# How Long Have You Been Brewing? And How Many Have Your Done?



## SJW (26/5/12)

As I have been away for a few years and not familiar with all the new folk I was just wondering who has done what and how many they have done?
There are a lot of new faces now and some sound like they have been brewing for many many years with a wealth of knowledge, but life has taught me that true wisdom come from keeping silent sometimes.
I will always be learning and practicing brewing the perfect beer till the day I die.

Steve


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## DJR (26/5/12)

Still doing much the same here nowadays Steve 

I have been going at the rate of about a batch every 4-8 weeks, just put down another APA today and nowadays i tend to do 50% APAs and the other 50% rotating shifts of other stuff (last one a hoppy belgian 1060OG with 3787, Amarillo and dry hopped with D-Saaz)... keeps me and people that come over happy as the APAs are consistent and lets me play around with other styles

Equipment wise I am still using a Handy pail mashtun with stainless braid and the 40L Al kettle i bought 5 years ago... old habits die hard  But I have an electric 2200w HLT now, a few bits of stainless bling, silicone hoses, pump

Probably not as full on as I used to be about learning but I still experiment and tweak


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## pokolbinguy (26/5/12)

Not long enough, and not enough.


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## Fish13 (26/5/12)

Been brewing solid for 8 months. Doing alot better then my first stint back in 2005. I do about 2 brew's a month now. Still trying to make a beer i want to have a good session on as i brew something once then change it.


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## ekul (27/5/12)

Been homebrewing since i've been about 14 or 15, so 12 years on and off, but the first ten i made stuff that was at best sometimes 'ok' after the commercial stuff ran out, didn't realise that you could actually make great beer at home until joining here and tasting other memebers brews.

Couldn't say how many brews i've done. Haven't been brewing as much lately because i've slowed down on the drinking. When i first joined here i was smashing out a brew every weekend.


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## alfadog (27/5/12)

I have been brewing now for two years, due to the guys at my LHBS i quickly advanced to all grain using a 2V system. Have had the BM now for about a year and put down a brew every fortnight.


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## cam89brewer (27/5/12)

I have only been brewing for about 2 years but have always been a craft beer enthusiast. I just keep getting more and more obsessed now I am onto AG brewing and am already onto my 14th batch this year!!! and I have actually ran out of beer at the moment... 
 It seems like every one else drinks more of it than I do.


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## cam89brewer (27/5/12)

It is always a compliment that people appreciate the beer I make though.


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## chrisherberte (27/5/12)

12 years K&K (on and off), 1 year on AG/BIAB. Just brewed BIAB batch #44 and #45 yesterday.


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## humulus (27/5/12)

Been back into brewing seriously for about 4 years now been ag brewing for 2.5 years and had my 20l braumeister for 18mths.
Try knock a brew out every 2weeks to keep friend neighbours, and me happy h34r: also like to have a few cubes on standby!!! great hobby!


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## [email protected] (27/5/12)

SJW said:


> I will always be learning and practicing brewing the perfect beer till the day I die.
> 
> Steve



I agree with this and it relates to most things in life, there is no plateau. We are like dogs chasing our tail  

I brew once or twice a fortnight - generally only 12 - 15L, there is always something going in the fermenter and waiting in my single no chill jerry.
Have been brewing since whenever it says i joined this joint, i brewed one kit under instructions from kit and LHBS, was very disappointed then turned to the Internet for my answers, found this place and it accelerated my journey immensely.


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## QldKev (27/5/12)

Do you guys make beer? How do you do that? :huh: 



More seriously I've done (at a guess)
1,000,000,000 kits over 20 years
150 to 200 BIAB cubes 
21 3V cubes (my latest system)

Learning heaps as I go

QldKev


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## manticle (27/5/12)

Did a few kit brews around 2007/2008 (maybe even 2006) from memory. Stopped for a bit, then started again, started adding shit in to make them better then started reading more and making extracts, steeping spec grains, then making partials.

