So, the other night, it cost me QAR 45 for a bottle of Budweiser (same as Corona and Heineken) in Qatar. The current conversion rate is 3.46:1 USD. This means I spent $13.01 per Bud. Now, I like Bud. But not that much.
I always wanted to learn to homebrew. As soon as I move out of my hotel, I would like to start. At that price, I'd rather rough it through whatever swill I'm producing. I figure that maybe there's a couple of homerewers on this board that can give some pointers.
Is it legal to home brew there?
Nalod wrote:Is it legal to home brew there?
You can buy alcohol here so my assumption is it is legal to brew--just not to sell
SupremeCommander wrote:Nalod wrote:Is it legal to home brew there?
You can buy alcohol here so my assumption is it is legal to brew--just not to sell
I would assume that too. Until your in a Turkish prison or they call you "Lefty" cause there is an old "Crazy" law that if you brew spirits without proper blessing they cut your right hand off!
Might be a tax evasion problem. I don't really know, but your playing in their backyard!
you take those fruit cup juices and put piece of bread in, seal it. and wait a week or so. but hide it from guards.
orangeblobman wrote:you take those fruit cup juices and put piece of bread in, seal it. and wait a week or so. but hide it from guards.
Looky here, we got Freaking Martha Stewart ovah here doing a "McIver"!
Dude wants to drink fine beer, not ferment a "Juicy Juice"!
orangeblobman wrote:Nalod wrote:orangeblobman wrote:you take those fruit cup juices and put piece of bread in, seal it. and wait a week or so. but hide it from guards.
Looky here, we got Freaking Martha Stewart ovah here doing a "McIver"!
Dude wants to drink fine beer, not ferment a "Juicy Juice"!
The aim is to make (and drink) fine beer. But when I was ~15 I drank some Mad Dog 20/20s. Strawberry Kiwi FTW!
Though, I am interested in making mead (never had it before, but sounds like it could be good), and learning distilling, on top of brewing.
This may be the most interesting application fo biology, chemistry, and engineering systems I can think of
Nalod wrote:SupremeCommander wrote:Nalod wrote:Is it legal to home brew there?
You can buy alcohol here so my assumption is it is legal to brew--just not to sell
I would assume that too. Until your in a Turkish prison or they call you "Lefty" cause there is an old "Crazy" law that if you brew spirits without proper blessing they cut your right hand off!
Might be a tax evasion problem. I don't really know, but your playing in their backyard!
I knew people that were reprimanded in Libya for making wine... but they had bottled and stored over 70 bottles (yep!). So that was the quivalent of "possession with the intent to distribute," but no ticket or jail or whatever. They just snitched to our bosses, and had to sign letters saying if there are any other problems they were on the next flight home
Everyone all over the world drinks. Here, it's just that the locals don't do it in public. They think that's silly. Drinking is something you do privately, at home.
Now, if I stink the place up and a spill leaks into the neighbor's apartment then, yes, I have a problem (so I'll try to buy a plastic kiddy pool to put everything in)
Supreme, I don't know if you have received any help but I can share some insights and I will try to help you out. I think your biggest obstacle maybe the cost of shipping. If it is outrageous you might not want to buy a starter kit because it will be a bit large and I think the weight will be an issue. If you have to set yourself up on your own and you want to keep your costs down I can make some suggestions to get you started. Also, if you are not that into the craft part of the hobby and just want to make good beer I think you might want to try using Cooper no boil kits. Coopers makes really good kits and they also make one of the best dried yeasts on the market. The kits come hopped and you can make 3 gallons of beer with just the kit I believe. There are some great websites to give you pointers. One I like is called Bodenstatz brewing I believe that can answer most of your questions. I am on vacation and my internet access is limited. I am really excited to see that a fellow UK guy homebrews. I will check this thread again when I get home. Good luck.
Crush--thank you. I would love to get as much insight as possible. I certainly would like to take your suggestion regarding cost minimization.
I would like persoanlly create as much of the equipment as possible too, both to reduce costs as well as get to know the mechanics as well as possible. Not to mention, I will leave most if not all of the equipment behind. When I get back stateside, I would like to purchase top quality products and would like to be competent enought to entertain all-grain brewing.
