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how do you guys come up with names for your homebrews?

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Haven't named any yet (haven't invented any yet) but this thread got me thinking about it a bit. I'll probably either look at the color and work off of that (Communist Red, Portokali Amber, Black As Pitch Stout, etc) or riff off of a theme/movie/band that interests me while I'm brewing/bottling (Body Bag Kolsch, Flying Armbar Pale Ale, Reverse Squat-Thrust Porter, etc). I dunno, It'll hit me when the time is right.
 
My beers are in plain brown bottles with numbers on the caps written with a Sharpie.

My wife wants me to make labels and give them cool names. Sometimes that seems appealing, but sometimes I think it's kind of goofy, like I'm playing brewer. I mean, I'm making beer in my kitchen and fermenting it in plastic buckets in a closet.
 
Nerd alert!

I am a big fan of the Dune books, so I pretty much follow that theme. People who don't read the books don't really get the names, but at least they sound kind of cool.

Muad Dib Spice Ale
Mentat Marzen
Golden Path Hefeweizen
Princess Irulan Mild
Old Baliset Brown Ale
Ixian Pale Ale
Landsraad Vienna Lager
Tears of the Maker ESB

Go ahead, laugh.
 
Nerd alert!

I am a big fan of the Dune books, so I pretty much follow that theme. People who don't read the books don't really get the names, but at least they sound kind of cool.

Muad Dib Spice Ale
Mentat Marzen
Golden Path Hefeweizen
Princess Irulan Mild
Old Baliset Brown Ale
Ixian Pale Ale
Landsraad Vienna Lager
Tears of the Maker ESB

Go ahead, laugh.
My old roommate used to run around yelling "Shai Hulud" while waving his golf clubs in the air. I laughed at him too.

I e-mailed him about your Muad Dib Spice Ale and he was intrigued to say the least.
 
I have to say that I suck at coming up with hames for my brews. My best name by far is the Burned Foot IPA I brewed during said brew I actually burned my foot.

Maybe a little motivation to start naming brews, the yet to be released new version of the Brew Builder will allow people to save brews into a database for other people to view/buy. You will be able to name your brew, have your brewery name displayed along with your brewery logo on every recipe that you submit to the database.
 
When in doubt....
Cerveza sin nombre
Bier ohne Namen
Bière sans nom
Bier zonder naam
Piwo bez nazwy
맥주 이름없이

etc



 
For a while I didn't think I was good enough to have a brewery name, but I called myself Kallisti anyway (if you don't understand why, consult your pineal gland). I think I make good enough stuff that I can justify it (an extract kit from a LHBS does not a brewery make, but after 8 AG batches I think I'm ok). I just decided to put it in my sig because hey, why not.

As for beer, sometimes I'm inspired (like my Irish Red being Red Tick Beer, a Simpsons reference) and sometimes not. I decided that for each beer I can't name, I'll use the next song in The Clash's discography. So far I've only used Janie Jones (APA) and Remote Control (cherry milk stout). Oh, and a group of friends doing informal beer tastings decided to call themselves the Yeastie Boys, so I'm having fun coming up with Beastie Boys related puns.

I also think I'm going to use songs by Coheed & Cambria for my high gravity beers, the first of which was the Westy 12 clone (so something monk-related?) I was also brewing to celebrate the future birth of Minifoos (so something parent related?) leading me to Mother Superior. I had a gallon or so of second runnings that I boiled for the hell of it with the leftover hops, so for that I wanted something in the song that was about something small, so Little Rabbit. I'm going to be lucky to get a bomber of that though.

So, for me I just steal musician's inspiration :D
 
While I know I don't need to come up with a brewery name or to name my beers, I was dicking around on the computer last night and thought it would be kind of fun to go with an lol cat theme. Obviously, to anyone that has no idea what lol cats are or the i can has cheezburger meme is they will probably think I'm slightly retarded, but hopefully those who do get it can understand the humor.

