is AG worth the expense?

[czechneck]

I've just moved to BIAB. Had my first proper pints of it at the weekend and it was way better than any kit or extract brew. It was also better than many pints I've had in pubs. In fact, I'd paid £4 for a decent but not sensational pint in a craft ale pub in Bath the week before. My beer was just as good and massively cheaper - and it was my first AG brew (with which I made a few mistakes).

So if you're trying to brew the tastiest beer - AG is the way to go.

Agree though that the time it takes is much longer on a brew day. I'm averaging 6-7 hours on a brew day.

 

[Diggerg]

Time is not really a problem due to working shifts and having plenty of leave aswell.

 

[pittsy]

Brewing to me is in many ways like cooking , some are happy with a microwave meal ....ping 5 mins while others may enjoy a slow roast pork belly . The more you do often the better the final outcome however not everyone see's it that way . :thumb:

 

[jonnymorris]

Yes. If you can afford the time it's worth it. Personally, I enjoy the time spent brewing so for me it's a win win.

 

[calumscott]

People keep saying that AG is so much better than kits, but since kits can be as good as or better than commercial brews.... I don't really see the point. Maybe I need to taste some to appreciate the difference.

*Can*. For me to get kits brewed that tasted as good as good commercial beer (think Hooky or Wychwood standard) we were talking two can premium kits (Ritchie's Festival, Muntons Gold etc) or Premium single stuff like Better Brew made with liquid extract. You're talking the thick end of thirty quid a brew.

My BIAB AG is better. And I'm an AG noob. Goodness only knows how much better it could/will get with practise.

But then, everyone has their "can't be bothered pushing it further point". Haven't found mine yet...

 

[Midlife]

I'm currently extract brewing, and have had good quality beer, and Im going to take the next step because I just enjoy brewing and tasting the results! I was getting a bit hooked up on the process, but my brother recently did a TTL AG recipe returning after 15 years!! And it tastes great... He made me realise you don't need much techy stuff to get a good pint!

My next brew will be AG.

 

[graysalchemy]

You don't need much at all as Evanvine has pointed out Plastic bins or barrels can be converted very easily. I got up and running 3 yrs ago on about £100, and I still use the same kit now.

I have had some good kit brews (Calum Scotts) was exceptional but I have had some carp as well (including my own).

I suppose it depends what you want from the hobby if you just want a quick supply of beer then kits are great (though expensive in comparison) but if you enjoy good beer and want to create you own beers to suit you own palette or clone your favourite commercial brew then AG/BIAB is the only way forward though perhaps extract brewing is a worthwhile halfway house to get some practice (thats what I did).

:thumb: :thumb:

 

[AndyBWood]

Evening All,

Brewing to me is in many ways like cooking , some are happy with a microwave meal ....ping 5 mins while others may enjoy a slow roast pork belly . The more you do often the better the final outcome however not everyone see's it that way . :thumb:

+1 for Pittsy’s response.

Surely this isn’t all about the cost ?
It’s the doing; isn’t it ?
It’s about creating. Its about trying to achieve something special, honing your skills, building your knowledge, applying what you’ve learned through the ups and downs.

Then, once you’ve got those basic skills…… a little pinch of this, a dash of that, maybe just another 30 mins more on Pittsy’s lovingly slow-roasted belly of pork.

One of my fave off the shelf supermarket bottles ‘used’ to be Old Golden Hen up until last December.

I then got my hands on some Galaxy hops…….

Simple SMaSH recipe with a touch of crystal.

Best thing I’ve ever made; blew me away that you could do this in your own kitchen.

All that effort, questions raised, time involved, mistakes made, plumbing disasters….

So… Is it worth it ? Absolutely !

A

ps - With a big ‘thank you’ to all on the site who have helped along the way and made Alien possible.

 

[south district]

I brewed from kits for years. I was broke and it saved on going out. I always used the best kits available. They gave by far the best results. But, they never tasted like real pub beer, to me anyway, they had that homebrew 'twang'. Then one day, I went to get a kit, and on the shelf above was Dave Lines " Big Book of Brewing". I thumbed through it and it spoke to me. I had a choice, the book was the price of a kit, and I couldn't afford both. I made my choice and invested in ag brewing. Been brewing ag for 30 years except for a five year break recently. Just found my notes for the first brew. Full of beginners cock ups! After tasting I wrote - "WOW real beer at last!" Says it all. If you appreciate good beer, you will never look back. Start cheaply with plastic, and move on from there if you want to, is my advice.

 

[winelight]

I think for me personally I like such a huge variety of beers it's almost impossible for me to make something I'm not going to like... The point being, I have no desperate need to clone any commercial beer or aim for any particular flavour... with modern kits and the advice from this forum there's nothing wrong with kit beers at all, absolutely no homebrew "twang" any more... sure some may not be highly flavoured if you brew them straight from the instructions and only add sugar, but who's going to do that?

I had a pint in a pub in Oxford in the summer that tasted so thin I would have believed you if you'd told me they'd watered it down... none of my beers are remotely that bad. It's a relief to get home from the pub and drink my own beers now.

I put a huge amount of effort into cooking and would never buy prepared food but that's because ready meals taste disgusting... but my kit beers (by the time I've added other stuff, dry hopped, etc) are extremely good so I don't see any need to go to more trouble.

