Do you brew better brews?

People tend to brew beers that suit their own particular tastes. Combine that with extreme freshness, and if you're good, you can almost always brew a beer better than commercial breweries. I think that more love and care is put into brewing on the homebrew scale. But in the end, third party opinion certainly matters.

 

My experience is that people tend to think their homebrews are about 53 times better than they actually are. If you enjoy what you're brewing more power to you, but don't kid yourself!

 

yeah. mostly.

drinking your own homebrew is like smelling your own farts. i find that mine are really quite enjoyable. others may not feel the same. most commercial brewers are doing a good job too.
Cheers.

 

I do agree that homebrewers go to greater lengths to brew fantastic beers (extra ingredients, more demanding techniques, etc. because on such a small scale (and since we do this solely for pleasure and not profit) we can afford to. I do also believe that most pro brewers have more experience/knowledge and better equipment that helps produce better beers for the most part. For example: I'm sure having nice temperature controlled conical fermenters isn't hurting any pro brewers final product

 

I brew with a friend and our beers have been getting consistently better with time. Our latest porter is better than many commercial porters I've had, but not the best porter I've ever had.

 

ive never made a style that is better than every commercial version, but ive got a double ipa that i put near the top of my list. and ive been disappointed in few of my homebrews.

 

I personally find my homebrews to be better than commercial beer. I only make the beer styles I like with the flavors/hops/malt/yeast that I like.

 

I'm hypercritical of my own brews, always thinking this or that could have come out better. But the wide circle of friends and family I share with tell me my beers are commercial quality. Since they ultimately would be the "customer" in this scenario, I guess I'd have to say "yes".

 

I like to have a blind taste test of my brews side by side with the commercial counterparts and ask friends to pick what they think is better. More often than not, mine wins. That being said, I know Im not counting the pennies and the business sense that the breweries are.

 

I like much of what I brew, but like others I am my own worst critic. Friends tend to really like it, hell, who doesn't like free beer (especially when you can pour it yourself from the tap and it at the very least isn't complete shite). That being said, I don't know I can say with any confidence that it's better. My best beers are at the very least on par with the best commercial beers out there, and my worst are often better than the worst commercial beers out there.

 

Concerning commercial beers, I think that their experience and equipment equals consistency but oftentimes the product falls short of what homebrewers are capable of. Using the best ingredients for fine-tuned, small, designer batches just makes for rediculously good beer.

 

I answered yes, mainly because I'm considering "name brands" to be the brands that most people would recognize as "name brands" — Coors, Millers, Bud, Mich, PBR, etc. I've no doubt that some of my efforts don't technically equal those of the relatively "small time" brands like Sierra Nevada, but many of their beers, even if expertly brewed, don't suit my taste buds.

 

I think this sums up my situation. Do I think I am better than commercial examples? I think most of mine are better than many similar commercial examples, but for the most part I can always name commercial examples I personally like better.

 

You don't know until you enter some beers in competitions. Or if you don't do that find a club and have some of the ones there that are judges or know their stuff give you feedback.

My beers are pretty good, but not all of them. I am critical, but some flaws I have a medium high threshold for. Always helps to get others tasting the beer, as they may find something you missed.

 

i've never thought i should open a brewery, but i like my coconut brown ale, smoked beer, and a couple barleywines and stouts way more than most of the beers i buy. i like our IPAs better than some bought ones too, but i've been spoiled by commercial IPAs, and fucked up our last IPA, so i'd say i'm falling short of "better" on that front.

my brewing partner's witbier is probably my favorite of its style. heavy on the cardamom, just right carbonation and body for my liking.

 

I bet most of us can hit the mark somewhere in the midst of the vast range that separates the best from the worst commercial brewers.

 

this. my friends who usually drink BMC try my beer (which always are attempts at a style that's a bit bigger/more complex/more flavorful than BMC's standard fare) are always like "i'd rather drink this than keystone lite," which they mean as a compliment, but really, it's like saying "well, it's edible!" when someone cooks for you.

 

i can attest to this statement, it was delicious!

your coconut brown sounds delicious too. ive been drinking some kona brewing koko lately and it sounds like it might be right up your alley. does kona distribute that far? also have you tried maui's coconut porter? also very tasty, and in a can too

 

Wow. 23% of respondents are brewing beer that is always better than 'the name brands.' I think 'always' is implied, because 'sometimes' and 'never' are also separate choices. Of course it may depend on what was meant by 'name brands.' If it meant (to the respondents) top examples of the style, I think I'd have to call BS (or delusional thinking) on about 23%.