egg, it took forever to get the wine forum..I seriously doubt that GW would grant one..however wine and beer are made by the same in many cases> I would recommend you post your questions here...IMO ... what do the rest of you have to say??? I don't care... Its' been a while since I have made beer, I drink Milwaukees Best, and found it cheaper to buy than make it..I do not like a stronger beer as I usually drink one..and then I gotta have one more and one more as I enjoy the taste so much, I do not like headaches in the morning! LOL

I agree with fedup321 ... try to post here and see what you get to generate interest before going to GW. I haven't brewed a normal beer in a while, going mostly for medieval recreations of braggots and gruit ales, but some of the knowledge should translate and it's always fun to talk about something that you don't have to wait a couple of years to see if you made a mistake.

Sounds good. Let's see what happens

I have homemade beer all the time. For one thing it is cheaper, and it tastes better. The name of the beer we buy is Munton's. I think it comes for England.

Well, I'm a beer snob and would love to hear other peoples recommendations on beers other than the standard "white bread American Pilsners". While there is nothing wrong with a good Pilsner I also like other styles. Usually I go for a red ale or brown ale although I'm likely to try just about anything. The current favorite in my beer fridge is Otter Creek Copper Ale, although I've also never had anything from Sam Adams or Saranac that I haven't liked.

My husband has been homebrewing for the past 9 years. I love homebrew! Our favorites are belgian style beers. If you like good beer and haven't had a Belgain your in for a treat...the BEST! He's cloned many varities including Sierra Nevada, their Pale ale and their celbration. Delirium (a belgian), barley wines (very strong, very intense), summer brews. He has yet to make Lager's as they need a cooler temp to ferment and we just haven't gotten around to getting a dedicated fridge for that!
It is cheaper to brew, but you really have to enjoy it as it requires fanatical sterilizing in order to keep unwanted bacteria out. We get about 2 cases per batch and supplies cost anywhere from $30-40, which is around (the $30 mark) what we spend on a single case (for the beer we like).

Although he hasn't brewed in a while because of the last 5 batches he made 4 were bad. First time it's happened, we think it was our water (we have Well water) and we had a leak in our well pipe, so perhaps some foreign stuff got in there and tainted the beer. He needs to start back up again because we only have about 6 bottles of homebrew left!

I would think a homebrew forum would be great. Also questions about the many microbrews out there would be very informative. Although I think it could be incorporated into this forum. Perhaps they could change the name to wine and beer forum?

Sierra Nevada pale ale... one of my faves.

The bummer is that DH can no longer drink because he has developed an allergy to hops. It is not the alcohol, since it happens when he drinks NA beer as well. He gets serious sinus infections if he drinks beer which he loved... very sad.

When I buy good beer for myself though, I always buy him some gourmet soda or something.

For a beer without hops, do a search on gruit ales. These are made with many other herbs to supply the bittering and create a really interesting and different flavor.

I don't know of any commercial breweries making it though it's really easy to do if you homebrew. For the holiday season, I have one ready now that uses mostly mint family plants (thyme, oregano and spearmint) and has a very dry, crisp taste. The other thing about gruits is that they don't make you anywhere as sleepy as hopped beers do.

Oh goodness...alergic to hops? NOOOOOOOOOO!
I am a home brewer and a wine maker and I would enjoy the beer forum as well.
I enjoy all types of beer but have a special for the black and tans/stouts.
Ray

Another part-time brewer here. I haven't made any in years, but I used to love making (and drinking) porters. It amazed me that they improve in the bottle, and 2 year old porter is smooth indeed. I used to get my supplies from William's. I don't even know if they're still around, but I always had the best success w/ their products.

I really enjoy the seasonals. I'm partial to the ales, but enjoy them all, with each having their place.

I have a bud who just started brewing and I'm thinking of doing the same by starting small. Anything I can learn and avoid from the start would be appreciative for sure.

Maybe the folks at Gardenweb could just change the name of this forum to 'Wine & Beer'.

I used to brew my own beer and am thinking about getting back in to it. Problem with good homebrew is that it's SO good, it's easy to put on the pounds...

I agree. Many home-brewers such as I grow their own hops as well as grapes.