[djsanta]

You just ran into a bad crowd.  Of all the homebrewers I've ever met only 1-2% of them are a-holes.  Unfortunately, this was your first experience...too bad.

If you do want to get into all-grain brewing on the cheap I highly recommend BIAB.  That's how I made the switch.  You can make some great beer using BIAB, and anyone who tells you that's not brewing can suck a rock!

[Three]

Your in the right crowd now rusyl!  Nothin' but love and brewing knowledge here!

Lets brew!

[jamminbrew]

Screw those guys. I've had some really awesome extract beers that blew away similar all grain beers. Do what you do, and take pride in your beers. I've meet a few people who thought they were gods at homebrewing, but when I tried their beers, they were usually plain, and once downright gross.

[cornershot]

You just ran into a bad crowd.  Of all the homebrewers I've ever met only 1-2% of them are a-holes.  Unfortunately, this was your first experience...too bad.

If you do want to get into all-grain brewing on the cheap I highly recommend BIAB.  That's how I made the switch.  You can make some great beer using BIAB, and anyone who tells you that's not brewing can suck a rock!

+1 to BIAB. I demo fly sparging on a 3 keggle system, batch sparging with a cooler, and BIAB and BIAB is, by far, the most requested. Mostly for it's simplicity and minimal equipment for new brewers but I do it more and more just because it's a relatively shorter brew day.

[rustyl]

 I'm from Flint,  Michigan. Plenty of bars, and not too far from lots of breweries and craft breweries, but other than my brother, dad and  brother-in-law,  we haven't met any other Homebrewers. We are all into this hobby, but I'm the obsessed one that takes it to a whole other level.  They just follow my lead, which is scary considering how new at this I am. Flint is a crazy town, but I am a very social person and do fine keeping on the good side of the trouble here.  I'll take your advice and look for a nearby club. I kind of thought those were for advanced guys and girls that do competitions.

[cornershot]

I'm from Flint,  Michigan. Plenty of bars, and not too far from lots of breweries and craft breweries, but other than my brother, dad and  brother-in-law,  we haven't met any other Homebrewers. We are all into this hobby, but I'm the obsessed one that takes it to a whole other level.  They just follow my lead, which is scary considering how new at this I am. Flint is a crazy town, but I am a very social person and do fine keeping on the good side of the trouble here.  I'll take your advice and look for a nearby club. I kind of thought those were for advanced guys and girls that do competitions.

...and beginners, and club brew sessions, and holiday parties, technical talks at meetings, festivals, sensory training, equipment building, trading, sharing, socializing, networking... you get the idea.

[cornershot]

With any luck the snobs will be in the club and you can taste some real homebrew! 

[scottNU]

You will find so many advantages and benefits to being in a club. Give it a shot and I think you will find that people will be just as open and friendly as this forums.

I bet the guys you ran into aren't in a club. They don't seem to play nice with others.

[ynotbrusum]

Rustyl, I have to catch myself when I brew with friends who are solely extract guys not to say something that might be taken the wrong way.  But these guys went way beyond even a mild tease in your case.  I have friends who do all grain some of the time and extract other times.  Frankly, many times, if I am stepping up a batch through starter to 2.5 gallon to 5 gallon, I will do extract for the 2.5 gallon step, just to be quicker and easier.  Bigger batches justify the time of an all grain brewing session, typically for me, but not always.  So I see no reason to downgrade a person, just because he or she doesn't do it the way the "pro's do it".  Heck, I don't do a lot of things the way the pro's do.  Because I am a homebrewer and so are you!

[Jimmy K]

I don't believe you're a brewer unless you hand pull the water out of a well, grow and malt your own grain and hops, manage your own yeast cultures ... I'm kidding.
 
Seriously, EVERY brewer - including most pro's - chooses some parts of the process to outsource. Extract brewers have someone else mash for them, but all grain brewers have someone else malt grain for them. Malting was once an integral part of the brewing process. Some people manage their own yeast, most just buy vials or packets. And hops - where's the art if the package tells you the AA levels, etc. Or how about recipe formulation? So - don't sweat the a---oles.
 
So my point is - producing beer from raw ingredients is a multi-step process and deciding that ONE part is what makes you a brewer is bunk.
 
And I think most folks here would agree with this - Mashing is the 'sexy' part of brewing, but it's not the hard part, and it's not the most critical part. Fermentation control is the harder/critical part of making quality beer.  When people want to go all-grain to improve their beer, I encourage them to look at improving yeast health and fermentation control (temperatures) first. That will provide a lot more benefit (though I don't know if anyone ever listens).
 
And this...
 

[cornershot]

+1 to all mtnrockhopper said. The difference between a good beer and a not so good beer is more often than not fermentation.
And I've had that far side cartoon on my beer fridge for like 10 years! Classic!

[tonyp]

You are absolutely a brewer and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. They were being elitist dbags, not to make you feel bad about yourself, but to make themselves feel superior. Bullies are everywhere unfortunately, but you don't need to be around them, and quite honestly, they don't deserve the privilege of your company.

I started with a Mr. Beer kit and made some of the crappiest beer on earth, but opening that first bottle when it was done was just as exciting as the last all-grain batch I brewed 13 yrs later.

This forum is the home to some of the most generous, down-to-earth and kindest people you will ever meet and you are more than welcome to be a part of it without judgment or ridicule. In fact, if you didn't immediately notice it, there is a whole forum section dedicated to extract brewing filled with people ready to answer your questions and share your experiences with.

I hope your experience doesn't tarnish your view of the hobby and just know that we are all here for you if you need any help.

Welcome to the family, cheers!

Tony

[rhcpfan4002]

With more and more people homebrewing you will probably see more of this. We have jerks show up to club meetings now and then. They come in thinking they know everything and start belittling others, then a BJCP judge may comment on  a flaw in their beer, not to be mean but to educate, and they take extreme offense to it. I think I saw this happen twice in 5 years. Very few people make a beer with no flaws if they are trying to make a certain style. I love doing all grain but if it is just a rainy day and want something to do for a few hours I usually do a partial mash from a kit I got for Christmas, spare grains I have laying around or make some mead. Can I taste a difference between partial and full mash? Yes. Do they both taste good? Yes. Do what makes you happy man. I do not consider brewing with extract brewing, or at least how I do it, but more of a steeping process but I can tell you there are extract brewers out there who can whoop my ass any day of the week with some of their beers.

[singletrack brewer]

Reading about your experience really frustrates me and sadly these people exist in every community. It really sucks that you experienced that.  Correct me if I'm wrong but the point of a club is for like minded individuals to come together and share insight and experiences, not to ridicule.  It shouldn't matter if you are just starting out, been brewing for years, extract, all grain, etc.

[Slowbrew]

I can't really add anything to what has already been said.  You will find bad apples in every batch.  I've been doing this for 16 years, 5 - 6 solely extract with grains.  I went to all-grain to prove I could and found out it isn't that much different.  It just takes longer.  8^)

Ask anything you wonder about here.  There is a rather large base of knowledge on this forum on a vast number of subjects, not just beer.

Welcome and come back often.

Paul