Meet Fritz Fernow, Beer Master of Cobble Hill

For Fritz Fernow, what started as a hobby is now a lifestyle.

Homebrewing craft beers in his Cobble Hill apartment is much more than just something he does in his spare time: grinding grains is a life-affirming practice, and watching yeast ferment in giant glass jugs in a beer brewing nook off his bedroom is a great pleasure.

"Some say it's an obsession, some say it's an affliction," he said with a chuckle.

Homebrewing is becoming more and more popular. Shops are opening up that cater to the practice and homebrew competitions are abundant. But when Fernow started, equipment and hops were mostly purchased online from a shop in Minnesota.

The upstate New York native began homebrewing about five years ago—when he moved from Carroll Gardens to Cobble Hill. And in what can either be attributed to beginners luck or a stroke of genius, his first batch won the brewer's choice award at the Chelsea Piers homebrewing competition. Since then .

So how does one brew tasty beer at home?

There are two ways to homebrew. One method is with "extract," which is a syrup made of hops and grains, and the other is "all grain," in which you specially pick the grains and hops you want, and make the extract yourself. Fernow is an all grain man.

"It's better because you can use more varities of grain," he said.

A self-described "beer geek," Fernow was the type of guy that would go to bars, and if he didn't like the tap beers, he'd leave. Fernow's wife, the artist Jennifer Welte, decided she'd give her husband a gift certificate to a homebrewing website.

"She's very hands on. She thought, 'If you know how to do something, you have a better appreciation for it,'" said Fernow.

Fernow brews beer in a basement nook off of his bedroom, which has turned his home into a full-on, award-winning craft beer factory. He even has a kegerator with tap beer on hand.

"People ask me, 'You've got tap beer at home?'" Fernow said, laughing.

For all you budding homebrewers, Fernow lends some tips.

The most important factors to a good homebrewed beer are: cleanliness, sanitary conditions and temperature control. You can have the most amazing recipe, Fernow says, but if you're equipment isn't clean and your science exact, things can get funky.

"You have to be careful," he said. "If something's not clean, you get contamination and an off flavor."

Local beer aficionados agree: Fernow is a master.

"Brewing beer is about care, and technique and attention," said Dave Liatti, owner of , which only sells locally produced food and drinks. "Fritz has a really good technique, and he understands beer."

Indeed, Fernow says homebrewing, though you do it in your home, is actually a very social hobby.

"I've made this great group of friends," he said, adding that beer ultimately brings diverse people together. "I can talk to a guy who is 25 years younger than me, whose politics could be 180 degrees different [than mine], but yet we talk the same lingo."

Although opening a craft brewery is something Fernow has debated, he is also careful to not "ruin" his favorite past time.

But "If I had a little nest egg i'd start a brewery," he said.

For Fernow, homebrewing is really just a lot of fun. And because too much sampling can result in inconsistencies in the product, Fernow strives to maintain order in his laboratory.

"I, for the most part, brew sober," he said.