Hobby Thread - June 21, 2025 [TRex]

Welcome hobbyists! Pull up a chair and sit a spell with the Horde in this little corner of the interweb. This is the mighty, mighty officially sanctioned Ace of Spades Hobby Thread. We gave the Ace of Spades Wheel of Hobbies(TM) a spin. It must have been thirsty because it came up with home brewing and winemaking. Credit to Stateless for the topic request. We did a beer theme in September 2024, but that wasn't focused on homebrewing and didn't include winemaking.

The Cistercian monks of Eberbach wrote on their wine press in 1801: "Wine delights the heart of man." (Psalm 104:15)

Eberbach Monastery was founded in 1136 and was one of Germany's largest wineries for centuries. The monastery was secularized in 1803 by the Duke of Nassau. After secularization, Kloster Eberbach served "profane" purposes: women's prison, "lunatic asylum," cattle stables and agricultural tenant farm

The facility and surrounding lands have been under control of the State of Hesse since 1945. The monastery's wine cellar dates back to 1706 and contains some of the most valuable wines in the world.

We recommend a visit. In the name of research.

TRex appreciates those that conjure beverages with a magical mix of ingredients and fermentation. TRex has a small brain and short arms which means TRex is not been blessed with talents of making beer or wine. However, out of respect to those who have invested their knowledge, experience and labor into such endeavors, TRex believes it would be rude to abstain from sampling the results from time to time. TRex is polite like that.

Are there amateur brewmasters and winemakers among the Horde? Please share. If you have shared your story previously, refresh our memory.

Passing down knowledge: "Could be wrong or right, I dunno. But comes out good every year."

Do you need a big expensive winery to make wine? Big machines, shiny tanks, rows of barrels, a bottling line and a nice tasting room? Wineries are sometime in the category of "having a small fortune by starting with a large one." Maybe start small first.

How much does making wine at home cost?

Wine presses are simple machines and you can build a small one yourself. Learn how here:

Once you make all that wine and put it in bottles, you'll need a wine storage solution. There are lots of videos with wine rack builds on the interwebs. This was the most simple and easy to follow guide for the most simple and functional wine rack I could find.

Not specific to making wine at home and also not specific to grapes, but the science of rootstocks and grafting is a horticultural rabbit hole.

There are a bazillion websites and youtube videos on making beer at home. Making drinkable beer takes far less time than making wine. One of the challenges with online videos is that hosts often take knowledge for granted or have trouble putting themselves in the position of newbies when they explain. TRex isn't qualified to judge, but these seemed reasonable options for starters:

The Easiest Way to Make Beer

How to brew beer at home - FULL process from start to finish

HOME BREWING 101: How to Brew Beer at Home [The Beginner's Guide]

Beer school - learn more about hops:

Five hops created the craft beer revolution: Cascade, Centennial, Simcoe, Citra and Mosaic. This is a feature-length documentary, so fair warning if you push play.

Does hops count as a vegetable? They are green which helps their cause.

Does anyone grow hops at home?

Theme request

Next week we are going to talk lighthouses. We're going to talk about trips to see them, lore and stories involving them, pictures taken of them, paintings of them, and sculptures of them.

If you have thoughts or artistic submissions that can help the cause, please send to the official Hobby Thread email address below. The Hobby Thread always likes to feature Horde Hobbying, so don't be shy.

Lego airport builds:

What are you hobbying these days?

As per usual Hobby Thread etiquette, keep this thread limited to hobbying. Your participation does not need to limited to the theme. All hobbying is welcome. However, politics, current events and religious debates can live in threads elsewhere. Play nice. Do not be a troll and do not feed the trolls. Pants, as always, are optional.

Did you miss the Hobby Thread last week? We talked nostalgic toys. The comments may be closed, but you can re-live the content.

Notable comments from last week:

Words of wisdom:

"Because despite all our troubles, when things are grim out in that wide round world of ours, that's when it's really important to have a good hobby." Posted by: tankascribe at June 22, 2024 07:41 PM (HWxAD).

Thanks much to scampydog for the thread launch while TRex is busy with NoVa MoMe shenanigans. Because of said shenanigans, TRex will likely be less visible in the comments today. If you have trouble finding something in the content or comments that resonates with you, hijack the thread for your hobbying as you see fit. We will feature a different theme next time. What are you hobbying? We love showing off Horde hobbying. Send thoughts, suggestions and photos of your hobbying to moronhobbies at protonmail dot com. Do mighty things.

posted by Open Blogger at 05:30 PM

| Access Comments