Beer you like but have never brewed?

[TheMadKing]

Flanders Red, such a hard style to get right that I'm scared to try it

 

[bwible]

Nice! I feel like this is the most over looked batch size. When was the last time you went to the store an purchased two full cases of any one craft beer? Yet somehow brewing two cases has become the standard batch size. I do a lot of 2.5 gallon stove top batches, but I have been really tempted to pick up one of the Anvil Foundry 6.5 gallon systems.

I have also found that small batch brewing lets me brew much more often. Where brewing a 5 gallon batch on my propane burner usually requires me to fit in a weekend day, I can pretty much whip out a 2.5 gallon batch on my stove on any random evening without worrying about it being raining/snowing/dark. (Though with more opportunities these days to get together with friends to share beer, full size batches are also nice to keep the supply full.)

I started doing it because I am the only one in my house who drinks beer. My wife will occasionally drink one, but not very often. We’re not big party throwing people.

Spot on that I don’t recall ever going to the store and buying 2 cases of the same beer, not even for a party.

Then you start doing multiplication with the 5 gallon batches - if I brew 1 batch = 2 cases, 3 batches = 6 cases, 5 batches = 10 cases, etc. That’s a lot of beer for one person and its not long before you’re overwhelmed with beer you can’t drink in a reasonable time and you’re out of bottles and kegs. And you get more variety with the smaller batches.

I do understand the guys who have big families and a number of friends brewing larger batches. Everybody does what fills their needs. I have less need.

I’ve gotten to where I keep 2 kegs on tap in my kegerator, usually 3 gallons each. And there’s an empty space where I can store or lager a third keg. The 5 gallons of club brew was a one off.

And I try to keep 6 cases in bottles. But then I don’t count the stronger beers in those, because those are around for awhile. I have 2 cases of barleywine. I have a case of old ale. I did 3 gallons of a maple beer using real maple syrup. Its strong and thats another case going to be around awhile. I tend to drink the strong stuff more in the winter and much less in summer.

So all told, I keep (2) 3 gallon kegs and about 10 cases total in bottles. Which is still a lot of beer for one person. Granted they are not all full cases.

 

[seatazzz]

Yeah same here. Pretty much all of the lager styles. I don’t have a spare fridge to control temp and lager in. In addition to our house fridge, I’m already running a True commercial glass front beer fridge for bottles and a 2 tap kegerator. So my wife would not be happy if I bought another fridge to use for brewing - even a small one.

I’ve been doing psuedo-lagers - fermenting lager recipes with ale yeast. Had decent results with neutral American strains like 1056 and 1272. 1099 also worked very well. They list blonde ale under the styles 1099 can make, so I thought why not. I’m about to do an American Premium lager type recipe using Fermentis 34/70 and fermenting it at basement temps. Read many good comments about fermenting this yeast warm. I was going to do that beer today, but now I won’t be able to brew it until tomorrow. Really high hopes for this one. I planned a light lager and then I’m going to follow that up with an amber lager to re-use the same yeast.

My normal batch is 3 gallons. Works out to a case plus a 6 pack. I brew 3 gallon recipes on my Anvil Foundry 6.5. I formulate my recipes to collect 4 gallons, boil down to 3.5. 3.5 goes in the fermenter so I actually end up with 3 gallons when all is done.

Get thee hence over to the Warm Fermented Lager thread. You'll find oo-scoobs of good information there. I've won a silver medal and a red ribbon for mine, and got good comments from the judges; who don't know when they're tasting the beer how it was brewed. Pitching plenty of yeast, and lagering in the keg or bottle for about two weeks, and you can't tell the difference between it and one done with traditional methods. At least that's my very biased opinion....let the flames begin.

 

[seatazzz]

Many might laugh, but one of my favorite beers is Moosehead. I've never attempted it, mainly because I can't find a good clone recipe for it. Can't find it around here anymore either to do a comparison. Maybe someday....

 

[bwible]

Get thee hence over to the Warm Fermented Lager thread. You'll find oo-scoobs of good information there. I've won a silver medal and a red ribbon for mine, and got good comments from the judges; who don't know when they're tasting the beer how it was brewed. Pitching plenty of yeast, and lagering in the keg or bottle for about two weeks, and you can't tell the difference between it and one done with traditional methods. At least that's my very biased opinion....let the flames begin.

Been there, done that

 

[jtratcliff]

its not long before you’re overwhelmed with beer you can’t drink in a reasonable time

what is this nonsense? Is it even English? I have no Idea what this means!
Those words don't belong together!

 

[bwible]

Many might laugh, but one of my favorite beers is Moosehead. I've never attempted it, mainly because I can't find a good clone recipe for it. Can't find it around here anymore either to do a comparison. Maybe someday....

Molson Golden was my favorite for years. But it had to be golden.

I think one of the books, Beer Captured or North American Clonebews has a recipe for Moosehead

 

[NewJersey]

Sour beers. I enjoy them, but not enough to have 5 gallons around. I also generally only ever want a small pour anyways. Just one here and there kinda.
I'll let the pros do it for me

 

[CascadesBrewer]

Sour beers. I enjoy them, but not enough to have 5 gallons around. I also generally only ever want a small pour anyways. Just one here and there kinda.
I'll let the pros do it for me

I am on board with you there. I am not a massive sour fan, but I do occasionally enjoy a good one. There seems to be a fine line between an incredibly good complex sour and a terrible vinegar + diaper mess. The idea of keeping a carboy around for years filled with a random mix of dregs and hoping it works out (and does not contaminate my other beers) scares me a bit. I could maybe try a kettle sour, but I am not sure I have ever had a really great kettle sour. I could see throwing one of the sour producing yeasts at a beer one day, but there are so many other things that I enjoy drinking more.

