Home brewing your craft beer can be a fun and thrilling hobby, especially for drink fanatics who enjoy making special blends for friends and family. It’s a more eco-friendly option than buying from most industrial breweries, as it allows you to make your favourite pints on a much smaller scale.
But with the amount of water and energy used, it can be hard to find a system that allows you to brew quality beer at home with sustainability in mind. Still, adding some simple and smart changes to your process to make it more eco-friendly can be easier than you think.
Consider these suggestions to help make your home-crafted beer a more sustainable and
delicious brew.
Use recycled materials for brewing and bottling
When gathering all of your tools to start your new batch, it’s a good idea to try finding recycled pots, bottles, and brewing equipment to prevent unnecessary waste.
For instance, you can find used beer kettles for an affordable price in decent condition at many online marketplaces or brewing vendors. You can also use recycled glass bottles or cans for the final bottling of your brew.
Save on wastewater
One of the biggest ways waste is created during a home brewing process is through the wastewater used in cleaning and fermenting. It is critical to sanitise properly all of your brewing equipment prior to the cooking and fermenting process to keep your batch safe and viable.
Tennent’s, a sustainable beer brewery in Scotland, uses a viable natural water source called Loch Katrine for their beer. Save on your own wastewater by collecting rainwater and reusing the sanitising water to prep your equipment for your lawn or back garden. You can even use it for cleaning around the house.
Maximising the water you use effectively helps keep waste down to a minimum.
Grow some yourself
If you have the space on your property, consider growing your own grain for your beer. It can help save you money and offset the carbon emissions from order deliveries made to speciality beer grain manufacturers.
Reuse homemade yeast cakes for bread and other baked goods, or just add them to a new
batch to ferment further. A little goes a long way with homegrown grain and you’ll never run
out of the supply you’ll need.
Save on the energy you use yourself
Another great way to responsibly brew your home beer is to ensure you have smart energy solutions while boiling and fermenting your batch. If your home has solar power or other efficient means to power your cooktop, be sure to take advantage of it and keep your boiling steady and your heat not too high.
If you don’t have energy-saving options, consider joining a local brewing group for both support and sharing supplies to use less energy and resources. This also helps you get to know other homebrewing enthusiasts in your community and support one another in making the green decision to brew your own beer.
Conclusion
Home brewing beer is a fantastic hobby that allows you to enjoy a refreshing pint in a way that’s much less harmful than purchasing non-sustainable name brands. Still, by using these practices for your next batch, you’ll be sure to have the most responsible and eco-friendly craft beer for your friends and neighbours to enjoy.
Explore more Beer tips from The Drinks Guy here!