Increasing numbers going AG.

[keith1664]

Good theories, I believe the bit about the gnarly old brewers to be particularly true

 

[dennisking]

along with a bunch of gnarled old brewers who've been at it since the start of time

Careful lads its because of us old farts who carried on supporting HB shops after boots stopped selling ingredients and before the net started selling them the hobby survived. Like to think us gnarled old brewers helped pave the way for strength of the craft now. So maybe the young whippersnappers should doff their caps to the pickled liver brigade. :)

 

[Virgilartois]

We do. If it weren't for you, that 1st year and 2-5 year AG brewer number would be tiny. And we'd be making miserable crap as well. Here's to the old farts, teaching the young farts!

 

[Good Ed]

+1

Raise a glass to the gnarled old farts :drink: :drink: :drink:

 

[dennisking]

Just bear in mind I never looked anything like the men on that book cover, honest

 

[evanvine]

along with a bunch of gnarled old brewers who've been at it since the start of time.

I say; steady on old chap, that's a bit near the bone!

 

[Nunfa1]

I have the very same 'sparklets' plastic keg in my shed, donated from a family friend who dabbled with kits in the seventees. The 'o'ring is missing and a bit of an odd size but I have fermented a TC in it successfully.

I'd love to do a 'Back to the Future' photo
http://irinawerning.com/back-to-the-fut ... he-future/

Is it the barrel with the big lid? O ring is about 4.5"? You can get one from a plumbing shop, you might have to buy a plastic waste pipe fitting and strip the washer out but it does work. I was given such a barrel when I first started and have done countless successful brews with it.

 

[mickeyt69]

I started AG in September last year and have done 15 upto now never looked back so much better than kits. :

 

[luckyeddie]

2 months in, I've now done 5 AG brews and I'm very pleased with myself. The Brown Porter is lovely and is getting some serious attention from a relation who seems to find rather too many excuses to visit for my beer stock's good. The 'Wee Heavy' ale is the missus's tipple of preference and I've now tried a sample of each of the two Belgian Golden Ales which are still a little young. The 'Sipping Belgian' is still in Primary Fermentation asd has just been 'double dropped' to get rid of a lot of garbage that came over after the boil.

I'm currently growing on some Chimay yeast and will use that for a Dubbel in a couple of weeks. I also need to get my act together and acquire another 6 or 7 dozen bottles PDQ and to complete my mash tun.

Happy days.

 

[luckyeddie]

Mind you I've had a few I've hatch to ditch which never happened with kit brewing.

Never ever ditched an AG, but have ditched a few kits!

I ditched a couple of kits in the early days when I was brewing in a polybag-lined bucket and sticking it in the airing cupboard with the nappies (ugh). Purchasing some steriliser, a FV and a pressure barrel 30 years ago put an end to that heartache.

 

[luckyeddie]

Just bear in mind I never looked anything like the men on that book cover, honest

I did. ok, I didn't - my hair was a lot longer, my shirts were tie-dyed and there would be a strange, aromatic smell coming from my cigarette. Actually, 35 years later, come to think of it, not a lot has changed.

 

[Virgilartois]

That's me as well. The waist line has increased and the hair line has decreased and my rollies just smell like baccy today.

 

[dennisking]

Can`t see those 2 on the book smoking Jamaican Woodbine's, look at those cardigans, don`t even wear ones like that now I`m in my 50`s.

 

[luckyeddie]

I reckon they both look wasted anyway.

 

[timbowden]

2 years!
cant brew at the moment as kitchen being ripped out :cry:

tim

 

[markp]

Those two fellas on the book look like something from an early Carry On film.....Sid James and Kenneth Williams anyone?? :lol:

As for the old farts; I'm very glad they are still around.....I wouldn't be making good beer like this if they weren't.
Pass me that rollie

 

[46.philh]

Well from the very small sample on the forum its great to see more of us joining the dark side. The more the better to increase suppliers and competition between them.

The prices some home brew shops charge for hops and grains is a scandal and a big barrier to entry for potential brewers going All Grain.

I wonder how we can increase the number of people to go all grain.

Maybe time for a new poll on the forum mods? (new topic) along the lines of... What do you think is stopping people going AG


e.g
Cost of Equipment
Cost of Ingredients.
Time
etc.

 

[Baz Chaz]

....... As for the old farts; I'm very glad they are still around.

I'm glad we're still around as well :whistle: :thumb: :lol:

 

[dennisking]

Even with LHBS prices its still economically better to brew AG, I just look on people like the malt miller as an added bonus. I never started brewing to save money, just to have a continuous supply cf cask conditioned beer at home.

 

[Aleman]

The prices some home brew shops charge for hops and grains is a scandal and a big barrier to entry for potential brewers going All Grain

:hmm: Yes I would agree. A few years ago we had a huge hop mountain, so much so that hops were being grubbed up, and Biofuel crops were replacing them as there was just no profit to the hop farmer for growing them. Then we had a couple of bad summers, there was a fire in the major US hop warehouse, and tornadoes decimated the German hop fields. . . Result That mountain vanished . . hop prices tripled . . .but like any retail industry . . . when wholesale prices go up . . . so do retail prices . . .when wholesale prices go down . . .Retail prices stay the same . . . in fact in this case, unless the retailer deals direct with the hop merchants the wholesale price stayed the same.

Now the numbers of all grain brewers is tiny compared to the number of kit brewers. in the UK there are not a lot of extract brewers, and unless (like Barley Bottom and the malt miller et al) you are going to concentrate specifically on dealing with All grain brewers the amount of inventory you must/need to stock is incredible . . . and it has a shelf life . . . hence the majority of LHBS keep token grain and hops in from Youngs and have not really moved out of the dark ages of the 1970's . . . In fact I despair of hearing the refrain "All Grain . . . Total waste of time that is . . . kits are just as good" . . whenever I visit a HBS in a new area.

Do not get me started on the 'business' practices of certain brewing wholesalers, :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: