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Post by aseege1 on Apr 13, 2015 8:43:45 GMT -5
Any homebrewers here? Chime in. I've been partaking since January. My buddy and I just did an IPA, and it came out pretty good. Only a 6.4 abv, would like to get that a little higher.
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Post by arfcomhkr on Apr 13, 2015 19:37:45 GMT -5
Yeah, I brew my own beer.
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vdeal
Forum Elder
Posts: 585
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Post by vdeal on Apr 14, 2015 7:27:18 GMT -5
I was a homebrewer for several years. I did full-grain batches with practically every conceivable variation (decoction, multi-step mash, first wort hopping, full cold lagering, etc.) and practically all styles (saison, altbier, dortmunder, scotch ale, sahti, maibock, schwarzbier, etc, plus all the standards). I brewed heavily for about 4 or 5 years and then after buying a new house and getting married I only brewed sporadically. My brewing friend also moved away and we both lost the drive. I tried to fire it back up a few times but just didn't get there. I sold all of my brewing gear that didn't have other uses last year to clear space and generate some income from unused equipment that paid some bills. Part of the incentive was also that WV finally came in line with the rest of the country on updating it's antiquated alcohol laws and we can now buy good beers here. I have a local speciality shop where I can get all kinds of good stuff and frankly I don't drink much anymore. I have a few bottles that go with us for a post-hike celebration and that's about it. Will I ever do it again - maybe, but I'm so tied up with other things that I don't really know. Long story but I guess it goes to show that some things have a time in our life and then we move on.
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Post by aseege1 on Apr 14, 2015 8:26:00 GMT -5
Yeah, like most things in life, things happen and you move on.
That's cool you did all of your batches all grain. I've done a few like that so far, and they haven't come out as well. Granted, we need to find a way to mill our grains, but the partial extract brews are coming out great for us because sometimes the all grain takes up so much room in our mash tun. Using extract feels like cheating, so hopefully with a little more practice we can get to all-grain.
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vdeal
Forum Elder
Posts: 585
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Post by vdeal on Apr 14, 2015 8:57:52 GMT -5
Yeah, I moved to all-grain by my third batch and pretty much stayed there. Still remember most of the chemistry though. I had a 10 gallon mash tun and the only time I really could have used larger was with my Scotch Ale. I got somewhere around 9% ABV with just grain. That pretty much filled the tun. I have to admit that I made some pretty darn get beer - I had some people who were also knowledge on styles that said they were good enough for entering in competitions with possible winners but I never did that. Have fun while you're at it.
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