It's true: every scene has its do-it-yourself faction. Bearded indie rockers are producing acclaimed albums with little more than a MacBook and a few decent microphones; risk-taking filmmakers are shooting hand held masterpieces with next-to-no care for Hollywood's high-budget rules. People are turning to Youtube to broadcast their self-produced television shows, and small-time software developers are raking in the dough with Lil' Wayne-inspired iPhone apps.
The world of beer (and beer brewing) is really no different. As Michigan's economy continues to nose-dive, and hard working Michiganderspeer into emptier and emptier wallets, a night out at the bar can seem awfully debilitating. But that's what's good about Americans during struggling times: they often take matters into their own hands. In the case (pun intended) of Michigan's drinking contingent, sometimes it's better to brew your own.
Some Small History
It's probably no surprise that folks have been home brewing beer and wine since the late 1800s. When prohibition kicked in during the early 1920s, home brewing became damn-near a necessity in order to get your buzz on. In February of 1933, the US Congress repealed the prohibition amendment, allowing citizens to home-brew wine all they liked. Beer, however, was left out in the cold – one giant Homer Simpson-sized "doh!" if you preferred hop-y goodness to sour grapes.
It wasn't until 1979 (!) that home brewing became legal in most states, signed into law by President Jimmy Carter (we knew he was good for something besides that Southern drawl and toothy grin). Still, Alabama, Ohio, Delaware, and a few choice others have laws against cooking up your own concoctions.
Brew To You
Thankfully, we don't live in Delaware (no seriously, thank God). In Michigan, it's perfectly legal to brew your own at home, and by the looks of things, a lot of people are doing it. All across Southeast Michigan, from Ann Arbor and Ypsi, on into Dearborn and Macomb Township, brew clubs and brewing supply shops are sprouting up all over the damn place.
But, hold on there, brew dog – before you start daydreaming about basking in your own glory, sipping a self-brewed cold one, you gotta get a hold of supplies, maaaan. In our research, there was simply one place that everybody pointed to as "the best in town" – Cap 'N Cork Homebrew Supply in Macomb Township.
Cap 'N Cork trusted employee Andrew Moore, of Mount Clemens, has been brewing beers for almost five years now. He was turned on to home brewing the natural way – trying a friend's. From there, he was hooked.
"Once the seed gets planted that you can make your own beer and make good beer, it's hard not to want to do it all the time," says Moore.
Moore took his passion onto the business side of the spectrum, scoring himself a job at one of the region's favorite home-brew suppliers.
Moore says, "Our store sells everything one needs to make beer and wine at home including equipment and ingredients. We have pre-packaged ingredient kits as well as loose ingredients if someone wants to make their own recipe. The possibilities as to which style of beer one can make are endless."
But Cap 'N Cork is but one of the countless spots to get your supplies from. A short list includes Adventures in Homebrewing in Dearborn, Hopman's Beer and Wine Making Supply in Waterford, the Beer Depot in Ann Arbor, Kuhnhenn Brewery in Warren, and the Wine Barrel Plus in Livonia – all ready and willing to hook you up with all you need to make your own batch.
Looking for more? Remember, Google is your friend.
BrewDoo Economics
One concern, however, before getting started is…well…is this going to cost a lot of money? Some of the folks we talked to have varying opinions on the subject, but most agreed that in the long run, you'll save cash.
Rex Halfpenny, brew master and publisher of the very popular Michigan Beer Guide says, "If you like expensive beer, you can make it for less."
Jerry Bonnici, head of the C.R.A.F.T brew club, has a slightly different outlook.
"You do not want to enter this hobby thinking you are going to save money making a beer like Bud Light for half the price," he says.
"The way this hobby saves us money is because I can produce beers that sell in stores for over $10 per six-pack (like Bell's Hop Slam) for the same price as Bud, Miller, etc. So, if you have the taste for the wide variety of specialty beers, than making it yourself is the logical next step."
He goes on to say that, "This hobby can take you as deep as you are willing to go with it. You can be an occasional extract kit brewer, work your way up to bigger all-grain custom recipe batches, to entering competitions and even to become a certified beer judge so that you can determine the winners of competitions. There is no need to ever go any steps beyond where one is comfortable and meets their goals, but the great thing about this hobby is that the goals never stop and you never have done, seen, or tasted it all."
Novice home brewer Mike Ramsey of Grosse Pointe Woods, though, may have put it best: Home brewing is, "sort of like getting a membership to a museum or water park. It definitely saves you money over time, but it takes three or four batches."
Brew's Out There?
Once you've got your supplies, and you've weighed the economic options of home brewing, what's the next step? Well, brew some suds, naturally!
Home brewing, however, can be a bit lonely and time consuming. Bonnici estimates that it takes about four hours to brew your beer, two to three weeks of fermentation, and at least two weeks to carbonate a batch of bottles.
So what, then, do you do with all that time on your hands? Join a home brew club, of course.
Bonnici says, "Those of us in clubs all draw upon each other's knowledge. ...I brewed for a few years before I joined the club and I developed a pretty solid foundation in the brewing process, but because I did not interact with others, I had yet to experience the 'world of beer' that is out there waiting to be discovered."
Moore lists of a bevy of Michigan brew clubs, including F.O.R.D, K.G.B, Richmond Worthogs, No Restraints, S.N.O.B.S and Pontiac Brew Tribe. And trust us, there's many, many more where that came from.
Brew Down
One has to wonder, however, what types of folks will be encountered at these brew club gatherings. Crusty hippies? Snotty beer guys in Bell's t-shirts? According to our small panel of interviewees, just about anybody.
Moore says, "Dude, more than just white people brew. The average home brewer usually gets into it from starting to enjoy the finer beers and want to try to duplicate the imports they enjoy."
Ramsey says, "I'd say that home brewers only share a love of beer as a common quality. I don't know if there is a 'type,' though my interaction with other home brewers tends to find very well educated people. My sister, who is a brain researcher at Duke University, says several people in her lab make beer and there is a definite scientific process to it."
Poking a bit of fun, however, Halfpenny says, "It's a fun hobby for middle class white boys with engineering degrees."
Drink Up!
Engineering degree or not, it seems that Michigan's home brew community is expanding, and unlike the economy, showing no signs of slowing down any time soon.
Moore says the Michigan homebrew scene is constantly expanding. Halfpenny calls it "solid," and Bonnici says, "Michigan is in the middle of a home brewer explosion."
During these tough times, that's certainly news we can drink to.
Ryan Allen is a Ferndale-based writer, whose work has appeared in the Metro Times, Real Detroit Weekly, and Detour-Mag.com. His previous article was Metro Detroit's Seven Day Weekend.
Photos:
Skip bagging a customers malt at the Cap 'N' Cork -Macomb
Mike Spears brewing a new batch in the parking lot of Kuhnhenn Brewing Co.- Warren
Art helping a customer at the Cap 'N' Cork -Macomb
At home, Jerry Bonnici checks the sugar level of a new batch with a refractometer -Macomb
Bottle caper at the Cap 'N' Cork -Macomb
Kuhnhenn Brewing Co. offers their facility to anyone interested in brewing their own beer - Warren
Unless noted, All photographs by Detroit Photographer Marvin Shaouni
Marvin Shaouni is the Managing Photographer for Metromode & Model D.