The brew master

I love beer. But I bet you probably knew that by now. Especially if you follow me on Untappd. I also love cooking and making edibles from scratch. I love learning, too. And I love a good adventure. So yesterday, I combined all of those loves for one great make-your-own-beer adventure.

Homebrew was something my late husband and I were investigating before he died. So when the opportunity to take a two-hour BrewSchool course at the BrewStore presented itself to me, I couldn’t pass it up. Before registering, I emailed BrewStore to ask what the atmosphere was like. I’ve learned that there are some things (sadly, many things!) that are not designed for solo adventures, so I always like to ask. I was informed that the classes were limited to six people and that most people attended on their own. So with that knowledge, I bought myself a Groupon deal and booked a spot.

One of the things I was curious to learn was about the equipment I would need to get started. Not just the cost of it all, which is certainly of importance, but also the space required for the brewing process. I plan to start with brewing kits, which make about 40 bottles of beer. That also means that space will be minimised. The hard part will be finding a way to keep the brewing keg at a warm enough temperature. But some gadgets and gizmos can help with that process.

Importantly, I came away from the day with a better understanding of the process, and with a bit of confidence in my ability to make some homebrew. The kits seem to make everything relatively easy and once I master that, I will be able to make small tweaks to the recipes so that I can create a custom brew to enjoy at home – and maybe to share with a few lucky friends.

I’ve got a lot going on right now between race training, running races, and doing that PhD thing, so I don’t know when I’ll be able to start making my own beer. But at least I now have a better idea of the time it will take me – and the supplies (and therefore, money!) I will need to brew the first batch of RyanPA. (RyanBrew? HefeRyan? DocRyan’s IPA?)

I’ll be doing a bit more research online so that I am ready to brew when I find the spare cash (and time). And if you have any tips from your own brewing experience, please give me a shout!