Hi Everyone - I Wanna Tell You a Story

[Yorkshire Bob]

Hello everyone. I'm Bob and I live in South Yorkshire UK and I'd like to introduce myself a little.

The wrong end of 40 with a little previous experience with homebrewing from kits althought this was 28 years ago. Recently I decided to start again and have reaquired some of the equipment I need and have set 2 kits going at present which are the Geordie Bitter 40 pint kit and the Coopers English Bitter 40 pint kit. All is looking well so far with the Geordie kit starting week 2 of bottle conditioning and the Coopers kit ready for bottling tonight or tomorrow.

Just a little brew story here. Whilst I needed some new gear to start over again one thing I didn't need was enough brown glass bottles as I knew I had them in the cellar as I'd dragged them from place to place to rest in my home now where I've been for twenty years. I brought up the two dusty and damp crates with bottles and set them down to clean and sterilise and to remove 28 years of 'dead things' and cobwebs.
I was more than surprised to see 9 bottles with crown caps still firmly on. The caps were rusted and had the Guiness logo yet barely visible. Now I don't remember doing any Guiness style brews so was not sure what to expect. I had done a Geordie and what I think was a Tom Caxtons 66 (as I recall but may be wrong) However I was excited to be lifting the cap on a 28 year old bottle of home brew.

Psssht..., the hiss and visible whisp of smoke exhausted as the cap rattled across the worktop. I sniffed the dark liquid and remembered the sweet aroma of a time gone by. I was all a quiver as I poured the jet-black liquid down the side of the glass to the sound of a deep and rich hushing. I looked though the glass as I held it up to the warm and low pre-autumn sunshine whereupon I could see no light only the widescreen refection of my own handsome (ahem) fizog.

Memories flooded back to that party in '84 I had made my brews especially for. The sound of Bob Geldof and crew singing 'Do they know it's Christmas' for the Band Aid cause for aid in poverty stricken Ethiopia.

Enough - now was the time. I tilted the glass and sipped below the slowly disappearing froth, and then drank deeply into the glass whilst exhaling through my nose to capture any flavour nuances so as not to lose them to that moment. My disappointment was palpable. My heart sank as the sweet liqourish-esqe darlky slid to the pit of my stomach where it lay flat and heavy, and dull.

As quickly as I remembered the excitement of those times brewing for that party I also remembered one of the reasons for me not continuing to home brew... and there were 8 more reminders sat on that worktop.

However I do expect now to make ammends as I believe I owe it to myself - and this is why I am here :)

Cheers all!

 

[31bb3]

Welcome to the forum the kits have improved drastically over the years go for the 2 can kits they are better than the 1 can bag of sugar or how about going the whole hog and trying biab or ag

 

[dennisking]

Hi and welcome, we hold an annual meet each year, the spring thing, click on link on the top of the page for details.

 

[Andy.H]

welcome :)

 

[Moley]

That's the best introduction I've read for quite some time :thumb:

Welcome to the forum :

 

[pittsy]

welcome to the forum ,

 

[PD]

Hi I'm from S Yorkshire too Maltby where are you ?

 

[Davybarman]

Hi and Welcome :

Shame about the vintage beer :hmm:

 

[joe1002]

Welcome to the forum : Great intro.

 

[bobsbeer]

Welcome. : Seems there are a few of us who brewed in the early 80's and then stopped for a good few years. Funny that we are slowly coming back. It must be in our genes. Or the crap they serve as beer these days. :grin: Welcome back.

 

[Yorkshire Bob]

Thanks for the welcome fellas.

I can't tell you how excited I feel about getting to grips with my homebrewing anew and to be honest for the last few weeks I have had nothing more in my head than the thoughts of enjoying something I have produced myself, and I can assure you there is plenty of available space in there. I bake bread, cook and I grow greenhouse food and this to me tickles those very same spots of production and variety - with associated levels of expertise, from novice to expert (if one can believe there are such creatures).

I will do some serious reading of these forums and in a short time I suspect I will be asking some questions of my own, so I look forward to speaking to you soon.

Hi piddledribble, I live in Doncaster! : everyone.

 

[Northern Brewer]

Hi piddledribble, I live in Doncaster! : everyone.

I lived in Armthorpe and Edenthorpe just outside Doncaster for about 20 years - went to school there. :thumb:

Welcome aboard Bob :

 

[Yorkshire Bob]

Welcome. : Seems there are a few of us who brewed in the early 80's and then stopped for a good few years. Funny that we are slowly coming back. It must be in our genes. Or the crap they serve as beer these days. :grin: Welcome back.

Hey Bob

I'm sure there are many who are on our second flush but I can say from my perspective I have a whole new and rather different attitude and approach to the hobby as can only come with time and maturity. I'm sure when we are younger we look at beer in the light of wanting to wrap our stomach lining around as much of it as possible and sometimes in the shortest possible time. I know I did.

But now, I want quality and I want satisfaction and I want to know I have created a living and breathing entity which lifts my spirits and warms my heart. The knowledge that we are continuing something that is deep within man that can be only explained as a deep primeval desire. This is now what drives me to want to produce such a liquor'
Then and only then, do I want to wrap my stomach lining around as much of it as possible and sometimes in the shortest possible time...

 

[Yorkshire Bob]

[quote="Yorkshire Bob":3fgijukr]
Hi piddledribble, I live in Doncaster! : everyone.

I lived in Armthorpe and Edenthorpe just outside Doncaster for about 20 years - went to school there. :thumb:

Welcome aboard Bob :[/quote:3fgijukr]

:shock: I lived in Edenthorpe and went to Edenthorpe Junior school and then at 11 went to Armthorpe Comprehensive School and left in '79.

