What’s On Tap: Homebrewers hope to ease a legal prohibition By Erin Crowell The year is 1930, and America is dry – brought on by two droughts known as the Great Depression and prohibition. While most were desperate to make a buck, others were looking to make a pint. Enter the “Great Recession” of today, and things haven’t changed much. People are out of work, money is tight, and the homebrewing business is banging. Today, there are close to 750,000 homebrewers in the United States, a steady growth over the last five to six years, says Gary Glass, director of the American Homebrewers Association (AHA). And just as it did with the repeal of prohibition, homebrewing (although legal, unless sold) may get a “leg-up” if state legislature passes House Bill 5613– allowing homebrew to be served at licensed breweries for homebrew club meetings and competitions.
BREW PASTOR The bill would allow Pastor Andrew Pomerville of Church in the Hills Presbyterian Church in Bellaire to serve some of his own beer at a weekly faith group meeting. “We have a group over at Short’s Brewing called ‘Spirituality: Untapped’ hosted by myself and another pastor from the area every Thursday night,” says Pomerville. “We talk about whatever topic it is for the night and do it over beer.” Pomerville has been homebrewing for the past three years. It’s a hobby he picked up after listening to Joe Short of Short’s Brewing, Bellaire, talk about how he got into the craft. “I thought it was fascinating,” says Pomerville. “Looking at what Joe did, he’s the same age and I thought, ‘I could get into this.’” And he did. Pomerville meets with several other homebrewers regularly, who share their recipes with spouses and family members. “Brewing is a communal experience,” says Pomerville. “It’s a blast to brew with other brewers, to share ideas and mistakes.
The absolute best way to get better at this is to learn how to taste and learn how to critique your work and others’.” So, what do people think of a brew pastor? “People are usually surprised, but genuinely positive. The congregation understands where I’m coming from. They’re comfortable with responsible brewing and responsibly sharing it with others.”
BREWING ANDYS Like Pastor Andrew, Traverse City resident Andy Largent got into homebrewing three years ago. “I was just looking through a magazine and found a cheap mystery homebrewing kit for 20 bucks,” says Largent. “It was really fun—but it didn’t turn out well—so I went out and bought a decent one from Diversions.” Although known primarily for everything hats, Diversions of downtown Traverse City is the Northern Michigan homebrewer’s mecca. The store carries everything from dry and whole grain malt and hops to bottles, corking equipment and labels. “We pretty much have everything,” says Diversions employee and fellow homebrewer Beau Ford. “We’ve got stuff for the beginners and the experienced brewer.” Largent buys his homebrew kits from Diversions, which includes all the ingredients and directions for a particular flavor of beer. “It’s the easiest way to do it,” he says. “All you need is the box and you follow the directions and that’s it. It comes with all the proper ingredients so it’s pretty fool-proof.” Pomerville started using kits, but now creates his own recipes. “I started out with them, but now I’m completely on my own. It’s fun not to have a recipe,” he says. “You have complete control over it – it’s completely organic.”
AS LOCAL AS IT GETS Glass says one reason the homebrewing industry has grown in popularity is because of the “buy local” movement – and an increase in microbreweries has contributed to that trend. “There’s been a number of growing craft breweries and the number of beer they’re producing. That’s the gateway for most people to get into it. They’ve already been exposed to it,” says Glass. Pomerville agrees. “I’ll buy good microbeer. We have excellent craft breweries in the area; but after you start doing it yourself, you start to have an appreciation for what goes into it. You appreciate that people put their heart and soul into it,” he says. “You’re not going to do any more local than doing it yourself,” adds Glass. The cost factor isn’t too bad either. Besides time and starter costs, producing one’s beer is cheaper than purchasing. According to AHA, basic beginner kits start around $80 and ingredients cost $25 to $45 per five gallons of beer, depending on style. As far as time, brewing takes approximately two hours; fermentation, two weeks; bottling, one hour; and bottle conditioning (or, allowing the beer to carbonate), two to four weeks. Is it worth it? “Absolutely,” says Pomerville.
FLAVORS AND FAVORS When it comes to flavor, every homebrewer has his or her favorite. “My wife likes stouts. We’ve done coffee and vanilla beans. We added a kiwi to the last one,” says Pomerville. Largent says he also prefers to make porters—another name for a stout, which is darker in color—not only because of the flavor, but because it’s much easier to brew than lagers (which require a cooler storing temperature). “I made a really nice porter one time that my friends really enjoyed. I usually keep half of my brew, then give the other half to friends and family, people who I owe favors,” says Largent. “I’ve been brewing for 17 years,” says Glass, “and I’ve never made the perfect beer – so I’ve never made the same recipe twice. Every homebrewer has their own personal taste. You’re personalizing your beer.” Regardless of the flavor, Glass says a good homebrew is the result of careful attention to detail. “And clean,” he adds. “Make sure everything is cleaned and sanitized. It’s the one thing that will help you avoid flaws.” That – and, of course, practice. “I’d say I’m getting better,” says Pomerville. “The more I do it…the more I learn…the more I appreciate it.”
Interested in brewing your own batch of golden amber? Visit homebrewersassociation.org and click on the ‘Get Started’ button; or get their free beginning brewers publica-tion “Zymergy” by clicking on the logo. You can also stop by Diversions, located at 104 East Front Street in downtown Traverse City. They are open Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m.- 6 p.m.; and Sunday, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Call 231-946-6500.
A glossary of (the funkiest) HOMEBREW TERMS
Here is a list of terms to throw out there the next time you find yourself in a brewing conversation. Just use the terms ‘dry hopping’ and ‘hot break’ wisely.
Zymurgy: No, it’s not the name of a garage band. It’s the chemistry of fermentation with yeasts, particularly the science involved in beer and wine making.
Sparge: Rinsing excess sugars from the grain after mashing. Example: “You couldn’t spare some extra sparging? This beer is sweet, but not in a good way.”
Wort (pronounced wert): Unfermented beer – what you will have after the mashing and sparging process.
Pitch: Adding yeast to the cooled wort. Example: “He executed a fine pitch.”
Lovibond: Measurement with which malt and beer color is compared against. The higher the lovibond, the darker the color.
IBU: International Bitterness Unit, how to measure bitterness in beer. Example: “This porter is totally off the IBU charts.”
Hot Break: the coagulation of proteins during wort boiling.
Dry hopping: Adding hops to finished beer, which provides hop aroma and flavor but no bitterness.
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