Monday, December 2, 2013

Getting Into the Home Brew

There's little doubt that South Africa is beer country. Even before Anders Ohlsson and Jacob Letterstedt were plying their trade, local brewers were fermenting up a storm.Indeed beer has been known in Africa since time immemorial, a bread like concoction sustained the builders of the pyramids and working men and women still know the 'refreshment and reward at the end of the day'. Beer is quite simply part of the fabric of South African life, but how often is that fabric just a little bit too beige?The one downside of Ohlsson and Letterstedt' success in sowing the seeds for the behemoth that would later become SAB might have been said to be that it robbed us of variety. Sure SAB sells all sorts of beers but tastes are changing and the industrially produced, 'one size fits all' beers of the past are having to make space at the table for beers that have something a little different to offer.The old SAB staples are all very well but more and more beer drinkers are crying out for variety, beers where people took risks, tried a new recipe and lavished more care and attention on their creation. Sure you'll never be able to get around the fact that SAB can produce thousands of litres for every one you can but there's also no getting round the fact that the turn around time for the average industrial brew can be measured in hours, these days quality is getting a chance to face off with quantity.If you have an adventurous palate you'll inevitably want to try something outside your comfort zone. If you have an adventurous spirit you might even be moved to brew something different for yourself.Any beer drinker will be able to tell you what their favourite beer is and why, so it seems fair to say that inside every beer drinker there is a potential brew master just waiting to crack open the first keg of their own beer. The art of micro brewing is an enjoyable hobby that, like any pursuit that evokes passion, has the potential to become a real business opportunity for anyone prepared to put in the time and effort.It represents a synergy for anyone already in the restaurant or pub business since it is a sure fire way to differentiate yourself from the competition and draw in customers. In an age of green business and organic, home style goodness, being able to offer your customer a home made beer, perhaps even to be able to show them where and how it was made might well be the factor that pushes your pub and restaurant over the top.Who wants to buy bottles of beer that have been industrially brewed and brought to you at great cost on noisy, polluting trucks when you can choose to sup on locally produced, fresh brewed beer made from the best natural ingredients? The future promises an ever increasing shift to focus on the individual and their needs and tastes; Micro brewing represents an opportunity because it allows you to tap into this changing demand.So let's take a very quick look at the market you will be entering if you want to sell your beer commercially. As you would expect, big brands like SAB and Brandhouse still dominate over 95% of the South African Market place. To be fair SAB, it might be Goliath to your David but it has been very supportive of up and coming microbreweries, if for no other reason than that a growing beer culture is good for everyone involved in the industry.Thanks to the increasingly favourable market, microbreweries are growing by leaps and bounds, there are now names like, Mitchell's, Jack Black and Zululand Brewery gracing our drinks menu's along side Black Label and Amstel. In the last twelve years the number of commercial microbreweries has risen from six to more than thirty five, all of them taking their respective share of the pie and while a 4-5% slice might not sound that big at the moment lets not forget that South Africans consume upwards of 2.6 billion litres of beer a year (or as some estimates would have it 60 litres per capita putting us at 24th in the list of world's beer drinking countries).Demand has certainly been strong enough to support two Michell's breweries (producing the best part of 600 000 litres a year). If one were to make a projection into the future one might look to the American market where 10% of the market share is held by microbreweries.So we've established that beer is popular but that's hardly news to anyone. The real question you are no doubt asking is, "how do I get involved?" It's a long road from a home brew to setting up your own commercial brewery and you have to be aware that there may be numerous pitfalls along the way. The good news is that like any journey this one begins with small steps. The web is literally awash with advice on home brewing, recipes and lists of equipment. I'm not going to attempt to be comprehensive but hopefully I can impart a few good tips.So what's step one when you are embarking on your journey to brewmaster? Well it all depends, if you want to take things to the extreme than you could do a degree in natural sciences or chemistry at a university and then apply to an established brewery to get hands on experience (I'm told that as yet there are no official degree's in brewing at SA universities but that the university of Johannesburg may be working towards creating one).Of course getting full scientific degree and spending years working for someone else may sound a bit extreme to most of us. While the underlying chemistry might be complex people have been brewing beer without the benefit of understanding it on an atomic level for a very long time. There's no replacing experience though and you've got to start somewhere, if you just want a taste of the brewer's life and you want to start with a few basic pointers then you could do worse than attending a short course on beer making.You might for instance book a course at the Misty Meadows country estate (where they make Buzzard country ale) in George. R1000 gets you a three day course and accommodation where you can get to grips with the basics of brewing and spend valuable time with the brew master honing your skills Brew Experiences are scheduled for 21-23Jun, 26-28Jul, 23-25 Aug, 20-22Sept, 25-27Oct and 22-24Nov.The Mogallywood restaurant and guest house, in the Magaliesberg, also boasts a microbrewery and practical brewing courses for parties of six. The courses range from R1330 to R2500 per person, depending on how much beer you take home with you (up to 100 litres on the large brewer's package). Your group can look forward to two nights accommodation, some good meals and the chance to sample the local brews along with invaluable hands on brewing experience.If you are in the Broederstroom area you could attend a one day course at the Irish Ale House. The cost for the course is R2000 rand, A small price to pay for 8 years of experience and shortcuts.The Ale house is particularly worth mentioning since this is the site of the annual Solstice Festival where brewers from across the country and even from over seas (this year's festival will include micro brewers from as far a field as America and China) get together with some talented musicians to create a showcase of the brewers art and provide an all round good time. It is well worth pencilling the event into your diary for June next year.Once you've got a bit of experience under your belt you'll probably want to start experimenting with brews of your own, after all it's that personal touch that is going to set you apart from the competition. Remember to be patient, bear in mind that finding out what not to do is almost as important as learning what you should do.Don't forget to use the internet and network with other aspiring brewers, you never know where you might pick up a new trick. The great thing about more and more people taking brewing up as a hobby is that you will be able to get in contact with other enthusiasts and compare notes. It may be a process of trial and error but in time you may craft something really special.Whatever your level of expertise you are going to need some basic equipment, there are various sources but your basic turn key system should cost you anywhere from R500-R1000. The crew at Misty Meadows have a turn key brewery on offer for R650 excluding vat. Brewcraft is offering the Copper Tun Home Starter Brewery Kit for R850.It also offers a range of kits ranging from R185- R285. Another website you might want to look at is http://www.diybeer.co.za, they have many resources available and recently they announced that Brewers & Union will be selling kits at R455 including vat. That's a pretty nice sounding price for an all in one kit that includes:• You choice of Everyday IPA, Honey Sage, Bourbon Dubbel, Chestnut Brown or Gingerbread mix.

