Something's Brewing

It's our beer brewing in a sealed container at The Brewer's Apprentice, a business in Freehold, NJ, that caters to people who want to brew their own beer.

The idea of brewing our beer originated with my son, Rob, who lives in nearby Colts Neck. And what better way to spend a Father's Day than brewing your own beer together. Well, there may be other ways to spend this day, but this one was fine.

As a matter of fact there were several families sharing our experience at The Brewer's Apprentice. Who knew brew-your-own beer was such a popular pastime? It's not as if it's inexpensive. But it is interesting, fun and it doesn't take a lot of time.

We had selected a Luebecker Lager from the many brews on the menu. It most resembles Rob's favorite YingLing beer. When we arrived at the appointed time (you had to make a reservation) we were ushered to our station and given instructions. There was a big kettle of boiling water awaiting us and we had to add Extracts, a molasses type goo that I suppose gives body and color to our beer.

We used a large steel paddle to mix it. After a half hour we added our Bittering Hops and did more stirring. All the while the mixture is boiling. Our final step was adding “Finishing Hops.”

After a few minutes, our guide, Phil, siphoned our kettle into a large plastic container and carted it off to the yeasting room where it will sit for two weeks becoming beer. We'll go back then to fill 144 12-ounce bottles with our ready-to-drink Luebecker Lager, and add the labels we've created for our brew.

May I offer you a bottle? Or two? Or more?