Why All Grain?

[ekul]

I've never been able to brew beers like Wells Bombardier, Timothy Taylors etc. I've made some bloody great ales, and i love brewing all grain beers, but saying you can brew any beer is a bit far.

You could though, there's nothing stopping you from doing this as you have access to all the same ingredients. And because the size of the equipment is so small you can control every parameter much easier than a large scale brewery.



In saying that, i don't do this, too much effort. I'm more concerned with having a steady supply of good beer
rather than have every glass be the best beer that i've ever had. Some guys put the effort in, and i;ll tell you what, they make beer thats better than anything i've tasted in the bottle shop. In fact the first all grain beer i tasted (not mine!) was the BEST beer i'd ever tasted up until that point. It was a golden ale made by AndrewQLD on my first bundy brewday. First sip i knew that all grain was the only method i was going to brew from that point. I've put down one kit since then, it was to beef up some aussie swill i was making for xmas. What the rellos didn't drink was just emnptied out i think.

 

[chunckious]

You could though, there's nothing stopping you from doing this as you have access to all the same ingredients. And because the size of the equipment is so small you can control every parameter much easier than a large scale brewery.



In saying that, i don't do this, too much effort. I'm more concerned with having a steady supply of good beer
rather than have every glass be the best beer that i've ever had. Some guys put the effort in, and i;ll tell you what, they make beer thats better than anything i've tasted in the bottle shop. In fact the first all grain beer i tasted (not mine!) was the BEST beer i'd ever tasted up until that point. It was a golden ale made by AndrewQLD on my first bundy brewday. First sip i knew that all grain was the only method i was going to brew from that point. I've put down one kit since then, it was to beef up some aussie swill i was making for xmas. What the rellos didn't drink was just emnptied out i think.

+1
Freshness is king. I've only ever seen TTLL in Dan's and while I'm sure it's a great beer fresh, but the time it gets to me it's meh.

 

[petesbrew]

"Being able to walk to any bottle shop and say with confidence about any beer in the shop, I can brew that"






I've never been able to brew beers like Wells Bombardier, Timothy Taylors etc. I've made some bloody great ales, and i love brewing all grain beers, but saying you can brew any beer is a bit far.

I think it's a fair call. Or at the least it's a "challenge accepted".
Made a couple of AGs that have been plain rubbish, but they're always worth the effort and enjoyment.

 

[bignath]

Mate, I'll look forward to the day where I don't try to emulate the shelved beer, and look at them as inferior....might take some time tho

yeah it will take some time.....roughly 5hours

That's kind of like having your first **** and then asking 'why bother with women' ?

I was having a **** start to the day until i read that....almost lost my mouthful of coffee across the computer.

Very true aswell.

 

[hughman666]

I started on kits for the same reason as a lot of ppl i guess: cheap beer!

After a few of the Coopers kits I started steeping grains and dry hopping. Then I got sick of bottling, seriously that is the shittest thing to have to do, all the cleaning, fiddly crap etc. so I went out and bought a kegging setup, butchered the beer fridge and was pretty happy at that point until I started wanting to do beers other than ales.

This is I think where AG started to make its case pretty compelling. I remember doing a couple pilsners with extract (by this stage I had moved on from straight out K&k). I did everything by the book eg wyeast urquell, fermenting in the right range, secondary fermentation, conditioned for a few weeks etc.

It still had *that* flavour.

So I hit up my local Asian grocery store and got a cheapy 80L pot for about $50. Got some nylon and made a bag. Got a 4 ring burner from the camping store.

My first BIAB was an ale, missed most temps, spilled a heap of stuff and burnt myself a fair bit.

Bloody beautiful beer though! It was my worst AG but was still better than any of my extract/kit ales.

After a couple more brews I tried out the pilsner. From memory it was about 95% Bo pils and 5% wheat. Fermented at the right temp, secondary and conditioned etc.

It did not have *that* taste!!!

That was it for me, completely sold. Bought an esky, made a hlt out of an old fermenter and a kettle element and never looked back.

Since going AG ive spent more on this hobby than I originally intended to but then again my intentions are now different than they were. Now I'm more concerned about perfecting my regular brews, experimenting with other ingredients (fruit is awesome) and basically having a great time.

I'm brewing small 20l batches (ie 1 keg) so that I can brew more often and I've got my brew day down to 3hrs with my new rig.

So I guess that's why AG is the ****. Not knocking kits or extract but AG removes the limitations.

 

[ekul]

For an inexperienced brewer i reckon ag is the bomb, you can make a lot of mistakes and still churn out a good beer. **** i got an infection the other day and the beer was still great! I don't have the skills as a brewer to make a good beer from a kit, whereas i can make great beer all day long with AG.

When i went Ag was about the time that my mates stopped buying booze when they knew i was coming over, whereas before that they'd have one and then go back to what they were drinking. If your mates drink it when there's other gear on offer you know you're doing something right.

 

[JPAT]

It's all about the beer.

 

[Spork]

Why go fishing, when you can just buy fish?
Because it's a hobby, something you enjoy doing, and as an added bonus you get to eat fish much fresher than the ones you buy.
Of course, by the time you pay for petrol to get to your spot and back, buy bait and / or replace a few lures, replace the odd reel that dies, or rod that gets broken it can start to cost. If you use a boat you will pay more for your fresh fish than it would have cost you to buy it every time...

