Due to the glory of the interweb, I have had the privilege of connecting with some great beer folks. What might not have transpired without the social media phenom of Facebook is the connection that I made with Andrew Webster. A home brewer for over a decade with a desire to share the beer love, Andrew reached out to me to sample some of his latest brews. Knowing that beer is always better with people, a "Cinco de Drinko" get together with my favorite beer lovers was planned.
Back in 2001, Andrew received his first home brew kit, from what is now
morebeer.com, while stationed in Frankfurt, Germany. Being abroad is what got Andrew curious about brewing. Tasting all the great beer there made him want to make his own. Fascinated by the whole brewing process, Andrew was finally able to make his first batch later in 2001. Some of his early batches were barely drinkable, except for this German Hefeweizen that he tells me was incredible. Regardless, he wasn't discouraged. Over the past eleven years, his passion for brewing has only gotten stronger. Andrew and I sat down over some of his tasty brew to chat about his new venture: GCG Brewing and Supplies.
TGB: What is your goal with starting GCG Brewing and Supplies?
AW: My main goal is to help expand our hobby. Brewing for me is just as much about the process, as it is about the final product. I believe it is important that anyone attempting to brew for the first time should enjoy the process. If they don't, it is very possible that they won't want to brew again. Initially we will offer simple recipe kits for several main styles: Blonde, Pale Ale, IPA, and Porter. As we test more recipes, like we are tonight, we will expand what we offer to include more beginner kits, as well as some that will be intended more for the intermediate and advanced brewer. To me, expanding our hobby is not only about attracting new brewers, but also encouraging current brewers to try new styles.
TGB: How do you plan to address the different styles and trends in craft beer with your kits?
AW: In the craft beer industry, many breweries are not only competing with the large macro breweries, but also with each other. To do so, they are adding different spices and flavorings to their beers. By creating more and more beers that are far outside the realm of being mainstream, they seem to almost "out unique" each other. Not only will you find the double/triple IPAs, Black IPAs, and Imperial Stouts, you will also come across beers with vanilla beans, mint leaves, cocoa, chili peppers, coffee, coconut, orange peel, strawberries, and apples. I have even seen a beer with catnip in it. While those beers can certainly be quite enjoyable, generally it's better that they be brewed by an intermediate or advanced brewer. At GCG, we are mainly focused on the beginning brewer, by including detailed brewing instructions in our kits. As we grow and expand, we will most certainly offer kits that reach out to both intermediate and advanced brewers alike.
TGB: What is your favorite beer to brew? Do you brew Extract or All Grain? What will your kits include?
AW: I am quite partial to dark beers. Porters and Stouts are definitely my favorites. Personally, I prefer to brew All Grain. It takes longer and there are more variables to consider. However, I feel you have better control over the final product. GCG Brewing and Supplies will be offering extract kits which will include Dried Malt Extract. We feel that DME will stay fresh longer and will be much cheaper and easier to ship to our customers.
Let's get back to the beer tasting. Andrew brought us everything that he had brewed with the his GCG kits. First to taste was the Blonde Ale. Light, crisp, and incredibly refreshing, everyone thought this ale was perfect for the unseasonably hot afternoon. Next up was the Pale Ale. I really liked this one as it was much hoppier than I expected. Andrew mentioned that he might back off the hops on this one next time. I begged him not to.
When it came to his IPAs, Andrew once again impressed all. Mind you, everyone drinking and critiquing were home brewers themselves. He brought us two to try: one dry hopped with Centennials and the other with an extra addition of Cascades. I don't want to go into too much detail on how great these were, I can already sense your beer envy.
Weeks prior, Andrew told me that he would be bringing three different Porters, all with varying coffee bean additions. The first group would just be the Porter, bottled as intended. The next group of Porters had one coffee bean in the bottle. The last group? You guessed it, two coffee beans per bottle. My favorite of the three was the Porter with one coffee bean. Don't get me wrong, I love my coffee the same, if not more, than I love my beer. For me, the one bean provided more coffee flavor than the Porter with two. By the end of the tasting, Andrew had not only met some new friends, but fans of his beers too. All of us hovered over the extra bottles, eyeing the ones we wanted to take as souvenirs. In this home brewer's opinion, Andrew Webster and GCG Brewing and Supplies are on to something great.
BF: Dustin Jones is our head of fermentology. He has been homebrewing for about six years now. Always having a taste for quality beer, he decided to try making it himself. It quickly became an obsession. He held seasonal tasting parties and we were all hooked right away. We realized we wanted to bring this amazing beer to the people. Traverse City (hometown to Dustin and me) was rapidly becoming a microbrewery destination, so a move was made to make this dream come true. The third partner is Carly, Dustin's long time girlfriend and friend of mine.
