Cheers from Maine!

[SmolderingForge]

Hello everyone,
I've been homebrewing for a little over 2.5 years now. I've lurked the forums ever since I've started. I had a few friends who had been brewing for a year at the time and one of them bought me an extract starter equipment kit for Christmas. I've been hooked ever since. I started all grain brewing in January. Thank you for the useful information I have gotten from this site and thank you for having me.

 

[Brew_4iT]

Hello from your neighbor in New Hampshire!

I have learned a lot from this forum as well. Where abouts in Maine are you located? If your near portsmouth New Hampshire you have to go to A & G brewing, my favorite brew store and the prices are awesome (I'm not affiliated with them even though it sounds like I'm soliciting lol). But really I travel the extra distance where I use to go, awesome place and Alex knows his stuff!

 

[BirdmanBrewingCo]

Greetings Forge! Glad to have you around.

 

[SmolderingForge]

Thanks guys!

I'm in southern Maine. I actually went to A&G for the first time last week to check it out. It is awesome! I'm actually going there tonight to pick up a recipe kit for a friend's bday present. I can't wait to start going there for my grain, he does have really good prices. Im also interested in maybe trying that special east coast yeast he has.

 

[Brew_4iT]

Yeah I think he picked that up when he was in New Jersey. The citra he has now is really good hops, little more expensive then some of the others but well worth it. I bought it for my last two batches for dryhopping and bittering.

 

[SmolderingForge]

Yea, he had said that from time to time he goes to NJ and he will pick up some yeast and that he was the only homebrewshop that carries it.

I just asked him some questions about an imperial IPA recipe that im working on and he mentioned that he uses Citra hops in his IIPA recipe. I have a lot of hops i grew myself to use before i buy any though, heh. Speaking of hops, wow, I think it was the Summit that he has that is 17.6% AA!!! Dems some strong hops.

 

[Brew_4iT]

Funny he was out of Summit a couple visits back for me, but recommended Citra which I hadn't used nor heard of before. I used some for bittering along with centennial and cascade, dryhopped with cascade and Citra and it was such a good APA (borderline IPA) I bought more and did an IPA. Props growing your own hops I almost bought rhizomes this year but didn't.

 

[brewslut]

Welcome to HBT,I recently camped in ME(hermit Island) f**king loved it great place!!!

 

[ScootersAle]

Welcome!

Just recently moved away from Portland after living there for a few years. Great place for beer! Almost as good as Vermont

 

[kappclark]

Welcome to HBT !

 

[Golddiggie]

Welcome to HBT... I'm actually one of two finalists for a job up in Lewiston, ME... :rockin: I've been trying to get a job up in Maine since about 2008, but this is the closest I've gotten...

I've been all grain since batch #5 (#4 was my only partial mash)... There are some decent HBS's in New England, you just need to find them. Of course, I also find that most are the same, or higher, priced on their items compared with the better online vendors (listed here)...

Without knowing what A&G gets for grain, I would see what the online vendors are charging for the same amount. Also try getting in on any group buys close enough to you. I'm giving serious thoughts to joining the Wort Processors Club, based in the Boston area, so that (if for nothing else) I can get in on their group grain buys. Getting a year supply of base malt at a time makes it really cheap. Then you just need to get the other malts. The LHBS I've been using is about twice the price (per pound) on the other malts. I won't get base malt from them (too expensive IMO)...

So, how far up into Maine do you need to go before it's "Southern Maine"???

 

[BrewinBigD]

Hey neighbor! Welcome to HBT! Ive only been on a couple. Of weeks myself but youre now part of the best place for brewers to connect. I second the props to Alex at A&G aas i was there myself tonight! Ill hopefully be going AG by the new year!

 

[beninan]

Welcome to HBT fellow Mainer!

 

[SmolderingForge]

Brew 4iT: Hmm maybe i'll have to pick up some citra sometime and try it out. He had another hop i had never heard of too that was in the extract kit that i bought for a friend; Glacier. There are too many varieties of hops...heh, or not enough!! If you have the room, i totally suggest growing hops! Its so much fun, really satisfying when the cones start growing and you can see the lupulin.

brewslut: thanks! never heard of hermit island, but it sounds like a great place. there are a lot of places to get away from it all up here.

ScootersAle: thanks! Vermont is pretty sweet for beer. i went to burlington a few summers ago and toured magic hat, otter creek, long trail, and magic hat. also went to Vermont Pub and Brewery and The Alchemist. All great places, it was a fun weekend.

kappclark: thanks!

Golddiggie: Thanks! Nice! There's a lot of jobs in lewiston. I hope you get it. Yea, I had been buying from NB and morebeer, but A&G actually is cheaper for grains, before the super shipping. Especially since NB charges to crush the grain. Its free at A&G.

Yea, I have been looking into getting a grain mill and getting sacks of base malt. I only brew about once a month also. But im cheap and even used mills seem to sell for around what a new one costs. I believe A&G carries canada malting pale malt, which he charges 1.49/lb crushed. NB is 1.40 not crushed, 1.55 crushed before shipping. Briess caramel is 1.99 or 2.10 not crushed on NB. It is 1.79 crushed at A&G. It's give or take, cause some things are cheaper and others are more expensive but I like that he's open til 7 pm during the week (except for tuesdays).

heh hmm it's only about 3 hours and then you're in southern maine

brewinBigD: heya! thanks for the welcome! Nice, I gave myself a MLT and HLT for christmas last year when i started. AG is not nearly as hard as i thought it was going to be.

beninan: ahoy fellow mainer! way up in bangor.