Why Do Kit Brewers Try To Emulate Brewery Beers

[manticle]

I think it was more in lines of "everybody starts somewhere". If that's where they want to stay then good luck to them but they probably don't need much from here (I mean straight kk). That's not meant to be disparaging but I can't imagine people making beer with a can and a kilo of sugar (and happy with the way it runs out) needing masses of advice.

If someone wants to make kk eer good luck to them. Most of this forum and possibly thins thread should be entirely irrelevant to them.

I say that as someone who happily answers every single question about why an airlock isn't making any noise.

 

[shenthus]

HI
thanks for the welcome and the link, the acronyms can be a bit overwhelming sometimes.

Hasn't turned me off but then again I am not easily turned off when I am looking for knowledge and information.

Some have defended kits brewers and some haven't but my point was, why should anyone HAVE to defend anyone else. Maybe there are perfectly good reasons for doing what ever it is your doing. Doesn't make you more right than the other person, just different. If I brew with a kit and enjoy my results then that's all that matters. If I don't want to "look outside the box" that's my affair.

Maybe you can get a "better result" using all grain, but maybe you can do it anyway.

As long as your happy who gets hurt?

 

[Thirsty Boy]

Almost the only defence of kit brewers I see (by non kit brewers) is of the "oh, they don't know any better yet, give them time" variety.

I think I said something similar a page or two back.

well, apart from CM2 saying just above that you can make fantastic beers from kits - I happen to agree.

The main reason that AG brews tend to be better than K&K brews .. is because the brewers themselves have usually learned a lot from experience and realize that they are making a much greater investment in time and effort - so they try harder, take more care, have more gear and know more about what they are doing.

I bet that any of the really good AG brewers who frequent this site - could make you a Kits and bits beer that would blow your socks off. And I bet there are K&K guys out there who have just honed their relatively simple art down to a razor edge. You just dont hear from them because they already know what they are doing.

I've tasted some pretty damn good K&K beer - and some pretty frigging woeful AG beer. The difference is the brewer (and fermentation control) - the method of brewing is a minor player. A good brewer can make good beer any old how.

 

[manticle]

HI
thanks for the welcome and the link, the acronyms can be a bit overwhelming sometimes.

Hasn't turned me off but then again I am not easily turned off when I am looking for knowledge and information.

Some have defended kits brewers and some haven't but my point was, why should anyone HAVE to defend anyone else. Maybe there are perfectly good reasons for doing what ever it is your doing. Doesn't make you more right than the other person, just different. If I brew with a kit and enjoy my results then that's all that matters. If I don't want to "look outside the box" that's my affair.

Maybe you can get a "better result" using all grain, but maybe you can do it anyway.

As long as your happy who gets hurt?

People discuss stuff. People have opinions. One was- "kit brewers should make uo their own stuff from extract and not base it on popular recipes" Another was " kit brewers learn about beer by trying to brew popular recipes".

No-one has to do anything - it's just a discussion and yes if you don't want to look out the box it's your affair. However if, as you said, you're looking for informaion and knowledge then you'll probably get it with a dose of opinion. Fair enough if a whole bunch of all grainers got your email address and started spamming you with recipes or telling you to stop using kits but if you willingly use a beer forum you pretty much accept that various people will think and say various things. Doesn't stop you doing whatever it is you want to do.

 

[bum]

That's not meant to be disparaging but I can't imagine people making beer with a can and a kilo of sugar (and happy with the way it runs out) needing masses of advice.

After a few brews, sure, but there is still plenty for the novice k&ker to learn and I reckon this board is a pretty good place to learn a lot of it.

If someone wants to make kk eer good luck to them. Most of this forum and possibly thins thread should be entirely irrelevant to them.

I disagree with this. There's no reason that this section can't be useful for straight K&K brewers. This thread? Well, maybe this is purely a semantic issue but perhaps it is relevant to them if they wish to defend themselves?

I say that as someone who happily answers every single question about why an airlock isn't making any noise.

True. Always good, unbiased advice.

 

[Bribie G]

I've been AG since November but I've got some cans of Coopers Stout in the garage waiting to be turned into toucans, and I know for a fact that there are AG'ers on the forum who have been known to run up a kits n LDME beer or three when their AG stocks are low or they are too flat out to do a brewday. So there's still a place for kits for the more 'advanced' brewers and there are heaps of people out there who do not have the time or cash to get into AG. Guy round the corner from me has a keg setup and quite happily feeds it Morgans + dex + cluster + SO4 and is more than happy.

A note to the poster who complains about the jargon and 'clubbyness' of the forum, as you will find out there are so many hundreds of ingredients, practices and hardware that we would take us twice as long to do a post if we had to expand every acronym or laboriously elaborate on every term. I used to be irritated by all the 'code words' myself when I got back into brewing, especially the yeast names that used to drive me crazy. Nowadays I've got the hang of most of it and would much rather read a line such as "TTL goes great on TF MO as well as GP and preferably 1469 if you can get it" Than "The UK bitter Timothy Taylor Landlord Bitter goes great on Thomas Fawcett (Floor Malted) Maris Otter Pale Malt as well as Golden Promise Pale malt and preferably Wyeast 1469 West Yorkshire Bitter liquid yeast if you can get it".

It's like every hobby, not unlike electronics etc. and it becomes second nature after a while.