Somewhere around mid 2009, I made my first AG in an esky (still use that esky) with two small pots on a woodfired weber.

Eventually modified a keggle and got myself a burner. On average I probably brewed once a fortnight while I was studying (which I finished last year), now it's more like once a week.

Brewing is a lot like cooking - you can always make simple errors, no matter how much you've done it, and you can always learn and try something new.

There's no such thing as a perfect beer.


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## A3k (27/5/12)

hey,
i started kits when i was young in 1997, but didn't really experiment much other than using different kits, so never really learnt much.
in 2006 when i started working, i met some people that were more into brewing. i did two partials, noticed the improvement, then started AG the next brew.
been brewing ever since.
i started making much bigger batches, but I think it's been detramental, as i'm less inclined to experiment.
i'm just starting to reduce the size of the batches now.
probalby brew every 4-8 weeks.


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## Yob (27/5/12)

Will be 3 years Brewing in October, first 2 years Kits n Bits / Partials and have recently moved to 3V then 4V Herms (Still quite ghetto though).. approx. 6 months of AG Brewing.

With a forgiving (or at least understanding) SWMBO I was brewing once a week, then 3 out of every 4 weeks and now Im scaling back to maybe once every 2 weeks or 1 a month if I start punching out doubles.. Its been a hard slog building up stocks so that they can get a decent age to them but now Im here Im finding lots of free time. Much to the good womans delight  

Running 2 STC1000 controlled fermenting fridges with a dedicated fridge for CC and Storage (Freezer for hops) and usually have a minimum of 3 cubes in line to be fermented.

Still learning loads and I dont think I'll ever stop, there is always something to understand better.

Yob


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## punkin (27/5/12)

I'm one of the ones with **** all knowledge.

I brewed K&K for nearly thirty years 2 a fortnight. 1 years experience x 30, not 30 years experience.

Been brewing allgrain for almost exactly twelve months and will never go back. Wish i'd found it thirty years ago.


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## cam89brewer (27/5/12)

punkin said:


> I'm one of the ones with **** all knowledge.
> 
> I brewed K&K for nearly thirty years 2 a fortnight. 1 years experience x 30, not 30 years experience.
> 
> Been brewing allgrain for almost exactly twelve months and will never go back. Wish i'd found it thirty years ago.



30 years ago you couldn't just jump on the net and make an order from G&G and get it the next day though. It is a lot more convenient these days.


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## Nick JD (27/5/12)

Made my first K&K with a bunch of mates in 1988. Things have got better since then.


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## proudscum (27/5/12)

Started in 1994 and did around 200 Kits and bits(remember at one point 1000 long necks under the house)between 1994-1996.
Four fermenters on the go at all times the joy of being a government artist.1996 till now full mash on 6 different set ups with an average of 10 to 12 mashes a year so maybe another 160 brews with all bar a couple that have been well drinkable.
Am now into my 2nd week of being a professional brewer(well in training really)and i can see my practices changing and hopefully good beer going to great beer as i learn more and read brewing txt more seriously.

Cheers SCum


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## bullsneck (27/5/12)

Where you brewing Scum?


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## proudscum (27/5/12)

Southern Bay Brew Company in Geelong with Hendo.


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## altstart (27/5/12)

Brewed Kits since 1983 Good ol Champs I wonder if anyone remembers Champs. Went to a brewday with Ross (Craftbrewer) at his place in 2006. Came home tipped all my beer down the drive. Wife came home that night and said it stinks of beer outside I replied that I had tipped all my beer away she asked "are you giving up drinking". I replied that I was planning on thinking of brewing in a different way and went straight into A/G. 
Cheers Altstart


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## beerbog (27/5/12)

Been back into it about 5 years, after a break from washing bottles and doing K & K. Went straight into wort packs and kegs, for a couple of years, then bit the bullet and went AG - BIAB. I try to have 2 - 3 cubes full at any one time so I probably knock one out about every 2 - 3 weeks. :beerbang:


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## Fat Bastard (27/5/12)

Did some kits and partials back in the mid 90's and lost interest and gave away my gear. Did one kits & bits brew in August last year and then my first BIAB AG on October 2nd. Done 20 since then, which works out to 2.5 brews a month. Currently have 85 bottles on the shelves and 3 fermenters on the go now. 

