29 replies to this topic

[Humperdink]

I have a few people and friends that brew. Some more serious than others. One friend in particular is really into it, but its more production. Also, given that, he's gonna cut corners with time to make 20 G a brewday. He and I go back and forth about my rest periods post chill etc. Anyway, I ran into a guy about a year ago who I went to school with. Really nice, smart guy. He always stood out in the crowd to me but we weren't friends, more acquaintances.. When I was working in the shop, he came in and I recognized him and we started talking. Anyway, long story short, this guy may brew better beer than me. Wow.Yeah, that's right. He's legit. He puts time, effort and thought into beer like I do. I generally meet people who like beer, but aren't willing to put the time in. This guy is methodical. He's me. It's insane to meet someone like that, also a little.... scary. I admit I"m unordinary.Same time, he makes me think. I like it. It's not what I"m used to. Is this what having a club is like?

[cavman]

I have a few people and friends that brew. Some more serious than others. One friend in particular is really into it, but its more production. Also, given that, he's gonna cut corners with time to make 20 G a brewday. He and I go back and forth about my rest periods post chill etc. Anyway, I ran into a guy about a year ago who I went to school with. Really nice, smart guy. He always stood out in the crowd to me but we weren't friends, more acquaintances.. When I was working in the shop, he came in and I recognized him and we started talking. Anyway, long story short, this guy may brew better beer than me. Wow.Yeah, that's right. He's legit. He puts time, effort and thought into beer like I do. I generally meet people who like beer, but aren't willing to put the time in. This guy is methodical. He's me. It's insane to meet someone like that, also a little.... scary. I admit I"m unordinary.Same time, he makes me think. I like it. It's not what I"m used to.Is this what having a club is like?

Don't know about clubs as it is not my style, but I enjoy a different point of view with the same passion level. The closest I have to a brew partner is Brauer, but we brew so differently. I am an intuition brew by feel type and he is very scientific, which makes sense if you know the two of us. I have never come close to meeting someone who thinks like I do on brewday, I can see why they brew how they do. I have never met anyone who brews by feel like I do though.

[Jdtirado]

I'm jealous. I bet it is nice to find a equal when your already a good brewer, but finding a mentor when you are first starting it has to be even better.

[Deerslyr]

Awesome for you. I miss having my "mentor" nearby.

[Jdtirado]

Awesome for you. I miss having my "mentor" nearby.

No mentor for me yet...all the guys are doing moonshine and meth!

[Jdtirado]

Is this what having a club is like?

Are you guys able to get together often enough, or is this a just casual passing for two brewers?

[SchwanzBrewer]

I have a few people and friends that brew. Some more serious than others. One friend in particular is really into it, but its more production. Also, given that, he's gonna cut corners with time to make 20 G a brewday. He and I go back and forth about my rest periods post chill etc. Anyway, I ran into a guy about a year ago who I went to school with. Really nice, smart guy. He always stood out in the crowd to me but we weren't friends, more acquaintances.. When I was working in the shop, he came in and I recognized him and we started talking. Anyway, long story short, this guy may brew better beer than me. Wow.Yeah, that's right. He's legit. He puts time, effort and thought into beer like I do. I generally meet people who like beer, but aren't willing to put the time in. This guy is methodical. He's me. It's insane to meet someone like that, also a little.... scary. I admit I"m unordinary.Same time, he makes me think. I like it. It's not what I"m used to.Is this what having a club is like?

Looks like you found your man crush, let BFB down gently for our sake.The club I am in is nothing like that. The club meetings are a party and an excuse to try some different beers. Mostly newbs and I don't mind helping them, but the way the meetings go its tough to have a serious discussion about beer. So far my competition group is composed of about 4-5 guys that are as hard core into knowledge and science of brewing and really making their beer the best it can be, and 3-4 newbs that just want to learn more, which I think is awesome. So finding someone that is at the same level or better than you that is as careful and caring about their beer is about like the comp group I am in so far. So my advice is plan a brew date with this guy and see what you guys are made of.Brew on!Cheers,Rich

[Humperdink]

Don't know about clubs as it is not my style, but I enjoy a different point of view with the same passion level. The closest I have to a brew partner is Brauer, but we brew so differently. I am an intuition brew by feel type and he is very scientific, which makes sense if you know the two of us. I have never come close to meeting someone who thinks like I do on brewday, I can see why they brew how they do. I have never met anyone who brews by feel like I do though.

MIne either. I"m not exactly the most socially adept, read comfortable, person you'll ever meet. I don't go to brewfests usually. We have a great club local (HAZE), but I don't really have much a desire to join up.

[Humperdink]

I'm jealous. I bet it is nice to find a equal when your already a good brewer, but finding a mentor when you are first starting it has to be even better.

I can tell you from experience, it is. My production brewing buddy is took me under his wing, especially regarding equipment. He's a serious tinkerer and an inveterate scrounger. Brewing frugality was a learned trait for me. IT also made upgrading and getting the right tool for the job much more realistic since I could make most anything I wanted/needed. Where we are different is the formulation and philosophical side of the house. He didn't think that taking the time to remove chlorine or adjust his water was worth it. HE was not going to step out from the 60 30 10 minute hop additions to try hop bursting etc. Just really old school. We wound up learning from each other which was really cool and mutually beneficial. HE doesn't brew now without running what he's doing by me. I wound up tweaking palmers spreadsheet with my own equations and his water profile so he can still correct his water without all the reading and time invested. It's actually pretty cool, high and low end generally accepted parameters that tell you add more or less depending on whether you toggle the balance to malty or hoppy etc.

[Humperdink]

No mentor for me yet...all the guys are doing moonshine and meth!

LOL< you could be from my dad's town.

