Brewing your own delicious Alcohol !

[visionaries]

Who else out there is into brewing alcohol such as beer, mead, cider, and various liquors?

Currently I am starting my first brew ever, 5 gallons of delicious apple cider which I just started out!
Check out this sweet guide, it looks incredibly easy for your first brew ever

http://inhabitat.com/how-to-make-your-own-delicious-hard-apple-cider-in-6-easy-steps/

^Incredibly simplified hard cider recipe, I followed a friends recommendation and added some ginger to mine!

Next I will embark on a mead journey, and brew some delicious and hearty metheglin, an herb infused mead often with medicinal qualities (I have had metheglin made with peppermint, oregano and Holy Basil, and other healing herbs)

Anyway, I will post up some pictures of my current batch soon and I hope to hear from anyone else interested in this wonderful hobby!

 

[Buildozer]

i helped my friend brew some honey IPA some years back.. it's still my favorite beer iv'e had to this day.. after only a few beers, the buzz was pretty strong; very cerebral and clean.. even after a few more, i felt less drunk than i felt really happy.. i have never done my own brew but it's definitely something i'm interested in doing at some point. i forgot all about that beer.. i couldn't get enough of it while it was around. cool thread.

 

[Tweek]

I have always wanted to try brewing my own beer; a couple of my friends grow their own hops and everything. All the cleaning and scrubbing of equipment always turns me off though...

 

[djonkoman]

I've made applecider once, at school, tasted ok but not very strong(there was a slight hardly noticable effect after drinking some cups of it)
we made it in pairs and my partner wanted to let his part brew a bit longer to make it stronger, but it ended up at my place and it turned to vinegar

 

[visionaries]

Just starting to see some action on the cider!! I pitched my yeast Monday night, and last night I saw no signs of fermentation, and now I woke up to my air locks bubbling. So exciting...
At first I was worried I rehydrated the yeast way too warm, but things seem smooth so far.
I have 5 gallons of cider brewing:
2 plain
1 cinnamon
1 pineapple sage
1 with sugar added so I can see how it varies (should have a bit more alcohol)


Within a month I should have some delicious, and very strong hard cider.
Don't let brew snobs discourage you, You can make alcohol with almost no starter money or equipment. It has been brewed for thousands of years without intricate methods.

"It is unknown when the first alcoholic beverage was created. Evidence of intentionally fermented beverages exist in the form of beer jugs dated as early as the Neolithic period"


Some pictures!

The great advantage of using this guide for your very first brew, Is that you come out of it with 5 one gallon jugs for future brews! The price of the glass jugs alone on ebay was more than the price of the jugs with apple juice at my local Whole Foods.
I will continue to use these glass carboys for years to come.

Next project : MEAD (already got a gallon of honey waiting )

 

[visionaries]

Well my 5 gallons is about done fermenting, getting ready to transfer to secondary bottles in the next couple of days!
It has been an incredibly rewarding, yet very simple process to make my own alcohol.
Everyone who enjoys alcohol should try brewing their own, it is so easy!

Already have my next batch ideas down..
Ginger Mead
Lavender mead
Blue lotus mead


Possibly a few others. I went camping with some friends, and one of them brought two gallons of delicious homebrew mead! Beet and Locust...good shit the wine of the gods