I think I'm becoming obsessed

[Steve L]

So my brewing obsession seems to be taking on a life of it's own. It takes me days (albeit in short spurts) to build a recipe and tweak all my stuff. I Carry my laptop with me to work everyday not to be productive on the job but to work on water profiles, recipes, tweaks and adjustments during lunch breaks. I typically have 2-3 brewing books on me at any given time. Heaven forbid someone asks me a question about brewing... they'd better strap themselves in cause I will go on forever. My kids hate the smell on brew day, my wife hates it when I listen to brew strong in the car, and I schedule days off from work for.... wait for it.... brew days. Do others have this life or am I going down the rabbit hole?

[dmtaylor]

Sounds very familiar.  Welcome to the obsession.   

[HoosierBrew]

I'd wager a guess you're in good company here.  It's totally engrossing especially if you're determined to make great beer, and pretty damn interesting aside from that !  I will say it can be a juggling act to keep a S.O. happy from what I hear, but I'm very lucky - my wife is supportive and awesome. Welcome to the club !

[jaftak22]

It seems familiar. Everything you have said. Except our whole family gets in on brew day. The dog loves when I spill spent grains

[sdevries42]

This is reassuring. I was starting to worry about myself too....

[el_capitan]

Sounds like you've pretty much hit your stride! 

I've been pretty thick into things for almost 10 years now.  Obsessed or intensely focused?  There's a fine line there and I've never felt like exploring it. 

Brewing is a supremely rewarding hobby in that your rewards are directly proportional to your work.  And there's also the constantly evolving mystery of how your brewing process will affect the result. 

I love that I can spend a few hours crafting a beer, then follow it up with many hours enjoying the fruits of my labor. 

Add in the thriving homebrewing community and the incredible power of forums like these, and you've got something that shifts into a lifestyle.  Learning to brew has truly changed my perspective on life and instigated a whole paradigm shift.  I'm so much more connected and involved in everything I do, and I think it all started with the realization that you can actually make beer. 

Turns out I'm a root-down homebody who likes to create my own surroundings.  I don't know how it would have gone otherwise, but for me, homebrewing was the first step toward a whole new world.  A gateway drug toward sustainable living? 

I like it.  Either way, embrace the change.  Enjoy the ride!

[gmac]

Yeah, so?  Where's the hundreds spent on freezers and fermenters and buying grain in 500 lb lots?  I'd say you're doing fine and headed in the right direction but you've got some distance to go.

[Three]

Perfect.

[Steve L]

Yeah, so?  Where's the hundreds spent on freezers and fermenters and buying grain in 500 lb lots?  I'd say you're doing fine and headed in the right direction but you've got some distance to go.

I'd be right there if I had my way but my brewing has geographic boundaries that restrict me to anything and everything that can fit in a closet. I live in a tiny house with almost no room. My wife has been gracious enough to donate the water heater closet which will do for now. As with most homebrewers, I innovate. My fermentation fridge is actually a drug shipping box I copped from work that will hold a temp to within a degree or two for a couple days with the proper application of freezer bricks. Just big enough for my fermenters...
I can even lager in that bad boy. It will hold 40 degrees for 2 days at a time with gallon ice jugs.

Guess I'm a brewer who hasn't 'come out of the closet' yet.

[tumarkin]

There is a very fine line between 'hobby' and 'mental illness.'
  -- Dave Berry, "25 Things I Have Learned in 50 Years"

Many of us crossed that line long ago, though personally I prefer to substitute 'obsession' for 'mental illness.' Maybe it just sounds better, but that's my story & I'm sticking to it.

[Joe Sr.]

It seems familiar. Everything you have said. Except our whole family gets in on brew day. The dog loves when I spill spent grains

You probably know this already, but keep the dog away from the hops.

[euge]

Ahh it's just something I do now. Like regularly making bread perhaps. But enough to keep up a constant supply. The only thing obsessive about it is this dang forum....

[HoosierBrew]

It seems familiar. Everything you have said. Except our whole family gets in on brew day. The dog loves when I spill spent grains

You probably know this already, but keep the dog away from the hops.

+1.  Very toxic to dogs.

[Kennan Kayser]

This sounds awesome. I am just getting involved in this brewing thing. I am starting to go to school for brewing and just planted my first hop rhizomes. I am excited that I get to look forward to an obsession this fun and tasty too.

[weithman5]

So my brewing obsession seems to be taking on a life of it's own.

well yeah, you're on the forum