If you don't brew beer...why not?

I brewed for around 30 years and could match anything that comes in a bottle. I had the run of a local brewery's hop room, malt at cost and as much brewers yeast as I wanted.
But good as it was it didn't match what I could buy in the pub.I can't realistically cask condition in a home situation and bottling dumbs beer right down.Plus I was still drinking as much in the pub-the overall experience is overwhelmingly more pleasant that drinking at home, even with friends.So my equipment is gathering dust in the garage.

 

Not interested in making it, just consuming it.

 

I currently don't homebrew, however it is on my list of things to do. Between work and family I don't have much time for things I wish to do. I am however working to change that. I plan to start brewing within the next 3 months or so.

 

I am researching small batch kits as we speak. Most of my reasons for putting it off have to do with my apartment. The gallon container won't fit under the sink faucet for instance, or the idea of paying for damage due to a blow off. I don't think I can lift a 5 gallon carboy so it will never really be economical to brew my own beer. My water is highly chlorinated and I am not very good with yeast in general. I cannot make good bread. There is no where to put the beer to ferment. I have a small front hall closet and that would suffice but I keep coats and shoes there so it would be opnenig and closing frequently. I have a target date of christmas for having gathered all kinds of information and solving these little problems.

 

I don't have the money or the time at this point.

 

I chose Other.
I have brewed in the past, and the beer wasn't "bad". However, it made so much that I had to give most of it away. So, I guess in a round about way I am saying it's too expensive based on my actual consumption.

 

You can pick up a garden hose connector bit at the local garden center so you hook up your faucet to a bit a hose and put the container on the counter/floor/wherever.
Blow off: if you leave enough head space and don't make nukelar brews then you needn't worry about blow off.
You can brew per gallon if you can't handle 5gallon vessels.
Chlorine evaporates from tap water if you leave it standing for a day or so, or you can use/buy RO water for cheaps.
Not very good with yeast: pitching can literally come down to 1) open packet and 2) pitch.
The beer can fermet anywhere where you can put the vessel. Even if the temperature is not text-book optimal, the beer'll turn out just fine.

Homebrewing needn't even be in the same ballpark as setting up a mini brewery. A pot and a large vessel will do just fine, and once you get started, you'll find out how and what to improve soon and easily enough.

Just. Do. It.

 

Lazy and know I would be unable to do as good of a job as the stuff I buy/trade-for.

 

"Most of the above"

I enjoy variety and trying new beers too much. Thinking about it now, I don't even really buy six packs any more.

I joke around that I would hate forcing myself to drink 5 gallons of my own swill when there are literally hundreds of world class beers and thousands of others that I can have and enjoy.

 

Learn!

Yeah, but if she does take half the beer, you can make more!

 

Id love to brew. My kitchen setup is way less than optimal for anything of that nature.

 

Ever consider a brew on premise place like Deja Brew in Shrewsbury? Ends up costing less than 3 bucks a bomber. It's at least fun if you want to start before making a jump to an all grain, at home set up.

 

I see you have only 6 posts under your belt here, so maybe you are not familiar with the homebrew forum here at Beer Advocate. Look forward to seeing you there.

The hobby is not for everyone, but it can be rewarding for people with the right mind set. You are correct that it is not all that difficult, but not everyone bakes cakes, either. I don't recommend indulging while brewing; mistakes get made, and some can be hazardous -- know your limitations is the best advice I can give without being too preachy.

One reason I suspect a lot of BAs might not enjoy it is because the seek out different experiences among commercial beers. They buy single bombers of a particular beer just to try, and might not come back to that beer for another year, if ever. Homebrewing saddles yourself with several gallons of the same thing; thrill seekers may not go for it. Just a thought, probably already expressed in this thread that I haven't digested.

 

I fell in love with brewing using a studio apartment kitchenette. It can be done, even as all grain 5 gallon batches.

 

**heads over there in a hurry**

I think the main pitfall is thinking you need lots of anything if you want to take up homebrewing. Even space and a constant thirst for your own (initially numbered) brew is unnecessary if you brew 1 gallon batches. But I hear ya

 

Ditto for me as well.

 

A few years ago I took an environmental microbiology class, something I'd not had time for previously. As part of the course we brewed beer from extract kits and I've been hooked ever since (Thanx Shannon!). I've brewed some decent beers (Rye IPA, pumpkin stout, alt, etc), some that were just OK, and one that was pretty nasty (Spruce), but all were consumed without boredom (although the spruce ale was definitely a chore). During this time I was working one full-time job and two part-time jobs. I did my boils in the garage (Hautly, after being accused of messing up the kitchen) and the fermentations took place on my desk, beside my computer and aquarium. Bottling occurred in the kitchen at the dishwasher; aging took place in large styrefoam containers stacked in the (enclosed) breezeway. I read constantly and plan my beers; they don't always turn out as expected. This year I'm smoking my malt (Gonna try apple), planting hops (variety yet to be determined) and planting a small rye patch to help the terrior of my beer. A time and money consuming hobby, but what isn't?

 

Been wanting to home brew for a couple years now, but had to check "other" on this survey due to the kids being grown up and gone, and recently downsizing into a smaller house, no mortgage, lower expenses, but NO ROOM. I literally have no place to store the equipment.
At our old place I had a pinball night (used to have 9 machines and a three car garage), and we gentlemen were in the garage having a cigar when I mentioned the possibility of investing into beer making. Two of my friends encouraged me NOT to do it since they both are set up for home brewing. They said to come over and we'll smoke cigars and brew what I want. That was over a year ago, and every time I mention that night to these guys, they "don't have the time", or "let's talk about it later", which tells me they don't want to do it. I get the time consuming thing, but I think the waiting would be the hardest part. I still want to do it and won't give up to easily on their offer...

 

If you have beerbuddies who already brew, then by all means convince them to let you help out someday. Get a whiff of what the hobby is comprised of. But if they don't bite, the only way you'll ever know is set up some basic gear. A kitchen sink brewery takes about as much space as...well...nothing you don't already plus a vessel and a case of beer.