Brewing AG is similar, but with one added bonus - it saves you a HEAP of $$$!
I can make a litre of beer for < $1.00. Not just plain, boring beer, but super hoppy IPA's etc. (Grain and hops bought in bulk)
How much is a carton of megaswill? Maybe $30 for 9 litres? OK - but I don't like megaswill, I like good craft beer. Now we are looking @ say $20 / 6 pack (or a hell of a lot more) Thats $10+ / litre.

In summary, AG is a way to drink your way to wealth!

 

[Parks]

I think it's a fair call. Or at the least it's a "challenge accepted".
Made a couple of AGs that have been plain rubbish, but they're always worth the effort and enjoyment.

I don't think it's a *fair call*, but it should be you *can* make any commercial beer. After all, how do you think they make it?

Making a clone is no different to trying to make KFC at home. You need a fine sense of taste and the experience to determine which processes and ingredients will give you the same result.

 

[ekul]

I think it would be easier to clone your favourite brew than to clone KFC, there's 9 secret ingredients (hint... none of the secret ingredients are chicken)

I don't think it's a *fair call*, but it should be you *can* make any commercial beer. After all, how do you think they make it?

Making a clone is no different to trying to make KFC at home. You need a fine sense of taste and the experience to determine which processes and ingredients will give you the same result.

 

[Parks]

I think it would be easier to clone your favourite brew than to clone KFC, there's 9 secret ingredients (hint... none of the secret ingredients are chicken)

I was more comparing the more exotic or complex brews which "can't be brewed at home"

I often wondered if there was chicken in KFC...

 

[petesbrew]

I don't think it's a *fair call*, but it should be you *can* make any commercial beer. After all, how do you think they make it?

Making a clone is no different to trying to make KFC at home. You need a fine sense of taste and the experience to determine which processes and ingredients will give you the same result.

Well, rephrase it to say you can make any style of beer that tastes similar to [insert awesome beer] then.

Cmon, KFC? Who would try and clone that? That's just stupid talk. Everyone know's you can't clone the Colonel.

 

[Maple]

Why bother with All-grain?

Well cuz a 3V, system with 2 pumps, superfriggin i-tye burner, mechano set stand, Mastermill, several 22/2400W elements, a Heat exchange unit (under construction), immersion chiller, hoses and heaps of stainless bling.............

.........would just be overkill for kit and kilo


(oh, and just cuz it's way more rewarding than cracking a can opener from the drawer)

 

[bitterman]

Mark ....... And then you buy a beer engine and it does taste like Timothy Taylor's and Well's Bombardier when put through the same kit thats used to serve it in the Uk.
It makes all the difference.

 

[Parks]

Cmon, KFC? Who would try and clone that?

Fat people?

 

[iralosavic]

I remember tasting the first all grain wort I made and thinking it was like the difference between instant coffee and grinding your own beans fresh; there's just something more natural and full flavored about it.

 

[petesbrew]

I remember tasting the first all grain wort I made and thinking it was like the difference between instant coffee and grinding your own beans fresh; there's just something more natural and full flavored about it.

:icon_offtopic:
Our office coffee machine is on the blink, so we have to go upstairs to use their machine (or buy it downstairs, or ... shudder ... use instant).
Upstairs I overheard a conversation between two guys comparing Nescafe Blend 43 & Gold. Meanwhile there's a classy coffee machine nearby.

I had to slap myself a few times.

 

[Bribie G]

My first All grain brew (A Yorkshire Bitter) was so beautiful I burst into tears (on the sixth pint, but of course by that time I was also sobbing "Why did princess Diana have to die" and "leave Britney Alone you *******s"

:lol:

 

[DWC]

IMO , the reason most people say AG taste better is that the brewer has progressed from kit n kilo of sugar, through dex n then malt to extra hops to extract brewing etc. etc. They've gotten the basics pretty much right ie. cleanliness and sanitation, temp control etc.
You can start with AG, but I think the " apprenticeship" is better( flame suit on!)
For me, I like good beer. I can make good beer cheaply and it is a great hobby.
You don't NEED TO AG, it's just a progression.
I like the journey from grain to keg ( and it cost about $1/L for a golden ale)
How far you go is up to you, stay with kits, extract, biab or build a 3v HERMS.
they can all make good or bad beer, it's up to you
Cheers
Dave

 

[Lord Raja Goomba I]

Better taste, far more ingredients (offering flexibility and infinite combinations), no kit twang and the fact that I can brew beers for around $1/L that I could not buy in Dan's, only at a specialist beer nerd shop (like archive) at $10/pint.

Commercial crafties at $16-$20/6er could not brew what I do, and make a profit.

And it's rewarding when you get a pint from the keg that is the 'new' bomb.

@DWC - got my first and only infection with AG, despite always having a great sanitisation regime from Day 1 of kit brewing.

Incidentally, I brew with the cheapest, ghetto system - and I don't need to change. I'd love to have a 3V HERMS, but the primary reasons I brew is cheap beer and tasty beer. I get these already, the extra bling would negate reason one, and despite being fun, cost way too much for a bloke whose missus is expecting their 4th kid.

Goomba