Rating: 
Summary: A must-have reference for new & intermediate brewers
Review: When you first feel the desire to brew beer, and start looking into the process, it can seem pretty formidable. Walking into the homebrew store or visiting its website, and seeing all the ingredients and equipment, can be intimidating for the newcomer. Turning to the web, magazines and books for enlightenment, the first-timer can be intimidated by the sheer volume of brewing information floating around. Rather than throwing your hands up in confusion and walking away, buy this book.Papazian's motto is "Relax, don't worry--have a homebrew!" Rather than getting bogged down in the details of making perfect, contest-winning beers, Papazian focuses on the basic steps a homebrewer has to follow to make good beer. You can make something tasty and enjoyable with minimal equipment, malt extract and part of a weekend afternoon, and Papazian holds the brewer's hand through the entire process. Once you've nailed the basics--and it's not hard--the last part of the book teaches you how to advance to intermediate brewing without much additional hassle. Experienced brewers may find this book too basic for their needs. Beginning and intermediate brewers will find it invaluable.
Rating:
Summary: BUY THIS ONE! - takes you from never-ever to advanced
Review: I have a whopping 2.5 gals of surprisingly good brew in my logbook (that makes me a rank beginner, folks!). I bought this book because I wanted to improve my techniques and make better (but not necessarily more complex) beers. This book never let me down - it has everything and seems best suited for the beginner to novice brewers (because 99% of intermediate to advanced brewers have already read it!). This book is divided into 3 sections - beginner (all extract), intermediate (extract plus specialty grains), and advnced (all-grain). However, this doesn't completely describe the layout of the book. For instance, Papazian talks about brewing techniques and components of beer (and how they interact) in EACH section, but he delves deeper and deeper with each progressive section. Thus, he unravels the mysteries of beer at a comfortable pace and only to the degree to which the reader cares to explore. But perhaps the thing that makes Papazian's books so beloved by homebrewers is the perfect balance between technique and fun! Even when describing the most technical subject, Papazian never disguises his enthusiasm for and love of homebrewing. He never forgets to remind his readers to ENJOY what they're doing - no matter how technical it may be (oh, and Papazian is exceptionally knowledgeable about homebrewing). Papazian's enthusiasm has rubbed off on me and has ignited my curiosity. I recommend this book to ALL homebrewers who have not already read it. To those who are curious about homebrewing, look no further - BUY THIS BOOK! It's worth it. This is nearly unanimously THE best general treatise on the FUN of homebrewing! Try some of the recipes he includes - I did! Relax... Don't Worry... Have a Homebrew!
Rating:
Summary: This will take you far
Review: After getting the desire to homebrew, and spending countless hours in the library reading various different books on homebrewing, I was becoming frustrated with the lack of information available . . . Then I stumbled across this book in a homebrew shop. It was EXACTLY what I needed as a first time homebrewer. I had no one to show me how to do it, but this book proved to be an excellent guide. It is a fun book to read, helps you to understand all the basics, and gives you more in-depth information later on if you want it. This book provided me with everything I needed in a simple-to-understand format, and answered all my questions. I've been brewing for 10 years now, and never needed to buy another homebrew instruction book. It even contains a good number of recipes from many different styles, and I've never found one I didn't like.
Rating:
Summary: Priceless book on home brewing
Review: I baught Charles Papazian's book on homebrewing about 10 months ago. I have since brewed about 6 bathces of homebrew. In my opinion this book is priceless. Charles starts out telling the reader about how beer was probably invented(I've used this to impress my friends) then moves into the equipment you'll need to brew your first batch and the next thing you know your brewing. His instructions are very very easy to follow and the illustrations are great. Explanations on different types of yeast, hops and grains available to the homebrewer are great for refining your beer and creating a taste to fit just about anyones palate. I've since moved on to the section for intermediate homebrewers and am loving every last taste of it.
I've started to keep my brewing a secret because once my friends find out I've brewed another batch of beer they all come knocking on my door for more. Charels book is a MUST BUY for anyone wanting to brew their own beer.
