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Welcome to the fascinating world of home brewing. The oldest known recipe in the world is for beer and it dates back 5,000 years. We pride ourselves in helping home brewers achieve success in their fermentations. Beginning brewing is simple and fun and we have designed this website to help you find the information you need as well as the products you need so you can get started. |
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Once you have brewed one or two batches of our starter kits you will become familiar with the basic process and will be ready to move past kits in no time. You can then begin designing your own recipes or have us find you one in our database of over 300 recipes. Once you begin brewing and become comfortable with this hobby, the more fascinating it will become. Brewing is relatively easy to do right away, but you can spend the rest of your life refining the process.
Our 32 page catalog/newsletter will get you started with instructions for beginners, starter equipment kits to make 5 gallons as low as $99.99 and our own award winning ingredient kits starting at $32.99.
We're here to show you the way. Call us today for a free catalog or for advice 707 544-2520.
BEER RECIPESBREWING ARTICLESOnce you have the right equipment and ingredients, you're ready to make delicious, handcrafted beer using the following time-honored process!
One of the most important aspects of any fermentation is keeping your equipment sanitary. This article outlines the basic steps and products for keeping it clean.
With six easy steps, your beer will be all set for carbonating in the bottle.
Use this chart to prepare for a brew.
A reference guide for brewing malts including base malts, specialty malts, as well as non-barley malts
A description of a few books on homebrewing that really stand out and should be in every homebrewer's library.
How to take care of a used whiskey barrel.
Greg Noonan has been brewing for a number of years, but he really burst on the national homebrew scene in 1986 with the publication of his book, Brewing Lager Beer. This book discussed such topics as water treatment and decoction mashing in ways home brewing literature had not yet experienced.
Most brewers don't worry about the fine points of water treatment until they become somewhat advanced. However, those who do venture into this area often find the rewards significant.
It's a temptation to lump all beginning home brewers together as a single entity, the 'beginning brewer', but experience tells me no such stereotype exists.
Home brewers sometimes show an aversion to the practice of bottling. Over the years, we've been able to codify that into something we like to call Burch's Third Law: “The tendency of a home brewer to look favorably on the idea of kegging homebrew is directly proportional to the number of bottles washed during the course of one's home brewing career.”
A better solution for speeding up carbonation would be to use a Carbonating Stone. This is a piece of stainless steel, perforated throughout with a huge number 0.5 - 2 micron holes.
We wanted two beers that would fully qualify as distinct under the 2004 style guidelines of the Beer Judge Certification Program-www.BJCP.org-from the combined runnings all boiled together. How to do it?
My answer is a resounding, “Yes, but…”
Vinnie Cilurzo brewer and co-owner, with wife Natalie, of Russian River Brewing Company, was very generous in sharing information with me about this year’s Pliny the Younger. With Vinnie’s help I was able to formulate my own homebrew version of this beer.
Learn to brew an "IPA" in any color. Includes instructions on recipe design for American IPA, Black IPA, Wheat IPA, and Rye IPA.
This is a detailed description of the characteristics of Baltic Porter.
Using fresh fruit to make beer is a completely different process and more challenging than adding a bottle of flavoring into your keg or bottling bucket. Sean explains how to do it.
Looking for something different to brew? Looking to impress your friends with a brew like nothing they have ever experienced before? Ever thought of adding herbs, spices or flowers to your beer?
While many brewers are happy with extract brewing for a long time, many others get the urge to exercise more control and creativity over their homebrews. If that’s the way you feel, you may be ready to move on up to all-grain brewing. Three main areas are impacted by a decision to go all-grain: processes, equipment, and ingredients.
If you’ve tried a light sorghum beer—or even if you haven’t—you may want to take your own voyage on the beer I call Black Pearl Buckwheat Chocolate Brown! We have a discussion article as well as the recipe alone.
Engineer your system to operate with ease by incorporating stainless steel cam and groove quick disconnect fittings.
The use of barrels in brewing is not a new idea. They have been used historically as fermentors, such as the Burton Union systems popular a century ago in Burton-upon-Trent; they have transported beer to the far flung corners of the British Empire, as India Pale Ales were shipped from England around the world in wooden casks; also they have been used to impart oak and aged flavors in many beers out of Belgium such as Flanders Red Ale, Lambic, and Geuze.
This article is a discussion of ideas on brewing with flowers. The recipe for “True Brew” Hibiscus Wheat Ale is printed here for the adventurous brewer to try, too.
Byron tells the story of the Epicenter Imperial Stout that he brewed with Nancy Vineyard and tasted 14 years later.
"Fermenatation is what we do. Let us guide you on your brewing journey."