tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4501361286897702641.post-55972163830681406722008-01-26T16:22:00.000-06:002008-02-06T08:37:42.564-06:00I wanted to take a minute to give a bit of information about my system. I know when I started out home brewing I was always curious about what other home brewers had for setups and there always seemed to be a pretty steep curve between the basic kit you start off with and the all-grain systems that are displayed in magazines and on the web.<br />For starters, I'm a stove top brewer who has been partial mashing for about a year. I like the flexibility it gives me, the room it takes up (or doesn't) and the extra steps/toys incorporated into it. I don't really have plans at this point to make the leap into all-grain. I'm sure that there are benefits to it, but I'm pretty happy with the beer I make and don't feel like I'm cheating myself or the legions of Bearded Brewing fans (that's a joke), by not moving into all-grain. I can mess around with different specialty grains, base malts and have been happy with the turn out. I also still make extract beers, and have been perfectly happy with that <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_AEgOKSbdyoY/R5vFV7xrgKI/AAAAAAAAAb4/EgsGGNraLts/s1600-h/tap-a-draft.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5159934778697023650" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; CURSOR: pointer" alt="" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_AEgOKSbdyoY/R5vFV7xrgKI/AAAAAAAAAb4/EgsGGNraLts/s400/tap-a-draft.jpg" border="0" /></a>as well. In fact two of my most popular beers, Inky's White and Whitefish Cranberry Wheat, are extract recipes.<br />Last year for Christmas I asked for a mini-draft system. I originally got the mini kegs, but after several uses, I switched to the 1 1/2 gallon plastic vessels. The mini kegs always exploded when I tapped them and they seemed to lose carbonation quickly. I think this is because there's a piece that connects the dispenser through a rubber bung to the keg, and its not very secure. So instead I've been very happy with the plastic bottles and the tap-a-draft dispenser. I don't have the money or room currently to go to a kegging system, and this satisfies that need. Plus its nice because I can bottle half the batch to give away and have some on tap. Also, I never like drinking one beer style for too long, so its nice to be able to have a small amount on tap, and still have enough other beers. For those on a budget, I'd recommend the TAD system and I've had no problems with it.<br /><br />Salud!<br />-The Bearded BrewerThe Bearded Brewerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09272265527986943248noreply@blogger.com