Has anyone tried to brew their own beer? Was it difficult? Did it taste OK?

Answer 1

yes my husband has done it, it was pretty good but nothing like miller lite bottles.

Answer 2

I've brewed about twenty five -gallon batches, and most of them came out good to excellent. One batch ("exploding fig beer") was used by my mother to repell slugs, but all of the rest got drank. Two people have told me that my homebrew was the best beer they've tasted.

Making it is not trivial, but not that difficult either...harder than baking bread but easier than rebuilding an engine, let's say.

I recommend brewing strongly flavored beers, such as stouts and IPAs. Lighter beers are more difficult to pull off well, as any off-flavors will be more noticable.

I recommend that you skip the kits and start brewing with extract and hops. It's not much more difficult, and you'll learn more about the process and have more control over it. I recomend using dry malt and hop pellets, since they're less messy and easier to work with.

Eventually you may get into adding adjuncts, and down the road into all grain brewing (which is easily twice as hard as brewing with extract and requires twice the equipment, but produces better and cheaper results).

A few other notes:
1) As mentioned before, sanitation is key.
2) Get a fermenter with a built in spigot. It will make bottling much easier.
3) If you use a two-stage fermentation process (recommended), get a siphon starter to siphon from one to the other (ending with the fermenter with the spigot). Much easier than trying to fill a hose w/ water and siphon it the old way.

Finally, get this book:
http://www.amazon.com/New-Complete-Joy-Home-Brewing/dp/0380763664

Good luck!

Answer 3

I've been brewing my own beer for about 1 year. Go to www.northernbrewer.com. They have starter kits and good extract kits (like betty crocker for beer). The taste is amazing, as good as any import beer. Cheaper than an equal amount of import beer too.

Answer 4

I got my brother a Mr. Brew-it's super easy and the beer tastes great!

Answer 5

I am actually a commercial brewer, I made my start home brewing. You can make excellent beer at home.
Sanitation has to be at a premium, next just take your time and follow the directions that kits have with them. Patience makes the best beer

Answer 6

in order
Yes
Very Easy
nectar of the gods
I make a dark beer,that looks and tastes like Taylors Ram Tam,but on a Belgian beer yeast,dry hopped with oily flower tops.Its around 14% and knocks you flat
Theres bottles around that are 20 year old now,and taste like a decent port
For a few years me and a mate had around 40 UK gallons a week,all the time

Answer 7

My Dad God rest his sole , many years ago my brother gave him a beer brewing kit for Christmas. He made lots of it and wine as well, He had lots of people wanting his home made wine,and his beer he had all of the things to cap it and and sent for yeast threw the mail. regular brewers yeast. My Mom had a fit made him take everything out to his garage, it was good but smelled in the process .

Answer 8

Do a google search for home brewing stores in your area. Stop in and talk to some people who actually do it.

It's actually a popular hobby, and you can do SO much better than the commercial stuff out there.

Answer 9

I HAVE BREWED A COUPLE GALLONS IN MY TIME AND ITS NOT HARD AT ALL. YOU CAN BREW SOME THAT TSASTES LIKE THE MAJOR BRANDS IF YOU REALLY WANT TO JUST HAVE TO TRY AND KEEP IMPROVING IT.

Answer 10

I did, Horrible and cloudy, but cheap, and I still got drunk.
mmmmmmmmm beer!