Cylindrical cans that contain a presteeped mix of grain and hops you simply mix with a malt extract "kicker," bring to a boil and ferment. Some brands like Brewferm Products make no-boil kits. Mixes come in different styles to make types of beer, such as English Ale, Dark Abbey or Wheat. "You can do a good beer that way," Rager says. "Not a great beer." Deman agreed with this. In fact his first brewing experience was not with a starter kit, but with raw materials.
Making beer from raw materials isn't more difficult than brewing from kits. It takes more supplies and more steps. The process involves steeping roasted grains in hot water to make what's called a wort, then adding fresh or pellet hops, malt powders and herbs, honey or other flavorings. Once everything's is boiled together, you run the liquid off into a jug or barrel to ferment with yeast for a couple of weeks.
Joe Yoder, Brewmiester for the Lawrence Brewers Guild, prefers this method, because the brewer has more control over how the beer will taste. Using creative mixtures of different types of grains, hops, malts and flavors help to create a more unique product. The difference between the methods of brewing is equivalent to the difference between baking a cake from a box mix and baking one from scratch. Yoder recalls a creative
stout beer the Homebrew Guild made which they fermented in bourbon barrels from the McCormick Liquor Plant in
Weston, Mo. His passion is recreating historical brews, including a spruce beer that substitutes some of the hops with buds that grow on spruce tree branches.
Things don't always go smoothly with the process. Home brewers have to watch out for bacterial impurities that
"Paul" has to deal with an additional problem. Although all the supplies for homebrewing are completely legal for
For more information about homebrewing, check out these links:
Lawrence Homebrew Guild:
www.sunflower.com/~homebrew/
can get into the beer during fermentation. Those creative flavor combinations can also ruin a batch if they aren't chosen carefully.
Bacchus and Barleycorn:
www.bacchus-barleycorn.com
American Homebrewers Association: www.beertown.com
Purification is the biggest problem brewers run into. Reger cautions brewers to sanitize everything that comes into contact with the fermenting or the finished beer. A food-grade iodine solution or the One Step Cleaner sold by Bacchus and Barleycorn are good ways to ensure cleanliness. Reger says brewers don't have to worry about killing people if they compromise sanitation. The bacteria and microorganisms can still make you sick and ruin the taste of your beer.
ne supplies for completely legal for him to buy, it's still illegal for anyone under 21 to create an alcoholic beverage out of them. Pete Bodyk, an operations officer with the Alcoholic Beverage Control, says underage homebrewing isn't something the agency considers a problem. They bust brewers if someone reports them. If the
police found out about "Paul's" hobby, he could be in more trouble than his peers caught with fake IDs. He spends more money than his peers, about $150 for his initial brewing supplies, as well periodic expenditures of about $150 to refill his ingredients. To "Paul," doing what he enjoys and being able to drink a better beer are worth the extra risk and cost.
Like Geoff Deman and Alberta Reger, homebrew enthusiasts can turn their hobbies into full-time jobs. Other professional brewers like Free State Brewmaster Steve Bradt, went straight from curiosity to brewing for the masses. Despite their success, Bradt and
Despite their success, Bradt and
Deman agree not all hobbyists can make a career out of beer. First of all, there's the intimidation factor. Loosing a batch of beer to contamination or bad flavor isn't much of a problem when its just five gallons, but the stakes are raised when you're talking about 50 to 100 barrels. The pressure to perform can create a psych-out effect no amount of Viagra can fix.
In addition to this problem, many home brewers making the transition to professional brewer become frustrated when their favorite recipes and styles don't sell as well as they'd like." As a home brewer, they sort of assume that everyone should like those styles," Bradt says. "But you have to have beers that are going to be approachable by people who haven't gotten into the microbrew world because they're enthusiasts. They may walk in with enthusiasts, but they're not sure. They've been brought up on the lighter, mass-marked products and they aren't ready to jump into a really strongly flavored beer."
Back in his alchemical kitchen, "Paul" is more concerned about having a good time than choosing a career path. Her worries whether and when his parents will find out about his hobby. "I'm sure they'll find out eventually and I'll show up with some homebrew for them," he says. "I've got to get my schoolwork good first."
—Maggie Koerth can be reached at mkoerth@kansan.com
Brewed out of your mind? Make your own liqueurs
Limoncello
Ingredients
4 1/4 cups vodka
2 1/4 cups sugar
4 1/4 cups water
Lemon zest from eight lemons. (Zest is the shavings from the peel)
Equipment grater pot strainer wash cloth
1. Grate the peel off each lemon into a bowl.
2. Add zest to vodka, let sit for eight days at room temperature. Occasionally shake bottle to stir contents.
3. After eight days, strain solution using strainer and a wash cloth. Place cloth inside strainer and pour solution through.
4. Boil water, add sugar. Continue boiling until sugar is dissolved.
5. Let water cool to room temperature, then add vodka mixture. Drink it straight, over ice or with other drinks.
Recipe from La Cucina di Spannochia.
Photo illustration by Megan True/Kansan Jayplay writer Maggie Koerth adds two tablespoons of Hersey's syrup to the Irish Cream mixture. The Hersey's gives the drink its rich chocolate flavor.
Photo illustration by Megan True/Kansas
Irish Cream
Ingredients
thursday, september 11, 2003
1 cup whiskey, don't worry about quality — the cheap stuff works fine
2 cups (1 pint) whipping cream
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
2 tsp. instant coffee (dry)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract
2 Tbsp. chocolate syrup
Equipment blender
2 Tbsp. chocolate syrup
4 eggs
1. Whip the whipping cream in a blender.
2. Add other ingredients.
3. Mix until light brown, refrigerate.
So, how does this compare to Bailey's Irish Cream? This recipe is more of an Irish cream milkshake. Bailey's is thinner and has a definite liqueur taste to it. The recipe can be made to taste, in my case adding more almond extract and chocolate syrup.
Recipe from St. Anselm's Abbey cookbook.
—Recipes compiled by Andrew Ward
jayplay
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