• 1 Gallon glass fermenter.

• 3 Piece chambered airlock.

• Screw top stopper

• Thermometer

• Plastic tubing

• Tubing clamp

• Racking cane

• SanitiserAll this is at the lower end of the market but it is certainly something to cut your teeth on and a relatively inexpensive start, but it's a long way from a beer to a lip. When working with these turn key systems you should probably keep your expectations in line with the fact that they are designed for hobbyists rather than commercial brewers. That's not to say that you can't brew something very special only that turn key kits represent a modest beginning when you compare them to the production values of a commercial brewery system, indeed it can actually work out relatively expensive to work in these smaller volumes since you are putting in the same time as you would with a larger volume of beer and obviously getting less out as a result of the kits smaller production value.Ideally you should be looking to produce around about five hundred litres at a time if you want to most efficiently use your time and resources, most home kits fall short of this production level.The value of the turn key system lies in the fact that it is important to learn to walk before you can run, the brewers craft comes with time and practice and your first priority should be getting your brew to a stage where your friends and family are straining the capacity of your home microbrewery.The location of your business can also be very important, you need to be sure that you are in easy reach of your suppliers in order to keep over heads down and ideally you are looking for somewhere that offers strong local support along with the possibility of your brew being discovered by a wider audience.Once you are sure you are onto something then it is possible to ramp up production as has been done by an increasing number of micro brewers however the costs for equipment can quickly become a bit daunting with most commercial brewers setup costs ranging from a hundred thousand rand up to as much as five million rand just to meet the necessary production levels. Of course a hundred thousand rand is not all that much to spend on a business, but overheads can mount up fast, be sure you are ready for the challenge that that kind of increase in production could represent.If you do decide to take your product into the market then you should look into getting the advice of a liquor attorney, yes apparently they do exist; liquor laws vary from province to province so it is vital that you get the lay of the legal landscape and the relevant licences before you try to sell your beer (be prepared for a long wait in getting a licence and the fact that it will cost you around R2000 a year). Bear in mind that you will also not be getting any concessions from the tax man so you could be losing over twenty percent of your profit to tax.The bottom-line is that there is still a large untapped market out there. The selling points for your product are that it's fresh, eco friendly, locally produced, personal and above all the fact that you are offering something exciting and different. It is becoming easier and easier to imagine a beer route to match the Cape's wine route. The demand is growing all the time as South African's palates and expectations change, there is definitely still room in the market for the right brews so you'd have the right to be cautiously optimistic about the chances of changing your hobby into a thriving business.If you are already in the restaurant or hotel industry it seems like an opportunity you would be foolish to miss since a relatively small initial investment is all it would take to set you apart from your competition and broaden your customer base and as more and more people wake up to this idea you don't want to be the one left behind.While there is room for optimism you should also remember that micro brewing is still a niche market. Like any other business you need to put in the time to develop your product and have a solid business plan. Do your homework, polish your craft, make sure you don't over reach yourself. If you are a novice home brewer at the moment then it may take a while until you are brewing up the next Zulu blonde but in the mean time you'll be avoiding sin taxes, enjoying a great hobby and almost never out of beer, which can't be a bad thing.The difference between a job and a career will always be the level of genuine interest and passion that you can bring to bear, craft brews have the potential to be more than simply another hobby or simple job they offer a connection to a tradition almost as old as human civilisation at a time when the processes and practice of that tradition has never been so well understood. Micro brewing represents chance to create and have that creation appreciated by others and that's not just good for the soul it's good for the bank account too.



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