Craft-brewer, Home-brewer, Cheap-skate Or Wanker?

[SpillsMostOfIt]

This webblog has an interesting, albeit Americentric, discussion about what constitutes a Craft Brewery in that part of the world.

http://www.madisonbeerreview.com/search/label/craft

I occasionally meet people who buy HomeBrand kit beers from the supermarket and mix them with their chosen amount of sugar and make beer. I sometimes read in this place and others of the lengths that some people go to in their quest for a great beer they made themselves and they make (even) me stare in awe.

There's a whole spectrum of beer makers between these two extremes, but they (we) are all labelled Home Brewers. Sure, we all make beer and do so at home, but there is a difference between not only the process, but the amount of care and loving that goes into the creation of our beer and why we do it. Some people brew beer from grain, but do so with an attitude that seems less than passionate and some people make kit and extract beers with the love they should be reserving for their husband/wife and children, so I don't mean to compare the values of one process versus another.

I'm interested in that which drives us to brew and how we channel that into beer.

Although I could be reasonably called a Craft-Brewer, Home-Brewer, Cheap-Skate *and* Wanker, when it comes to how I describe my hobby/obsession of brewing and striving for better beer, I think I might describe what I do as Hobby Brewing to differentiate myself from the Can Opener Club.

So, what are you: Home Brewer, Hobby Brewer, Craft Brewer, Other?

 

[rough60]

I think I'm a homebrewer/hobby brewer, enjoy the making and consumption, and trying to improve recipes.
My mega swill mates enjoy the different beers I make and think I'm a craft brewer.
My missus on the other hand, in regard to my semi-obsession with beer making, beleives I am truely a wanker.

 

[Aaron]

I do it because i love great beer and I'm sure, some day, I will make some. In the mean time I just put a lot of effort d passion into it. I guess that makes me a wanker.

 

[andrewg1978]

Come on guys, must of us got into home brewing for 1 reason

We are all Cheep Skates!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Aaron]

Come on guys, must of us got into home brewing for 1 reason

We are all Cheep Skates!!!!!!!!!!

The cost had nothing to do with it for me. I want beer I can't other wise get and enjoy the process of producing it. The satisfaction of something you have made yourself can't be beat.

 

[rimrunner]

i'm cheap. and i'm the sort that like to find the in's an outs of everything when i do it.

so i started to try and save some money making beers that were too expensive for me to buy commercially all the time. (i'll probably never make an aussie style lager) and now i'm researching everything and have big plans. (maybe involving a pool)

obsessive people are mostly wankers. i try to keep the boreing talk to a minimum and let them talk about sports for a while... i think it's sports they were talking about.

 

[braufrau]

I'm interested in that which drives us to brew and how we channel that into beer.

OCD.

 

[reVoxAHB]

For a second I thought this thread was about Ross at Craftbrewer!
Was gonna gouge your eyes out as Ross is not a cheap-skate, nor a wanker.

I'd say I'm a skilled-brewer, and hobbyist with a labour of love obsession in beer and brewing... and I'm just playing along with the almost confusing array of definitions in trade, craft beer, skill & art (from the article).

Not having read that, I'd always unashamedly considered myself a (non-trade) craft-brewer, without issue.

Craft brewing for me is a mix of intellectual skills and sheer brawn. I love taking the time to thoroughly research a style and recipe, source the finest ingredients available, and allow them to work in their most optimal environment or condition(s). As a home-brewer, I try to emulate the practice and general procedure of a pro micro or craft-brewery, without breaking the $bank$ in gear (is this possible)? End of day, I enjoy the process, end result and my personal journey in knowledge and striving for better beer.

