Why do you homebrew? Are people nuts?

[firebird77]

Personally I enjoy making what I have from scratch. There is nothing better than eating a meal consisting of fish you caught and cleaned from a local stream, seasoned with herbs from the garden and cooked by yours truly. Paired with beer that I made myself. I'm working towards some cheap, repeatable batches so that I can cut out the BMC all together.

As a college student, most people think that I'm crazy for making so much food from scratch. It does save me money, and certainly costs me more time, but the reward is worth it in my opinion.

 

[david_42]

One of the reasons I brew is to have brews that are hard to find. If I want a hoppy American IPA, I can go to any brewpub in the PNW and find 2 or 5 or 6. Try and find a Brown or a hoppy session ale or any session ale period.

Anybody know a good recipe for a spicy deli-style Italian sausage? Not a mild sausage jacked up with red pepper, a spicy one. Can't find any around here.

 

[RushN24]

C2H5OH.

Duh.

HAHA your absolutely right, probably the same reason I am going to brew again, other than the fact that my brew tasted just as good as some craft brews do at less than HALF the price!

 

[Conehead]

I homebrew because discount beer ( bud light ) costs $38.00 a case in Canada. Micros, much more. Now you know.

Conehead

 

[Cpt_Kirks]

HAHA your absolutely right, probably the same reason I am going to brew again, other than the fact that my brew tasted just as good as some craft brews do at less than HALF the price!

Like I was telling SWMBO last night: The pint of Hefe I was holding would cost $4 or $5 in a bar, IF they actually had something similar.

It cost $0.45 for me to make.

:rockin:

 

[geebert74]

people are redic...

I would of asked the guy what do you do for fun?

His response would have probably been "I hunt, or I collect baseball cards" and your response would probably have been something positive. People just like to hate on other people... You can't win for losing in this world...

Just go on about what you were doing and live your life.

 

[BlueSunshine]

I love beer and consider myself to be a beer nerd. It was only a natural progression that eventually I would start making it myself.

I think people on this board are a rare breed being that they're Americans with a true honest-to-God hobby. People my age (I'm 25) either don't have any hobbies, or the hobbies that they do have aren't really hobbies at all. I've heard so many people say that watching TV and listening to music are hobbies, but I'm pretty sure that being entertained isn't a hobby at all.

 

[viking73]

I love to cook and I love beer. And good craft beer is expensive, so naturally I had to take the plunge. And after two batches of beer, I'm trying to get to having one in primary at all times!

 

[Cape Brewing]

Yeah, I really enjoy good food/good beer/ etc as well but I also have a big side of why I homebrew that I would think is really common among brewers... that I haven't seen someone mention... and that is that brewing (and all that goes with it) couldn't possibly be more different than what I do for a living and what I do on a day-to-day basis.

I have a really stressful job and my days are spent in meetings and in my office in front of a computer. I deal with a lot of very self-absorbed people who make enourmous sums of money (I don't... but they do). Know all of the "Wall Street Fat Cats" everyone cries about in the news? That's what I do for a living (the Fat Cat stuff... not the crying).

I actually really like the stress and I really like my job... but having a hobby that I can get totally lost in is a huge stress reliever. I really enjoy working with my hands and trying to figure out how to build something... hence my bar... and rig.. and walk-in cooler... etc etc. The building-it phase is just as fun as the brewing itself sometimes. And when I'm done, I get the satisfaction of sitting back and watching something I've built work.

I constantly laugh to myself and shake my head saying, "I can't believe I made THAT" (in a good way).

AND... I get to drink good beer as a result!!

Then... layered on top of all of that... I think the homebrewing community is one of the best there is. With VERY few exceptions, homebrewers don't have any airs about them. I belong to an awesome club where no one cares what you do for a living, what kind of car you drive or how much brewing experience you have. We're there because we all really appreciate beer and want to learn more about it. It's a REALLY nice change from the majority of people I deal with on a daily basis.

 

[sjlammer]

I with everyone else. work is so boring that i need something to keep me sharp. as soon as I find something I don't know how to do, I want to learn everything i can about it.

