (Boulevard). I was really suprised by the difference in taste from the Boston Lager and the Ale.....All along I figured beers all tasted at least "similar". Being a bourbon drinker, there are differences from one bourbon to the next, but nothing compared to the difference between the SA and the pale ale. So that sparked my interest.
So several months later here I am. I've experimented with many beers over the last 6 months, and am really starting to enjoy the differences from one style to the next. Even the A-B products don't disgust me now that I know a little more about what I am tasting (or not tasting in A-B's case). Living in a smaller town my access to a variety of beers is limited, so I've decided to give homebrewing a go.
I've ordered an equipment kit from midwestsupplies, and I think I am going with a pale ale for my first brew (extract).
My work will be done in my garage, where I have a nice 8' counter top, basin sink, and room to eventually put in a stove top or LP burner. For the first brew though I will be using a turkey fryer propane set-up with a 5g stainless kettle. Plastic bucket for primary and 6.5 gallon carboy for secondary. When we built this house we had the basement extended to include under the front porch. So I have a 38' by 4' all concrete storage area that is completely empty and almost 100% temperature stable. During the hotest months it won't rise above 65-70 degrees. In the winter it stays a frosty 45 degrees. So this is where I will store the fermenters, should be fine for ales in the summer, and PERFECT for lagers in the winter.
Looking forward to getting started, and hoping to brew my first batch Thursday or Monday (depending on FedEx).
To start I have never been a beer drinker. There was no real reason for this, other than I had never aquired a taste for beer in my younger drinking days. For the better part of 12 years I've been primarily a boubon drinker. My only experience with beer would be an occassional $8 cup at a ballgame.
Several months ago a friend brought over a couple premium beers ( I couldn't even begin to tell you what they were at this point) and I sampled a bit, they were extremely bitter, and I could taste a hint of chocolate in one of them. I didn't enjoy the EXTREME bitterness but I could tell there was something to the flavor that I could enjoy
Since I never enjoyed "popular" beers like bud and millerlite etc, I figured the "beer snob" stuff wouldn't suit my pallet. I started by buying a 6 pack of Sam Adams, it was still a little bitter for my tastes but I did enjoy the taste. I next experimented with a "semi-local" pale ale (Boulevard). I was really suprised by the difference in taste from the Boston Lager and the Ale.....All along I figured beers all tasted at least "similar". Being a bourbon drinker, there are differences from one bourbon to the next, but nothing compared to the difference between the SA and the pale ale. So that sparked my interest.
So several months later here I am. I've experimented with many beers over the last 6 months, and am really starting to enjoy the differences from one style to the next. Even the A-B products don't disgust me now that I know a little more about what I am tasting (or not tasting in A-B's case). Living in a smaller town my access to a variety of beers is limited, so I've decided to give homebrewing a go.
I've ordered an equipment kit from midwestsupplies, and I think I am going with a pale ale for my first brew (extract).
My work will be done in my garage, where I have a nice 8' counter top, basin sink, and room to eventually put in a stove top or LP burner. For the first brew though I will be using a turkey fryer propane set-up with a 5g stainless kettle. Plastic bucket for primary and 6.5 gallon carboy for secondary. When we built this house we had the basement extended to include under the front porch. So I have a 38' by 4' all concrete storage area that is completely empty and almost 100% temperature stable. During the hotest months it won't rise above 65-70 degrees. In the winter it stays a frosty 45 degrees. So this is where I will store the fermenters, should be fine for ales in the summer, and PERFECT for lagers in the winter.
Looking forward to getting started, and hoping to brew my first batch Thursday or Monday (depending on FedEx).
