Hi
im looking to spend the summer in France
anybody know if its possible to get kits etc or do i have to take them with me
i kown i can get em posted but a 10 euros a go just for the postage its a bit draconian
the other alternative is to go down the whole grain brewery route
and again will i get the stuff i require
dont get me wrong i love wine but i likes a beer at the end of the day and i aint paying a fiver a pint for bog standard lager
brewing abroad
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DaveyT
- Lost in an Alcoholic Haze
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Re: brewing abroad
I've lived in Spain for three years. You could:
1. Drink local beer. Spanish beer is pish in my opinion (tastes of hangovers), but there are Belgian and German beers aplenty here, too. We've just got a new shop with Hop Back and Brew Dog in, though, but it's pricey.
2. Look online for a good homebrew shop that's local.
3. Ship some stuff over. You can get container space very cheaply, esp if you've got time to wait for it to arrive. I wish I had got more gear in the UK and packed it up with my furniture. You could also do this with grain, but it'd be best uncrushed so you'd need a mill.
Hope this helps.
David
1. Drink local beer. Spanish beer is pish in my opinion (tastes of hangovers), but there are Belgian and German beers aplenty here, too. We've just got a new shop with Hop Back and Brew Dog in, though, but it's pricey.
2. Look online for a good homebrew shop that's local.
3. Ship some stuff over. You can get container space very cheaply, esp if you've got time to wait for it to arrive. I wish I had got more gear in the UK and packed it up with my furniture. You could also do this with grain, but it'd be best uncrushed so you'd need a mill.
Hope this helps.
David
Evolution didn't end with us growing thumbs.
Bill Hicks
Bill Hicks
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stevetk189
- Lost in an Alcoholic Haze
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- Location: UK Expat Craft Brewing in France (Limousin)
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Re: brewing abroad
I have a craft brewery in the Limousin. On a recent jaunt through potential stockists i came across V and B vin et bieres in Limoges. They have a few outlets dotted about France. I spotted they sell home brew kits and some basic equipment. Bit pricey from what i looked at, 20 euros+ in a not particularly outstanding looking selection.
My Craft Brewery in France - Brasserie Artisanale en Limousin
My Craft Distillery in France - French Gin
My Craft Distillery in France - French Gin
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Tippler
Re: brewing abroad
I have lived in France for a long time (30 years) and I am glad to say that the interest in beer is gradually increasing. There are now quite a few craft breweries and for some reason there is a much higher proportion of women brewers than seems to be the case in the UK. That said, beer is expensive in pubs and bars, whatever style it is.
If you want to drink beer cheaply, your best bet is homebrew. You can get kits and grain in France, especially in the Alsace and north of Paris, but the postage is crippling because it's all based on weight; you often pay more for the post than for the item you are buying. So, either bring a load of kits with you, or get it sent from the UK. Again, post varies (I was recently quoted £43 to send over an empty polypin!), but the Malt Miller is probably your best bet. He will send 30kgs over for £14.40, which gives you a 25kg bag of base malt and all the other ingredients for 6 or 7 brews. http://www.themaltmiller.co.uk/index.php
Another good bet is BrewUK http://www.brewuk.co.uk/store/ where the postage is about the same. The ingredients are possibly a bit more expensive, but they stock lots of plastic bits that are otherwise difficult to find and do kits.
If you can, when you come over pack some of your stuff in plastic fermentors to use afterwards for brewing. Paradoxically, if you decide to go for stainless steel, there is a German company that sells good pans through ebay.fr, so it's easy to get that stuff here. Bottles, strangely, can be a problem, as the French tend to distribute most beer in piddling tiny bottles! Champagne and cider bottles are good, with a 29mm capper, and so are the swing top bottles for Pelforth and Fischer, but obviously it takes a while to collect enough, so I would suggest bringing a pressure barrel with a 4" neck (so you can pack stuff in it!) and use fizzy mineral water bottles as well.
You can brew over here, lots of people do, but it takes a bit more organising if you want to do it for a reasonable cost.
If you want to drink beer cheaply, your best bet is homebrew. You can get kits and grain in France, especially in the Alsace and north of Paris, but the postage is crippling because it's all based on weight; you often pay more for the post than for the item you are buying. So, either bring a load of kits with you, or get it sent from the UK. Again, post varies (I was recently quoted £43 to send over an empty polypin!), but the Malt Miller is probably your best bet. He will send 30kgs over for £14.40, which gives you a 25kg bag of base malt and all the other ingredients for 6 or 7 brews. http://www.themaltmiller.co.uk/index.php
Another good bet is BrewUK http://www.brewuk.co.uk/store/ where the postage is about the same. The ingredients are possibly a bit more expensive, but they stock lots of plastic bits that are otherwise difficult to find and do kits.
If you can, when you come over pack some of your stuff in plastic fermentors to use afterwards for brewing. Paradoxically, if you decide to go for stainless steel, there is a German company that sells good pans through ebay.fr, so it's easy to get that stuff here. Bottles, strangely, can be a problem, as the French tend to distribute most beer in piddling tiny bottles! Champagne and cider bottles are good, with a 29mm capper, and so are the swing top bottles for Pelforth and Fischer, but obviously it takes a while to collect enough, so I would suggest bringing a pressure barrel with a 4" neck (so you can pack stuff in it!) and use fizzy mineral water bottles as well.
You can brew over here, lots of people do, but it takes a bit more organising if you want to do it for a reasonable cost.