Time to decide on a second batch - looking for recommendations

My recommendation? Redo your first one and see if it comes out differently. If it does, find out why and correct.
Nahhh.... I'll wait with honing my repetitiveness skills for after I have better understanding of the different ingredients, etc. (and for when I have a recipe that I really do want to repete.
 
Nahhh.... I'll wait with honing my repetitiveness skills for after I have better understanding of the different ingredients, etc. (and for when I have a recipe that I really do want to repete.
Then, if your process is inconsistent, how will you know the changes you notice are because of the ingredients? I made the same mistake when I was starting. But your choice. I would limit changes to one ingredient at a time to limit the variability in the process.
 
Then, if your process is inconsistent, how will you know the changes you notice are because of the ingredients? I made the same mistake when I was starting. But your choice. I would limit changes to one ingredient at a time to limit the variability in the process.
Tend to agree with Nosy here , Consistency and predictability are very useful for novice brewers .Good luck
 
Then, if your process is inconsistent, how will you know the changes you notice are because of the ingredients? I made the same mistake when I was starting. But your choice. I would limit changes to one ingredient at a time to limit the variability in the process.
I don't disagree with the importance of this practice. I just think that at this stage, I need to focus on things that are even more basic - I need to have the most basic "moves" down before I start fine-tuning them. I need to be able to not waste a ton of time when I brew due to my inexperience, and get to the point where everything feels somewhat familiar, before I can even think of the more delicate things.
Another thing is that last time I fermented the beer in a tub in the open air, when the room was about 22C, now that the room is 26C, I'm using a cooler. That will certainly make a difference which would make tracing any other differences very difficult. And my next batch is probably going to happen in a fridge.
Lastly, if I'm gonna be making the same beer over and over again, it might as well be something that I really enjoy. The first batch wasn't. (it was and still is nice and fun to drink, but I feel like I can easily find something I enjoy drinking more).

All that said, part of the benefit of going for smaller batches, which I decided I'd do for a while, is that I will get a lot more hands-on experience, much faster, getting me to the point where I can start doing these things you suggest fairly soon, probably.
 
Oh, also - the first batch was extract based (with steeping). For many reasons (most economical, but not just), I prefer to brew all-grain (BIAB). I only started with an extract batch to make things simpler the first time. So that's another reason why the first batch for me is not the right one to repeat.
 
That makes sense Tal. Once you have found that beer you like definitely rinse and repeat to shoot for consistency. I plan to start this soon. I do argree with you on nailing a recipe and THEN going for consistency. Hopefully you enjoy at least one of the split batch.
 
That makes sense Tal. Once you have found that beer you like definitely rinse and repeat to shoot for consistency. I plan to start this soon. I do argree with you on nailing a recipe and THEN going for consistency. Hopefully you enjoy at least one of the split batch.
I enjoyed my first batch also. But I don't see that as the one that I'd want to make and remake and remake. :)
 
It makes sense to approach it that way. I brewed randomly for a long time, then I brewed nothing but Helles for about six months. It was then I learned to brew.
 
Personally I'd say do what interests you for the first while, once you're comfortable with the various steps and not having random "WTF does that mean?" moments then you can begin hammering out consistency in my opinion. It doesn't do you any good to try and get consistent while still trying to learn the terminology.
 
Personally I'd say do what interests you for the first while, once you're comfortable with the various steps and not having random "WTF does that mean?" moments then you can begin hammering out consistency in my opinion. It doesn't do you any good to try and get consistent while still trying to learn the terminology.
Yup. That's my mindset.
 
From a personal anecdote I'm over a year in now brewing all grain batches and I still look at things people say or do and go "WTF?" at times. But I have the basics down now so I'm starting to repeat recipes and see if I can get them to come out consistently.
 
I think that's what I'm going for - having the basics down. Of course some WTF moments are still bound to happen from time to time, but I wanna feel comfortable with the process before I go for consistency.
 
I think that's what I'm going for - having the basics down. Of course some WTF moments are still bound to happen from time to time, but I wanna feel comfortable with the process before I go for consistency.

You know Tal, that is pretty much what I did. I've been brewing for six years and have changed "systems/methods" 3 times (four technically). So, it was probably good that I didn't shoot for consistency right away. I got out all (okay most...) of my experimental batches and played and learned about tons of different beer styles. I've actually brewed several beers that people LOVED and still talk and rave about - yet, I haven't brewed them since! Lol...

The biggest thing for me during the last six years was figuring out WHAT and HOW I like to brew. BIAB was one of my favorite methods but running in and out of the house for things got old. So when I built my new house - I planned for a brewery in the basement and bought a Robobrew to use down there. I've used the Robobrew three times in three different ways and NOW - I can shoot for consistency because I'm settled on my system and I KNOW what I ultimately want to make. It was actually this thread and Nosy's input that finally got me to DO it. First batch was Friday night - Basic Blonde ale to practice again and again.