When you consider 20 20 litre brews works out to 506 bottles, I should have a lot more on the shelf than 85! The 2 hardest parts of homebrewing is drinking nothing but Coopers longnecks for 6 months to get the bottles and then learning to leave them alone for a couple of months before drinking!


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## loikar (27/5/12)

Been brewing for about 4 hours
Have done about 5 Pints.


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## bignath (27/5/12)

Started brewing in 2003, so getting close to a decade. 

Like most, probably, i started with kits, and did this for a while, thinking i was making shit hot beer, and if you take those two words literally (shit, and hot) then i was definitely doing that. Fermenting coopers kits way too warm, but making beer that i could drink by adding some "packs" from the local HBS that had better sugars, hops and a better yeast.

Wanted something better.

Got into all grain maybe 3-4 years ago due to this forum and some other sources and haven't looked back.

Beer i'm making now is well received by the mates, but more importantly me. I'm making consistent better beer than you can get at most pubs and it's costing me **** all, and giving my 35yo brain something to think about.

Always learning, still doing dumb things everyonce in a while that i learn from and looking forward to constantly evolving my knowledge and skill set.

Got into all grain with a 2V, then because i wanted to brew double batches, expanded to a 3V (keg HLT and gas fired boiler, Esky mash tun) but recently experimenting with a recirculating single vessel electric BIAB rig.

Latest thing i'm doing is trying to develop yeast reculturing/propogation techniques. Finished my stir plate yesterday and currently got a sixer worth of CPA yeast spinning away.

Cheers,
Nath


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## Tony (27/5/12)

Good to see you back around these parts Steve 

I started in 2003 i think...... i started cause a carton of tooheys new went to $20

I did about 4 kits and wasn't impressed with the results so went chasing ways to make it better. 

I tried the ESB "paint tin" kits and they were better cause they had little green floaties in them.

started doing partials and hopping beers myself..... a lot of trial and error brewing because as others have said...... there wasnt the wealth of knowledge on the net back then. After about a dozen brews i went full AG and the rest is history.

cheers

Edit: just to add..... i still use the esky i knocked up with some copper tube, SS mesh and cable ties for my first batch. It still has the original cable ties holding the cover over the pickup and has never failed me.


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## churchy (27/5/12)

Strated out with [email protected] about 10years ago and finaly got the urge to get into AG about two and a half years ago now.Up to my 43rd AG and still going strong.Hope I don't die of liver cancer though


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## Screwtop (27/5/12)

Seems to be a fav topic of Steve's :lol:

Previous

Me well here: http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum/inde...st&p=321232

Screwy


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## mje1980 (27/5/12)

Been brewing since around 01? kegged after 6 months. Started playing with extras but wasn't til Big Brew Day 04 where i saw AG and went "aha! that's not too hard haha!". Im still a KISS brewer equipment wise, but lately have been playing with step mashing. Im constantly learning about brewing. I do around 20-30 batches a year.


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## Thefatdoghead (27/5/12)

Since 08. 2 years K&K unfortunately, 1 year 3V with an eski and 1 year Braumeister. I work 5 weeks on and 5 off so I'll brew about 4-5 doubles in my 50L BM every 5 weeks. It must be alright beer because it seems to get drank.


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## TidalPete (27/5/12)

After noting Screwy's reluctance to give details of his brewing history probably because of his age? :lol: I would estimate ----
About 6 years of cans --- 4 years of Kits & (both dry & liquid malts) bits --- then after finding AHB, 6 or 7 years of all-grain.
Agree with other posts that the internet plus advances in homebrewing techniques have turned what we do on its head.
Wish I was (40 years) younger but then don't we all?  