 

[anthonyUK]

BIAB was the tipping point for me. I didn't have the time/space etc for a full AG setup but when I read about BIAB on the Aussie site it seemed so obvious.
The equipment outlay was not too bad even though I went for a stainless urn - 40l Buffalo - and I already had the other equipment such as fermenting fridges from my kit days.
I had one Wherry kit left which I made up a few months ago and I keep trying it but I can't bring myself to drink it whilst I have AG brews available.
I can honestly say I will not go back to kits. The only minor downside for me is the time but I tend to do a double batch brewday once every month or two which is currently manageable.

 

[calumscott]

I brewed from kits for years. I was broke and it saved on going out. I always used the best kits available. They gave by far the best results. But, they never tasted like real pub beer, to me anyway, they had that homebrew 'twang'.

[quote="south district":1745gjeg]I made my choice and invested in ag brewing. Been brewing ag for 30 years

[/quote:1745gjeg]

To be fair, comparing kits of 30 years ago to some of today's good ones really isn't apples and apples! :lol:

 

[artyb]

i love doing my biab , :party:
i only brew every 2-3 months as i dont drink a great deal... :sulk:

its a bit of faffing around for a few hrs, but the beers are so tasty and i always tweak the recipes from the notes,
the grain and hops are certainly cheaper that a kit and the dme costs,

i have got a coopers stout kit from xmas that im looking forward to adapting... :thumb:

 

[johnnyboy1965]

Basically I'm thinking of moving to biab but is there a massively discernable difference between kits and AG, in terms of quality and flavour that justifies the extra cost?

This is probably the best question that has been asked on this site for a long time.
1, Is AG better than kits?
2, Does AG justify the extra cost?
3, Is it a better end product?
4, Is it better than commercial beer?

!, kits are designed for convienence (sp)....they produce exactly what it says on the tin....this is why they come in a tin.
2, After doing over 70 AG, my equipment has more than paid for itself. You must treat it as a hobby, not a way of saving money.
3, There are some really good commercial beers available and more AGs.
4, I think its more down to the fact that you can say "I brewed that"

Kits are great for a no mess brew.
BIAB...never quite got this one, as your only £30.00 away from going the whole hog.
My whole AG set up only cost £120.00 (yeah only)...but this will last a lifetime and some more. Once you have paid for this you can make a respectable beer for 16p per pint (ingerdients only...not gas/leccy or labour).
Benefits...you can tailor make any beer you choose

Summary..... is it worth the expence ?
there are too many variables to answer this question....Hows that for sitting on the fence?

 

[johnnyboy1965]

I think the question should be "Is AG worth the effort"!
You don't have to go all shiny, HERMS, spinny sparge etc.
I've been brewing in plastic for over 30 years, and have had lots of cracking brews that easily beat any commercial beer.
The following are "ball park" figures for a 3 tier system.
3x 30ltr bucket £36
1 fermenting bucket £8
3x Tesco element £15
Insulation for buckets £12
Plugs and cable etc £10
Copper for grain and hop filters (unless you use compression fittings) £6
Total £85 or 4.25 kits!

Totally agree with your pricing, but, I think the first question you've got to ask is "are you brewing indoors or outdoors" ?

 

[evanvine]

Sort of half and half, I brew in the garage!

 

[clibit]

BIAB...never quite got this one, as your only £30.00 away from going the whole hog.

It cost me £2 to go BIAB, for some material I made a bag from. And it is full AG, I make beers entirely from grain, hops, yeast and water. Mash, Boil and Sparge. I recently have acquired a cooler mashtun, and this has made no difference to my beer whatsoever. I can just mash a greater quantity in one vessel now as I use two 15 litre stock pots to boil and previously mashed in them with two bags! :drink:

I use two stock pots cos it was cheaper, I had one already, and it enables me to brew quickly on the cooker and i can make two 12 litres ish beers simultaneously from one mash by using steeping grains, different hops, and different yeast if I wish.

Basically, I would be surprised if anyone can tell the difference between BIAB and 3 vessel home brew.

 

[Aleman]

I would be surprised if anyone can tell the difference between BIAB and 3 vessel home brew.

I wouldn't

 

[morethanworts]

BIAB...never quite got this one, as your only £30.00 away from going the whole hog.

It cost me £2 to go BIAB, for some material I made a bag from. And it is full AG, I make beers entirely from grain, hops, yeast and water. Mash, Boil and Sparge. I recently have acquired a cooler mashtun, and this has made no difference to my beer whatsoever. I can just mash a greater quantity in one vessel now as I use two 15 litre stock pots to boil and previously mashed in them with two bags! :drink:

I use two stock pots cos it was cheaper, I had one already, and it enables me to brew quickly on the cooker and i can make two 12 litres ish beers simultaneously from one mash by using steeping grains, different hops, and different yeast if I wish.

Basically, I would be surprised if anyone can tell the difference between BIAB and 3 vessel home brew.

Hi clibit - a fellow 'stereo' (?) boiler! I thought I was the only one, though I've never BIABed.

Something like this then, though I've just fitted a tap and hop screen to one of those pots. (Should make the last bit much less hastle.)

 

[clibit]

Yes very similar. And I sometimes do a small pot like that too, usually to try something out, or just make a gallon of something I don't want much of!

Aleman - don't start.