 

[O'Henry]

To be fair a lot of experienced brewers spoke up for kit brewers and brewing. I'm not particularly experienced but I also spoke up for it - passionately and vehemently.

Also all the acronyms and corresponding definitions can be found here: http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum/inde...;showarticle=17 and here: http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum/inde...;showarticle=15

Thanks so much for these links. I never want to ask cause it is annoying for regular posters but this should see me scratching my head and making up my own acronyms a lot less now.

 

[Nick JD]

I'm an expert at everything I do. I can't understand why everyone else isn't. I like to go to children's sporting matches and yell at the referee. I also yell at the TV because I'm more knowledgeable about all sport than the people hired to coach it. Politicians? They're all idiots.

People on the road don't know how to drive - I could probably get round Bathurst faster than Brockie.

No one knows they are drinking bad beer. I can make beer that's better than all the fools know.

They are all idiots.

I have no friends. :huh:

 

[uniiqueuser]

I'm an expert at everything I do. I can't understand why everyone else isn't. I like to go to children's sporting matches and yell at the referee. I also yell at the TV because I'm more knowledgeable about all sport than the people hired to coach it. Politicians? They're all idiots.

People on the road don't know how to drive - I could probably get round Bathurst faster than Brockie.

No one knows they are drinking bad beer. I can make beer that's better than all the fools know.

They are all idiots.

I have no friends. :huh:

LOL!!!!!

You must be my long lost clone

I first started brewing nearly 20 years ago and all I've done is K&K, except for a while I was chucking in 500 gms of honey per fermenter which created an interesting taste.

I have never tried to clone a commercial beer. I have developed a taste for my brew and even though it is basic, as I have found out from reading this forum, I open every bottle with the relief that it is going to taste far better than the 'popular' alternatives from the bottle shop, and cost far less as well.

I knew that AG existed and one day I will getaroundtoit when I run out of excuses.....

Nothing improves without resistance. I used to think I was a shit hot homebrewer until I had a look at the efforts that you guys go to, and the noobie should be encouraged to try a little harder to create a better beer.

Or not... if what they are making blows their hair back. People are individuals and individuality should be encouraged above all else. As for being discouraged because I think more 'adventurous' brewers might look down on me... nah!!! The information in this forum, as in other forums, is very enlightening, but definitely does nothing to dent my massive ego.

 

[manticle]

I disagree with this. There's no reason that this section can't be useful for straight K&K brewers. This thread? Well, maybe this is purely a semantic issue but perhaps it is relevant to them if they wish to defend themselves?

What I was trying to get at was that if someone purely wants to make beer from a kit and a kilo of sugar and has NO interest in trying anything else and is happy with what they are doing (as suggested in the post I was responding to) then they are unlikely to need advice. Of course KK brewers can get something from this forum and it doesn't necessitate that one day they'll all be all grainers. I love learning and I've gone from KK through all the stages to partial mashing and I aim to be all grain brewing soon but I never judge people for the stage they're at nor the stage they see as their ultimate (be it kit or grain). I'm the first to speak up against AG/anti-VB snobbery, despite loving the idea of process, fresh ingredience and quality.

@Nick JD: Spot on

 

[mwd]

It was just a trolling thread common on all forums.

Don't feed the trolls.

internet trolls.........bite my buttocks

got to 6 pages a trolling masterpiece from the first post :icon_vomit:

 

[bum]

Manticle, I wasn't getting at the idea that K&K brewer can learn stuff to add to kits to make better beers (which is both possible and advisable) - I was suggesting that there are things that may improve their beers while still staying straight K&K - i.e. yeast, temp control, sanitation, etc (as we know the literature under the lid is no real help here).

As for the stuff about you, I'm sorry if I've said anything you (or anyone else) has taken personally. What I said above was serious and I'm not sure you need to defend yourself like that.

[edit: typing like a drunk - not sure what causes that?]

 

[kenlock]

At the end of the day, this is a caring and sharing forum.

We share a passion for beer, and care that others should be enjoying the best drop that they can make.

We debate, discuss and offer opinions. We care greatly about what we drink, and more than happily share the knowledge we have gained throughout our journeys.


Hmm. Now I'm off to tend some sheep with my best mate!

 

[manticle]

Manticle, I wasn't getting at the idea that K&K brewer can learn stuff to add to kits to make better beers (which is both possible and advisable) - I was suggesting that there are things that may improve their beers while still staying straight K&K - i.e. yeast, temp control, sanitation, etc (as we know the literature under the lid is no real help here).

As for the stuff about you, I'm sorry if I've said anything you (or anyone else) has taken personally. What I said above was serious and I'm not sure you need to defend yourself like that.

[edit: typing like a drunk - not sure what causes that?]

Mate you haven't said (or written) a single thing I've found offensive. My 'defence' is simply me trying to clarify my position as I'd hate to be misunderstood. There's certainly no need for you to apologise (unless that was you that took a dump on my back lawn?)

I was talking purely about people who are 'happy doing what they are doing with kits' to potentially misquote a recent new poster in this thread. Anyone who is interested in anything, whether temp control, yeast choice or hop teabags is basically in the same game as far as I can understand. Those people are not 'happy' they're seeking knowledge. Doesn't have to be the ants' pants pinnacle of knowledge but I admire passion and curiosity in anyone.