I was just wondering cause some of you guys brew some serious quantities of beer. Either you are a bunch of raging alcoholics or you are able to give a lot away. What gives?
I have been brewing extract mostly and bottling for over two years now. When I started out I was brewing about once a month. now it is much less cause I don’t really drink that much. Im down to about three four beers per week. :o except for occasions. I have a basement full of filled bottles that need emptying cause I have some carboys with beer and cider that needs some bottles. It is a catch 22.
Work, kid, responsibilities are getting in the way of my brewing and drinking. Damn it.
I want to build the brew stand. I want to have the keg system. I want all that stuff and I can build it all myself. For me a lot of the fun is building it and seeing the finished product.
My goal (not in this house but the next) I want the fridge basement prep kitchen/lab and bar with taps and all. But truth is I dont drink much. I may still do it one day but it is hard to justify. It is great for making friends though, isn’t it?
I only drink a little during the week but I like to knock 'em back liberally on the weekend. In fact, it’s not too early for one now AFAIK. 8) I have 2 systems, one a 10 gallon system and one that can easily handle a little over 40 gallons. But that system is only 25% mine and when I brew on it the beer gets split between me and my partners. That said, I am planning on brewing 20 gallons of kolsch on it this week sometimes strictly for my personal consumption. My wife will drink most of it though.
I limit myself to 5 gallon batches because I want to brew as often as possible. I do drink a decent amount of it but I wouldn’t be able to keep up with my brewing if it was just me. So I do give a decent amount away, maybe a third of what I brew on average.
I brew 5 or less gallon batches. it enables me to brew more often. I drink 1 beer an evening during the week and maybe 2-3 on the weekends, so I’m not going to be able to consume all I make. My brews have also been too hoppy for my miller lite wife ;-). I share a good portion at poker nights, local home brew club meetings, and other quarterly parties with friends. So I must give away 50% of what I brew.
I switched to kegging, 3 full kegs, and 4 cases of home brew. Need to make room for a mead, cider, and wine that are getting close to bottling time.
Then there are 3-4 recipes I’m anxious to make - so will scale to 3 gallon so i don’t drown in my own beer.
I think it has a lot to do with the fact that I am more into the process than I am the product. Just like with cooking.
Dont get me wrong. I love beer, but it has more to do with learning about beer, and the cultures behind the recipes. setting up the gear. brewing, fermenting and bottling. I love it. It is a meditation.
Then to pour the beer and hear that sound as the head forms. I love the sip but I really, really love the fact that It was me that made the beer.
You have to ask my liver after it gets back from rehab!
I wish I could share my beer locally with friends,I get very few visitors. Those that know me understand! I do have some outlets to get rid of it other than my wife and me. I have been known to dump alot of beer. Beerfests and the club is a good way to dump beer.
I brew 5 gallon batches, every 4 to 6 weeks on average. I give away about a case/batch, maybe more. I have a beer a night, after the kids are in bed, sometimes two, sometimes none.
I, too enjoy the brewing as much as the tasting - I should give away more so that I can brew more.
Typically brew 12 gallon batches. Must admit that I drink the bulk of it, though my friends can put a respectable dent in the kegs when they come over.
For me it is the Process of brewing. The Science. The Art. Then holding up a glass of pretty decent brew and saying I made this!
Since I drink most of the beer myself, I don’t have to brew but once a month or more.
I give away most of beers I made.
I drink about one beer a day and I have a lot of happy neighbors
Great part of this hobby is to share your beer with someone else.
I’ve already given away 50 gallons of homebrew this year! :-[
That’s not exactly normal for me, but now that I have a 5 tap jockey box, it’s hard to not put it to use! I do usually bring growlers wherever I go to not spend more $$$ on beer and share as well…
I probably average a little more than a pint a day (some days none, some days several) - so I can’t drink all of what I brew. But, I have help. Depending on what I have on tap, my wife is usually good for a few pints a week - and her palate is broadening, so she’s helping more. My son (23) lives with us, and his girlfriend is often around - so they help, too. His girlfriend is a total hophead, and really likes IPAs, IIPAs, etc. And, in the summer, my daughter (21) is home from college and does her best to pitch in, too.
We usually have two or three gatherings over the year, each of which is good for blowing a keg or two. Last July 4th some family came over and 16 of us drank a whole keg of Cream Ale over the day. We knocked off another keg of Pale Ale on Labor Day. And, I have an OktoBEERfest! each year that I brew four German styles for (20 gallons) - and we go through most of that in a day since we have 40-50 guests.
With the help and gatherings, we go through enough beer that I brew around 20-25 batches a year, including a few 10-gallon batches. Like others, I enjoy the process, the tinkering, and learning about and brewing different styles a lot. It’s to the point that my wife asks me what brewing plans I have just about every week. There’s always something to do - brew, rack, build equipment, shop for ingredients, etc.
Same here…but I will usually do double or triple batches of my long aged Xmas Ales and my IPA… I will consume a fair amount of both, but also give quite a bit of those beers away (probably close to half) especially to those on my xmas list.
Nice - Wish I still lived in VA, I would have gone too. Since I live in WA now, I dont have as many friends to share my beers with, but those that I do know have no problem drinking a few beers with me. I generally don’t drink Sun - Wednesday, but my wife and I will have a few beers on Thurs, Friday, Saturday. I live in a condo, so I brew small AG batches about 3.5 gallons on average. I will keg 2 beers, then bottle whatever is finished fermenting. I like learning and improving technique and recipe creation as much as I enjoy the finished product.
