Finally, a series that I don't have to be a professional homebrewer to write about! I enjoy reading, and learning. When I find something I'm highly interested in, I have no problem diving head-first into the deep end. I also get a deep sense of satisfaction out of taking what I've learned and putting it to use, and beyond that, I love bringing others along for the ride with me. Of course, this was no different when it came to homebrewing. I started brewing in July of 2014, after brewing with my step-father-in-law, who's been homebrewing for over 30 years. I came across HomeBrewTalk a few times in some online searches, and eventually became a member in November. Since then, I haven't stopped learning, and I doubt that HomeBrewTalk will really ever cease to be a huge source for brewing education. Here are the top 5 things I've learned on HomeBrewTalk:
1) Don't hesitate to ask!
An example of the "Help!" threads found on here.
You can ask practically anything on here and expect to get a legitimate answer. There are people from all kinds of professional fields who are members here, and are always ready and willing to offer up free advice. If a mod or other long-time member can't answer your question, they will often refer you to someone who can.
Every now and then some bad advice might be given, but those are usually fairly quickly shown the error of their ways. Because most people on here are dedicated to brewing great beer, and to sharing in that enjoyment with others, there is a good amount of self-policing.
Also, don't be afraid of Kombat; he's just highly interested in the truth, but also likes being very direct. Oh yeah, and always listen to Yooper. If you come across one of her comments when she has Clay Matthews or Red Green as her profile photo, don't be confused - she is a she.
2) There are lots of great, proven recipes.
Currently kegged version of Common Room ESB.
As a new brewer, I really wanted to pave my own way. I love experimenting and tinkering with things, so naturally that carried over into my new found love of brewing. I think it's also something innate in us (at least in the western world) that we want to make a name for ourselves. While that attitude is great, I strongly recommend trying out some of the proven recipes until one gets a real grasp on all the ingredients, techniques, and equipment.
Or maybe you're a pretty experienced brewer and want to try out a new style. There's likely a proven recipe for that style on here. I really enjoyed the Top Recipes series, and have it bookmarked for future use. A lot of those recipes have won medals, so even if you're an experienced brewer, giving those a shot will still mean a high quality beer.
3) There's a ton of other homemade crafts to learn about on here besides beer!
Home Brewed Kombucha
Of course, the beer brewing sub-forums take up much more space than anything else, but I have also received heaps of help from reading on here about wine, cider, soda, kombucha, and cheese! There are many other topics beyond those, too.
My wife and I have found that the more homemade products we attempt to make, the more we want to discover the art of making and repairing things at home. There are so many things that we have simply passed on to commercially made products, and we don't even realize just how easy they are to make in the comfort of our own homes. Of course the wealth of info on this site helps to make those attempts at homemade crafts that much easier.
4) There is always new information coming out!
As technology improves, our brewing techniques will likewise become easier and more efficient. Thankfully there are so many members out there conducting all kinds of experiments. They are doing the difficult work for us, finding out what old techniques can be thrown out, and which ones are still important. For a long time, many homebrewers had worse equipment and ingredients than the Sumerians making bread beer, or they thought their equipment needed to be scaled down versions of commercial brewery machinery.
Likewise, many people used to preach the 2-2-2 method (2 weeks in primary, 2 weeks in secondary, and 2 weeks bottle refermentation), which has since fallen out of favor. There are all kinds of methods to brewing out there; we just need to figure out what will work best for us. I don't remember where I read it, but a good motto to brew by is to try to brew the best beer possible, while still having the most fun possible. It's very easy to find new techniques on here, or possibly even old techniques that are proving to yield imperceptible differences when compared to forgoing them. All of this knowledge will help to make your brewing the best for you.
5) And, it's got that great small-town community feel to it!
Brewers Aren't Always Drinkers, Well Ok Maybe
Of course, you got your town drunks (OK, maybe that's a larger portion on here than a normal community?), you got the below-average-IQ guy who just does something without any prior research, you got the people who just know a lot of junk about everything, you got the guys who 'think' they know a lot of junk about everything, and everyone in between. Most of the time you will never meet these people in real life, you won't even likely know who they are beyond their username, and yet they will feel like friends.
One of the great aspects of this forum beyond any other homebrewing forum is that you get a real local pub or tavern type of feel. Almost everyone will make you feel welcome (unless you're some 18-year-old know-it-all who's "read a ton of books"), and most people will offer up as much kind help as they can. It's easy to just have pointless conversations about goats, turtles, or things your SWMBO slapped you for (in the appropriate sub-forums, of course), and, at the same time, just as easy to have incredibly technical discussions.