[Humperdink]

Are you guys able to get together often enough, or is this a just casual passing for two brewers?

He's only a town over, so about a 15 minute drive or so. WE get together about once a month or so to do some quality control of beer, discuss ideas etc. His wife and my fiance get along really well too, so that's a serious bonus. I introduced him to my other buddy and seeing those two wig out on equipment ideas was really cool.

[Brauer]

Cavman was my brewing mentor when I started this much more serious second phase of my brewing life, and he really helped me jump right into all-grain by showing me how easy it was and how little equipment you needed to get started. Since he makes a much more varied range of beers than I do, he is also a great resource for how this yeast or that hop behaves.Having him close by also means that we can taste each other's beers and discuss the technique or ingredient used to get this or that flavor or effect. I think we've both found inspiration from each other's beers over the years, even though we do have very different approaches.

The closest I have to a brew partner is Brauer, but we brew so differently... I have never met anyone who brews by feel like I do though.

I know for a fact that I wouldn't have the first idea how to brew by feel. That leaves me brewing the only way I can, which is by trying to understand and control as many of the variables as I can, deciding what result I want, making the calculations needed to get me there, and adjusting the variables that I believe will allow me to brew that beer. And yes, if you knew me, you'd know that's exactly the way I run my lab, too.I certainly appreciate the results of your technique, though, even if I can't do it myself.

[Jdtirado]

He's only a town over, so about a 15 minute drive or so. WE get together about once a month or so to do some quality control of beer, discuss ideas etc. His wife and my fiance get along really well too, so that's a serious bonus. I introduced him to my other buddy and seeing those two wig out on equipment ideas was really cool.

Having the ladies get along is huge!

[MtnBrewer]

Is this what having a club is like?

In a club you'll have all levels of brewers. Usually the casual brewer who's not interested in improving his state of the art is not going to take the time to be in a club so you tend to have guys that are more serious about it. But the experience levels run the gamut from enthusiastic newbie to crusty veterans. But for the most part everybody's interested in beer or else they wouldn't be there.In our club, our meetings tend to go like this. Initial socializing until people stop trickling in. Meeting proper, discussion of club business, treasury report, upcoming events, vote on whether to buy a new mill, things like that. Then there's a raffle to raise money. After that it's more socializing. A good portion of the membership will bring a growler or two to share. That's when the serious brewing discussion occurs. "What's this?" "A hopbursted red rye ale." "Oh, I've heard about hopbursting, tell me more about it." "Well, ..." and so on.My first brew buddy here was a guy I worked with for a while. He sorta got me back into the hobby after I'd been out of it for a long time, took me to the local brew shops and all that. He was an extract brewer and he was ok at it but never seemed to really be interested in learning anything new or getting better at it. Rarely even tried a new recipe. All his beers tasted the same to me...like extract. He no longer lives here but he's still a good friend.After that I joined the club and met a guy who was on the old board by the name of Tito. He has also since moved but he had a nice 10 gallon system so we used to brew together every year at Big Brew. By the way BlKtRe, Tito called me by accident the other day...it was hilarious. Call me and I'll tell you the story.Now my brew buddy is a guy who was a mutual friend of me and the first guy I talked about. He's a good brewer and getting better. He made the jump to all grain fairly quickly after spending a few brew sessions with me. He's still learning but he has the desire to improve which to me is the key thing. If you brew "good enough" then you don't need a club and you don't need this forum and you'll probably always make beer about the same as you do now. If you have a quest for knowledge and a desire to see how good you can be, then that's where you can benefit from watching other people brew, talking to other people about how they brew and tasting the fruits of their labor.

[BlKtRe]

I started out brewing on my own after a not so serious co-worker got me started on some partial boil extract batches. I decided to go full bore and once I did I found myself on my own. I then joined a club. There I met some really good brewers who have been at it awhile. I also met a guy that had the same motivation and aspirations as me. We pushed each other hard with all aspects of brewing. I credit this guy and my club to where I am and where Im headed in the future as a brewer. You are lucky Cose that you hooked up with this guy. Take it for a spin and push each other with your own brewing. Amazing things will happen.

Edited by BlKtRe, 05 May 2012 - 10:48 AM.

[gnef]

I started out pretty much on my own without any mentor. I was able to get a few other guys interested to brew with me and share the costs (I started in college, so funds were low), and we shared the bottles. I didn't really join a brewclub until I moved to Atlanta. I would not have joined a brew club on my own, but I met cheflamont through the greenboard, and he introduced me to other brewers, and the group of us started a new club (I didn't really do much but participate). I have been going regularly since, and have been able to bring my beers and have others taste them.The biggest thing about clubs for me is the support. I would not have been able to build the walk-in cooler without their help, and I would not be brewing nearly as much as I do without them - we all get together for the pallets of grain. I have met some great brewers, and we can have good discussions on equipment, methods, ingredients, etc. We all brew differently, and it is great to see each others perspectives.

[Jdtirado]

Man I can't wait till I have a beer making history...remember when I was a newb? Oh wait I am a newb!

[zymot]

I am up in Folsom right now. Did you go to Orville this weekend?

[Genesee Ted]

Man I can't wait till I have a beer making history...remember when I was a newb? Oh wait I am a newb!

And this is why so many here are so willing to help. It is such a great thing to see someone who has the noob enthusiasm. Someday you will teach someone else to brew and you will see how into they get and how good their beer is. The best part about it is that they will always owe you beer

[cavman]

And this is why so many here are so willing to help. It is such a great thing to see someone who has the noob enthusiasm. Someday you will teach someone else to brew and you will see how into they get and how good their beer is. The best part about it is that they will always owe you beer

we both know it doesn't work like that. It is more like we will share beer as we brew it.