I may be the odd man out here, but I never considered myself a beer lover, in fact I rarely drank beer and didn't care much for it. The exception was the dark, malty tap beers in England and Ireland, such as stouts and brown ales, but the bottle versions here in the USA were too hoppy and carbonated for my taste. I eventually came to realize that I did like beer, just not the pale, crisp, dry, alcoholic, hoppy, and highly carbonated styles that seem to dominate in the States.
Part of the reason I got into brewing was that I could design and make the style of beer that I did like, by controlling the grain bill, mash temperature, fermenting conditions, alcohol content, hop bitterness and flavor, and carbonation.
The other reason is that I am a scientist who spent my career formulating, testing, and selling synthetic lubricants, and my free time growing vegetables, making sauces, and canning. The common factor here is creating something new and innovative from scratch, something I can call my own and be proud of.
When I attended a beer brewing demonstration last year I was immediately attracted to the process and instantly bought a starter brewing kit. My very first attempt was an all grain, 5 gallon batch of stout from a recipe, which came out great. From then on I have been studying brewing and formulating my own recipes, each getting better than the last. I am now hooked!
I still don't drink a lot of beer (at least not by the standards here); I was always a fine wine drinker. These days I split my consumption by having some beer evenings, and some wine evenings. I have a whole new outlook on beer now that I can brew what I want and like. This forum has been a great source of helpful education and I appreciate all of the valuable input from all of you!
TomVA
