Books

[jward]

I was thinking we should have a list of recommended books. I thought we used to have such a thread. What are books you recommend? Have a favorite or one you wasted your money on? How about posting a review. Club Library??

[spkrtoy]

Club library is at my place.

I have almost everything, and it means, everything related to beer.

Brad has scanned some of the BJCP prep stuff for our class but I have a lot of beer magazines, beer, mead, cider and wine books too.

If someone want's to borrow, just ask. Same with the scanning for the club.

It's worthwile to have and if someone can show me how to scan and convert to discs (without infringement of copywrite's) I'm open to loan/beg/borrow them just so that I get them returned............I's paid a lot of moneys over the years for thems and only wanted them to help out fellow brewers..

[brahn]

I've been really happy with How To Brew, Designing Great Beers, Brew Like a Monk, Wild Brews, and Farmhouse Ales. All are excellent books on brewing and provide great information.

If you want a recipe book, Brewing Classic Styles from John Palmer and Jamil is a good one.

I'd recommend against The Brewmaster's Bible. I bought this when I was new to brewing, it's basically a book full of lousy extract recipes. The only one I made straight from the book tasted absolutely horrible. It does have some nice tables in the back like hydrometer corrections, etc. Other than that it's used as a weight more than anything.

[backyard brewer]

How to Brew - Palmer: This is a must have book for any level brewer. I've read and re-read it dozens of times and I pick out something new each time. A great learning tool and resource both.

Designing Great Beers - Daniels: An excellent resource to help you understand what goes into a good recipe. I think this has really helped me be able to look at a potential recipe and identify if it will A) be to style and B) be any good!

Principles of Brewing Science- Fix: This is an excellent technical resource. It has a lot of great information on fermentation as well as ingredients. There is a lot of information on malt and malting, hops, yeast and water chemistry. It is, however, very difficult to read as most technical type books are. I've yet to finish it because I usually fall asleep reading it.

The New Complete Joy of Homebrewing - Papazian: This was my first homebrewing book many moons ago. A lot of the information is dated but I believe there is a revised copy. Most of the information is still good and there are several good recipes in there. More than just a learning tool and reference, I think the Papzian book kind of indoctrinates you into the homebrew culture, albeit the 'older' culture.

Brewing Lager Beer - Noonan: This is a must read for anyone wanting to brew good lagers. It is very technical but no where near as dry as Fix. It really helps you understand how and why many lager flaws are created and that knowledge helps you to mitigate them the best you can.

Brewing Gadgets (?): I can't remember the name of this book, but it's the one all about making your own brewery equipment and gadgets. What a waste of paper, at least for me. I imagine if all you owned was a drill/driver and an all-in-one screwdriver that came with a clear compartment package that holds every screw, nut and bolt you own; then maybe it's not all bad. But if you are into really making things and have reasonable knowledge of how to use tools and you're a creative engineer, then this book is way too rudimentary and most, but not all, of the items are pretty ghetto.

But these are just my opinions.....

[kevinham]

How to Brew - Palmer: The first edition is available online for free at http://www.howtobrew.com. I have read that over several times already. Having it online is handy too, because finding things seems easier to me (and I am cheap).

The Complete Joy of Homebrewing 3rd Edition - Papazian: I believe this is the newest updated version (2003). I am still reading through it, but it is a good book. Bases on his RDWHAHB motto, this book presents homebrewing in a very relaxed and approachable way. Lots of good info, without making things too technical or hard to understand.

Home Beermaking - Moore: MoreBeer sent this with the kit I got started with. It says "The Beginner's Guidebook", and to be honest I really don't remember this book at all. Definitely for beginners, the information I learned afterwards has pretty much written over everything I learned in this book. It was probably a good introduction, but I don't think it really explained much or got very in depth.

[BrewMasterBrad]

How to Brew - Palmer: The first edition is available online for free at http://www.howtobrew.com. I have read that over several times already. Having it online is handy too, because finding things seems easier to me (and I am cheap).

