Why brew your own beer? You can buy zillions of varieties of beers, there's no hassle to doing it, and if you buy a bad beer, you're only out the cost of a six-pack.

Brewing your own beer is the next step in your beerducation. It's easy enough to sample many beers, but to truly appreciate what you're drinking, you've got to get into the brewmaster's skin. Plus, you make 5 gallons of beer at a time! Not a bad deal if you've made a beer you are particularly fond of. Cost-wise, it works out to about 50-75 cents a bottle, i.e. less than premium yellow fizzy beers. And you get the joy of copping a beer buzz off your own handiwork.

Homebrew can become an art, but first you have to get past the science of it all. While it might look intimidating if you read about it on the internet, you're probably into the more experienced brewer's pages. Making your first batch can be as easy as opening a can or two.

Your initial costs, regardless of complexity of beer, is fairly minimal. Look for a quality beginners kit that usually consists of:

* Six gallon fermenting bucket with lid
* Six gallon bottling bucket with spigot
* Fermentation lock
* Siphon tubing
* Bottle filler
* Bottle brush
* AutoSiphon
* Bottle capper
* 144 bottle caps
* Hydrometer
* 8 oz. One-Step Sanitizer
* Complete instructions

A lot of these kits also come with a simple beer kit to make your first batch. Kits like these are available at northernbrewer.com, homebrewheaven.com, or many more. Google for the words «homebrew kit» to find a multitude of choices.

You'll also need to invest in a large stainless steel pot. Depending on your beer kit, you may need to boil a lot of water at once. Stovetop boiling takes a while, so you may want to consider a turkey fryer, or use your outdoor grill's side burner.

Once you've got the tools, you can purchase a beer kit online or at your local beer and wine craft shop. Prices for beer kits range from under $20 to $50 or more, depending on quantity of ingredients.

If you really want to try before you buy, or think that it may be too much work, a very cheap way to try homebrewing is the Mr. Beer kits. These kits make half-batches, about 2.5 gallons, of excellent beer. Everything comes with it, and you can buy additional kits to make more beer. The total cost is around $60. You can find these at Target, Wal-mart, larger department stores or online at http://www.mrbeer.com.

Need convincing? Find a friend who homebrews and sample a bottle. There's nothing like a quality beer, and those you make in your own home are far superior to most of the swill you find in the grocery store. Cheers!