A teacher put it best on a report card "Student has a quest for in depth knowledge" it may have been a canned note, but i think it fits me to a tee.

Some people are content just to go through life on cruise control.. I think i speak for all of us... WE WANT MORE!

 

[Kralizec]

Ethanol is a chemical and a preservative. :fro:

SO IS WATER.


I brew because craft beer got me hooked on great beer. Making it myself is merely a pride thing. Also the DIY aspect of it is almost 1/2 the fun.

 

[caphector]

Well, for me…I don't like beer (or any alcoholic beverage) all that much, but I've always been fascinated by them. The idea of taking sweetened water (be it via grain, fruit, or honey) and letting a fungi work on it for a while and then you get a beverages. It's rather wild to watch and to learn about.

Like other people on this thread, I do a lot of cooking — I roast my own coffee, I do all big meals in my household, and I do all the shopping. I like having the best food that I can get, and I make sure of it by making it myself.

I've been tasting more beer since starting brewing and I may be finding a couple styles that are tasty, which is good because I've been getting tired of drinking soda (even home-made) and don't like the per-cup effort for tea.

Also, I have two roommates who love beer and so can drink my output. They fund the brews and I get a fun hobby.

 

[Tsuyako]

I brew because all the beer at the store tastes the same to me. I wanted something with FLAVOR! I also enjoy the process. Creating something for someone else to enjoy and watching them enjoy it is one of lifes little pleasures. Couldn't ask for more really.

 

[Pommy]

Ive also never had this reaction before, the guy obviously misses the point and it makes me feel slightly better to know that I can experience one of lifes true pleasures and truely appreciate it when others are not able to. I presume he has his own hobbies but to make a comment like that just makes him sound like a moron.

Im going to have a HB

 

[maltbarleyhops]

i enjoy the brewing process. im a gadget freak. i like beer. yes i still buy plenty, but i brew plenty also.
mostly i find that people are interested in it. i live near st louis and AB is what 98% of people around here consider beer. so when they see a silky black beast being decanted into a glass they are either a bit apprehensive or chompin' at the bit for it.

im digressing.

i love to brew because i love to brew.

 

[l1ranger]

sounds like that guy needs a reality check.

i do it b/c I like to. it helps that i like beer and am a DIY kinda guy.

I figure there are only a handful of reasons for doing anything.
1 - you enjoy it
2 - income
3 - TWMBO commands it
4 - it just needs doing (think chores around the house)

its open to suggestion, but if in general, if it doesn't fit into one of the 4 categories, why bother?

 

[twohands]

I don't own a TV.

I like chemistry, math, biology, and engineering.

I enjoy cooking and eating.

Um, beer?!!!

Its an adult hobby, unlike video games.

It helps fill the time between sex.

This is an interesting paradigm difference; the guy the OP spoke about is probably a "give a man a fish" guy; we're "learn to fish people". People are either experimenters and doers or they aren't.

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

I don't own a TV.

I like chemistry, math, biology, and engineering.

I enjoy cooking and eating.

Um, beer?!!!

Its an adult hobby, unlike video games.

It helps fill the time between sex.

This is an interesting paradigm difference; the guy the OP spoke about is probably a "give a man a fish" guy; we're "learn to fish people". People are either experimenters and doers or they aren't.

The spirit monkey hath spoken.

 

[Cliff897]

Is it sad that one of the main reasons I brew is to prevent having to carry cases of beer from my trunk to my apt 3x/week. Also preventing the trip to the beer store after work just as often. That alone saves me over 2 hours a week and time in traffic which is priceless.

I was going to ask where you could possibly live that makes for such bad traffic. Then I looked at your avatar & caption.

Fairfax: It figures
Used to be such a beautiful place.
I got family in Fairfax. I'm in western central NJ and it's like rural farmland and unexplored wilderness compared to Fairfax.

 

[mosquitocontrol]

Don't get me wrong. I'm an engineer so I love all the gadgets and the process in general. Obviously without that what motivation is there to keep brewing. But saving trips to the store and hauling cases of bottles in/out of my apt is priceless.