A quick stab at a label

label11.jpg


And some names off the top of my head:

I R Serious IPA
Celing Cat Kolsch
Monorail Maibock
Invisible Bike Bitter
Bukkit Barleywine

Thankfully I'll probably only rarely do labels or anything anyway and only for when giving them out to friends, but most of my friends are quite familiar with lol cats and would probably get a good laugh out of it.

Oh man...that is pure genius :mug: I wish I thought of that.
 
There was a thread about lolcat beer names floating around somewhere... but I agree, that label is masterful :)
 
Miami Weisse
Aunt Flo's Raspberry Wheat (brewing today)
Fight for your Rye PA
Hoptimus Prime IIPA

just make up something that sounds interesting to you. try to create a name that you'd see on the shelf and you'd be curious about what it tasted like.
 
Mine either have something to do with my surroundings, or a feeling/setting I want to convey with the beer.

Raccoon Trail Pale Ale - raccoons use the top of my back fence to get from point A to point B.

Pacific Sunset Pale Ale - striving for the color of a sunset over the ocean. A more malty pale for evenings.

Flat Stone Amber - A beer I'd drink out camping by the lake, skipping rocks or maybe fishing.

Yellow Lantern Oatmeal Stout - black, no light passes through. We have these retarded yellow street lights in San Jose that light up nothing. One is in front of my house.
 
The ordinary bitter on tap now had a bumble bee fall out of the faucet about halfway through pouring the first pint so I call it Bumble Bee Bitter.
As I was brewing a tripel at sunrise last Sunday, the first light of morning hit the boil kettle so it's now Light O' Morn Tripel.
My porters are poured from the longest tap on my kegerator so it's Long Tap Porter.
 
While I know I don't need to come up with a brewery name or to name my beers, I was dicking around on the computer last night and thought it would be kind of fun to go with an lol cat theme. Obviously, to anyone that has no idea what lol cats are or the i can has cheezburger meme is they will probably think I'm slightly retarded, but hopefully those who do get it can understand the humor.

A quick stab at a label

label11.jpg


And some names off the top of my head:

I R Serious IPA
Celing Cat Kolsch
Monorail Maibock
Invisible Bike Bitter
Bukkit Barleywine

Thankfully I'll probably only rarely do labels or anything anyway and only for when giving them out to friends, but most of my friends are quite familiar with lol cats and would probably get a good laugh out of it.

Here's a picture you can use for your Ceiling Cat Kolsch label... :D

3657204953_a8820f4d4d.jpg
 
My brewery name is my nickname from Indian Guides when I was like 5...

My beers are named after brew-day events or recipe particulars:

Chipped Tooth Steam - my 2yo chipped his front tooth the day I brewed that one.

Explosive Apricot Wheat - my carboy exploded.

OOO Belgian Pale Ale - played hookie from work (out of office)

Sixty Dollars! American Stout - my 2yo's random saying of the day "Sixty Dollars!!!" Who knows why...

NATO IPA - British hops, American grains/yeast

NATO Brown Ale - british grains/yeast, American hops

...and so on
 
I make the beer and then name it afterwards. My stout I called the Dark Knight for the obvious color and I had just watched Batman. My IPA's stem from what they taste like most often. I use like descriptor names "Spicy Pale Ale" or I just used Honey malt in a pale ale, so I am calling it "Honey Pale". Works for me.
 
I'll tell the story of my most famous named brew.
I work in IT and our Fortune 500 company was in the (year long) process of implementing Microsoft SharePoint Portal Server.

The project, like others, ran over budget and time. At every turn, there was another hard-earned lesson, and in the final phase, we had 3x the people assigned. Daily war rooms. Moral waned, even though middle management was very supportive.

So, I decided to brew up a batch in anticipation of a milestone party. It would be a porter (Portal Porter).

