Don't fancy Presidente too much

[Paulino]

...so I figured, should I look into brewing my own beer instead? The first question that springs to mind is, is it legal in the Dominican republic? It is in the US and in most other parts of the world, but in a country like the DR, who knows.

Might as well ask the follow-up questions right away, if legal, is it feasible in this hot and humid, insect and ant-ridden environment? Has anyone here tried? I know that ale (top-fermented beer) can be brewed at fairly high temperatures, like in the 70s, but without air condition it is likely to get much warmer inside a house. Of course, if you have a spare fridge that's an option for making lager beers, like Presidente (hopefully better tasting though).

And perhaps the most important of all, are there any suppliers domestically, who sell malts, (-extract), hops and yeast, and the paraphernalia that are necessary for a proper brewing process?

[catcherintherye]

There have been several threads, in which many issues regarding the brewing of beer in the DR were discussed.

The following is one of those threads:

Beer Question

And you could do a search using "brewing beer" using the search function on the tool bar at the top of this page. There are perhaps over a hundred threads to read through.

It is a very interesting topic. My suggestion would be to be very careful preparing the water you use. I have brewed beer in the states, and a decent supply of water was an important consideration for me there. It is certainly an major issue here. Water has characteristic traits, which affect the flavor, and in the DR, those traits are usually negative.

[Chip]

Best of luck. I volunteer to critique your first batch.

[J D Sauser]

Funny, I've been toying with the micro brewery idea too... and for a long time.
The key is good water (none available here, so far I know), then the ingredients... Ecuador and Colombia makes excellent Pilsener from rice...

The legal issues... well, you know, this is the DR. The main issue is, if the biggies Gruppo Leon does not like it, they will have their ways to make it difficult to you.

... J-D.

[El_Uruguayo]

I think the OP is talking more about have a homebrew operation than Opening a micro-brewery. Which is something I was thinking about, the water and ingredients could be a problem, as water purifiers are expensive and so are hops.

[Paulino]

Originally Posted by El_Uruguayo

I think the OP is talking more about have a homebrew operation than Opening a micro-brewery. Which is something I was thinking about, the water and ingredients could be a problem, as water purifiers are expensive and so are hops.

That's correct, I was thinking about brewing for my own and a few friends and in-laws' consumption, like 5-6 gallons (one keg) per batch. And my question was, is it legal? Water quality and other practical issues can be overcome, I would think. And judging from the responses, legal or not legal is hardly an issue at all

[JDJones]

Anybody here remember the Micro Brewery that was on Kennedy? Next to Miami subs and Carnivores.

The buildings were knocked down(finally) a couple of weeks ago.

Anyone know what's going to go up there?