Ways to make beer ...
OVER the past 12 months or so this column has highlighted some cracking breweries and beautiful beers from Scotland and further afield.
While some of these breweries go back decades, and some a few centuries, most are recent start-ups, part of a worldwide wave of new breweries pumping out beer of exceptional quality.
Most of the men and women behind these new breweries began their career homebrewing in their kitchen or garage, honing their craft with a plastic bucket, some malt, hops, yeast and water.
Homebrewing is so versatile. You can do it cheap with a plastic bucket and a kitchen kettle or throw cash at stainless steel kits. You can know almost nothing about science or you can nourish a passion for yeast strains, enzymes and alpha acids. You can do it alone, though it’s better with pals. And best of all, the end product is the world’s greatest drink.
Speak to any professional brewer and they’ll probably tell you they started off homebrewing. It’s how brewing behemoths such as BrewDog began life. BrewDog recently published their entire recipe book, meaning anyone can clone their beers.) It’s also the backstory to the mighty Williams Brothers of Alloa, whose own journey began in the wee homebrew shop Glen Brew in Yoker, Glasgow.
Glen Brew is still there. As are the Brew Store in Edinburgh, Higher Ground in Aberdeen and J&JS Horne in Thurso, to name but a few homebrew shops, all catering to a massing army of amateur brewers. Online stores too, such as the venerable Home Brew Shop or more recent Malt Miller, have also tapped into the growing passion for the world’s greatest hobby.
So here are four ways to start homebrewing.
COOPER’S STARTER PACK
Widely available, the Cooper’s kit is the traditional starter pack for most homebrewers. For about £60 you pretty much get all you need to begin brewing beer, including barrel, bottles, hydrometer and starter ingredients. Simply add water to the malt extract to create a wort, then chuck in your dried hops and yeast and wait for the magic to happen. Balliihoo offer a similar set-up.
ALL-GRAIN
From kits, the next step is all-grain brewing, the method that gives you the best results, greatest choice and most control. Instead of a malt extract, you create wort by steeping malted grain in hot water that you then drain, then boil with added hops. Once cooled in a fermentation vessel, you add the yeast and cross your fingers. “Brew in a bag” or “three vessel” brewing are two popular methods. Cost and sophistication vary massively but you can probably put a decent kit together for
between £200 and £300.
THE GRAIN FATHER
If money isn’t an issue, but time is, consider an all-in-one kit such as the Grainfather for about £600. Simple to use, quick to clean, it’s a brilliant piece of kit that delivers great results. If money really isn’t an issue, consider the Braumeister brewing system for about £1200.
TRAINING DAY
Edinburgh is the capital choice for anyone wanting to master the craft. Brew Store offers a variety of brewing classes from £35, or you can brew (and keep) your own at Stewart Brewing’s Craft Beer Kitchen (from £185) or new venture Krafty Brew (from £199). If you’re really serious, consider the BSc or MSc in Brewing and Distilling at Heriot-Watt University.