From Beer Hobby to Brewing Obsession
Connecticut homebrewer Byran Peretto has been brewing for only three-and-a-half years but those have been “very active years.” “This started as a hobby and became an obsession.”
It began with his love for craft brewed beers and the insight that great beer could be brewed on a small scale. His first attempt at brewing began with a Mr. Beer kit. Unfortunately, that first batch turned out “quite sweet, yeasty, and dull.” His interest in brewing revived when during a camping trip he tasted a homebrewed porter that was “the best beer I had in my life at that point.” Not wanting to repeat his earlier experience, Bryan researched brewing extensively online and using books like Homebrewing for Dummies. Bryan made one batch using an extract kit but since then “I have always created my own recipes through research and personal preference.”
Bryan tells us that recently, “I have already begun to step away from the style guidelines. They were a great basis for making the types of beer I enjoyed; but now I want to flex my creative muscle. I’ve begun creating beer backwards—thinking about what I want to smell and taste and building a recipe that fits it. My first example is the Rogue Insider—A rye beer made with cider and fermented with Ardennes yeast. This creation ended up winning our club’s members-only competition.”
His brews have earned him 25 ribbons, and these days Bryan judges brewing competitions. “I took the test to become a certified beer judge which was the hardest test I’ve taken in my life and probably the only test I’ve taken seriously and studied for.”
Bryan is a member of the Knights of the Mashing Fork club (profiled on We Brew Beer in August) and an active member of the TastyBrew.com forum online. “There are a great bunch of people on that site and someone always has an answer to your question. I have learned so much in my time there that I’ve gone from asking the typical newbie questions to answering them for the new brewers.”
For new brewers, Bryan recommends joining an online brewing forum. And he advises, “The biggest mistake is to think small. If you enjoy this hobby, it’s going to evolve. I’ve grown out of 3 stainless kettles so far. I’ve bought a lot of other equipment that has also been upgraded. It’s better to spend a little bit more in the beginning and get equipment you can grow in to.”
The equipment in Byran’s “Twin Hills Brewery” consists of “two ten gallon systems which I brew on simultaneously. One mash tun is a 70 quart cooler while the other is an 18 gallon stainless steel pot that can be direct fired. Both kettles are converted kegs. These days I use a plate chiller which has knocked off hours from my brew day. It is a completely gravity-fed system from the HLT to the fermenter which my friend welded up based on my designs.
“I have moved from glass to plastic fermenters and always keg my beers. I dispense my kegs with a 50# CO2 tank and have 8 taps. I ferment my lagers and ales, as well as serve them, from a 53°F cold room that I built in my basement. Yes, every ale yeast I’ve used has fermented perfectly at 53°F!”
Bryan is happy with the way his brewery is currently set up, but he adds “If I didn’t have to pay for them, I wouldn’t mind a dozen glycol-cooled 15 gallon conical fermenters.”
When asked if he would ever like to turn his obsession into a business he responds, “After looking at what is involved—the cost, time, and commitment; I rather leave it as a hobby. If I ever win the lottery, you’ll see my beer on shelves in no time!”
Anyone wanting to learn more about Bryan and his brews can visit his website at TwinHillsBrewery.com and the Knight of the Mashing Fork website (where Bryan serves as webmaster and is known by the knightly title “Sir Vorlauf”) at KOTMF.com.
