Useless Brewing Book

[GOLIATH]

Put this on the Goliath Site a few days ago.

Watch out!

Hullo all,

Another example of a brewing book written by a brewer that doesn't understand brewing has just arrived in the post.

"Shifty's Home Brews and Favourite food" By Ian Sheldon.

Whilst the recipes are interesting and we are going to upset the Author here, this book has ZERO credibility.

The first three recipes are:

KIT CAN
Honey
Glucose
Corn Syrup (which one?)
Liquorice
White Sugar and
Lemon Juice

No Hops, No steeping grains, no dried yeast rehydration, no Nuthin!

There are references to brandy essence and Bags of Finishing hops in other recipes in the book along with blend No.s 40 and so on.

At $17 or $18.00 retail. This author has done nothing other that copy the brewcraft website and some can instructions or similar and has clearly demonstrated that he never seen a mash let alone read about it."


It is books like this that get my goat because they promise the new brewer so much and yet fail to deliver.

Perhaps someone can enlighten me as to why a brewer with many years of experience, has not bothered to even find out the most basic principles of his hobby. Shit, even train buffs have a good train set! or at least know the guage.

Anyway, just my soapbox for today.

Advice, If you want to know more about brewing, Stay away from this book .

Regards
Dave

 

[SteveSA]

Aaahhhh I don't know Dave... some of us got a few laughs out of it.

I recall one recipe calling for "one bag of hops" :huh:

And not one recipe even had yeast in there!

BTW the publishers did spell "Shifty's" correctly didn't they? More like "Shi%ty's"

Steve

 

[warrenlw63]

Can think of a worse one,

Bought this little "gem" back in 1996 when I first started homebrewing. If I'd had any faith in it I'd still be doing kits and a kilo of cane sugar.

TOTAL LACK OF CRED SHOCKER. :angry: Don't even know why I still have the thing.

It may look familiar to some. It's usually sitting on the shelves of K-mart BigW etc. Says a lot.

Warren -

 

[fergi]

WOW THATS CERTAINLY A STRONG OPINION ,I HAVENT SEEN OR READ THE BOOK BUT IVE READ YOUR ARTICLES GOLIATH and to be honest ill take your word for it ,im sure there are a lot of people out there that write books about things that they really havent researched so ill stick to taking advice from guys like you and the other knowledgeable brewers on this site
cheers
fergi

 

[Wortgames]

Hehehe Warren - I was going to say Grant Sampson based on nothing more than the title of this thread :super:

That book really is terrible. I'm sure he's making it up as he goes along. I tried some of his techniques - including the glad-wrap instead of the fermenter lid (complete with pin-holes to let the gas out) - once. It was either written in the dark ages or he's never actually brewed...

 

[warrenlw63]

What about the batch he accidentally "Lagered" That still makes me piss my pants! :lol:

He also says that racking beer is more like wrecking beer. Also goes on to describe English Bitter as a thick, mucky type of brew that's best avoided. <_<

Truly the 70 year old kit and kilo lover's bible! Don't use dextrose. White sugar is good and "cheap". :lol: :lol:

Warren -

 

[Andrew]

Dave, when I was in your shop this morning demolishing your grain supply I saw the shifty book on the shelf when you were on the phone. Had a quick peek inside.

What the? Why is this on the shelf?

I didn't say anything in case you got embarrassed....

The paper its printed on is even too glossy to line the budgie cage with.

Cheers.

 

[Jovial_Monk]

HAHAHAHAHA Dave! That useless shitty, err, shifty book lasted 15 seconds from tyaking it out the envelope to hitting the round file!

And the Grant Sampson book is crap that even now is retarding the progress of new brewers.

"Racking invariably ruins the beer" Not in my brewery, mate!

"Don't be tempted to go the barley, rancid hops, boiling method" I never use rancid hops, chum!


Jovial Monk

 

[Ray_Mills]

Hi
I have seen them all and I have no comment.
I love John Palmer's book, One page on kits, 350 pages on brewing, I have said it before it the book to buy.
BTW I am not too sure if I have posted this before, I have put all his recipes through my promash at 65% eff. and they are spot on.
Ray

 

[Weizguy]

G'day,

I once got the Sampson book as a prize from a comp, as well as a beer kit.

I have been amused by some of the urban legends he tells us are "true", mate.

Nothing against the book (at that price). Would not recommend it to (impressionable) noobs, but it's p!ss funny to more seasoned brewers.

Seth

 

[BeerIsGood]

To keep an old thread alive, The Courier Mail (read: Queensland Newspaper) had an article on HBing in their "Good Life" supplement last Tuesday (p. 8-9). It focused on the "you brew on our premises with our gear" style setups, the trend for HBers to pursue quality (not just quantity) and how the big brewers are responding.

