The Homebrewer's Garden: How to Grow, Prepare & Use Your Own Hops, Malts & Brewing Herbs

by Joe Fisher, Dennis Fisher

For beer brewers ready to put even more "home" into their homebrewing, brothers Joe and Dennis Fisher offer advice on growing hops, grains, and herbs, plus malting instructions and recipes for more than 25 homebrews.

Genres: Brewing, Gardening, Beer, Nonfiction, Reference, Food, Cookbooks

485 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 10, 1998

About the author

Joe Fisher, 53, author of The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts, died on Wednesday, May 9, 2001, by jumping off a limestone cliff at Elora Gorge, near his hometown of Fergus, Ontario, Canada. A variety of personal problems, including a growing list of unpaid bills for the writer, appeared to have pushed him over the edge. In one of his last communications with his editor-in-chief, Patrick Huyghe at Paraview Books, Fisher noted that the spirits were still after him for having written his final book.

Joe Fisher was an investigative writer specializing in metaphysical topics. His books had sold more than one million copies in 22 languages.

Andrew Joseph Fisher was born and educated in England; he held dual citizenship with Canada, his home base since 1971. He regularly gave workshops and seminars based on his explorations into the supernatural.

A veteran broadcaster who gave more than 200 radio and television interviews on his work, Fisher started his career as a junior reporter on The Staffordshire Advertiser where he became, at 22 years of age, the youngest news editor in England. After emigrating to Canada, he worked as an investigative reporter and feature writer for both The Toronto Sun and The Toronto Star. His journalistic stints were interspersed with excursions to Greece, Ireland, Ecuador, Morocco and Peru where he pursued personal writing projects. At Ecuador's Colegio Americano in Quito, he taught English and composed journals which were later edited for the book Cotopaxi Visions: Travels in Ecuador.

In 1981, Joe Fisher left daily journalism to concentrate on writing books and freelance articles. Since then, he has traveled widely (Australia and Antarctica are recent destinations) and contributed to periodicals ranging from Canada's national dailies, The National Post and The Globe & Mail, to magazines including Outpost, Equinox, Ocean Drive and Life & Soul.

Joe Fisher's books included the contemporary metaphysical classics The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts, Life Between Life, The Case For Reincarnation and Predictions. While His Holiness The Dalai Lama wrote the preface to The Case For Reincarnation, film rights to Hungry Ghosts have been optioned to a Los Angeles film company which is moving towards production.

For five years, Fisher painstakingly investigated the claims of channelers and the mysterious voices that speak through them. The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts, his last book, is his gripping journey into a realm of darkness and deception. The revised edition includes a new foreword by Colin Wilson, and an epilogue that updates events since the book was first published in the U.K. a decade ago.

In 1987, Fisher was presented with The Leask Award by The Spiritual Science Institute of Canada for "making an outstanding contribution to the field of spiritual awareness."

Many in the publishing community, as well as friends of Fisher's, are expressing shock at his death. A Fergus-area friend, writer Sheila O'Hearn said: "He believed in giving of himself for other people. He felt, for him, that's what life was all about." Her husband, Ray Krzyzanowski remarked: "He's going to be really missed. He was my only real friend here. I'm going to miss him.'

Fisher's family have decided there will be no services.

--Loren Coleman



http://www.anomalist.com/milestones/f...

Reviews

[Kaveh]

Really interesting and inspiring book for "non-conventional" brews.
The hops part was OK, the malt part was pretty hard-core (most will probably not do it seriously, even though trying it out might be fun!).
But the third part with spices/herbs not commonly used will be a great source of inspiration for future experimental brews. Even though I prefer "style typical" brews, I will definitely try some of the recipes out that are listed in the back of the book.

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid and useful information, I can't wait to start growing some hops. What I really liked was these guys live just a few miles away, so I know this is doable with Maine's not always cooperative weather and soil. Nice list of authors to read and people to contact. Check it out.

[Jennifer Eifrig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really great little book with lots of helpful info. Some here have given it lower ratings because by their own admission they aren't ready for this kind of gardening and brewing adventure. Absolute newbies will probably do better with a basic brewing guide, but for anyone with a spirit of adventure this is a handy volume.

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

Full review here: https://thebeerthrillers.com/2024/04/...
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Excerpt:
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The Homebrewer’s Garden by Joe Fisher and Dennis Fisher is an essential guide for any homebrewer looking to elevate their craft by cultivating their own ingredients. This comprehensive manual covers the entire process of growing, preparing, and utilizing hops, malts, and brewing herbs, making it a valuable resource for both novice and experienced brewers who wish to take a hands-on approach to their beer-making.

