This Has Got To Stop!

[Tweek]

I have been noticing a disturbing trend on this board. People want some information on a mass production beer and they get shamed.

A lot of people start there beer journey with bud coors and miller. I am guessing a lot of you did.

When people come to this community looking for advice on cloning that major brand they should be welcomed and given advice. Not bashed an humiliated into thinking that there taste sucks. If A-B makes them interested enough to start homebrewing than I say good for them, welcome aboard. Once they start homebrewing the world of beer really opens up. I know you can all vouch for that. It is my guess that people who come and try to brew that mass knockoff will end up just as into it as the rest of it. And as they get further into their hobby there taste buds will no doubt change just like everyone else.

What I am trying to say here is that the homebrew community is a small one. We should all work toward promoting it. One of the best way to do this is to welcome the newcomer with open arms and help them out all we can. If he/she stays interested and goes on to a full hobby (addiction :) )it works out good for all of us. The more people we have into this hobby the better our prices are at the shop. The better our ingredients become and the more readily information becomes.

I know we are an opinionated bunch, I am guilty of that for sure. I just dont think it would hurt to put some of those feelings aside to welcome some of the newcomers.

Sorry for the rant.

[yonkersbrewer]

AMEN VERILY!!!!

Why not have a chance at making what you want? Sometimes a cold fizzy is all that you want. Sometimes its just the challenge of hitting the bulls eye yourself. There are lots of folks that are making homemade twinkies etc so why not A-B beer?

[paul84043]

I have never even momentarily contemplated making a homemade twinkie, that's just weird....
Do they sell polysorbate 60 at Albertsons?

:D

[gardenallyear]

Old habits die hard, I still buy and drink the cheap stuff and even like it. Homebrew is much much better and I can't imagine ever trying to copy that stuff at home, but I'll probably always have some in the fridge.

[YamahaXS]

I drink homebeer, good beer, and cheap beer...

it all depends on the coffers and supply and demand.


my favorite cheap beer is "Old Milwaukee Premium Lager". its about $7/case.

favorite good beer is Sprecher Amber, or New Glarus IPA.

favorite home beer is whatever is available.

:D

[Blueyez]

As most of you know, I'm new here and new to home brewing.

My first home brew is Sierra Nevada ale clone. From the samples, I have tasted, in my progression to the finale product. I have noticed that my version of the S.N. ale tastes better.

So, I think that making a massed produce beer clone is to just do it better. I know I have put a lot of time, effort, heart and soul into making my first brew. Just as I think many of you do to what ever number brew your on.

Cheers!
Blue

[Theakston]

It seems to me that there are 3 reasons for brewing:

1) price - to get beer cheap. This was the reason that I brewed in the UK because beer was more expensive in the supermakets over there. Whenever I had a party it was cheaper to brew a batch of ale. And everyone went home happy.

2) Quality / Diversity. To brew something that was not available or to try a new recipe or style that is not available in the stores or bars where you live. This was the reason I brewed when I first came to live in the USA. I could not get any english style ales in the shops or bars, so I brewed my own.

3) The pride of creating something for your self.

As mass produced beers are cheaper to buy (and by mass produced I don't include Sierra Nevada or other large craft brewers) and they are by definition available everywhere then the first 2 reasons are not really good reasons for trying to reproduce a mass produced beer.

However, it always comes down to the last: the pride of creating a product for yourself. Also you would not want to start with trying to make a brew that was so different in taste (like a Belgium sour ale) that most of your friends would spit it out and say you had messed up!

Large commercial brewers aim for consistency and to a large extent they tend to promote blandness. You may aim for something similar but by doing it with care and pride instead of using inferior ingredients, cutting corners, or adding chemicals to extend shelf life, you will inevitably have produced something of far better quality.

Happy brewing.

[paul84043]

Well put Theakston

I agree wholeheartedly with 2 & 3. I can't vouch for #1 because you can't actually buy decent beer in Utah at all.

I apologize to any that I may have offended, I tend to be opinionated, but I don't think pushy....

I would love to make something that my friends cringe when they think about and remember for years to come! Unfortunately, it's been the eact opposite, every beer I have made is raved over and I have started to get requests to "buy" my homebrew from people I don't even know!
It's too much work to sell it, that and it's illegal as hell....but I can't put all the time, effort, sweat, and whatever else into it just to give it all away. They couldn't afford my price...
The diversity and the quality is my number one reason.
The "fun" of brewing your own is right there too...
This is by far the best hobby I have ever undertaken, and believe me, I am into about anything you can think of....

If you want to brew the best damn Mega clone on the planet, be my guest! (fortunately its easy!)

My Corona clones were fantastic!