Locals were The Ridgewood, Beverly Arms, Hollybush and The Glassmaker (now called The Glasshouse)

Using this as a guide could I know you? :hmm:

 

[Northern Brewer]

Possibly, I left Armthorpe comp in '78 and worked in the Ridgewood for a while.

PM Sent

 

[PD]

I originally came fromt'otherside Bentley, where men were men and the women were grateful. sister in law still lives Armthorpe.
I left there in 1970.... a long long time ago it seems.

 

[Moley]

for the last few weeks I have had nothing more in my head than the thoughts of enjoying something I have produced myself, and I can assure you there is plenty of available space in there. I bake bread, cook and I grow greenhouse food and this to me tickles those very same spots of production and variety - with associated levels of expertise, from novice to expert (if one can believe there are such creatures).

It sounds to me like you could be an ideal candidate and it probably won't be long before you're on the slippery slope to the 'dark side' of All Grain brewing.

I also made wines and the occasional kit beers back in the mid 70s to early 80s and then took a long break, resuming in earnest in 2009.

One can 'budget' beer kits plus a bag of sugar have come on in leaps and bounds during that period and can now yield something almost worth drinking. The problem is that sugar adds nothing to a brew apart from alcohol, so those beers can be rather thin and will lack body unless you start tweaking the kits by using malt extracts in place of some or all of that sugar and maybe using some additional hops.

Two can 'premium' kits give you double the amount of concentrated wort and get all their fermentables from the malted grains involved, no extra sugar is required, and if made properly they should turn out on a par with anything you can buy in the pub or with the majority of mass produced bottled beers from the supermarkets.

However, as you bake, cook and grow your own food, I can see you being tempted by the prospects of All Grain before very long.

AG allows you to truly craft something of your own and gives you total control over what you brew. You will learn what balance of grains give your beer the body you prefer and which hops appeal to your palate. There are even a few of those experts on this forum to guide you. I am quite competent but am not vainglorious and don't claim that title.

Get the basics of hygiene, fermentation and conditioning sorted out first with kit brews though, because AG requires some study, a fair bit of equipment (which doesn't need to cost a lot if you can turn your hands to a bit of DIY) and a full mash brew will take up a significant chunk of your time, typically 5-6 hours, but that's the way to go if you want your beers to knock spots off anything you can buy elsewhere.

 

[BarnsleyBrewer]

Welcome Bob.. :thumb:

BB

 

[Northern Brewer]

I originally came fromt'otherside Bentley, where men were men and the women were grateful. sister in law still lives Armthorpe.
I left there in 1970.... a long long time ago it seems.

I remember Bentley well, not been back there for years.

Looking forward to meeting up with some old mates in Doncaster soon, it used to be a really good night out in town. Mason's, Salutation, Biscuit Billy's, and the mucky duck with the tallest bar in the UK. Probably all changed now.

 

[Yorkshire Bob]

for the last few weeks I have had nothing more in my head than the thoughts of enjoying something I have produced myself, and I can assure you there is plenty of available space in there. I bake bread, cook and I grow greenhouse food and this to me tickles those very same spots of production and variety - with associated levels of expertise, from novice to expert (if one can believe there are such creatures).

It sounds to me like you could be an ideal candidate and it probably won't be long before you're on the slippery slope to the 'dark side' of All Grain brewing.

I also made wines and the occasional kit beers back in the mid 70s to early 80s and then took a long break, resuming in earnest in 2009.

One can 'budget' beer kits plus a bag of sugar have come on in leaps and bounds during that period and can now yield something almost worth drinking. The problem is that sugar adds nothing to a brew apart from alcohol, so those beers can be rather thin and will lack body unless you start tweaking the kits by using malt extracts in place of some or all of that sugar and maybe using some additional hops.

Two can 'HAD TO REMOVE BECAUSE OF SILLY SPAM FILTER - it was the word PREEMIUM' kits give you double the amount of concentrated wort and get all their fermentables from the malted grains involved, no extra sugar is required, and if made properly they should turn out on a par with anything you can buy in the pub or with the majority of mass produced bottled beers from the supermarkets.

However, as you bake, cook and grow your own food, I can see you being tempted by the prospects of All Grain before very long.

AG allows you to truly craft something of your own and gives you total control over what you brew. You will learn what balance of grains give your beer the body you prefer and which hops appeal to your palate. There are even a few of those experts on this forum to guide you. I am quite competent but am not vainglorious and don't claim that title.

Get the basics of hygiene, fermentation and conditioning sorted out first with kit brews though, because AG requires some study, a fair bit of equipment (which doesn't need to cost a lot if you can turn your hands to a bit of DIY) and a full mash brew will take up a significant chunk of your time, typically 5-6 hours, but that's the way to go if you want your beers to knock spots off anything you can buy elsewhere.

Hi Moley.

I have been looking at the equipment required for all or partial grain brewing and yet for now am just happy to get started again as time for me is plentiful, but finances aren't as I am currently unemployed :| I am aiming towards greater future but am happy where I am for now. Dare to dream eh? LOL

Hi BarnsleyBrewer :)

Hey piddledribble. There was a particular club in Bentley that used to have good rock bands on which myself and friends used to visit on a Saturday night as biker/rockers and yet I can't remember it now. One band was Limelight who were like 'Rush' and had a spinning police light and a siren. Very well known club back in the early '80's... it's on the tip of my tongue! :) EDIT - it was The Yarborough (sp) :lol:

In Doncaster I frequented Beethams and later the Woolpack and the Black Bull in the Market Place. Then later on to the Sal and The White Bear and also that Rocker pub next to the Gaumont Cinema (now demolished) which I can't believe I have forgotten, as a young musician amongst those that just wanted to be... all the pretenders went there