What would you tell your younger self?

[jmcnamara]

So, I was thinking of a way to get more people posting in the forums and thought I'd pose this question.

What type of advice, tips, tricks, etc. do you wish you knew when you started brewing? For instance, "don't buy 5 lbs of hops if you're not going to be brewing a lot."

For me, I wish I had found out about Randy Mosher's Radical Brewing a lot sooner than I did. I've referred to that thing so many times. My wife got it as a free gift when she got me an AHA membership, and it's been totally worth it

 

[jeffpn]

I think I did it right. 20 years ago, I had 2 friends who did not know each other tell me how they were making beer. After the 2nd friend mentioned it, I looked into it. I bought a basic hardware kit, and brewed extracts until this year. No regrets on my part. Now if I would've started with Mr. Beer, I'd go visit my past self and tell me to skip that!

 

[Nosybear]

I'd tell myself to be patient, to pick something simple like an American pale ale, brew it over and over until it tasted exactly the same every time, then start experimenting. That and to buy Microsoft in the 1980s.

 

[Head First]

buy Microsoft in the 1980s.

+1

 

[oliver]

can we rephrase the question? What would older version of me tell current 22 year old version me? I made a pact with my brew partner that we'd only brew APAs until we got it right, and then start making variations. But we're both too impatient and we brew a lot of ridiculous shit.

 

[EbonHawk]

can we rephrase the question? What would older version of me tell current 22 year old version me? I made a pact with my brew partner that we'd only brew APAs until we got it right, and then start making variations. But we're both too impatient and we brew a lot of ridiculous shit.

Hehe..

I'd tell my older self to gtfo and leave me alone in peace to try different things, experiment, fail, retry, perfect, share, and inspire.. the same way I did it the first time. I wouldn't trade any (of the good or the bad) of my trials for foresight. Half the fun was getting here; the other half was getting wasted.

Two of my friends are finally getting into brewing of their own, but only after I encouraged them to come over and watch a couple of brew sessions. It's a very rewarding hobby and takes a lot of patience and persistence. I'm still debating on whether to reveal too much to them ahead of time. I'm kinda devious that way. :twisted:

 

[jeffpn]

Nothing wrong with sharing knowledge, in my opinion. I have a friend who will be much more efficient on his first sessions than I was.

 

[Nosybear]

I'd tell my older self to gtfo and leave me alone in peace to try different things, experiment, fail, retry, perfect, share, and inspire.. the same way I did it the first time. I wouldn't trade any (of the good or the bad) of my trials for foresight. Half the fun was getting here; the other half was getting wasted.

There is wisdom in that answer.... But I'd still tell myself that Pets.com is not a good buy.

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

Id tell my self to stop trying to buy the cheapest darn thing out there just save. bite that bullet and buy the best, your going to do it anyway once the cheap part breaks

 

[GernBlanston]

That and to buy Microsoft in the 1980s.

All my money is sunk in to Betamax and Delorians.