Solitary brewer ?

[VTX1300]

Just wondering, how many are solitary brewers and how many like to brew with friends or as a group.
I personally prefer to be a solitary brewer. It's my "me time". My wonderful wife understands and usually plans a girls day for brew day. Brew day for me is a stress reliever where I can forget about everything for a while.
How do you brew?

 

[Andrew Hodgson]

Every time I have brewed (and bottled) I have had my GF assist, she is into it as well but likes to be able to come and go if she wants. Having never brewed alone I would imagine it is similar but every now and then the extra pair of hands is mighty helpful. I consider myself lucky that she wants to contribute more than demanding a certain style and waiting for it to appear in her glass, though if I had to brew alone I'd surely be able to. Bottling having two sets of hands definitely cuts down on time in a more immediate way than brew-day.

 

[Br3w4u]

I always brew alone. I had a friend come over to brew once but he didn’t like it. I have tried getting a couple of other friends in to brewing but they just care about the end product...which I supply for free so why would they want to do all that work if they don’t have to LOL. My wife brewed with me 1 time when I was still using propane in the garage. She ended up taking a nap before we even got to the boil....Now I brew electric in the kitchen so I can just get it going and go play call of duty or watch a movie so I’m fine with being alone.

 

[geek_chaser]

I dont mind having a friend join me, but I dont have much space right now. Im not sure if having more space will change that, but for now Im all about brewing alone. Its my me time too. My family isnt allowed in the kitchen, and they respect that. My husband will peek on me, but he stays out too.

 

[VTX1300]

My wife does help when I bottle. I fill and she caps. Love that she wants to help where she can but understands that brew day is my day. She would help if I asked her too. She is not much of a beer drinker but always tries every batch and will give me very good feedback.

 

[PeteSeattle]

I’ve always wanted a friend(s) to brew with me. But none of my friends have the patience nor are they willing to give up part of their weekend. I’ve tried to find clubs but they are too far north and/or south of me. The supposed clubs that are close seemed to have vanished off the face of the earth (dead websites) or don’t return my emails. Or it seem like folks in the immediate Seattle area don’t like to socialize (the dreaded “Seattle Chill”). So, it’s been solo ever since I started. It’s a shame because when I share my brew it doesn’t last the night or weekend. Next time I’ll have to charge “brew time” but when that rolls around everyone is suddenly too busy. I guess it’s peaceful going solo ... no one around to hear me curse.

 

[hezagenius]

I'm a solitary brewer. There are usually a few times each brew day when I'd like to get a 2nd pair of hands to help (lifting the grain bag out of the kettle for BIAB) or handing me a spoon or something while trying to keep things sanitized, but mostly I prefer to brew alone. I like to crank up the music and just focus on what I'm doing and get it done. If friends were around, we'd start drinking and then the brew would get messed up somehow.

 

[brewcat]

I like brewing alone.

 

[madscientist451]

My G/F has helped, but she's pretty busy so I usually go it alone.
There's a song for that:

 

[MrPowers]

I generally prefer brewing alone.

I tend to be to take a lot of measurements/am very precise about my brewing and friends tend to ruin that. It’s also more relaxing.

I do have friends over that want to learn sometimes, and when I do, I will usually do a recipe I know, or just resign myself to the fact that I’m not going to get the measurements I want. We always have a great time, and the beer usually turns out great too.

 

[aprichman]

I typically brew alone but I had a neighbor "help" once. He didn't do much since he had never brewed before but it was pretty humorous to see him describe it as the beer we brewed together. The beer turned out great so I can't complain!

 

[Murphys_Law]

I love to brew alone. I enjoy the “me time”.

 

[Desert_Sky]

Solitary here. I put my brothers to work if they are around but for the most part its.just me

 

[El Nino]

The only one who will brew with me is my dear old grandad and we brew alone yeah with nobody else

 

[chickypad]

My husband used to brew with me when we first started but he lost interest a while ago, focusing now on the consuming end. I've had a few people over on a brew day for them to see what it's like but I sort of prefer brewing alone. Except for the trusty brew dog of course! She's responsible for spill clean up.

 

[Yooper]

I always brew alone. It's just the way it's been, so I'm happy with it.

 

[danielthemaniel]

I first got into brewing with 2 friends and myself. We only brewed together for about a year. We had a lot of fun doing it like that, but too much fun in reality. We drank a lot and talked a lot. The beer was good or very good everytime and we enjoyed the time together. Then we stopped for about 2 years. I ended u purchasing all the equiptment from them and expanded a lot. I've put a lot of time become more precise and trying to improve the quality and quantity. There is something great about the solidarity of building a recipe, brewing it and sharing it as a product that only you contributed towards. After doing both I would say there are pros and cons. I dont prefer one or the other, just different!

 

[treacheroustexan]

My first batch of beer was with my group of friends and we all thought it would be a great hobby together. I was the only one it stuck with so I have been brewing alone for 5 years now. No complaints though. It's my time to escape and drink way more than I should. haha. I'll occasionally brew with my home brew club but I have a weird work schedule so it's hard to do so.

 

[bleme]

I started brewing with a friend. We would get together every 2 weeks or so to bottle the last batch and brew the next batch. He quit after about a year. Since then I've brewed mostly solo but I do enjoy visiting friends from the club on their brew days. Occasionally we will brew a 10 gallon batch to split, but I can count those on one hand.