TP


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## homebrewkid (27/5/12)

TidalPete said:


> Wish I was (40 years) younger but then don't we all?
> 
> TP




**** no id be -10 i kinda like being 30 :kooi:


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## geoffd (27/5/12)

7 years (1 year 11brews kit/extract) unhappy with outcome so went all grain. (I have tasted some good kit brews; I just never made one)
90 brews (79AG)
458.45kg grain
81.58 avg brew house efficiency
$1620.71 cumulitive spend: all grain brew ingredients (79 batches) (no cleaning, bottle caps, equipment or utilities)
Average cost: Litre 94c, Pint 53c, 330ml Stubbie 31c,
Most expensive beer: Belgian Tripel 9.5ABV; $3.17 per Litre ($20 for a kilo of clear liquid belgian candi sugar)
Average ABV 5.77%
Average FG 1.019...hmmm I think I have a sweet tooth, or more acurately a poor ability to taste sweetness
1831.2 Litres AG produced to date


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## seravitae (27/5/12)

Been interested in brewing and chatting on forums about booze for the last 13 years.

Hopefully get to put my first rig together (almost got all the bits) and first batch down by the end of this year. <_<


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## SJW (27/5/12)

Screwtop said:


> Seems to be a fav topic of Steve's :lol:
> 
> Previous
> 
> ...


I guess that was 4 years ago, and like I said I just wanted an update on all these new faces


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## raven19 (27/5/12)

4yrs AG here (with 10ish yrs partials before that).

Batch #86 American Amber into the NC cube this arvo.


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## brotom7 (27/5/12)

4 years in total, last 3 have been ag.

Do about 12 batches of 18l per year.


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## Verbyla (27/5/12)

Father Jack said:


> 7 years (1 year 11brews kit/extract) unhappy with outcome so went all grain. (I have tasted some good kit brews; I just never made one)
> 90 brews (79AG)
> 458.45kg grain
> 81.58 avg brew house efficiency
> ...



You just gave me yet another reason to have detailed and accurate record keeping. Can't wait until I get to the day that I can spit out impressive figures like that!


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## Screwtop (27/5/12)

SJW said:


> I guess that was 4 years ago, and like I said I just wanted an update on all these new faces




Bloody swag of em too Steve, you're membership No. 374 and 'Old' Pete is 531 I was a latecomer No.1466

Some 19,00 newbies since then!!!!!

Screwy


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## petesbrew (27/5/12)

Started counting up while going through my recipes a few months back. 
Started brewing in '05
86 total
31 All grain (including 2-3 infected ones that went down the sink)
This year's resolution is no knk.


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## bsb (27/5/12)

i bought my first kit in 98 as a pimply face, always broke apprentice, trying to find the cheapest way to get drunk! as the wages increased and i could afford to buy beer, i gave up brewing, then spent the best part of 5 years in the uk, and 1 in canada, visiting every brewery, brew pub and sampling as many different beers as possible from around the globe. i returned home ruined, unable to appreciate the local sa brews any more, so had to invest in a new kit, and a new meaning to life...
kits and partials since 09, then i started lurking around on this forum, and found beer belly, now i biab about once a month, and the wife brews a partial every 1 - 2 weeks for me, all kegged as im too lazy to worry about bottles. 3 varieties of hops in the back yard, and getting ready for another 7 varieties this year if i can find them, with barley crops planned in a couple of years (i have a little land) to create beer from scratch with only mother nature to help...pretty well hooked!


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## BobtheBrewer (27/5/12)

Screwtop said:


> Seems to be a fav topic of Steve's :lol:
> 
> Previous
> 
> ...



And I thought I was a long time brewer. Started in 1973, can't remember a lot about it but hop flowers in panty hose rings a bell. Kept at it and in 1980 moved to Cairns. Discovered kits in plastic bags (malt etc). Still worked OK. AG now and beer has never been so good!


