My name is Rob Zazueta, and I love beer. For years I was interested in learning how to brew my own beer, but was too intimdated by the seemingly complex process of turning malted barley, hops, water and yeast into something drinkable.

Then I watched someone do it. It was amazing to me how simple it was to brew good, high-quality beer. I immediately got the equipment I needed, purchased a kit from my local homebrew store and made my first batch at home. “Drinkable” didn’t do it justice. It was downright miraculous! That first five gallon batch of beer (Jason Breatt’s Honey Stout) was gone within a week with me handing over bottle after to bottle to friends and family, eager to share what I had made. The best compliment came from my father: “Son, I’ll be honest - I expected to take a sip of this beer, throw the rest of it out and lie to you that it tasted good so as not to hurt your feelings. But, damn, that is the best beer I have ever had, and I’m not saying that because you’re my son.”

I’ve been hooked ever since. I love sitting in front of my kettle and tending the boil, then checking in on my beer as it ferments away in my garage. I get a little thrill every time I see a bublle pop up through the airlock, showing that the yeast is performing its delicious alchemy. And nothing beats cracking open of a bottle of your own beer to cool you off on a hot day or warm you on a cool night.

As a self-avowed and prideful geek, brewing beer satisfies that side of me that adores all things science - the Maillard reaction, yeast respiration and reproduction, chemical analysis, titration, protein synthesis, etc. Unlike my other geeky pursuits, beer is something that can be equally enjoyed by non-techs. It’s the perfect hobby - you can either spend your time perfecting your brewing temperatures, pH levels and enzymatic efficiencies to coax the most out of your brewing equipment, or you can simply mix in high-quality ingredients, sit back and enjoy a brew you can call your own. Best of all, it’s a fairly easy and reasonably inexpensive hobby to start. If you can brew tea, you can brew beer.

My Brew Blog is intended to be both a resource to folks who, like me, have wanted to brew their own beer but didn’t know how to start as well as a way to track my own progress as a homebrewer. I hope you’ll follow along with me and share your experiences as well. I’d love to hear your thoughts and experiences as well as your advice. Thank you for sharing this wonderful hobby with me.