Book Review: How To Brew - John Palmer

For anybody looking to get into homebrewing or even for experienced homebrewers, John Palmers How To Brew is a must have book. The book can be used by novice brewers looking to get into kit or extract brewing, but it also provides good information on All Grain for more advanced readers. Also the book is constructed in such a way that it will provide you with the basic information you need to get going, while also offering an in depth examination of some areas should you wish to understand the processes better.

For me this book has proved invaluable and is a resource that I can see myself revisiting time and time again throughout my brewing life.


A free version of the book (the first edition) is available online at http://www.howtobrew.com/%20, however I would highly recommend purchasing the updated third edition that is available through Amazon and other retailers. The book is split by brewing type and covers:

• Brewing with Malt Extract
• Brewing with Extract and Speciality Grains
• All Grain Brewing
• Recipes, Experimenting and Troubleshooting

Each of these four main sections then has a number of chapters, these chapters cover the processes involved as well as providing in-depth information on the different ingredients and equipement involved. Overall a very comprehensive and useful 'manual' for the homebrewer.

I have recently purchased the MicroBrewers Handbook, Hops and Glory and Clone Brews and will be reviewing these in the near future. Really loving the Hops & Glory book by Pete Brown at the moment.