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## Tony (27/5/12)

Screwtop said:


> Bloody swag of em too Steve, you're membership No. 374 and 'Old' Pete is 531 I was a latecomer No.1466
> 
> Some 19,00 newbies since then!!!!!
> 
> Screwy



closer to 24000 i think mate

can you imagine if they were all active


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## troopa (27/5/12)

Started kits in 2000 .. think between mate and myself we did about 400 long necks 
Gave it up for a few years and got back into it about 2007 (ill know when i post and look at my joining date  )
Since then its been about 2 a month BIAB


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## Aleosaurus cervisiae (27/5/12)

Seem to me that no-one on the forum has been brewing for more than 12 years. Is this how long the liver lasts under the harsh conditions we impose on it? I am now in my year 3. Have I got 9 years to go? How much have you got?


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## SJW (27/5/12)

Aleosaurus cervisae said:


> Seem to me that no-one on the forum has been brewing for more than 12 years. Is this how long the liver lasts under the harsh conditions we impose on it? I am now in my year 3. Have I got 9 years to go? How much have you got?


I am taking these now, so maybe they will buy me a few more years 

View attachment untitled.bmp


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## seravitae (27/5/12)

Or maybe historically home brewing wasn't around.. popular... able to do easily.. prior to that time?

Many reasons. Liver function might be one of them. Though craft breers make me appreciate quality, not quantity. I actually believe my liver is going to be much better off having taken this step in life. Basically, I now drink very little because I'm a snooty connoisseur.


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## ianh (28/5/12)

Started brewing in the late sixties, gave up when came to Australia (1973) brewed in plastic dustbins and served from a plastic keg at room temperature.

Started brewing again in 2009, done 90 by 23 litre batches mainly extract and 42 BIAB batches.

Still learning heaps.


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## MHB (28/5/12)

Well next month it will be 30 years (21st Present) been a few breaks over that time, been brewing AG for about half, so close on 15 years. As to how many not a clue.
Mark


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## glenwal (28/5/12)

Been brewing for about 18 months now. Did 2 k+k batches then moved to AG. I generally do a batch every 2nd weekend, sometimes more often, so have probably done about 40 batches all up.


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## Screwtop (28/5/12)

Birkdale Bob said:


> And I thought I was a long time brewer. Started in 1973, can't remember a lot about it but hop flowers in panty hose rings a bell. Kept at it and in 1980 moved to Cairns. Discovered kits in plastic bags (malt etc). Still worked OK. AG now and beer has never been so good!



That first of mine was brewed in Warwick Bob, not far from you in those days! 



Tony said:


> closer to 24000 i think mate
> 
> can you imagine if they were all active



Holy shit, numbers grow fast ey Tone

Can't find membership numbers on the site anymore thought they used to be at the bottom of the forums page along with birthdays etc.

Screwy


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## Wolfman (28/5/12)

Brewed kits for a couple of years about 12 years ago. Had a half a shed full of long necks. Moved around abit after that so I gave up brewing. Started 12 moths ago and went straight into kegging, not washing bottles anymore! Thought I would just do kits and bits and every now and then do a extract. Stumbled across this place. Found the extract beers were 10 times better than kits, so dumped the kits. Started ag (BIAG) found this was better than extract. Now doing a ag via a 3v system. Not sure how many brews I have done. But I bottle beers as well now. 

Obsessed? Who me no! This is the most rewarding hobby in the world.


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## Truman42 (28/5/12)

Im still a brewing baby. Did my first extract last August, and it turned out crap, no temp control in the middle of winter.
Then switched to BIAB and have done around 12 brews. Yesterday I bottled my fist brew on my new 3V herms, so I suppose that makes me a toddler now whos just learned to walk...  

Looking forward to trying this one out. A chocolate smoked porter.


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## Goose (28/5/12)

get to know you thread ? great idea 

Interest started when we brewed up a batch for "educational" purposes  while studying chemical engineering at Sydney University in 1983. From there on and off but stopped for 20 odd years while my career and family took me interstate then across the globe. In Singapore where I am now, it was illegal to homebrew before 2004 when some entreprenuereal lobbying persuaded the government to allow it under monitored conditions, ie you needed a licence. That was removed in 2008 when they figured that it was more hassle to administer than the license revenue it was providing.