Fairfax is suburban hell. Can't even go 2 miles without going thru 15 stop lights. I've moved farther out to Reston which is beautiful. 10 miles can make such a difference.

 

[Pick]

One of my uncles used to make beer from malt extract in a green plastic trashcan covered with cheesecloth. No airlock for him! Then he would bottle it in quart and 1/2 gallon "Dad's Root Beer" bottles. He made a lot of wine. 25 year old raspberry wine is awesome!!
He is gone now, but the memory of his beer lives on in every batch I make!

 

[HopheadNJ]

I brew because all the beer at the store tastes the same to me. I wanted something with FLAVOR! I also enjoy the process. Creating something for someone else to enjoy and watching them enjoy it is one of lifes little pleasures. Couldn't ask for more really.

Not gonna totally disagree here, but you've gotta give the craft beer industry a little bit of credit. If everything tastes the same to you..your drinking the wrong beer! or you're having serious taste bud issues!

 

[tj-los]

Why do you homebrew?
Have you encountered anyone like this before?

Before I brewed I liked beer. Now that I brew I love beer. this has not only opened me up to just the varieties of different flavors out there but has actually introduced me to beers I would not have normally tried. Duvel, Hobgoblin, Chimay. These are all great beers and you really learn to appreciate what goes into making wonderful flavored beers. My beer all 25 gallons(5 batches) have all been great so far "knock on wood". I Love to cook and I love to create, this allows me to do both.

I have yet to encounter anyone who rags on me because I brew. My co workleres are always coming up to me asking me "whats on tap lately?" My wife, friends and co-workers are actually very supportive of my hobby.

 

[IceFisherChris]

Why would anyone bake their own cookies?
Why would anyone wash their own car?
Why would anyone paint their own house?

If someone doesn't understand why anyone would want to brew their own beer, then they are a typical "over civilized person"... as I like to call it. They are one of those people who have grown up thinking that its more civilized to BUY something than it is to MAKE it for yourself. I take pride in trying to do everything myself. I've never put my own car in the repair shop. I make my own beer, maple syrup, jam and a few other things (kind of limited right now with no garden space.) I fish and hunt for my own food. I build almost all of my furniture.

There are a lot of things that most of us just can't do on our own. I don't have the time to make my own clothes or build my own car from scratch... But I do have the time to make certain necessities for myself and I take pride in it.

 

[hukdizzle]

I brew because I like the technical aspect of it and solving problems, oh and the beer is pretty good too. I am definitely one of "those" people.

 

[PatientZero]

Why do I homebrew?

It's just a Colorado thing, I suppose...

And perhaps a small fascination with organic chemistry and microbiology.

And the best beer you will ever drink is the beer you made yourself.

And nursing a dream of opening my very own brewery one day.

Doesn't anyone take pride in their personal creations anymore? It's kind of like a good, hard day or manual labor or construction work. It might not make you feel like a multi-millionaire, but you can damn sure SEE the impact that YOU MADE at the end of the day and feel good about it.

 

[kestrelbrewing]

Control, curiosity, problem solving, …

And it's a really elaborate way to get out of paying a tiny amount of taxes.

 

[Conehead]

Control, curiosity, problem solving, …

And it's a really elaborate way to get out of paying a tiny amount of taxes.

Not if you live in Canada, it is mostly taxes.

 

[_BullDog_]

Cause I needed a hobby and like beer.

 

[bracconiere]

i read the original post......not sure if i've posted in this thread before....i brew to save money, but the OPs comments remind me when i tried to teach a buddy of mine how to balance his checkbook so he'd stop getting overdrafts, and learn how to save money.....he looked at me with a scared, dumbfounded look, and just said "overdrafts are a fact of life"....it cracked me up....

(i also tried to teach how to stay thin and healthy, he just couldn't stop his obbsession with his multi-vite....that was 3 heart attacks ago, lol...some people just live in a constant state of fear)


edit: for the record both free programs...

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=20738
and

https://sourceforge.net/projects/cronometer/