Jim Duffy comment: How you can hop to it '“ with hi-tech home brew

Jim Duffy says that for people like him, home brewing made easy by tech may be just the ticket. Picture: Ian Howarth.

About 20 years ago, when one entered a typical bar in almost all American states, the offering was very much beer, beer or beer. From Budweiser to Michelob and a few smaller brands, the taps all looked very familiar and the choice was narrow.

The big brewers commanded the bar real estate, as well as sponsoring most of the sport shown on the big television screens. But, since then, local towns and districts have fought back, now producing their own craft beers, lagers and IPAs.

Entering a bar now offers an Aladdin’s cave of super tasty beers brewed locally. Notably, the new kids on the block are local hop heavy IPAs that bartenders will only too happily talk you through before pouring you a $7 pint. It seems tastes have changed from what I can only describe as boring, “grey” lagers to palette-bursting colourful brews that have stories behind them and small armies of fans.

But, this new desire for tastier beers goes much further than the gantry of the local bar. As more alternatives to basic beer have flooded the market, consumers have caught on to what they can then make at home. Yes, the home brewer is making a big comeback – with a big bit of tech thrown in…

I am sure we will all have come across a home brew enthusiast at some point. I recall a few years back visiting an old colleague who was brewing his own beer in his bathroom. Without much prompting, he would love to talk me through his home set-up and how the process worked.

Of course, at the end of each “lesson” I would be honoured by receiving a glass of the stuff. It was fine. It had taste. It had some fizz and it had a decent alcohol content. Oh, and of course it was very cheap to make. But, apart from that I wasn’t really all that inspired enough to go out and buy a kit and stink out my bathroom with hoppy gases. Until now!

Like all industries, whether home-based or industrial, technology is changing the way things are done. Look at what the microwave oven did in the kitchen and the home printer does in the study. Now, tech is revolutionising the home brew market.

For sure, there will always be the hardened, stalwart practitioners who will want to do it all themselves in a purist fashion. But, for people like me who cannot concentrate for more than 700 words, then home brewing being made easy by tech may be just the ticket. Enter LG and its home brew machine that’s like a capsule-based coffee-maker.

Just as the latter allowed us to become home baristas, so the new LG home brew machine claims that the novice can make great beer simply by hitting a button. Each capsule is filled with malt, yeast, hop oil and flavouring. The machine then magically ferments all this to produce beer. It carbonates it, ages it and then serves it up automatically. No need for mixing and praying now. Tech has made the whole process slick.

However, there is one small catch and to be honest, if it were that easy then I’d be questioning the “magic” that was going on inside each capsule. No, as soon as you hit the brew button, you can sit down, as the beer takes two weeks to make.

This feels good to me, knowing there is some form of maturation taking place. Throughout the two weeks though, you can still be involved in what is taking place in the machine as it conjures up your alcoholic creation. Using an app, the brewing process comes to life as it keeps track of how your beer is coming along. Dare I say it – how cool is that?

Now you can make your very own hoppy IPA in the comfort of your own home. Well, nearly – the new brewing gadget is not on sale yet with no release date as yet. But, I do live in hop – sorry, hope – and will definitely watch to see what price it comes in at. This is one piece of tech that make sense to me…

Jim Duffy MBE, Create Special.