‘The Joys of Home Brewing: Let the Good Times Flow.’
Home brewing beer is an incredibly rewarding activity that has seen increasing popularity in recent years. Not only is it a fun and engaging pastime, but it also allows you to produce your own bespoke beers while having an understanding of the science behind what goes into your brew. Brewing beer at home is an age-old tradition but one that is becoming increasingly accessible. Anyone interested can begin learning about home brewing for an affordable price, and it’s a great way to get creative and indulge in some self-expression in the form of your very own beer.
By reading this article you will learn about the different types of brewing available, essential starter equipment, the basics of the home brewing process and the variety of beer that can be brewed from the comfort of your own home.
What are the Different Types of Home Brewing?
Before you get started with home brewing, you should first understand the different methods you can use and the advantages and disadvantages of each. There are several ways to go about producting your own quality beer, and each of them has its own unique set of requirements.
The most popular type of home brewing is extract brewing. This method was popularised in the 1960s and makes use of ready prepared malt extracts. Malt extracts provide an easy to use form of fermenting sugar that can be used in place of traditional brewing grains. This method requires a smaller investment of money and time, making it great for people just starting out.
Partial mash brewing is the next level up and enables the brewer to take more control in the beer making process. This method uses grains and malt extracts to achieve the desired effect. This allows brewers to experiment without allowing too much complexity into the mix.
All grain brewing is the most complex and demanding type of brewing, and as such, it’s also the most rewarding. All grain brewing uses all-malt grains as the source of fermentable sugars and flavour enhancers. This type of brewing isn’t recommended for novice brewers as it requires a greater investment of time and equipment.
Essential Equipment
Now that you have a better understanding of the different types of brewing available, let’s take a look at the essential equipment needed for each method of brewing.
Extract brewing requires less equipment than either partial mash or all-grain brewing but the quality of the beer may be slightly compromised. The main difference in the three methods is the source of fermentable sugars. Extract brewing requires the use of malt extracts so you won’t need a mash tun for this style of brewing.
The Brew in a Bag (BIAB) method is a type of partial mash brewing which uses a single temperature infusion mash to convert starches into fermentable sugars. For this type of brewing you will need a large kettle and a bag that is big enough to hold the mash.
All grain brewing requires a mash tun and this is the vessel in which the grains are steeped and converted into fermentable sugars. The mash tun needs to be able to maintain a temperature of around 150-157F for 90 minutes.
The Basics of the Brewing Process
Once you have the right equipment it’s time to start the brewing process. There is a lot of preparation that goes into each style of brewing, but the basics are the same regardless of the type of brewing you are doing.
Firstly, you will need to sanitise all of your equipment to ensure that bacteria doesn’t interfere with your beer. You can do this by using a bleach solution or a specialised beer sanitiser.
After the equipment has been sanitised, you will need to steep the grains (all grain brewing only). This is the process of allowing the grains to absorb warm water to extract the flavours and fermentable sugars. This step is referred to as ‘mashing’.
Once the mash is complete, you will need to boil the wort and add any additional ingredients such as hops or specialty grains. This step is performed to sanitise the wort, as well as extracting bitterness and flavour from the hops, and is an important part of the fermentation process.
After the boil is complete, the wort will need to be cooled down as quickly as possible to ensure that any bacteria or wild yeasts present don’t have time to grow.
Finally, you will need to add some yeast to the wort and this will begin the fermentation process. The fermentation stage will take anywhere from five to fourteen days, depending on the type of yeast and the beer style.
The Variety of Beer That Can Be Homebrewed
One of the best things about homebrewing is that you can create your own bespoke beers. There are so many different styles and flavours of beer that can be brewed, and you can use any combination of grains, hops, spices and yeast to achieve a unique flavour.
Ales are the most popular type of beer. They can range from pale ales to more complex styles such as India Pale Ales (IPA) and Stouts. They usually have a fruity and floral aroma and tend to have a range of bitter flavours.
Lagers are very popular beers that tend to have a softer and smoother flavour. They have a clean finish and are ideal for those who are just starting out in the home brewing world.
Wheat beers are becoming increasingly popular, and offer drinkers a refreshing and light beer. They have a hazy appearance and tend to have a strong flavour of banana and clove.
Finally, there are a range of specialty beers such as sour beers, fruit beers and experimental styles. These beers can be a great way to express your creativity and explore different flavour combinations.
Conclusion
Home brewing is a fun and rewarding hobby that has grown in popularity in recent years. It can be used to create bespoke and unique beers with a range of flavours so that no two batches are ever the same. It is also cheaper and more accessible than ever before, with all the necessary equipment available online. Home brewing is a great way to get creative and indulge in an age-old tradition. So why not give it a try and let the good times flow.