Homebrewing is a fun and rewarding craft. It’s a great way to get involved in your community and enjoy some quality time with friends.
Brewing is an ancient art that uses four basic ingredients: hops, grains (and sometimes malt extract), yeast, and water. These are the building blocks that brewers manipulate to create beers that range from traditional styles to those that push the limits of what’s possible in beermaking.
It’s an art that requires special, usually manual skills.
It’s also an artisanal craft that respects and honors the ingredients and processes used to make it.
A beer that earns a “craft” label typically is made with malted barley and interesting and often non-traditional ingredients for a distinctive taste. It is generally made by small, independently owned breweries who are a part of their communities through product donations, volunteerism and sponsorship.
Ultimately, it comes down to what the brewer wants in their beer and what they think is right for their style of brewing. This is the basis of craft beer and its popularity.
The art of brewing is an incredibly complex process that takes a lot of patience and skill to master.
It requires an intense focus on the ingredients, the fermentation process and a willingness to wait for the magic of yeast to occur.
It takes a month from start to finish for a beer to be ready for consumption. It’s a lot like cooking, but the process is much longer and it can take a little trial and error to figure out which brewing techniques work best for your beer recipe.
