BYOB?...MAKE Your Own Beer!

Beer? I'm a fan of it. After taking a wine tasting class at Fresno State with Jessica, Haley, and Tina, I feel I have come to enjoy the actual flavor, trace scents, and otherwise overlooked qualities of wine and beer. Now in no way do I consider myself a beer or wine connoisseur, but I do feel like I could recommend or discourage a beer or wine that I have tasted. With that being said, I have found that my favorite type of beer is a porter. They are almost always the darkest beer offered by a brewer and they usually have hints of chocolate and coffee in their flavor. When you decide to stop drinking beer merely to get a buzz or to party as a lot of people do, you'll find yourself actually looking for a good flavor and porter offers the flavor that I enjoy.

With this introduction finally out of the way, I can get to the point of this post. My long time best friend, Chris, came over tonight to help me in a little tradition we have started. The tradition is simple...drink some beer while you make some beer. One of the wedding presents Jess and I received was a Mr. Beer kit. It gives you the ingredients, tools, and instructions necessary to brew your own beer without a hassle and without accidentally poisoning yourself. The following pictures and instructions should pair up easily enough to show you most of our process (And yes, those are Incredible Hulk gloves shown in the last picture of the "keg" in the closet. Chris gave them to me as a birthday present and it was one of the best presents I ever received believe it or not.) Check it out:

Step 1: Sanitizing
Follow the steps outlined in the Instructions that came with your kit.

Step 2: Brewing
2.1. Fill keg with cold water to the 4-quart mark on the back.

2.2. Remove yeast packet from under lid of both beer mixes, then place unopened cans in hot water. (warm liquid pours more easily)

3. Using the sanitized measuring cup, place 4 cups of water into the clean 3-quart pot, bring to a boil and remove from heat.

2.4. Stir both beer mixes into pot. This mix is called the wort.

NOTE: Hops in the mix will appear as green leaf particles and will not dissolve.

2.5. Pour wort into keg. Bring the volume of the keg to the 8.5-quart mark by adding more cold water. Stir vigorously to mix well.

2.6. Sprinkle both yeast packs into keg and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Stir vigorously again, then screw on lid.

2.7. Ferment by placing the keg out of direct sunlight and in a location with a consistent temperature. Allow beer to ferment a MINIMUM OF SEVEN DAYS at room temperature. (Between 68°-76°F)