The Thirsty Brewer

I've been meaning to take up brewing my own beer for well over a year now. I've read books 2 inches thick, watched videos on YouTube, visited homebrewing forums, and talked to home brewers themselves all in preparation to get ready to make my own beer. However, I was missing the one ingredient even more important than malt and hops when it comes to brewing beer. I was missing all the necessary equipment!

Thanks to my wonderful girlfriend that's no longer an issue. She found a great deal on a beginners brew kit and with a few additions of my own I'm now ready to brew my own beer.

I'm one of those people who like to know how to do things before they actually do things. I want to know what's going happen before I make a move. As I mentioned up above, I've been preparing to brew for quite some time now, but even with all that preparation I was still a little hesitant to jump into the world of homebrewing. After taking a trip to The Thirsty Brewer last night and taking part in a Beginners Brew workshop I'm now confident I have the skills to brew on my own.

The Thirsty Brewer offers the workshop on the first Wednesday of every month from roughly 6 to 9 PM. You should go with the expectation that they'll be running a bit behind and you probably aren't going to be starting at 6 on the dot. Our class didn't begin until 6:30 but that left enough time to look around their shop and buy everything I needed. Oh yeah, and it gave me enough time to walk down the street and get a sub that I'll be blogging about it the near future. In addition to the knowledge they are handing out for free you'll also get fed and the chance to drink some free beer that other home brewers bring along to sample. Last night they served up some Brats cooked on a charcoal grill and offered about 4 or 5 beers that were delicious. They definitely gave me something to shoot for.

If you've ever had any interest in home brewing I highly recommend making a trip to the Thirsty Brewer for one of these workshops. Even if you don't own any of the equipment it's a great place to get a feel for what's involved and help you decide if you want to pursue the hobby.