So I got back into it in 2004 and started doing KnK's with a passion, must have done 20 or 30 of these before I realised that no process was going to get rid of that kit "twang", so graduated to making my own all extract recipes by using DME and hops. That was the first big improvement. I then went to AG, my first 5 or 6 mashes were simply poured through a kitchen strainer into my fermenter because I never had a spigot from which to vorlaurf. Surprisingly these turned out ok, did this for 20 or so batches before I invested in some ball valves and borrowed the right drillbit to cut through my stainless mashtun and boiler. From there I did 120 or so AG batches up and till mid last year but got tired of the lifting and decided to up the ante a little and go for a full turnkey system. I narrowed it down to 2, the Sabco Brewmagic setup or the Beerbelly from South Australia. At the time of decision the Aussie dollar was so damn strong vs the greenback and I could land the Sabco here significantly cheaper than the Beerbelly, so I ordered it in complete with their fermenter, 2 x 15 gallon kegs and their plate chiller setup with inline oxygenation capability.

Took me a while to get with the intricacies of the new process, and have now completed 11 batches each around 12 gals each. Have it set up now such that the wort from boiler to fementer and fermenter to keg is totally closed system, with no lifting involved at all (except for cleaning). I love this system and the only thing that stops me from brewing more is my storage capacity. The wife is kinda a but anti having 7 fridges scattered around the place and permission for more could get very expensive... :lol:


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## joshuahardie (28/5/12)

I have been brewing for about 10 years.
I think I started all grain around about 2008.

I seem to average 12-15 brews a year.

My story is very familiar to many. Bought a Tooheys kit as a thing for my father and me to dabble in. Did the series of kit beers trying to replicate whatever macro lager at the time I thought tasted good.

My first taste of LCPA hit me and I had to brew something similar, which quickly sent me down a slippery slope into FWK and then AG. I never cloned Little Creatures, because I hit this forum, and discovered there was at least 80 beer styles that I had not tried, and so I branched out into all beer types quickly.

Apart from the brewing, I would have to say that finding new and interesting commercial craft beer is also a passion. I would have to try at least 150 new beers a year.


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## mattyra (28/5/12)

I started brewing almost 2 years ago.

Still primarily using kits, and steeping grains and adding hops. I purchased a keg setup roughly 12 months ago which the small fridge allows me to have one 9L one and a 19L (I think its 19 but it could be 18) in the fridge at the same time.

With that I made my first AG not long ago (a small batch for the 9L keg), still waiting to try it but I am as excited as anything. I brew roughly once a week to once a fortnight. The beer mustn't be too bad as everyone comes back to drink it.

I also have the daughter (2 year old) help me as well, she really enjoys spending time with daddy.

Favorite recipe at the moment is A can of Coopers Real Ale, A Can of Coopers Australian Pale Ale, 1kg of Dextrose (I know I should use a whole kilo) some Nelson Sauvin (I believe last batch was 40g) mixed in 23 L of water. A very simple brew that has great head retention and tastes great.


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## Gar (28/5/12)

Been brewing a bit under 18 months now and I'm loving every minute

Jumped in the deep end with the first brew and went all-grain, rather than mess around with K&K and partials.... the first batch was pretty bad, second was awesome & after that I've been pretty sweet.... with the exception of one infection (still drank it though heh heh :icon_drunk: :icon_vomit: ) 

Only brewed 16 beers and 2 ciders so far so I've still got plenty to learn.

Love the forum though, such an amazing wealth of knowledge and funny fuggers to boot.


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## sponge (28/5/12)

Was given a coopers kit for xmas in 06 off my uncle and brewed 1 K&K, 1 cider and 1 GB.

