Home brewing in India

[IndianBeerGeek]

Hey guys....

This is IndianBeerGeek from Mumbai, India. Started brewing 4 months ago and have done about 10 batches so far. The beers are coming out better with every new batch and I have got the Belgian Wit just about right.

Have listened to most of the archives and my success with the Wit has been because of the BN shows! Kudos to all of you - Doc, Jamil, Justin, Daniella and others who join in occasionally.

Why did I start brewing? Well, for as long as I can remember, my drink of choice has been beer. Unfortunately, the only beer you get in India are lagers which SUCK big time! Then it hit me. Why don't I start brewing! Some research, a complete reading of howtobrew.com and things got moving. Got hops, yeast, the refractometer and other items from northernbrewer.com, built the lauter tun at home and got started. Can't tell you how difficult it is to get ingredients in India.

Cheers! [have just bottled a pale ale & a california common]

[Push Eject]

Haven't had the beer, but welcome and congrats on your brewing!

Push

[DannyW]

We sometimes hear from the Aussies about how hard it is to get some ingredients. What supplies do you find hardest to get in India? Do you have local homebrew shops or do you rely on long distance shipping for most?

[IndianBeerGeek]

We sometimes hear from the Aussies about how hard it is to get some ingredients. What supplies do you find hardest to get in India? Do you have local homebrew shops or do you rely on long distance shipping for most?

Almost everything seems to be impossible. There are no homebrew supply stores as no one makes beer at home. I am perhaps the first one to do so. The only malt we get is 6 row which is used by the large breweries. That too comes from Delhi which is about 2000 miles from Mumbai. So I have to order it specially. Hops are grown in India but there is constant short supply. Moreover, they are the high alpha variety. So I have to import these as well. Yeast is difficult to get as no brewery wants to part with it. So import once again. Basically, for everything one has to jump through hoops!!

[Ozbrewer]

I understand how hard it is to get ingredients, especially yeast, it looks like a great oppertunity to learn to culture your own

[sinkas]

Hi there IndianBeerGeek,

I am surprised there is not a single brewery in Mumbai,
I visited a smallish brewery in Jaipur, which had plenty of malt, maybe it would be cheaper to get it from them, as its only half the distance..?

I actualyy dont mind Kingfisher strong ale, its not perfect, but Its malty and well, I enjoyed it last time I was there.

Heman 8000, down in Chennai, was nasty though, 8% with no malt background.

[Fritz Eye]

Hello Indian Beer Geek.

Your brewing exploits are quite heralded over The BN, congrats.
I think your categories are a bit extreme. I have had Kingfisher and it is not too bad, I would say it is head and shoulders better than Budweiser.
I did however vote for the negative as nothing compares to homebrew.
Keep up the good work.