I always thought that the first edition is what is online too, but I was talking to John Palmer after we took the BJCP test and he says that what is online is actually more current than the 3rd edition. He said he updated some of the water chemistry portions after the 3rd edition went to print. I have the 2nd edition and 3rd edition. If you want the 2nd edition, it is yours.

[BrewMasterBrad]

Here is a partial list of what I have. Some are hardcopy and others are softcopy.

Allen, F., & Cantwell, D. (1998). Barley Wine. Boulder, CO: Brewers Publications.

Bamforth, C. W. (2002). Standards of Brewing: A Practical Approach to Consistency and Excellence. Boulder, CO: Brewers Publications.

Calagione, S. (2005). Brewing Up a Business. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Daniels, R. (2000). Designing Great Beers. Boulder, CO: Brewers Publications.

Daniels, R., & Parker, J. (1998). Brown Ale. Boulder, CO: Brewers Publications.

Dornbusch, H. D. (1998). Altbier. Boulder, CO: Brewers Publications.

Eckhardt, F. (1989). The Essentials of Beer Style. Portland, OR: Fred Eckhardt Communications, Inc.

Fisher, J., & Fisher, D. (1998). The Homebrewer's Garden. North Adams, MA: Storey Publishing.

Fix, G. (1989). Principles of Brewing Science. Boulder, CO: Brewers Publications.

Fix, G., & Fix, L. (1991). Vienna, Märzen, Oktoberfest. Boulder, CO: Brewers Publications.

Fix, G. J., & Fix, L. A. (1997). An Analysis of Brewing Techniques. Boulder, CO: Brewers Publications.

Foster, T. (1990). Pale Ale. Boulder, CO: Brewers Publications.

Gold, E. (Ed.). (1993). Evaluating Beer. Boulder, CO: Brewers Publications.

Gold, E. (Ed.). (1996). Brewery Planner: A Guide to Opening and Running Your Own Small Brewery (Second ed.). Boulder, CO: Brewers Publications.

Hindy, S., & Potter, T. (2005). Beer School. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Jackson, M. (2002). Michael Jackson's Great Beers of Belgium (Fifth ed.). Antwerp, Belgium: MMC NV/SA.

Janson, L. W. (1996). Brew Chem 101: The Basics of Homebrewing Chemistry. North Adams, MA: Storey Publishing.

Miller, D. (1990). Continental Pilsener. Boulder, CO: Brewers Publications.

Noonan, G. J. (1996). New Brewing Lager Beer. Boulder, CO: Brewers Publications.

Ockert, K. (Ed.). (2006). Brewing Engineering and Plant Operations (Vol. 3). St. Paul, Minnesota: The Master Brewers Association of the Americas.

Ockert, K. (Ed.). (2006). Fermentation, Cellaring, and Packaging Operations (Vol. 2). St. Paul, Minnesota: Master Brewers Association of the Americas.

Ockert, K. (Ed.). (2006). Raw Material and Brewhouse Operations (Vol. 1). St. Paul, Minnesota: The Master Brewers Association of the Americas.

Palmer, J. J. (2006). How to Brew (3rd ed.). Boulder, CO: Brewers Publications.

Richman, D. (1994). Bock. Boulder, CO: Brewers Publications.

Slosberg, P. (1998). Beer for Pete's Sake. Boulder, CO: Siris Books.

Smith, G. (1994). The Beer Enthusiast's Guide. Pownal, VT: Storey Publishing.

Strong, G., & Piatz, S. (2008). BJCP Exam Study Guide. Hayward, CA: Beer Judge Certification Program.

Szamatulski, T., & Szamatulski, M. (1998). Clone Brews. North Adams, MA: Storey Publishing.

Szamatulski, T., & Szamatulski, M. (2001). Beer Captured. Trumbull, Connecticut: Maltose Press.

[BrewMasterBrad]

See this threadfor more info on the online library.