All brewed from home.

reVox

 

[joecast]

Come on guys, must of us got into home brewing for 1 reason

We are all Cheep Skates!!!!!!!!!!

yeah, but how many people stick with it for that reason? i think the majority of people continue to home brew for reasons other than financial.

as for what drives me to brew, its mostly about availability, secondly about enjoying the process and the learning aspect of it.
oh, and of course im a cheap skate and cant bring myself to pay $20 a six pack. plus what else am i going to do with a beer fridge and all those kegs?? might as well brew right?
joe

 

[andrewg1978]

The cost had nothing to do with it for me. I want beer I can't other wise get and enjoy the process of producing it. The satisfaction of something you have made yourself can't be beat.

fair point, but would you still be doing it if it cost say double commercially available beer?

 

[reVoxAHB]

fair point, but would you still be doing it if it cost say double commercially available beer?

I have plenty of friends in the States who continue to brew, even tho they can walk into any liquor store and purchase top-quality commercial beer (Deschutes, Sierra-Nevada, Stone, New Belgium and a hundred others) for $6 a 6 pack, often $20 a slab, on special.

Megaswill (Bud, Coors, Miller) can be as low as $12 a slab cans.

Come to think of it, I don't know a single brewer the world over who brews only for cost.

edit: cost as in, savings.

reVox

 

[microbe]

For a second I thought this thread was about Ross at Craftbrewer!
Was gonna gouge your eyes out as Ross is not a cheap-skate, nor a wanker.

That was my first thought on seeing the title too! So glad to see that it wasn't the case.

fair point, but would you still be doing it if it cost say double commercially available beer?

Don't turn this one of those threads again :icon_offtopic:

Me - I'm mainly a cheapskate, but starting to lean towards using more than just a can-opener. Beer-maker soon to be Home-brewer.

Cheers,

microbe

 

[Aaron]

fair point, but would you still be doing it if it cost say double commercially available beer?

I would. The satisfaction of something I have made myself is important to me as is the ability to make whatever beer I want. I actually enjoy the process. The financial saving is completely irrelevant for me.

 

[jimmyjack]

I brew because I want to make better beer than can be found in bottle shops. I enjoy the entire process and still revel in the fact that I can make incredible beer in my garage. I like to think if society ended as we know it. I could be self sufficient and be the brewer of the village. I would love to convert to solar power and also have a large veggie patch. I am no tree hugger though.I am no beer wanker though I have never turned down a free beer mega or craft. I guess when you boil it down I am a cheap skate


Cheers,

JJ

 

[warra48]

I'm now retired, but it's just a hobby I took up when my offspring bought me a Brewcraft kit for my birthday.
Didn't take me long to get into specialty malts, a couple of partials, and then the leap into AG.
I don't claim to make the best beer in the world, but I enjoy the process hugely, and I brew beers to a style I like to drink. Learning along the way as you go stirs you on to try and keep improving.
I like to think of it as craftbrewing, but if you ask mrs warra, she'd probably declare me a beer wanker, as she doesn't drink alcohol.
Having grown up in Holland and New Zealand, I really never took to the usual NZ and Aus megabrew products.
Cost is not really an issue, as I don't drink more than 2 or 3 stubbies a day.

 

[Maple]

The cost saving aspect got me into it, but as you start to build the "brewery" out, that arguement doesn't hold much wort. It may have got me into it, but its the customization to personal taste that keeps me here.

Oh, and SWMBO reckons its the "beer wanker" choice! Whatever! Home-not-yet-craft-brewer I figure.

 

[SpillsMostOfIt]

I've certainly got Obsessive Compulsive Brewing Disorder... MrsMostOfIt has come to accept that part of my personality.

The term 'Artisan Brewer' kind of appeals, but sounds a bit high falutin.

 

[AUHEAMIC]

I started out as a hobby brewer but I am much more enthusiastic than that now so I guess I am a "brew enthusiast".

 

[Hashie]

I started out as a cheap skate and have progressed to being a wanker.

My wife often tells me she is a "beer widow"

 

[mickoz]

Wow, this Craft-Brewing, Home-brewer, wanker all bundled together sheds new light on protein haze

Mick