Top 10 Reasons to Brew Beer

Top 10 Reasons to Brew Beer

Note: #6 doesn't really apply in the US but totally a viable reason in Canada and many other countries.

Enjoy

Jason Koebel

I can see #6 applying to the US. It gets especially expensive when you start tacking on words like "bourbon barrel" or "vanilla" to the label. When you throw import beers into the mix it gets even worse. Many of these beers will run in the $20 range and even higher...per bomber. Additionally there are many beers that I simply can't get. If I don't travel to Vermont I will not get a chance to try Heady Topper. If I don't go to Dark Lord Day I won't get to try Dark Lord either. There is the option of a beer trade, but even if that goes through I might only get a bottle or can; maybe a couple if I'm lucky. Previously I've read on these forums about a guy who used to drink Pliny the Elder and they stopped distributing it to where he lived. In these cases I would say that there could even be a possible #11, Drink beer that is unavailable to you. Clone beers are not the real thing, but if it even gets you close to the result it is well worth the effort.

Nice article Jason.

#6 is still true for the US.

If you're German, you always have reason #11: Liberate yourself from the Reinheitsgebot.

#6 in the UK definitively works, you end up paying about a quarter to a fifth compared to canned or bottled beer. If you buy casks, polypins, etc., directly from a brewery you can get down to around £60 for half a firkin but still it's cheaper to do at home. That definitively combines with #1, as it's ridiculously easier to get the more unorthodox beers brewed at home (on top of cheaper) than to buy them.

#4 does not always apply. Reading some of the posts from others after they had, and sometimes are having a brew day. Good lord, "I forgot to .......", missed my target by 1/100th of a point "will it turn out ok?"

Sorry about the rant.

I think all apply to one extent or another to most brewers.

I think it all pretty much applies. But the one thing they left out is brewing extinct or rare styles of beer. I finally,with the help of a BYO page,will be brewing a pb/pm biab version of their E/SG Dampfbier recipe. Just ordered the ingredients from Midwest. They seem to have finally got the paypal glitch fixed. Anyway,brewing extinct or rare if brewed anymore recipes is another fun part of home brewing!

uniondr, that's about what a friend and I are doing: he lives in the states and loves Belgian beers and German Pilseners, I'm in Germany and love A(I)PAs and steam beer. Home brewing is what helps both of us get what we want.

I just like brewing beer because it is fun. So #4 is on top of my list.

Agreed. #4 for me as well. I love it when I have the house to myself and a whole day to brew. Just me, the boil kettle, and the stereo in the back ground.

"When Prohibition squashed brewing activities there was a massive decline in the number of home brewers and breweries......."

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I'm assuming the article is referring to the US Prohibition? I thought Canadian breweries thrived during that period due to bootleggers crossing the border for supplies.

most beer in Ontario is going to run your around $40/24 and that is just the regular BMC type. i can brew 10gal for about 2/3's the price.

About 2 bucks a bottle for the "cheap stuff" here in Newfoundland.

#4 wasn't the ultimate reason I got into homebrewing but it was definately a factor in justifying it to myself (I'm a cheapskate).

EDIT: meant to say "#6 wasn't the ultimate reason..."

Yesfan said:

I'm assuming the article is referring to the US Prohibition? I thought Canadian breweries thrived during that period due to bootleggers crossing the border for supplies.

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That's a great question! It's referring to the Canadian Prohibition which lasted anywhere between 1 to 47 years depending on the province. 11 years in Ontario from 1916-1927 and PEI was dry from 1901-1948; kill me!

Nice article! I'm going to share it with my BMC friends who still don't get why I would spend much of my free time making something I can buy at the beer distributor.

scarekrow said:

#4 does not always apply. Reading some of the posts from others after they had, and sometimes are having a brew day. Good lord, "I forgot to .......", missed my target by 1/100th of a point "will it turn out ok?"

Sorry about the rant.

I think all apply to one extent or another to most brewers.

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I don't think people who worry about something that happened during their brew day means they're not having fun. You're telling me when you started you weren't the least bit curious if something would not work because you missed a target? You'll be one of the very very few if that is the case.

