jcraig
Member
I thought I would follow directions and introduce myself, although I've been a member since 2007. Honestly, this forum has been so helpful that I haven't had to post until recently. At that time, I was extract brewing with disastrous results which discouraged me to the point to give up the hobby until space (was living in a 700 sq./ft. apartment in Florida), time, and money permitted me to go all-grain.
In the meantime, I picked up a few books (John Palmer's How to Brew, Charlie Papazian's New Complete Joy of Homebrewing, and Designing Great Beers by Ray Daniels) and read, read, and read some more. I also frequent Northern Brewer's BrewingTV of which I'm a fan... if for nothing else but entertainment quality. IMHO, books should be the first purchase for anyone entering the hobby. I HIGHLY recommend John Palmer's book "How to Brew." I find myself going back to this book to study a specific section or two from time to time even when determining purchases of equipment. You have to know WHY we do certain things when brewing before you can make an informed decision on how well it's going to work.
I have since moved to Brown County, Indiana (near Bloomington) with my wife and daughter. I am in the process of putting together an all-grain system to brew 5 gallon batches. I would really like to meet some local home brewers to pick up some of the more practical aspects of brewing that you can't learn from a book. For that reason, and to taste some great home brew!
Gardening and horticulture is my first passion and I would love to eventually brew my own home-grown-home-brew with my own hops and barley (and perhaps harvest my own wild yeast strain one day). I look forward to continuing to learn and expand my hobby here on HBT!
In the meantime, I picked up a few books (John Palmer's How to Brew, Charlie Papazian's New Complete Joy of Homebrewing, and Designing Great Beers by Ray Daniels) and read, read, and read some more. I also frequent Northern Brewer's BrewingTV of which I'm a fan... if for nothing else but entertainment quality. IMHO, books should be the first purchase for anyone entering the hobby. I HIGHLY recommend John Palmer's book "How to Brew." I find myself going back to this book to study a specific section or two from time to time even when determining purchases of equipment. You have to know WHY we do certain things when brewing before you can make an informed decision on how well it's going to work.
I have since moved to Brown County, Indiana (near Bloomington) with my wife and daughter. I am in the process of putting together an all-grain system to brew 5 gallon batches. I would really like to meet some local home brewers to pick up some of the more practical aspects of brewing that you can't learn from a book. For that reason, and to taste some great home brew!
Gardening and horticulture is my first passion and I would love to eventually brew my own home-grown-home-brew with my own hops and barley (and perhaps harvest my own wild yeast strain one day). I look forward to continuing to learn and expand my hobby here on HBT!