I suppose the most sophisticated techniques I'm looking to use in Doha are adding bittering and finishing hops and employing secondary fermentation.
Thanks for the Cooper recommendation, as well as the Bodenstatz. I am still in the friggin hotel, so I've finish half of John Plamer's book "How to Brew". I'm hoping I'll learn the mechanics, technique, process, and science behind the inputand outputs of brewing. Any other recommendation about introductory text or media about any of those subjects is welcomed
SC, now that you have been in Doha for awhile, how is life in that part of the world? Are you able to travel around the country? Any unrest? Best of luck to you.
Markji wrote:SC, now that you have been in Doha for awhile, how is life in that part of the world? Are you able to travel around the country? Any unrest? Best of luck to you.
Life is slow here, I'll tell you that much. But this is a SIGNIFICANT upgrade over Tripoli. This is Tripoli's wet dream. But the project I'm working on is truly unbelievable. I'm handling procurement of half a billion dollars in equipment, specialized consultancy contracts, etc. I cannot get this experience at home. The construction site itself is epic, and the what makes it unique is that it is greenfield (not rebuilding an industrial area).
Its for that reason it is safe. I have met more expats than Qataris. They have so much cash that they hire outsider to tackle issues like that, where they hop around th eglobe buying up real estate and renting it. Because of that, there are businesses here that I've actually seen before. Nice things. The other night I went to the nicest lounge I have ever been in. It was at the W Hotel... can't find a picture of the lounge, but here's the skyline at night:
As for travel, there's not much else to do within Qatar. I cannot yet leave the country due to my visa status. When that is changed, I plan to go to: Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt; Abu Dhabi, ; Dubai and Abu Dhabi, UAE; Beirut and Byblos, Lebanon; various Persian Gulf fishing destinations.
I am most excited about Lebanon. Those women are beautiful. It is a popular French vacation destination, which is why the women have that beautiful dark skin, dark hair, but green/blue eyes. We all know how French men are. The Lebanese have Westernized in their Islamic practices. There is a beach resort that has a beach bar that gets top notch DJs, Edde Sands. I plan to spend a week there this summer:
Supreme, a great book to pick up is, The Complete Joy of Homebrewing by Charlie Papazian. I know there are others but this is the one that I rely on. As far as setting yourself up to make beer you will need a 5 gallon or bigger bucket made of food grade plastic with a top that seals on it. It would be similar to a bucket you would get at Lowes but it would have a top. You will need to drill a hole in the top to fit a bung and air lock but I would wait until you order that stuff so you can make sure that you fit your top to your air lock and bung. If you could get a bucket and top from a grocery store that was used for cole slaw or potato salad I think you would be all set. You also will need a food grade plastic hose to siphon your beer. If possible you will want to have some sort of clip for your hose that will allow you to shut off the flow of beer when you are bottling. If you don't you will lose a lot of beer. Also, you will need a second 5 gallon container to siphon your beer out of your initial fermentation bucket. This can be another bucket, or a camping water container as long as it is sterilized well. I know several guys that bottle to soda bottles and have no complaints. If you choose to do this you need to be careful and make sure that you protect your beer from light. Brown bottles do this but it is still a good idea to keep your beer out of the light. If you choose to use glass bottles you will need to either drink or purchase 2 and a half cases of 12 oz bottles that don't have a twist off cap, or use Grolsch style bottles. You also will need a stainless steel pot that holds at least 2 gallons of water and a wooden spoon. Both should only be used for your homebrewing.
There is a lot to consider. If you decide you want to cap your beer you might want to price starter kits as cappers are often included and are heavy. Also, starter kits usually give you a hydrometer and ingredients for your first batch. I think the biggest issue is the shipping. Let me know how you make out.
2 1/2 cases of bottles is what you usually need for a 5 gallon batch.
^ thank you. I'll let you know how it goes. The trick, short term, will be finding local ways to procure these items. not that they should be hard to find, just difficult for me to communicate what I need
Worst case is my God Daughter's christening will be June/July, so I may get the extract, yeast, and hops then, while I work on equipment until then
