January 6, 2013

I give in!

For many years I have been intrigued by Homebrewing. This year I am going to do it. I have some great friends brewing in Finland that are far more experienced than I and I also have found a great local brewing group to get help from. It seems that the hobby is quite a lot more widespread than I had thought at first, a little like wargaming. I am also suprised that it is far easier than I had at first imagined. Wwith some diligent cleaning and good quality ingredients you can't fail to make good beer. At least I have been so assured. I have no doubt I will fail somewhere along the way. I am currently awaiting the supplies which were suprisingly cheap. I suppose in a land where the beer is cheaper than water is in Ireland you reasonably can't charge too much. The crate below cost €9.49. In Dublin I would be afraid to estimate but at least double that would be a fair estimate. In the meantime however I have to get some bottles. Lucikly one of the local brews comes in these wonderful 'plop' bottles. They are fairly handy to use and don't need and special equipment or effort to seal. So my mission while I wait is to gather sixty of these.

That means I have three of these crates to consume in the near future. It seems like this new venture is off to a good start. Sadly I had a party at home before Christmas that would have provided ample bottle supplies except I didn't think about it until afterwards! At least this way I get to benefit twice. Dithmarscher is a brewery I like especially due to the history of the area. It is about sisxty kilometers from where I live and sadly I haven't visited it yet. The area declared itself a republic of peasants in the 15th century and managed despite some long odds to succesfully defend themselves a number of times. Their location in a marsh and some unique ideas helped them out. The beer is a lovely pilsener and I am going to enjoy it.

8 comments:

  1. Fantastic stuff. Home brewing is on my list of things to once we've moved to a bigger house.

    Hope your beer tastes as good as it sounds! How about a bottle or two for your loyal followers?

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    Replies
    1. The fermenting vessels do take up a lot of space in the small apartment here. I am hoping that if ever I get to a bigger place I can upgrade to a proper brewery without getting in too much trouble!

      As for a few bottles well if anyone is in Hamburg I will see what I can do!

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  2. This would be intresting! I also have couple of friends that do homebrewing (yep, finnish too...).

    Their mantra seems to be also quality and purity in process and result speaks for them :)

    Keep us posted how this succeed. It is fantastic to read somenthing equally intresting among miniatures!

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  3. Party at your place!

    I know a lot of guys here in the states that do their own brewing also.

    Good thing I'm not a drink kind of guy, as I spend all my other hobby money on cars and kart racing.

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    1. If I do drink a beer I make sure it is a good one. Nothing worse than a party with crap beer. So the best way to ensure good beer is to make it myself. Now I just need to hope I can make good beer...

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  4. Having good gear, especially a wart chiller will make all the difference in your enjoyment. I love the hobby and usually combine it with wargaming; playing a game during the boil, etc. Good luck and happy brewing!

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    Replies
    1. The chiller is way too expensive at the moment so I won't be getting one for a long time. Eventually I will though...

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