Also...NEIPAs are on my list of "like but have only brewed a few times". Even when purchasing hops by the pound, they can be pretty expensive beers to brew. They are also fairly complex beers to pull off. While my last couple were pretty solid, there are just so many NEIPAs on tap every place I go that I don't get a lot of motivation to brew them myself. On the other hand, it is really hard to find good Belgians on tap, and imports are often $8 per 11 oz bottle...where I can make <5 gallons of a Dubbel or Saison for under $30.

 

[porterguy]

"There seems to be a fine line between an incredibly good complex sour and a terrible vinegar + diaper mess."

I always wanted to make one of these, but have never found a good recipe. When, exactly, do you put the diaper in? Is it in the mash? More like a hop addition for "x" number of minutes, or maybe a late dry hop/wet diaper addition?

 

[beersk]

Sour beers. I enjoy them, but not enough to have 5 gallons around. I also generally only ever want a small pour anyways. Just one here and there kinda.
I'll let the pros do it for me

Maybe like a Flanders Red or an Oud Bruin...I'd take 5 gallons of a really good one of those. But you don't have to do 5 gallons either...do a half batch.

 

[Apple_Jacker]

Pilsners and lagers and Octoberfest/marzen beers come to mind.

 

[Tobor_8thMan]

Stroh's but I'm getting da*n close...

 

[PaleMan]

Kolsch

 

[BrewChem]

Something akin to Utopias. A guy a work had two bottles that he shared a snort from. Definitely not something you drink by the pint but would be a nice “once in a while sipper” on a cold winter evening. Just can’t bring myself to part with the $$ for a bottle.

 

[JAReeves]

Since I now have a glycol setup, I plan on making my first lager. I am hoping to put together something Tipopils-esque, as I do love hops! On the other hand, I love the cleanness of a cold, dry Sapporo.

 

[Broothru]

Since I now have a glycol setup, I plan on making my first lager. I am hoping to put together something Tipopils-esque, as I do love hops! On the other hand, I love the cleanness of a cold, dry Sapporo.

I remember once on an out-of-town trip staying at a hotel somewhere in Florida and having a "dry" beer in the bar that was being test marketed by one of the mega brewers. This was shortly after the advent of Miller Lite but predated the craft beer boom of the 80s. It was also before I got interested and involved as a hobbyist/homebrewer, and really didn't know much about beer other than Coors, Bud, Miller and some of the beers my Dad and uncles drank when I was growing up like Pabst, Schlitz and Hamm's.

I do remember being able to taste a significant difference between that Dry beer (I think it was Budweiser) and anything else I'd ever had up to that point. And I liked it. What ever it was, it obviously didn't make the cut. I do remember trying some Michelob Dry when it came out (and later flopped) but not liking it as much. I talked at length with the distributer who was there promoting the beer, but any of the information he was sharing was over my head at the time. Shortly after that time I began traveling a great deal overseas and gained a new appreciation for the many and varied styles of beers, which led to learning more about brewing and eventually trying my hand at it.

A few years ago when the popular kick became low carbs and lower calorie counts in beers, I used my homebrewer knowledge base to learn more about the process of brewing these beers and rediscovered dry beers, brewed with exotic enzymes and specialty grains. I think that trend led in some small way to the current trends toward lighter (color) beers using mostly base grains and fewer caramel malts. I'm much more conscious of calories than I was 45 years ago, so the trend toward crisper, cleaner tasting beers is probably a very good thing. I'm thinking a good, crisp rice-based Sapporo-esque beer sounds like a great idea on this Labor Day weekend.

Pardon me while I go shopping!

 

[crazyjake19]

I still have yet to brew a Kettle sour. I was planning on using GoodBelly, but all the stores around here stopped carrying the juice, so I'll have to order some probiotics online to use instead.

 

[JAReeves]

I still have yet to brew a Kettle sour. I was planning on using GoodBelly, but all the stores around here stopped carrying the juice, so I'll have to order some probiotics online to use instead.

I have never made a kettle sour either, but I plan to use some of my sourdough starter from baking. WTH, it'll be beer.

 

[crazyjake19]

I have never made a kettle sour either, but I plan to use some of my sourdough starter from baking. WTH, it'll be beer.

I believe James from Basic Brewing Radio did this before, or interviewed someone who did. Can't hurt to try! I've heard of using juice from sauerkraut or other ferments as well.

 

[Joewalla88]

I still have yet to brew a Kettle sour. I was planning on using GoodBelly, but all the stores around here stopped carrying the juice, so I'll have to order some probiotics online to use instead.

I've been enjoying the Philly sour yeast instead. I know its not exactly the same, but it makes a nice easy sour.

 

[bkboiler]

I've never brewed a lot of beers that I like...
In order of most immediate
1. Russian imperial stout -currently have the ingredients
2. doppelbock - finally got flask big enough for starter
3. Sour - at some point I'll do this when my brain has enough space to think it thru

 

[shoreman]

Flanders Red

 

[bobeer]

Red stripe or a schwarzbier

 

[day_trippr]

Wow! There's like a mile of difference between ^those two^ styles