Heh, I have to admit that when it comes to Ale I'm a bit of a coward . . . or maybe more of a novice. I like pale ales and some IPA, and the heavy dark stuff... but everything in the middle intimidates me
Welcome to Umma's pub. Yeh it takes a while to get used to and to appreciate a good ale but after a while you will begin to get a bit more adventerous and try different styles and then you will have your own partucular favourites Is it a good idea to home brew? Im planning on starting.
Yorkshire bitter man here, old enough to remember when only women drank lager.
Unfortuantely bitter and other fine beers appear to be at risk from the rise of the alcopop
Mackios - Home brewing is good. As with most things the more you learn the more you realise you don't know, but there are some easier techniques than others. Start off with just a 'Brew in the Box' kit or something, some are entirely self-sealed, just add water and leave it for 3-4 weeks. Obviously there is nothing you can do to modify flavours. Then you can move up to a kit where you ferment the ingredients of your choice, modify the alcohol levels (by adding more or less sugar) for making 'Cask Conditioned' homebrew. You just have to do a world full of cleaning and sanitising very time you make a new batch. Sidus: A man of taste, I see. (I also like the 'Afraid of the Dark, Lagerboy?' one..)
I will proberbly be trying it then. Is there anything in particular that you can recommend?
I'd say those types of kit are the best to start with - even open kit brewing has quite an art to it. As it is summer, maybe a Bitter is the best choice for now - then move to the Stout side as the nights draw in. I found Jim's Homebrew forum to be quite useful - though some of the threads might just send you cross eyed with terminology! Today, I be mostly drinking Bishops Finger, and have a couple of bottles of Pedigree for later.
I have done some looking around for starting kits and they seem be from £30 - £55ish, so i will order one as soon as the contents of my bank account is a little less critical. Ahh Bishops Finger, I havnt had that in a while. I currently have Leffe and a bottle of this local stuff that is 12% alcohol. Do you happen to drink any of Badger's beer?
Tanglefoot is quite nice, Poachers is a favourite (but don't get it very often here..). Blandford Fly can be a nice change, though I don't normally have more than 1 in a session.
Blandford Fly is one of the strangest beers I have ever tasted and i find it very enjoyable, especially as a summer drink. I havnt come across Poachers before though the name is familiar.
It's the Ginger that gives it's taste. You might like 'Bah Humbug' [Wychwood] - it's a nice warming cinnamon brew. "Beware the Blandford Fly!" I do like the way many ales have a story attached to them. One of the most entertaining is 'Riggwelter' [Black Sheep] - and it is a most enjoyable drop too!
Well i shall keep my eye out when i next go on a 'booze cruise' to the shops. Unfortunately i will have to join the lager boys today because i have to go to a party and im apparently providing some of the drink - im not going to bring the fine stuff Stella will have to do.
Hell yeah! I had some Dogfish Head "Midas Touch" Golden Elixir over the weekend. Supposedly they got the recipe by doing a bunch of scientific tests on an ancient pot and then used the ingredients of the residue! It doesn't even taste like beer. And I agree, no lagerboys here (or pilsner!)! http://www.dogfish.com/brewings/Year...ir/1/index.htm
There's not many of us is there? Still, drink of such quality is best enjoyed with a few friends rather than a huge disorganised throng of people. It also means there is more for us few connoisseurs. Rahl: I do like ale, wine and mead, but all at the same time? Hangover juice, surely? (Remembers an old adage about 'not mixing the grape and the grain'..)
I've found that the more quality of drink you have the less of a hangover you have. I also drink a hell of a lot of water all day and after I drink heavily so I constantly clean my system out. In a book I read about George S. Patton, before a party with Soviets to celebrate the victory in WWII he drank olive oil. He said that it coated his stomach so that even he was walking upright and being festive as the Russians were being drunkards after much vodka. I need to try that sometime...
Hmmm i have never tested that out about the quality to intoxication ratio before. Mainly because i have never had enough quality beer to try that. I have just returned from a trip to Scotland, is anyone here a fan of Scottish ales and their high malt and low hop content? I found Deuchars IPA to be very good.
I like Scottish red ales a lot. I'm not the biggest fan of hoppy beers but if there is enough to where it isn't the overwhelming flavor I will enjoy it. My favorite hoppy beer is Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h1...adaPaleAle.jpg I also like "bitter" ales as well. The more fruity the beer the less I like it I think.
Don't hate on lagers completely...a fine Czech Pils is heavenly. By the way, I'm getting homebrewing gear today!
Awesome! I still need to order my homebrew stuff, just havnt got round to it yet. How much did yours cost? If you dont mind me asking?
I have been drinking a whole lot of Merlot/Burgundy lately, so have nothing to add here. Maybe I should set up another group thing.....