I disagree with the OP. #4 absolutely applies to people in the US. I can get nearly two cases of beer for under $30 and in the store I pay $15 for a 12 pack of craft beer. So #4 does and will continue to apply. Perhaps if you get all hoppy and such then maybe not so much, but it is definitely a savings.

I got into brewing because it sounded fun. I liked beer so I figured why not? A Groupon deal pushed me over the edge to the hobby and even though I don't have a wiener, #2 applies to me.

sch21c said:

Nice article! I'm going to share it with my BMC friends who still don't get why I would spend much of my free time making something I can buy at the beer distributor.

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Thanks sch21c!

Re #6 - Save Money: It seems this topic is highly debatable by brewers in the US. Check out this conversation on Reddit: Top 10 Reasons to Brew Beer. The costs of beer may be much more localized than I had originally thought. Some US brewers call this point and outright lie while many others say it's totally justifiable. I guess it depends what state you live in. Cost is easy to justify in Canada regardless of the province but some are worse than others.

#6 somewhat depends on how you brew, at least here in the US. If you use extract kits, for the most part you can buy beer for less. With all grain you can save money.

I like my #11 ---- Because I CAN!

I think most of them apply to me but i really liked #9. I feel that since i started brewing i appreciate and enjoy beer more then i ever did before. I think knowing how its made and knowing why a beer as a specifc taste helps to make it more enjoyable to drink.

lookwow said:

I think most of them apply to me but i really liked #9. I feel that since i started brewing i appreciate and enjoy beer more then i ever did before. I think knowing how its made and knowing why a beer as a specifc taste helps to make it more enjoyable to drink.

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Totally agree. Knowing exactly how a beer was made and what you put into it will give you more of an education than any program where you simply taste beer.

As far as saving money... not a chance for me.
At minimum wage I couldn't brew this variety of quality beer that I can get for $14 at Costco!


EDIT: That $14 deal was exceptional. The typical price is $24-30 a 24 pack.

X's 2. i have to agree that since I started home brewing,I've tried a lot more variety of styles. I guess that's because ales are the easiest to brew & have more color & flavor.

In a case of 24 I think in the UK we'd be paying £1 for each of the regular ones and £2 for each of the 7.5% ones... and that's if you get a really really good deal that I've never seen (would work out at £30 which is about $50). You can get Carlsberg (commercial 3.8% abv lager) for around 50p a can if you buy a case of 24, but that's like catpiss. I bought 5 bottles the other day, of which the most expensive was Stone IPA and I paid just over £15 (around $25). No surprise I brew stouts and pale ales! On the other hand, Maris Otter is the second cheapest malt (about 1-3% more expensive than the cheapest malt) and EKG cheap enough to chuck a pound of it into a brew.

m1k3 said:

Totally agree. Knowing exactly how a beer was made and what you put into it will give you more of an education than any program where you simply taste beer.

As far as saving money... not a chance for me.
At minimum wage I couldn't brew this variety of quality beer that I can get for $14 at Costco!

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Hello said:

I disagree with the OP. #4 absolutely applies to people in the US. I can get nearly two cases of beer for under $30 and in the store I pay $15 for a 12 pack of craft beer. So #4 does and will continue to apply. Perhaps if you get all hoppy and such then maybe not so much, but it is definitely a savings.

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I think you meant #6...but, anyway, here in Alberta/Canada, we can easily pay $15 for a 6 (!!!) pack of domestic craft beer...$18-19 for a Deschutes/Lagunitas/Brooklyn etc 6 pack from US brewers that runs $8-9 in the US. On the other hand, BMC is basically the same price as craft. I can pay $13 + taxes for St Ambroise Pale Ale or Red Racer IPA or I can pay the same for Molson Canadian....hmm, which to choose?

# 6 is the reason i got into brewing, with Gambrinus malting 45 min away i get my base malts at $0.45/lb even a IIPA/barley wine is under $20/ 6 us gallon. In BC a dozen bud is $24 dollars

loving the variety now that i have a few batches under my belt.

#6 is a big part of it for me. Here in Ireland a 6 pack of a decent IPA costs over €20. I can brew 5 gallons for less. Even all the local craft beers are over €3 each.


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