“If you like pizza, put pepperoni in it,” says homebrewer Chuck Green.

Yep, that’s beer he’s talking about.

Brewing right along with the booming local craft beer industry is an ever-growing group of homebrew enthusiasts concocting hop-inspired beverages.

Bad Teacher Brewing Supply opened in TC in 2012 to specifically cater to the craft brew homebrewer – from beginners to experts – and holds classes, demos and sells everything from books to hops. Diversions hat shop in downtown Traverse City also devotes a section of its store to homebrewing supplies.

Local musician Mike Moran and crew produce local podcast, "Drink My Brewcast," to highlight both amateur and professional brewers and the Northern Michigan Homebrewers Guild is refreshed and planning three events a month.

Start with a love of craft beer, add a fondness for cooking and you’ll likely end up with a home brewer, say hobbyists, who love to get together to talk about the science of brewing as much as the art (and do a little tasting, too).

“Brewing is as much left brain as it is right brain, technical and creative,” says rookie brewer Green. “You can know the process, but you need to be creative.”

“The approach is just like cooking," says David Cannizzaro, 46, head brewer and co-owner of The Filling Station. Cannizzaro is a veteran chef and baker who was a home brewer for 20 years before turning pro. "I come at it from the chef side. I’m not a scientist."

He says recipes are key, but even when using all the same ingredients two brewers can come up with very different beers, which is why home brewers aren’t shy about sharing tips, Cannizzaro thinks.

“It’s not competitive or secretive,” says Josh Kuehne, 24, store manager at Bad Teacher.

And yet, there are competitions.

Bad Teacher sponsors a home-brewing contest at the twice-a-year Microbrew & Music Festival. First- and second-place winners get to brew three barrels of their winning recipes at a local brewpub. This winter's top winner, Mike Jones, recently made a batch of his “smoky stout” at The Filling Station. It should be ready around Cherry Festival, Cannizzaro says.

Keep it legal yet delish

Homebrewing was legalized by President Jimmy Carter in 1978; homebrewers can make 100 gallons a year, or 200 gallons if there are two or more adults in the household. The brew can’t be sold, but it can be shared. Kuehne is making beer to serve at his upcoming wedding.

And the sky’s the limit when it comes to recipes. It all starts with wort, essentially “glorified sugar water,” says Kuehne. After that, brewers add yeast, hops, grains, and flavors. “I’ve heard of spruce, bacon, orange peels, coriander," adds Green.

During Bad Teacher’s classes students make the wort, but stop there so that beer isn’t made onsite. Students take the wort home to add the yeast and other ingredients and wait anywhere from a week to a year for the results. Then they reconvene for a tasting.

Homebrewing can be as expensive or cheap as one wants it to be, says Kuehne. Starter kits are available for $200 or people can just use “a little brew pot and some bottles,” he adds. Depending on ingredients, homemade beer is typically cheaper than store bought. Kuehne made one batch that worked out to 30 cents a bottle; Green bought $35 worth of supplies that will make about 50 12-ounce bottles.