As the time approached, the porter was quite ready. The graphics artist on the team offered to help with a label, so I got some info together - general description, OG, hops, and of course the ABV. Measured 3 times, it came out to be --6.66% !

The name - Satan Sharepoint Porter :) Party was a big success, and the porter was loved by many more than I'd have imagined.

My Hard Lemonade, finished at 9.3% ABV, will be called August Bent Truth Serum . Liquid Panty Melter was a close runner up :mug:
 
My "brewery" is called Tres Perros, because I have three dogs. The SWMBO gets credit for that one.

I tend to name all my beer, though I dont necessarily label them all. Usually the name is just something that amuses me at the time. For Example:

I had an IPA that I brewed while watching coverage of the "Swine Flu" that got named "Pigs On The Wing".

Said batch was a disaster, turned out tasty, but only half of the batch actually made in in bottles. Being that it seemed so destined to destroy itself (and I am a fan of the Venture Brothers), it got renamed "Calamitous Intent IPA".

Other Beers I have going right now:

The easy to figure out lawnmower beer: "Cut Grass Cream Ale"

A Saison inspired by a Phish Song: "Clusterflies, Alas Ale"

A Harvest Ale called "Stoopid Monkey Marzen", mostly because it is in fact, not a Marzen.

and an Old Peculier clone called "Old Reliable"
 
I just think of random funny **** to name my beer. I like to have the names rhyme too for some reason. I have Porter Schmorter, The Colossus of Clout Stout, Jail Bail Pale Ale, May The Schwartz Beer With You, Protect the Boarder Porter, Beat the Heat Wheat, and Holy Sh*t Wit, just to name a few.
 
For me it's just whatever comes to mind. One of the best things besides the product that brewing creates is the freedom to name it whatever the hell you want! I had a stout that I called The Black Pearl Stout (I later saw someone on here had the same idea) bc I love the Pirates trilogy, and my IPA was named Misty Mountain Hops (like my name) bc during every aspect of the process from boiling to kegging I turned on Led Zeppelin and of course bc the IPA was super hoppy.

In other non related beer news - it just came across the TV that Michael Jackson died a few minutes ago. I know he was strange, but it's still kinda sad.
 
Aunt Flo's Raspberry Wheat...
:D

that's just wrong and i love it!

i am planning to name more of my beers. i've only named 1 ever. it was for my first sons baby shower. called it "Impregnator Oktoberfest" the label had one of our ultrasound pics. i am planning on a "Gear Oil Stout" (i'm a big Land Cruiser 4x4 enthusiast).

for the homebrewery, i'm still working on names. it's been fun thinking about it.
 
1) Think of something that will offend the largest amount of people.
2) Make a pun involving the style of brew and said offensive comment.
3) Profit.
 
My beers are in plain brown bottles with numbers on the caps written with a Sharpie.

My wife wants me to make labels and give them cool names. Sometimes that seems appealing, but sometimes I think it's kind of goofy, like I'm playing brewer. I mean, I'm making beer in my kitchen and fermenting it in plastic buckets in a closet.

+1 on the circular labels on the bottle caps. I plan on making labels once I create my own versions of my favorite styles. And you are a Brewer damnit!!!! Do not let any one tell ya different :mug:
 
Names usually come from the madness ensuing after everyone has tried the brew and are kinda drunk. I go with what works. :)
 
May The Schwartz Beer With You

Oh my gods, yes.

bionicbrew, Impregnator should be a doppelbock. I really, really wish I'd have thought of that. Damn. Too late; I'll have to make that one in celebration of Minifoos 2: Still Foosin'.
 
bionicbrew, Impregnator should be a doppelbock. I really, really wish I'd have thought of that. Damn. Too late

yeah, i knew that when i did it, but it was just too appropriate for the event and an oktoberfest is what i had made. feel free to use it for whatever you make! I am not possesive over my beer names. chances are we won't be serving our beers to the same people.:tank: or call yours Impregnat-her.:D:mug:
 
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