Perhaps you've read my blog and are aware that I started brewing my own beer six months ago. I just feel like sharing my experience... I've learned a lot since I started, from simple things like controlling temperature and making a good whirlpool to more complex processes like dry-hopping and even yeast culture. I don't have pictures of all the beers I made, but here are a few:
1) La Prima Birra – "La Prima Birra" (italian for "the first beer") was, of course, the very first beer I brewed. It is a belgian ale, and despite the many mistakes I made, it ended up being a decent beer, drinkable, with sweet smell and nice body.
2) IPA – The only thing I'm not completely happy about my first IPA is that it isn't as clear as I wanted it to be... but that's because I forgot to put the whirlfloc tablet, oops. It has a nice hoppy smell and is very refreshing.
3) Belgian Dark Strong Ale – Oh my god, what can I say? Everything that could go wrong with making this beer went wrong! This was the first beer I brewed with expected ABV higher than 8%, so I didn't know beforehand that high temperatures would create non-fermentable sugar, so this beer ended up tasting a lot sweeter than I wanted BUT it's still very drinkable and a lot of my friends loved it, only because they prefer sweeter beers rather than strong and bitter.
4) Imperial IPA – Since my first IPA turned out great, I decided to go further and make something more complex, so an Imperial IPA was about right. Sure, it requires a single type of malt, but it also needs dry-hopping, which was new to me. I love how this beer smells like mango and tastes great, is very refreshing even though it's a bit heavy.
5) Russian Imperial Stout – This was my first stout. I like strong beers but I rather drink a beer that is smooth and heavy rather than supper bitter, and that's exactly how this RIS turned out! It smells incredibly, like fresh coffee and tastes great. I guess this stout is my favorite beer!
Oh how I wish I could share my creations with you! It's great to have this hobby and I feel super happy every time I drink one of my beers or share it with a friend and they enjoy it. I love homebrewing!
