BeerBorg

yes it is amazing that they have had to pick an employee as BOM. Also a bit sad to see the lack of activity. Without the Mr Beer forum I doubt I would have continued brewing and there is really no one there to help the newbies now. This forum is great, but I have not seen a lot of new brewers here. It is fun to talk beer here. However we really are not helping the new generation of home brewers much.

docpd wrote:yes it is amazing that they have had to pick an employee as BOM. Also a bit sad to see the lack of activity. Without the Mr Beer forum I doubt I would have continued brewing and there is really no one there to help the newbies now. This forum is great, but I have not seen a lot of new brewers here. It is fun to talk beer here. However we really are not helping the new generation of home brewers much.

Doc, I agree with you. Maybe if I hadn't found the MB forum, I would have done a few mb batches and been done with it, and that's what kept me going to the point I'm at now, if I didn't go to anymore forums or discussion boards now, I'll still make beer, but I don't think that would have happened otherwise.
The new brewers are the ones that need help and to get hooked on this hobby, but they have to be showed and told the right way, and that's what we all tried and did.
It might take time but I think they'll be more newbies here.

While Mr. CoopBeer isn't doing itself or its new clientele any favors by ignoring their own community message board, who's to say these people aren't searching elsewhere for answers?

It only takes a few moments to do an online search for homebrewing forums. Or they may have an LHBS nearby where they can ask questions and do research. They may have friends who brew, or a homebrew club they can join.

I do feel bad that MB doesn't seem to care about nurturing new brewers. I think it's just bad business practice for them, and can be discouraging to the newbies. But we're not the only game in town, either.

Definitely anybody who does some searches regarding MD, BD, or homebrewing in general will come across here even without first looking at the MB forum. I think it took me a few months to realize they had their own forum. I had no idea until I did a Bing search for some LBK cleaning tips and found it in the results.

Hey, I am kenny and I do not like the implying of me being a jerk...I can hold my own at jerk status, just ask SWMBO. Oops, TMI. I also blame MB for introducing me to this gent (used very loosely) JoeC somewhere in god-forsaken Texass, and for getting and keeping me in this drinking or is it drunken stupor for the past 22 months. Then I got hooked on this forum and the rest is history. Oh yeah, you can blame that on JoeC as well.

Me thinks that not too many of the expert employees at old MB are still there since Coopers has taken over. Wow, they turned off and turned away their best advertising avenue in all of you guys and gals that used to be there for support both financially and tech support of recipes and advice and such. I was and will always be a lurker and wort-stirrer and greatly respect those of you who given advice to me and to others FREELY.

Stepping down from soapbox now.

i have agree with berryman. with out the MrB forum i'd have brewed 2 following their 222. would've made 4 gallons of, not very good beer and that would've been it. and while Dave is right about the searches, the sites you find are seldom friendly and some can be down right mean. most won't go off topic, but i found i learned more from y'all straying from the topic. in most cases, things i'd have never known about to ask, with out the asides.

jimjohson wrote:i have agree with berryman. with out the MrB forum i'd have brewed 2 following their 222. would've made 4 gallons of, not very good beer and that would've been it. and while Dave is right about the searches, the sites you find are seldom friendly and some can be down right mean. most won't go off topic, but i found i learned more from y'all straying from the topic. in most cases, things i'd have never known about to ask, with out the asides.

I agree completely with the non-friendly and downright mean sites. When I first got started it all began with an MB keg my wife gave me. When I attempted to "graduate" from MB most sites, even my local LHBS would not take me seriously. Y'all have really taught me a lot and I have brewed so much variety since then and read all I can find on the subject that I finally feel like I can give something back. (Especially where Belgian beer is concerned, gotta love those brewing monks).

And I attribute my success partly to MB for the beginning equipment but mostly to the folks of this forum, who haven't changed a bit, and continue to help people make good beer. That's what it is all about folks. BOM or not, y'all are great.