Why Is it?

[Vance71975]

Ok i am just wondering why it is that so many people seem nearly obsessed with making clone brews? I mean i can understand it if you had a beer in one area of the country that you loved and you moved to an area you cant get it anymore, but Why try to clone something you can go out and buy? To me at least, the fun part of brewing is making something that you cannot find a commercial example of, just wondering everyone's feelings in why to try to make clone brews.

 

[Airborneguy]

I agree. The only clone I'm planning on attempting is Fat Tire, because I cannot get that here and I love it. Not to say I don't use certain brands as inspiration when making a new style, but I have never tried to clone an actual commercial beer.

 

[Qhrumphf]

I haven't done a clone yet, but I've got clone recipes of Rochefort 10 and Arrogant Bastard in my brewing binder (lifted from the Homebrew Chef and Can You Brew It respectively). They're two of my favorites, and I'll give em a shot eventually to see I can get them to remotely taste the same, and then probably resume just buying them. I think part of the cloning concept is the challenge, especially if coming up with the clone recipe/process yourself.

 

[weagle05]

I have only brewed kit recipes so far, but I understand the appeal of cloning.
It gives you, and people you share your beer with, something to compare it against. To be able to give someone 3 tasting glasses of beer and to have them not be able to distinguish your homebrew from a comercial example is quite an achievement.

And for some it's about saving a few bucks. A bottle of Rochefort 10, for example, costs at least 8 dollars plus tax here.

 

[dallasdb]

I'm too cheap to buy the "real" beer!

I know what I like and I don't want to make 5 gallons without having a baseline for what it will taste like. Plus I've only created one recipe, kegging it tonight but it was a recipe I made for a clone of New Belgium's Sunshine Wheat!

I've primarily done clone recipes because that is all the recipes I've ever had to follow.

 

[Yooper]

I think cloning is fun for two reasons! One, to make a facsimile of a beer I can't get here or that is seasonal. A friend from this forum sent me 21st Amendment's Bitter American and I loved it! It's the perfect beer for me- hoppy but balanced and low ABV. It's seasonal, plus in San Francisco!

A second reason is to prove my mettle as a brewer. If I can taste a commercial beer, pick out the ingredients, and make one that tastes just like it, that shows some skill.

I also "clone" other stuff I love, too- Olive Garden's salad dressing, Burt's Bees Lip Balm, etc.

 

[Special Hops]

I am not obsessed with clones but brew them from time to time.

I like doing them because I can make lots of beer I like at a time. It's good practice to try and hone your technique to nail I dead on.

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

I think cloning is fun for two reasons! One, to make a facsimile of a beer I can't get here or that is seasonal. A friend from this forum sent me 21st Amendment's Bitter American and I loved it! It's the perfect beer for me- hoppy but balanced and low ABV. It's seasonal, plus in San Francisco!

A second reason is to prove my mettle as a brewer. If I can taste a commercial beer, pick out the ingredients, and make one that tastes just like it, that shows some skill.

I also "clone" other stuff I love, too- Olive Garden's salad dressing, Burt's Bees Lip Balm, etc.

+1 it's a good way to challenge yourself as a brewer.

Double +1 on the Bitter American. Great beer!!! Great brewery, they liscense to a brewery in cold spring, mn, so we get their brews in the twin cities. Great stuff. Try their IPA, Brew Free or Die, great west coast IPA.

 

[Vance71975]

I completely understand the desire to "show your skill" as a brewer. Ill admit that it does take talent, i just personally prefer showing my skills by making awesome beer that you will never find in a store.

 

[Vance71975]

Oh and i get bored with a beer after about 4 gallons and have to struggle through the last gallon cause i want something different lol

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

I completely understand the desire to "show your skill" as a brewer. Ill admit that it does take talent, i just personally prefer showing my skills by making awesome beer that you will never find in a store.

That's fun too!! I love coming up with killer beer recipes, tweaking them to perfection (according to MY tastes). I do that more than cloning beers. But sometimes ya gotta try'n brew your fave, or something you can't get where you live. I brew a Diamond Knot IPA clone cuz you can't get that beer anywhere close to Minnesota and I don't feel like making regular trips to WA state to drink that brew. I love it, so I brew it.

 

[Vance71975]

That's fun too!! I love coming up with killer beer recipes, tweaking them to perfection (according to MY tastes). I do that more than cloning beers. But sometimes ya gotta try'n brew your fave, or something you can't get where you live. I brew a Diamond Knot IPA clone cuz you can't get that beer anywhere close to Minnesota and I don't feel like making regular trips to WA state to drink that brew. I love it, so I brew it.

