The big book of brewing

Please do not listen to the critic of the book who calls it "A sad Anachronism". Although there may be some truth to the title, the content of his critique is silly! Although I do not own one, Bruheat Boilers can indeed be bought! This book is a must for every advanced homebrewer and contains a wealth of information, including things I didn't know and never read in other more modern brew books. However, the book is by no means complete, uses methods and equipment which are out-dated and much more difficult than those used today AND is certainly not for the beginner! For the beginner, the best book I have come across is the Joy of Brewing by Papazian. Granted the edition I recently bought was published in 1982, Dave Line was a true homebrew pioneer who should not be forgotten. This book should be taken from what it is and not followed to the letter (as Americans tend to do!) If you read carefully with a highlighter marker, you can come across some excellent information.

I read a rewiew on David Line's book, "Brewing Beers Like Those You Buy". I felt the rewiew was so wrong that I wrote the following: Dave Line wrote two great books, "The Big Book of Brewing" and this book. This book was a recipe book, not a guide. It's great to see how he approached brewing each beer. I have been brewing full mash brewing since 1980. I usually brew bitter and pale ales. This book is a constant reference. Other than the discontinued use of Sodium metabisulphite for sterilization, I'm not sure how "Homebrewing has evolved so much since then"? His Big Book of Brewing was written in 1974 and the recipe book in 1978. The making great beer has not changed since then. The full mash process has been the same for hundreds of years. Both books are great reference books and should be part of any brewing library.