One of the book’s greatest strengths is its detailed and practical advice on gardening techniques tailored specifically for brewing ingredients. The Fishers draw from their extensive experience to provide step-by-step instructions on planting, nurturing, and harvesting hops and other plants. They also include information on soil preparation, pest management, and seasonal care, ensuring that readers have all the tools they need to successfully grow high-quality ingredients. The authors’ passion for homebrewing and gardening shines through, making the text engaging and accessible.............................
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Full Review here: https://thebeerthrillers.com/2024/04/...

[Christopher Murtagh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read quite a few brewing books and this is one of the best.

It details how to grow and dry hops. It goes into all the different adjuncts that you can grow in your garden, and if you are inclined (i.e. completely insane) details how to grow and malt your own grain.

With this book you could 100% make 100% of your beer, and make beer with all sorts of ingredients that you would never find in even the most off the wall, weird ass, specialty beer from the strangest niche microbrewery.

There are some recipes at the end to try out, if you are the kind of person to buy this book, you probably wouldn't need them, as I imagine you already have bought all sorts of other brewing books. If you are contemplating buying this as your first brewing book, don't, buy "How to brew" by John Palmer or buy them both together. If you like this book, you might also like "Radical Brewing" by Randy Mosher as it also goes into adjuncts, fruit beers and unusual styles of brewing.

I'm not sure how effective the information will be, as I have to try it out, but this book did inspire me to immediately plant a hop garden of my own. It's clear and well written, good diagrams, nice job!

[Tait Sougstad · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Ok I didn't read all of the recipes or study every listed pest, but I did read the rest!)

A great book for anyone wanting to make brewing a part of their garden. Explanations on growing and using hops, barley, other grain adjuncts, and herbs. Includes several brewing recipes at the end. It's true that you can find all of the information in other books, but it is an informative read on a 101 level and a good reference book for the cross-section of horticulture and beer.

[Colby Moorberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall I enjoyed it. It's about one-third growing hops, one-third growing other beer-related herbs, and one-third recipes. It was informative, and well done. However, the authors did enough organic food preaching to be distracting.

[John Hubbard · Rating 2 out of 5]

I based my hopgrowing largely on this book. But haven't really tried more of it. Useful but not inspiring.

[Emilie · Rating 3 out of 5]

My husband brews and grows some of his own Cascade hops every year, so this was a fun read. Very detailed, more advanced then for your starter person. Love the recipes.

[Adam Gutschenritter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good information. This will be a great book if we get a little more land and less deer. Looking forward to playing with the knowledge, more importantly the recipes.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Terrific little book that takes a very different approach from that of other homebrewing books. The recipes are fascinating, for beers heavily flavored by such things as Lavender, Dandelion, Anise, etc. The long discussion of hops is good, too, but it's the recipes that set your imagination going.

My Cascades are flowering a bit now, and look terrific. Based on past experience (i.e., once) I expect 4 - 5 oz. of dried hops from them and am looking forward to brewing with them in the fall! Last time I made a sort of Anchor Liberty Ale clone, which is always good. I toasted my own grains for that recipe, and maybe will again, though I'm a bit out of practice on the brew front.

[Darrenglass · Rating 4 out of 5]

I suppose the real review should come after I find out how well my hops harvest goes (so far one plant is going gangbusters and the other...um...seems dead) and how the recipes taste (I'll try the oregano pale ale in the near future), but the book was quite interesting and readable and seemed full of good information.

[Polly Krize · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A comprehensive, well-written guide to setting up your garden for brewing purposes. Home growing of hops, malts and brewing herbs are all covered in detail, from seed to planting to pest control. Recommended for novice or experienced home brewers.

[Blayne · Rating 1 out of 5]

A friend and I are going to start homebrewing in the new year. I picked this book up at the local library hoping to glean some information, but this book was not very helpful to a newbie. I expected as much, but picked it up anyway.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I had no intention of growing my own hops or grains, I really enjoyed this book. It has an excellent section on herbs and such that have been used for brewing throughout the centuries that got me immediately thinking about all kinds of funky fresh beers to cook up.

[Glenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nearly half the book is advanced brewing recipes of heavily herbed brews. The other half is really great growing info on a broad range of useful plants. I was interested primarily in the hops section, which did not disappoint, and may now be interested in growing barley as well.

[Shaun · Rating 3 out of 5]

A succinct guide to growing your own brewing ingredients including: hops, malt, brewing herbs, as well as how to deal with pests.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great little book packed full of useful information on all sorts of plants and techniques. Lets grow a field of barley.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written book full of idea generating information about hops, herbs, and grains.

[Barb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book about growing herbs and hops for brewing.

[Daniel Dimitroff · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just about everything in this book I had already found online somewhere for free. Broke no new ground for me.

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first part was interesting, but it's mostly just a plant dictionary which is not much use until I can actually go out and plant some things in the ground.

[Justin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for any homebrew thinking about growing your own ingredients.

[Erica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice format, good info. Love the detailed info on how much fresh herbs to put in various kinds of beer.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for those looking to be fully-sustainable brewers.