The Wake

There is more to beer than the alcohol it contains, and one group of students has devoted their time to mastering the art of home brewing.

The Campus Home Brewing Association at the University of Minnesota meets every other week to guide each other in the brewing process and to trade beverages when they are done.

“It’s not a ‘let’s get drunk’ club”, says Josh Beiningen, President of the Campus Home Brewing Association. He emphasizes that the club is about an appreciation for beer.

There is a real art behind it, he says. Home brewing allows for mixing grains and trying different combinations.

Home brewing is also a way for people to learn about their roots. The pre-Prohibition Logger gives the recipes of beers that are not commercially produced, Beiningen says. “They are the same beers our ancestors drank,” he says.

Beiningen describes how making your own beer has the ultimate “do it yourself” mentality, because you can buy all organic grains and ingredients which can be hard to find in other beers.

There are about 20 people in the club, and most of whom are students in the College of Natural Resources. In addition to beer, members of the club also make their own wine. One member is straight edge (no drugs or alcohol) and brews root beer instead.

The club has not encountered any legal problems yet. Students have to be 21 years old in order to be a beer-maker in the club, Beiningen says. There is also a law that a household of one can only make 100 gallons of alcohol a year, and it is illegal to sell it, he says.

Beiningen noted that home brewing is so much easier than people think. “If you can make macaroni and cheese, you can make beer. If you can make Kool-Aid, you can make wine,” he says.

Members of the club brew their beverages in their own homes because they need a large area to work with. The initial cost for equipment is $38, and Beiningen offers to go with club members to purchase what they need.

An average batch of beer takes six weeks to make, while wine takes six months, he says.

The first day of the process of making beer involves mixing ingredients and steeping grains the same way as steeping tea. Yeast and sugar are later used to carbonate the beer, he says.

Next summer, Beiningen plans to grow some grapes for wine. This year, some of his friends picked their own apples to make wine.

The club is also planning several fieldtrips for this year, including tours of Summit, Rock Bottom Brewery and Town Hall, a brewery on the West Bank of campus. The club is planning on going to Vine Hearth, where people can use the facilities to brew batches of beer for themselves. Beiningen also hopes for the club to visit some vineyards in Stillwater.

Students interested in joining the Campus Home Brewing Association can email the club at for more information.