If you're a homebrewer - in any sense of the word - there's a place for you on HomeBrewTalk, and I guarantee that you will learn a ton!
.
1) Don't hesitate to ask!
An example of the "Help!" threads found on here.
You can ask practically anything on here and expect to get a legitimate answer. There are people from all kinds of professional fields who are members here, and are always ready and willing to offer up free advice. If a mod or other long-time member can't answer your question, they will often refer you to someone who can.
Every now and then some bad advice might be given, but those are usually fairly quickly shown the error of their ways. Because most people on here are dedicated to brewing great beer, and to sharing in that enjoyment with others, there is a good amount of self-policing.
Also, don't be afraid of Kombat; he's just highly interested in the truth, but also likes being very direct. Oh yeah, and always listen to Yooper. If you come across one of her comments when she has Clay Matthews or Red Green as her profile photo, don't be confused - she is a she.
2) There are lots of great, proven recipes.
Currently kegged version of Common Room ESB.
As a new brewer, I really wanted to pave my own way. I love experimenting and tinkering with things, so naturally that carried over into my new found love of brewing. I think it's also something innate in us (at least in the western world) that we want to make a name for ourselves. While that attitude is great, I strongly recommend trying out some of the proven recipes until one gets a real grasp on all the ingredients, techniques, and equipment.
Or maybe you're a pretty experienced brewer and want to try out a new style. There's likely a proven recipe for that style on here. I really enjoyed the Top Recipes series, and have it bookmarked for future use. A lot of those recipes have won medals, so even if you're an experienced brewer, giving those a shot will still mean a high quality beer.
3) There's a ton of other homemade crafts to learn about on here besides beer!
Home Brewed Kombucha
Of course, the beer brewing sub-forums take up much more space than anything else, but I have also received heaps of help from reading on here about wine, cider, soda, kombucha, and cheese! There are many other topics beyond those, too.
My wife and I have found that the more homemade products we attempt to make, the more we want to discover the art of making and repairing things at home. There are so many things that we have simply passed on to commercially made products, and we don't even realize just how easy they are to make in the comfort of our own homes. Of course the wealth of info on this site helps to make those attempts at homemade crafts that much easier.
4) There is always new information coming out!
As technology improves, our brewing techniques will likewise become easier and more efficient. Thankfully there are so many members out there conducting all kinds of experiments. They are doing the difficult work for us, finding out what old techniques can be thrown out, and which ones are still important. For a long time, many homebrewers had worse equipment and ingredients than the Sumerians making bread beer, or they thought their equipment needed to be scaled down versions of commercial brewery machinery.
Likewise, many people used to preach the 2-2-2 method (2 weeks in primary, 2 weeks in secondary, and 2 weeks bottle refermentation), which has since fallen out of favor. There are all kinds of methods to brewing out there; we just need to figure out what will work best for us. I don't remember where I read it, but a good motto to brew by is to try to brew the best beer possible, while still having the most fun possible. It's very easy to find new techniques on here, or possibly even old techniques that are proving to yield imperceptible differences when compared to forgoing them. All of this knowledge will help to make your brewing the best for you.
5) And, it's got that great small-town community feel to it!
Brewers Aren't Always Drinkers, Well Ok Maybe
Of course, you got your town drunks (OK, maybe that's a larger portion on here than a normal community?), you got the below-average-IQ guy who just does something without any prior research, you got the people who just know a lot of junk about everything, you got the guys who 'think' they know a lot of junk about everything, and everyone in between. Most of the time you will never meet these people in real life, you won't even likely know who they are beyond their username, and yet they will feel like friends.
One of the great aspects of this forum beyond any other homebrewing forum is that you get a real local pub or tavern type of feel. Almost everyone will make you feel welcome (unless you're some 18-year-old know-it-all who's "read a ton of books"), and most people will offer up as much kind help as they can. It's easy to just have pointless conversations about goats, turtles, or things your SWMBO slapped you for (in the appropriate sub-forums, of course), and, at the same time, just as easy to have incredibly technical discussions.
If you're a homebrewer - in any sense of the word - there's a place for you on HomeBrewTalk, and I guarantee that you will learn a ton!
.