So, thanks for the inspiration. Happy brewing! Experiment, play, and have fun - and definitely keep us posted!

(It seems that for some odd reason, more than brewing beer, I love to read about it! I did the same thing with video games as a teenager - I guess my ultimate passion is reading...)
 
Gentlemen, despite my recommendation, you describe the track I took. When I say to go for consistency early, I'm recommending the track I'd like to have taken. So I do understand where you are coming from, I understand the desire to experiment, to brew everything but as mentioned here and elsewhere, it wasn't until I brewed Helles for six straight months that I learned to brew.
 
Honestly if I had to brew the same beer every time for 6 months I'd probably stop brewing entirely.
 
Gentlemen, despite my recommendation, you describe the track I took. When I say to go for consistency early, I'm recommending the track I'd like to have taken. So I do understand where you are coming from, I understand the desire to experiment, to brew everything but as mentioned here and elsewhere, it wasn't until I brewed Helles for six straight months that I learned to brew.
I think you are taking things from one extreme to the next.
I completely believe what you're saying about the importance of shooting for consistency. However, I also think that doing that too early is futile - there's no way that I'll be able to consistent, when the gear that I'm brewing with changes each and every time. There's also very little chance that I'll be able to analyze any lack of consistency when I'm not yet familiar with the basics. On top of that - I think it will also make things less fun. If I'm not yet ready for this stage, I am far more likely to get frustrated.
When you're learning how to play the guitar, you're not going for a perfect "House of the Rising Sun" - you're going for an OK one, and a reasonable "Knocking on Heaven's Door", and then a mediocre "Hallelujah". At the same time, you run scales. After a while, you're able to strive for a good "Stairway to Heaven" - it requires you being "stuck" on the same song for what feels like eternity - but you're at a point where you're able to make it into something. If you tried perfecting it to begin with, or even if you tried perfecting a simpler one like "House of the Rising Sun", you'd get so frustrated, you'd quit. I apply a similar approach here.
I don't plan on brewing randomly for 6 years before I start honing my skills, but I do think that maybe brewing 6 times before I do that would be good.
I think that the reason you advocate shooting for consistency from the get-go, is because you feel how much it improved your brewing skills, but I don't think you're taking into consideration the fact that it improved your skills as much as it did, partly because you were "ripe" (maybe too ripe) - you were ready for this stage.

And of course, I could be totally wrong...
 
I think there is a difference in "learning" a process and "getting the feel" of a process. I have been getting the feel of brewing for a decade now...lol.

I am about to move to what I hope is my lest set-up. Over the years my equipment, process, and brewing style and have changed drastically. I have learned new and different things from each brewing season. And while I do not see me brewing 1 beer over and over, I can see me dropping down to 3 or 4 and getting them as right as I can.

We all have to walk out our own brewing path, that is what makes this such a rewarding pursuit, and even though many of us take different steps, we all walk toward the same finish line....brewing the best beer we can.

Tim
 
I'm still dialing in my equipment, if I had added the second burner in while doing the same beer every time I'd be completely screwed up. At some point that will be a viable direction for me to go but I'm still working on getting consistent boil off and having fun brewing different stuff.
 
I think you are taking things from one extreme to the next.
I completely believe what you're saying about the importance of shooting for consistency. However, I also think that doing that too early is futile - there's no way that I'll be able to consistent, when the gear that I'm brewing with changes each and every time. There's also very little chance that I'll be able to analyze any lack of consistency when I'm not yet familiar with the basics. On top of that - I think it will also make things less fun. If I'm not yet ready for this stage, I am far more likely to get frustrated.
When you're learning how to play the guitar, you're not going for a perfect "House of the Rising Sun" - you're going for an OK one, and a reasonable "Knocking on Heaven's Door", and then a mediocre "Hallelujah". At the same time, you run scales. After a while, you're able to strive for a good "Stairway to Heaven" - it requires you being "stuck" on the same song for what feels like eternity - but you're at a point where you're able to make it into something. If you tried perfecting it to begin with, or even if you tried perfecting a simpler one like "House of the Rising Sun", you'd get so frustrated, you'd quit. I apply a similar approach here.
I don't plan on brewing randomly for 6 years before I start honing my skills, but I do think that maybe brewing 6 times before I do that would be good.
I think that the reason you advocate shooting for consistency from the get-go, is because you feel how much it improved your brewing skills, but I don't think you're taking into consideration the fact that it improved your skills as much as it did, partly because you were "ripe" (maybe too ripe) - you were ready for this stage.

And of course, I could be totally wrong...
Well, you quite obviously know a lot more about music than me. Good luck with whatever you choose but remember this: Unlike the mediocre "Hallelujah," in brewing, you won't know you hit a wrong note until about six weeks after you do so. You're right in that you should be having fun with it, whatever your definition of fun might be.
 

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