Makes sense! I guess im lazy, if i love it i order it online lol

 

[Mongrel]

I've only done two clones so far. The first was Stone's Ruination, because while it's a tasty beverage, I always end up buying something that isn't $6.50 a bomber instead. And the second was SN's Celebration, because it should be available all year long, dammit.

 

[pm5k00]

I've only done two clones so far. The first was Stone's Ruination, because while it's a tasty beverage, I always end up buying something that isn't $6.50 a bomber instead. And the second was SN's Celebration, because it should be available all year long, dammit.

I feel the same way. I've brewed a clone of Stone's arrogant bastard because of the cost 5 a bomber, and NewBelguim's 2 Below since it's a seasonal and one of my favs.

 

[C-Rider]

Oh and i get bored with a beer after about 4 gallons and have to struggle through the last gallon cause i want something different lol

That's why I'm trying 1 gallon batches.

 

[C-Rider]

Ok i am just wondering why it is that so many people seem nearly obsessed with making clone brews? I mean i can understand it if you had a beer in one area of the country that you loved and you moved to an area you cant get it anymore, but Why try to clone something you can go out and buy? To me at least, the fun part of brewing is making something that you cannot find a commercial example of, just wondering everyone's feelings in why to try to make clone brews.

How about cost? Black Butte Porter costs $10 a six pack. I could get 2 cases for the cost of 3 six packs if I get it right.

 

[norsk]

I enjoy cloning craft beers and using the orignal merely as an inspiration...not an end unto itself. Belgians are my thing and it is much less expensive to make them than it is to buy them. If I didn't think I could make my clones as good or better than the originals...I wouldn't attempt it.
I usually start with the basic clone recipe...then tweek it towards what myself and my friends prefer...more hops in the Arrogant Bastard, less corriander and burnt orange in the Wit etc.

 

[Vance71975]

How about cost? Black Butte Porter costs $10 a six pack. I could get 2 cases for the cost of 3 six packs if I get it right.

Wow Where were you buying it??? Cause when i lived in Seattle Safeway had to for 6.75 for a 6 pack! Honestly if i was gonna do a clone brew it would be Black Butte or Obsidian Stout!

 

[mrk305]

I haven't tried many commercial beers. I drank a clone recipe of Rogue Dead Guy based on Yooper's recipe before I ever tried the real thing. Reading recipes and cloning them is a way of trying out new things.

Arrogant Bastard is a beer that I drank before cloning. I thought, darn that was good. I want 5 gallons of that at my house. Why would you not try cloning craft beers? It is a great way to learn if you spent years drinking cheap beers and are new to craft beer drinking and brewing.

I have been doing this a little over four years now. So many beers & so little time.

 

[Caucasian]

Cloning to save money makes sense if your cloning something like chimay. About 100$ a case, i spent 71$ on ingredients for 2 1/2 cases worth. Thats where homebrewing starts to pay for itself.

 

[Dougan]

I like it because it allows me to have a specific goal. There's nothing wrong with saying "Hey, I want to brew a good vienna lager." But I like to have a clone in mind with most beers I brew, because not only will the goal be for it to be good, but also for it to have a specific flavor that you can tangibly compare your results with. I think it really helps you grow as a brewer, because over time it allows you to more easily associate what techniques/ingredients correspond with what flavors.

 

[McMalty]

A second reason is to prove my mettle as a brewer. If I can taste a commercial beer, pick out the ingredients, and make one that tastes just like it, that shows some skill.
.

+1, exactly. It shows your skills as a brewer. Sure making your own brew from your own recipe is fun, but when you make a beer that tastes pretty damn close to a commercial beer, it proves that you can properly utilize your skills.

Additionally, cloning brews can be MUCH cheaper than buying them. Sure, i could go out and buy 5 bombers of Southern Tier for $50, or i could try to clone it and make 30 beers for the same price. Some beer is pretty expensive and the wife gets salty when she finds my receipt from the beer store.

 

[beninan]

I also "clone" other stuff I love, too- Olive Garden's salad dressing, Burt's Bees Lip Balm, etc.

Huh, imagine that. Sorry about being off topic, but I always thought Burt's Bees was a "Maine thing". Never realized they were bigger than that. Anyway, back to the subject.

 

[Vance71975]

+1, exactly. It shows your skills as a brewer. Sure making your own brew from your own recipe is fun, but when you make a beer that tastes pretty damn close to a commercial beer, it proves that you can properly utilize your skills.

Additionally, cloning brews can be MUCH cheaper than buying them. Sure, i could go out and buy 5 bombers of Southern Tier for $50, or i could try to clone it and make 30 beers for the same price. Some beer is pretty expensive and the wife gets salty when she finds my receipt from the beer store.

That is why i burn all receipts before returning home lol!