The Beer Drinking Evolution of a Home Brewer

Clean Bottles awaiting to be filled with Tommy and Amber's latest batch of home brew: Honey Ginger Beer. See the video below for a snapshot of the bottle cleaning process.

Every homestead needs a homebrew… well not every homestead, but ours certainly does! I have evolved in the realm of drinking beer from my younger college days, when we just bought the cheapest beer possible – to gradually learning (and retraining my palate) about the world of “good” beer. Over the years I have tried a multitude of beers, some good, some terrible and some fantastically delicious. And my palate keeps changing; I used to pucker up at the thought of drinking an IPA, but then fell head over heels with them for a time. After the hop love affair was over I found myself drifting towards darker, more robust beers. Now, I can appreciate a good IPA, but rarely drink them because I’d rather have a porter or stout.

I have not always drank beer. There were times in my life, even recently, when I questioned whether beer was “right” for me and my spiritual path, and have had long periods of time not consuming alcohol. Even as little as a year ago, I was still wrestling with this dichotomy inside of myself. After many years of going back and forth, last year I finally made a decision that beer is good for me right now! It might not always be a part of my life but I am excited to deepen and explore it at this time…and like every good homesteader I wanted to take more responsibility for my consumption and started making it myself!

I give my mentor, a friend and long term brewer, credit for helping me reduce the learning curve substantially. In about a year I have gone from brewing under his guidance and his house to going out on my own, obtaining my own equipment, and brewing on my own – although Amber is very involved these days, and I still like to brew with friends too.

So, there you have it. The homebrew bug has gotten a hold of me and I am having so much fun creating in this way. In fact, we just finished bottling our latest batch of homebrew. My wife wanted to brew a honey ginger beer using the honey from our bee hives. I was reluctant at first, because I normally don’t like these types of beers, but of course we moved forward and now I couldn’t imagine not having brewed it. We got a sneak taste and it is wonderful! To me, and most homebrewers I know, you can’t hardly make a bad beer. You put so much of your love, enjoyment, creativity and work into it that you just can help to like it! So here’s to everyone who enjoys a good brew occasionally! Cheers!

And my new favorite saying:
“Relax, Don’t Worry, Have a Home Brew” – Joy of Homebrewing, Charlie Papazian

Home Beer Brewing Videos

Video #2 of 4 in the bottling process of brewing beers.

This is Amber filling homebrew beer bottles.

Tommy is capping the beer bottles, the last step in the process before aging and drinking.

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Category: Arts & Crafts, DIY Projects, Food, TreeStone Farm