Moved to extract & partials after that for about 5 brews, did a couple of FWK's then stopped for a couple of years right after purchasing everything I needed to go AG as I didn't have an area to AG brew at my parents place.

Bought a place with my GF last year and was granted permission to use the storage room at the back of the garage as a brewing and music room so began AG brewing after 3 years off.

Have done about 15 brews on my 3V gravity setup and have purchased (but not drilled/wired/etc) everything to make it a single level HERMS setup.


Sponge


Note to self: Really need to pull the finger out and get the HERMS setup finished ASAP!


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## Rowy (28/5/12)

Started September last year doing K&K and one Kits and bits. Kept reading on this site and thought I can do this. Found NickJD's thread for AG for under $30 and I was a goner. I love cooking so the rooting around suits me. Started AG in early December 11 and have only missed 3 or 4 weekends when I haven't brewed. So probably churned out in excess of 20 brews. Only one infection so far. I BIAB with a couple of tweaks such as a bucket in a bucker to drain and sparge a little. Living not far from Craftbrewer is the killer for me. The place is a magnet.............


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## Muggus (28/5/12)

Started in 2003 with a mate. We started with K&K stuff, which evolved as we discovered better beers. Brewed about 10 batches together before I started going solo and pushing the envelope a bit.

To date i've racked up 180 batches of various "brew", which includes 54 AG's, plenty of extract/K&K's, a few batches of ginger beer, cider, mead, and a dabble, more recently, in fully blown winemaking. Plenty of hits, plenty of misses, and some just truely fantastic brews along the way. 

Certainly true about never stop learning - there's just way too many styles, ingredients, combinations out there to try, and not enough to use them all, let alone perfect them!


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## b0neski (1/6/12)

I first started doing K&K with some extra refinements about 15 years ago as a poor apprentice. Through moving house a few times and general laziness I stopped brewing after a few years, but held onto all my gear until finally deciding to sell it all to a couple of university students who were dead keen on homebrew.

Fast forward to about 1.5 years ago. I get "dragged" around to the see these people by the now ex missus and this guy has a keg and a pluto gun setup. Nice beer. Got me thinking...... convert shed fridge into kegerator? Yes. Great idea. Research on internet. Find homebrew shop. Buy hardware and install. Make K&K batch which turns out ok but somewhat boring with definite homebrew twang. But I've got a kegerator and I don't have to wash bottles which was the bain of my existence back in the day. Over a manic few months I pump out a dozen batches, venturing into partials etc, which combined with better yeast makes HUGE improvements to the product, but it still tastes like homebrew.

What's next then? How do I make better beer? All grain, that's how. Cue montage of massive amounts of internet research, drawings, smoking credit cards, construction annnnnnd tada - it's a 3V all electric system capable of making single batches. I still remember tasting my freshly kegged first batch and although in hindsight there was a few minor faults with it, I just couldn't stop grinning because it was a ******* excellent acheivement. In the ensuing 6 or 7 months I've made 14 batches and upgraded the kettle to 70ltr gas fired for doubles. And the finished product does not taste like homebrew anymore.

What a rewarding hobby!


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## Spork (3/6/12)

Been brewing just over 12 months and have done approx. 20 BIAB batches in that time.

I just went through my DB of "bought beers" and found I have recorded 157 different ones since I started keeping track in May last year. There have a been a dozen or so that I have tried but not listed also...


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## Spiesy (3/6/12)

I've been into craft beers for quite a few years, and after seeing/tasting the efforts of some mates and my old man's homebrews, I took the plunge in January this year... didn't **** about - went straight to double batch BIAB AG, with a twin 19L keg kegerator. Basically I couldn't be arsed bottling and I am not a fan of the kit beers I've tasted - it also helped having good mates who could shed light on the processes involved, and are only a phone call away when needed. 

I've been brewing about once a month since, predominantly APA's... looking forward to knocking another one out this weekend!


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## paulie (3/6/12)

Up to batch no 490 - about 440 of them mashes. Mostly 38 lt batches too - thats a lot of beer !!!


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