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Home brewing

A pint well made

Britain's home brewers are raising a more palatable glass

Mr Nelson's tipple

HOME brew was once a phrase that struck terror into the heart of the civilised drinker. In the 1970s, a friend offering to crack open a bottle of foul muck made in a cupboard under the stairs was a common threat and the prelude to an appalling hangover. But the fad took hold because of the dull alternatives and the fact that it was, at least, cheap. Times have changed. The winning entry in a nationwide home-brewing competition went on sale in October in Waitrose, a fancy supermarket, at 2.50 a bottle.

Thornbridge Brewery, a well-regarded small beermaker and one of the sponsors of the tournament, will produce 10,000 bottles of Graham Nelson's Vienna IPA, which beat over 200 other tipples to take the title. Mr Nelson is one of a new batch of home brewers for whom quality rather than parsimony is a guiding principle. To make top-quality beer home brewers can buy equipment that is like a miniature version of a commercial brewery. Discerning drinkers are buying crateloads of pricey craft ales made on a small scale in a fast-growing collection of microbreweries. And like foodies, who roast their own coffee beans or bake sourdough bread, some want to have a go at making the stuff themselves.

Adventurous amateurs are well served by a homebrewing culture that has spread like yeast in an airing cupboard. In the 1970s most bought a kit containing malt extract and a gloopy brown syrup which merely required the addition of water and a bit of patience. Kits are still popular for the first-time brewers and there are plenty of online stores that will sell you one. But home brewers are progressing to a set-up like a commercial brewery in miniature: mashing their own grain and selecting from an international array of malts and hops.

Easier access to information has also helped as beermakers swap tips on the internet. Online videos and forums guide the inexperienced. And some brewers will, for a fee, help newcomers. Beer Lab, for example, offers sessions where enthusiasts can select and brew a beer of their choice at its site in London under the watchful eye of a professional. Microbreweries around the country run similar courses.

The numbers involved in home brewing are unclear but equipment suppliers say that business is booming. One firm that makes unbranded kits for smaller retailers says that sales have grown by 25% on average for the past five years and show no sign of slowing. The impact is more obvious. Sales of commercially produced craft beer grew by 8% in 2013 while big brands are drooping. Overall beer sales grew by just 1.4% in 2013 after eight years of decline. Britain now has 1,285 breweries compared with 200 in the 1970s. According to CAMRA, an organisation that promotes good beer, 14 new microbreweries are opening in the country every month. Most of their proprietors honed their skills at home.