Beer...... new to me

[kenfyoozed]

Ok i thought beer was pretty much the same. Well it turns out thats true if all i had to choose from was what the convience store had to offer. Been trying out a place downtown that has 50 beers on tap and about another 200 in bottles. Tried a Bells black bourbon stout las week and it was awesome. So now the wife and i are trying everything we can. Tried a Yuengling black and tan, was pretty good. Seems i like the stouts and porters. Drinking a Blueberry stout right now, kinda wierd tasting, like a cross between a fruity soda and stout, its very sweet. And the wifes drinking a Sam Adams Cream stout. I liked it better than mine, but she wouldnt trade. Might have found me another hobby to take up yet more of my time......

[zedzedtop]

homebrewtalk.com is where I gained the majority of my brewing knowledge. Other than experience of course. I assume you're considering the brewing hobby, not the beer-drinking one.... Homebrewing is leaps and bounds ahead of the home distilling in terms of information available to the hobbyist. Strict sanitation, fermentation temperature control, pitching the right amount of yeast, and using roughly the right type of water will have you brewing beer of a quality equal to the professionals. I've always been solid with sanitation, but getting the last three down improved my beer so much that it was mind boggling.

[nwvapors]

Living in Portland it kills me to think you don't have the exposure to the variety we've got out here. I have friends that moved form here to Fairhope and they went through a serious withdrawal phase when they moved back south. Keep chuggin', try everything I'm glad to hear you have an establishment that offres such a variety.

Cheers,

[kenfyoozed]

Fairhop?!!! It truley is a small world. My tatse buds are finally maturing, normally my beer was coors light , kinda like my favorite rum was Cpt.Morgan before i started this hobby. Amazing how much your taste change when you finally taste something good.

[Abussive]

Fairhop?!!! It truley is a small world. My tatse buds are finally maturing, normally my beer was coors light , kinda like my favorite rum was Cpt.Morgan before i started this hobby. Amazing how much your taste change when you finally taste something good.

Indeed, small World. I spent a lot of time up in Portland/Beaverton on multiple business trips. A truly beautiful place, and warm, friendly folks too. Most times flying in I'd get taking to Oregon folks returning from vacations etc. Half the time, they'd invite me for dinner and give me their address and phone numbers!
Got the bluegrass banjo bug at the "Festival or Roses" in Portland. A friend's husband was a director of the forestry thingy thereabouts. I actuially wrote to the then Mayor congratulating him on the splendid Event!

There again, suburban Portland IS very different to San Diego, off the "main drag" after dark...... been there too. Or many places in LA after dark. Some even in daylight!!!!

[Bushman]

I am a 5 hour drive north of Portland and yes we have access to some fine beers and micro breweries here in the PNW but last month while on vacation on the east coast I tried a Samuel Adams firebrick on tap and it was really good. Was told it is brewed and on only sold in Boston.

[kiwi]

heh heh heh, another distiller about to work backwards

Learning how to brew well will certainly help your spirits, too

[nwvapors]

Fairhop?!!! It truley is a small world. My tatse buds are finally maturing, normally my beer was coors light , kinda like my favorite rum was Cpt.Morgan before i started this hobby. Amazing how much your taste change when you finally taste something good.

What is the name of this establishment so I can pass it on to my friends? If they haven't found it by now I am sure they would be appreciative.

[kenfyoozed]

Hopjacks on Dauphin st downtown mobile, its the old pickelfish building...

[Swede]

heh heh heh, another distiller about to work backwards

Learning how to brew well will certainly help your spirits, too

Yeah me too Kiwi, I've discovered that it's easy to brew when you use the proper grains and hops though.

Kenyfoozed, I've been on a dark ale and stout kick recently, you should try a few of those if you can. I've really enjoyed some of the coffee stouts too.

[Kapea]

Welcome to the obsession Ken. One bit of beer wisdom I have to share is that beer definetly enjoys a homefield advantage. Fresher is better. Great beers are brewed everywhere. However, the further away they come from, the longer they've been in the bottle on their way to you. It sucks to buy a great beer and find that it has gone stale, especially if you paid a premium price for it.

I spent a lot of time in Bavaria in the 80s. The beer there is awesome! When I got back to the States I could not find fresh weissbier anywhere, so I learned how to brew my own. There's been no looking back ever since.

Michael Jackson's Beer Companion is easy to recommend as a good place to start for gaining beer knowledge:

[Zymurgy Bob]

Kiwi,

I love it, too. It's so much fun watching people get corrupted by really good beer, and then realizing they can make it.

Actually, kinda like distilling.

[jake_leg]

I have also succumbed, I'm buying bits for an eHERMS.

[Swede]

I have also succumbed, I'm buying bits for an eHERMS.

I very successfully brewed mine using my still boiler as a HLT, then steam injection instead of HERMS again using my boiler as the steam genny for my mash tun. I am very happy with how well this worked, but I do need to get a false bottom or braid for lautering/sparging.

For a guy starting in AG, I think this is ideal. I'd really like to have a three vessel/two pump full on electric system, but I have no room for it, and at this point no money for one I'd want either

If you're going HERMS, be sure you get a good false bottom or braid so you can regulate your process better and avoid stuck mashes. (I've already found this out the hard way)

[jake_leg]

That's the crucial issue as far as I have heard. I've bought a jumbo cooler for the mash tun but I haven't decided on whether to go with a braid or a copper manifold. I've bought a mini solar pump (about 9V) so hopefully it shouldn't suck too hard. Advice is welcome (but maybe I should start another thread).