How I Bought Charlie Papazian For $1.

Is this the Home Brewer's Bible?

Well I didn't buy the man Charlie Papazian, the legendary home brewer and beer advocate, but I did manage to find a copy of his The New Complete Joy of Home Brewing first published in 1991 for a $1. Oh, Happy Day. 

While an updated Third Edition of the book has been published, this second edition of Mr. Papazian's amazing book was the beginning of my home brewing passion. I was a newly minted beer snob and  my local home-brew store owner Scott insisted I buy Mr. Papazian's book.

I wasn't alone. Nearly every Wanna Be Brewer who started home brewing in the 1990s started with Mr Papazian's book. It is the original masterpiece that held their hand and eased them towards their first successful batch.

In the intervening decades I lost my copy of The New Complete Joy of Home Brewing and spent many a day crying into a glass of fine beer. My beer appreciation may not have started with Charlie, but it most certainly became a passion because of him.

I found this copy while in line at my local supermarket. As usual I picked the slow line and ended up behind a kindly elderly gentleman who still loves writing checks (included in his purchase was a six pack of Narragansett). Easy bored and distracted my eyes wandered to a display of books available for a charitable donation of $1. Atop the pile, was a beer stained, dog-eared copy of The New Complete Joy of Home Brewing, perhaps even my old copy.

I snagged it with joy and rushed home to crack the grimy pages while happily sipping a tasty Petite Effronte Ale from my last trip to The Portsmouth Brewery.  I'm glad you're back in my life once more Charlie. I missed you.

Smell the Hops,

Chris