As to what I prefer... probably brewing with a friend. It forces me to stick to a scheduled brew day. Otherwise, there are too many 'emergencies', always messing with my planed brew day. When I first started, my friend relied on me to know all the why's and when's so I used to make out a brew day schedule for him to follow along and he was really good at keeping us on track. Now when I get a brain fart, there usually isn't anyone around to get me back on track.

 

[Rodent]

started as five of us on a group buy, and two years later I'm the only one still at it. it was fun to hang together, but I've come to appreciate brewing solo and the lack of distractions when I'm working thru a new workflow or incorporating new equipment.

i do miss the help washing and lifting pots full of wort onto the stove, but have come to realize that if we were all still together everything would still be extract due to time, equipment $, and simplicity

 

[cmac62]

I usually brew alone. There are always people around the house, but they only come outside for to smoke or something. I have also brewed with friends for my brew club and that is fun too. I always try to not drink any beer until the boil is on (not always successful). One of my good brew friends is very precise and I'm more into the art than science of brewing, so it is fun to watch him take reading every 30 minutes and write everything down. I have brewed a lot of good beers, but could not come close to replicating them because my notes suck, but the beers I have brewed with him I could. Oh well. Maybe one day I'll keep good notes (not likely).

 

[Sparkncode]

I brew alone (well apart from the cat). nice and relaxing.
Occasionally I have had friends visit when I'm doing it and as long as I done forget what I'm doing its fine. Good to show others whats going on etc,
They get more of a sense of what is involved in all grain rather than thinking you are doing it just for cheap beer.

 

[day_trippr]

I've always been a sober loner on brew days. Literally never had a "helper" or even a witness in almost 15 years of brewing.
I live pretty much in the middle of nowhere and don't advertise that I'm a brewer. Keeps things simpler...

Cheers!

 

[ba-brewer]

The only one who will brew with me is my dear old grandad and we brew alone yeah with nobody else

Your whole family done give up you too?

Yeah you know when I brew alone I prefer to be by myself too.

 

[SEndorf]

The hobby tends to gravitate toward solo.
Friends can come by to "help", but as everyone knows, it's a lot of sitting around waiting for the next step. That lends itself to drinking beer which I'm not willing to do until the fermenter is filled.
I do enjoy the quiet time.

 

[shetc]

My wife helps me mash in, and a good neighbor comes over to shoot the sh*t and help clean up - he gets lots of free beer.

 

[S-Met]

I started learning from a friend but schedules were sometimes hard to match. So short lived was the team brew. Whenever it works, I'll be a partner or have a partner, but usually solo.

If she's around, my wife usually helps with transfers if an extra set of hands but thats about 10 minutes max. She does like most of the end-products and helps with Idea's.

 

[AZCoolerBrewer]

My wife is almost always in the house and has helped me when I ask, except for my last time bottling, so I think she is about done helping. I’m not mad though. This is my thing. If I was doing something new and thought I needed help for safety I would ask, but I know she isn’t really interested except to support me in my hobby. While I’m brewing, she stays out of the kitchen, which is nice. It’s a win win, because before I brew the kitchen is a special kind of clean that lasts for a few days at least.

 

[balrog]

I brew alone
With nobody else
Yeah, you know when I brew alone
I prefer to be
By myself

(yes. You all were thinking it)

 

[Jtk78]

I usually brew myself. I have brewed one f with a friend that did a batch the same day. They have not been back since though, so maybe it's me. I will be have a guest on my next brew day that is interested in the process.

My brew club brews every meeting, so I also have experience in a "social brew" type situation and those are fun,

 

[6Tap]

Just wondering, how many are solitary brewers and how many like to brew with friends or as a group.
I personally prefer to be a solitary brewer. It's my "me time". My wonderful wife understands and usually plans a girls day for brew day. Brew day for me is a stress reliever where I can forget about everything for a while.
How do you brew?

Ditto

 

[schematix]

Starting brewing with a buddy but I moved away and went solo. I miss having help cleaning up but it's also been nice to just do what i want on my own time and terms.

 

[kh54s10]

Brewed with a friend a few times. We split those batches. But mostly alone. I don't know anyone really interested but if I did I wouldn't mind company (at least on a trial basis).

 

[jaybo]

I only have 2 stress relievers, one is riding my Harley and the other is brewing. I like to do both alone. The wife is very understanding and usually takes the kids out while I'm doing my thing. I do enjoy when my kids help, but that's usually when I'm cleaning up, or taking gravity samples.

 

[beernutz]

My neighbor also brews and we are in the same brewclub. If I know he's brewing or see him brewing I will walk over and kibbitz for a while and vice versa for him.

Two or three times a year our brewclub will have brewdays at a member's house, our LHBS, or a local brewery. I hosted one at my house last year where 3 other members also brewed something.

Otherwise I brew 100% alone. My wife gives me space and in return I keep all brewing activities outside.

 

[DU99]

Solitary Brewer,i can't blame anyone if it turns out crap

 

[oakchips]

Just me [emoji12]

 

[myelo]

Also alone. I suppose I could ask my wife to help but then who would mow the grass?

 

[nobadays]

Started back brewing with a young man who wanted to learn to brew - I had brewed a lot in the late 80's and 90's, even sold brew supplies out of a coffee shop we owned at the time - but after a hand ful of brews and about the time I was building my eBIAB rig, he moved. So like so many others I fly solo with a little help from my wife when doughing in and when transffering to the fermenter if she is around. Do miss the help when it is clean-up time.

Cheers!

 

[buckinin]

I brew alone too. Usually it’s at night after everyone else in the house is asleep, so it’s very quiet. But I enjoy that.