But, it also included some quotes from Grant Sampson. (Interestingly, he's a director of Morgan's and founded Brigalow.)

From the paper:

"In Australia it is still easy and cheap to brew, and there has never been so many products on the market," Sampson says.
"Sure we have seen some strengthening at the top end, but overall not a lot has changed. Australians still want cheap grog, as cheap as possible and to pay any more is not on.
"That makes us quite distinct from the market in America.
"In Australia when a bloke mows his lawn he drinks beer and his beer is home brew. Then when his friends come around he brings out the Coopers and the Crown," he says.
"In America he mows his lawn and has a commercial beer. When friends come around he produces his own brew for them to sample. Who knows, we might see a bit of that in Australia yet."

(The article also has some good quotes from Greg 'Younga' Young of Townsville, but I thought you all might like a good rant at Mr Sampson's comments )

 

[warrenlw63]

Did he discuss at length his innovation in homebrewing?

The gladwrap on top of the fermenter. It will revolutionize your beer! :lol: :lol:

Needs to get out from underneath his mushroom methinks. :huh:

Warren -

 

[Wortgames]

He's obviously got his finger on the pulse of the Australian homebrew movement hasn't he?! I wonder if he's ever been into a homebrew shop, or whether his opinion of the Aussie market is based purely by what he can find on the shelf of his local Coles?

Hey Grant Sampson, if you ever get an internet connection and Google your name, I hope you find this thread.

I'm not surprised you serve Crown lager to your friends - your knowledge of beer is obviously as current as your knowledge of brewing, and if I brewed the way you do I wouldn't want to serve it to my worst enemies let alone my mates.

Thanks for your grossly inaccurate representation of my craft, you oblivious old fart.

grant sampson grant sampson grant sampson grant sampson grant sampson grant sampson grant sampson...

 

[jayse]

I have to agree with grants comment in that there!
It might not be were all of us are but we are only 1000 home brewers out of 50 000 in australia, so given that the majority of home brewers do fit perfectly in with what he says that comment is i believe quite reasonble.
Even home brew stores are all the same we have proberly at least 10 in SA and only about 3 and a half are worth going into the rest think much the same as grant.
Then there is the other 30 odd thousand brewers around australia that brew cheap piss according to the directions on the can that there wifes get them when they do the shopping.
So his comment doesn't apply to us craft brewing mad men but i do think it applies to the majority of brewers in australia, we are a insignificant few compared to the tens of thousands of home brewers that by 1kg of sugar and a can of gloop.

Iam not sticking up for the guy, just what he says i think is correct for most.

Jayse

 

[warrenlw63]

I have to agree with grants comment in that there!
It might not be were all of us are but we are only 1000 home brewers out of 50 000

[post="53446"][/post]​

Or as Churchill said;

Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few

Bear in mind Jayse how many all-grainers are out there that most likely aren't on this forum.

Pretty sure there's more than 1000 all-grainers in Oz. Well at least I hope so.

Warren -

 

[Wortgames]

I would seriously hope there aren't many home brewers who are so ashamed of their product they serve Crown when they have company. It's really not hard to brew a Coles K&K that is respectable enough to serve to mates. Unless you're using glad wrap and fermenting "anywhere between 20 and 40 degrees", that is. <_<

 

[jayse]

snipped>>>
Pretty sure there's more than 1000 all-grainers in Oz. Well at least I hope so.

Warren -

[post="53447"][/post]​

I only counted peter from wagga as only being one person so given that 1000 sounds around about right. :lol:

Jayse
PS "we will never surrender, whatever the cost may be."
mis quoting churchill.

 

[warrenlw63]

Peter from Wagga sounds like Sybil but with maybe 50 more personalities. :blink:

Hey Jayse. How about my favourite Churchill.

"I have taken more out of alcohol than alcohol has taken out of me".

Warren -

 

[Wortgames]

Hehehe Churchill...

Stop me if you've heard this, but he reputedly once asked a haughty society lady if she'd sleep with him for a million pounds. She replied that yes, she probably would. Then he asked her if she'd sleep with him for one pound. She replied, huffily, "certainly not Sir, what sort of a lady do you think I am?" to which Churchill replied, "Madam, we've already established that - now we're just haggling over the price."

:beer:

 

[johnno]

Put this on the Goliath Site a few days ago.

Watch out!

Hullo all,

Another example of a brewing book written by a brewer that doesn't understand brewing has just arrived in the post.

"Shifty's Home Brews and Favourite food" By Ian Sheldon.

Whilst the recipes are interesting and we are going to upset the Author here, this book has ZERO credibility.

[post="50531"][/post]​

Trying to sell it on ebay now.
Poor sod that buys it.