Rating:
Summary: Great book, very entertaining
Review: I started the home brewing hobby with Charlie's books and tried switching to Dave Miller's upon a friends recommendation. I'm now back to rereading the Papazian books that I have in my library. I think both authors are great in there own way, but Charlie by far is the more entertaining author of the two. I also feel that Charlie assumes nothing, meaning he explains everything in great detail. In reading Dave Miller's books, I sometimes got the feeling that he was assuming I already knew how to propagate yeast properly, or how crush grains to get the maximum yield out of them and so on. I also felt as though Miller's books lacked detail in certain areas and could have benefited from more information and pictures as well. Papazian does sometimes recommend bad habit forming advise in the early chapters of this book in the sack of keeping it simple, but later corrects himself leaving the choice up to the reader. I think this book is a "must have" for a beginning home brewer. Advanced home brewers, whether all grain or partial mash, may also find Charlie's writing entertaining and informative (just skip the first few chapters, because some of his recommendations may make the advanced brewer cringe!). The later chapters in this book have very good information on all aspects of brewing, from aeration to yeast propagation. I would recommend this book to anyone that doesn't have a copy of it in their home brewing library.
Rating: 
Summary: Good book, NOT a bible!
Review: This is a good starter. Personally, I find the author's style overly bold and self-confident. The motto "have a homebrew" is a grammatical non-sense. If I were a beginner I would buy it. It is a good book but certainly not a "bible".
Rating:
Summary: The bible of homebrewing
Review: I've been brewing for several years now, and virtually everything I ever needed to know was found in this book. The book takes you through three major sections: beginner brewing, intermediate, and advanced. You decide on just how deep you want to get involved... Great book, I've bought several copies for my friends...
Rating:
Summary: Enlightenment or Insanity, depending on your viewpoint.
Review: Christmas morning 2002, my wife hands me a wrapped present and says "open it". It's a beer-making kit. I feel like a kid in a candy store all of a sudden. Sure, it's only big enough for 1 gallon at a time, but it's enough to make me into a homebrewer. I make two one-gallon batches and I'm hooked. It's like when you make your first batch of Mac+Cheese when you're 10 years old: The mysteries surrounding food prep disappear, but the end result is pretty bland at best, but it's still better because I made it! Enter my curiosity. I want to know everything. I visited the local homebrew supplier and bought a copy of this book. When I started reading, I realized one of two things would happen: I would become enlightened beyond my years, or I would go insane trying to get there. The knowledge and enlightenment from this book is like learning how division and addition combine to calculate "averages". Now you understand the "secrets" to things like "batting averages" and "free throw percentages". You can now read trading cards with confidence. Charlie explains how the different parts of the brew process (ingredient selection, boiling, fermenting, bottling, priming, etc.) combine to make beer. Now you understand the "secrets" to how the individual steps combine to make beer. You know the secrets of "good beer" and "cheap beer", opting to buy premium brands instead of the usual "mass-produced" beers. (You're not buying premium beer because you know why they taste better, you're buying premium beer because you need bottles that can be re-capped for your homebrew!) My friends are divided on whether I've become enlightened or gone totally insane, but they all agree the end result is worth it: my first 5-gallon batch of all-extract brew. Thanks Charlie!
Rating: 
Summary: all of life's answers are in the fermentation bucket
Review: this is intended for those of you would be homebrewers. this book gets you in up to your waist in wort. easy to understand if you have a brew or two under your belt. the whole thing to remember is relax......blah blah blah. if you want a decent reference book for conversions etc,a plain basic understanding of process this is it. for recipes i would look else where. buy it used!! pass it on to a friend and for goodness sake don't brew alone. remember fermentation is civilization!!
Rating:
Summary: A Must-Have for Every Home Brewer
Review: The New Complete Joy is such a good introduction to Home Brewing that it is now included in many kits. I have been brewing for about 2 years now and still refer back to it. It gives a good background to the mechanics of brewing and takes you from easy (malt extracts) to more advanced (grain brewing). Though it is an old book the basics of home brewing haven't changed much. Brewing your own beer is not difficult and is extremely rewarding (just think in three weeks you can have 5 gallons of any type of beer you want). Make the best tasting beer you've ever had... buy this book!
| 
