How i spent "national teach a friend to homebrew day"
by greg mcgann
one of the greatest things about this hobby we all love is the unique sense of sharing our wonder at the magic of making beer. no other pastime i'm aware of has a national day to introduce others to the hobby. ever heard of philatelists holding a "have a friend over to lick some stamps day?" or gardeners introducing newcomers to "the joy of weeds?" i haven't.
a couple weekends ago though, we all celebrated "teach a friend to brew day," and i did it, along with my son, myles, and one of my social work buddies, debi, at robert riley's house of refrigerators and excellent home brew. jamie was there, also bruce from hogtown brewers. if you haven't watched robert brew, it really is a thing of beauty, and i highly recommend anyone take him up on his next open house. facile is the word i believe i'm looking for here. robert did a dry stout, all grain, explaining each step of the process in his characteristic low key and patient way, allowing each of us to adjust ph, stir, schlep hot liquids, check tempertures, ask a bunch of questions, and taste. all questions, no matter how basic, get answered. he performed all the seemingly difficult maneuvers with such a sure ease, and clear explanation, that he inspired hope in this clumsy neophyte, and i believe, made the hobby seem fun and accessible to at least two others. like all good teachers, robert conveys knowledge without being pedantic. for instance, i'd read about the sparging process countless times. but seeing it done, and understanding why you take it slow, and how to not disturb the grain bed, gave all those words meaning. i can't wait to taste that stout. the day after he did a heffe, but i'd stiffed him on his change from an ice run so i was too embarrassed to go back. the guy even made lunch for us!
i probably won't try all grain until i retire, but seeing the whole process makes it much less intimidating to think about. next time you think tallahassee only gives us asshole legislators, and a football team that stomps the gators every year, remember we got robert from the north florida brewers league. and be thankful.
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