Home Brewing Beer: My Story Of How Wine Lead To Beer

So how did I come to love craft beer and get into home brewing beer? My first experiences with beers that were other than mass produced industrial lagers occurred in the early 90's. They were not very adventurous and didn't turn me into the beer fan that I am now. I had a brief, horrible encounter with something I describe as a beer sack, but that didn't do it either. Everything has a beginning and the real story begins with, of all things, grapes.

In the mid 90's, I discovered the wonderful and complex world of wine. I also got married and introduced my spouse to wine. Coincidentally, at the time that I got married, I stumbled upon something that I thought was pretty cool. It was a beer brewing system with a name rhyming with sister and pier. I bought it along with a classic book written by a man named Charlie. In the hustle and bustle of a new wife and a new career, the beer rig sat idle. I read some of the book, since I love books and it was entertaining, but the near flirtation with home brewing beer never blossomed.

I continued to enjoy wine, and since I grew up as a farm kid and enjoyed gardening and science, I began to contemplate making wine and starting a vineyard. What I soon realized was that it takes quite a bit of time to see results. It takes several years and a lot of work to get a vineyard to the point of producing quality fruit. It can take a few years before a wine is really ready to drink.

We had a yard sale one spring and I sold the beer rig that had sat idle in its box. The can of malt extract syrup that had come with it was sporting a very impressive bulge by then and was discarded. Being a lover of books, I serendipitously kept Charlie's tome for my growing collection. Still no progress on home brewing beer though.

A few years later I got a most unusual Christmas present, a beer of the month club subscription. A shipment of craft beer from various locations across the country was delivered every month. It came with reading material describing the brewer, the beer and how it was made. It reminded me of Charlie's book, so I dug it out and started reading. "After one week of fermentation bottle the beer and let it carbonate for two more weeks. Then open one, pour it in a glass and enjoy." Three weeks sounded a whole lot better than a year for a wine or three for grape vines.

I decided to try home brewing beer and scouted out a local specialty shop that was all about beer and wine making. I bought some simple equipment that was very similar to the Herr Bier. This time I actually put it to use and soon made my first extract beer. It actually was pretty good and I was hooked.

I've progressed quite far since then, loving the process of making ales and lagers from malted grain. I often tell people that I got into beer because I love wine, which I'll definitely make someday. However, I really love great beer and home brewing beer is here to stay.