2015 Brew Review & 2016 Brewing Goals

[TonyKZ1]

I brewed 38.5 Gallons of Beer (assorted 1, 2, & 2.5G recipes), 2 Gallons of Hard Cider this year, started in February when I got my Mr. Beer fermenters.

As for 2016, I'm planning on getting a little bit bigger kettle/brew pot. So I'm not using my wife's 3G stock pot for brewing and so I can brew the 5G extract recipes. I'm planning on giving more business to my "not local enough" LHBS as he's got decent prices and would save me some money on shipping, too.

I'm also helping my brother and a nephew getting involved in brewing, if/when their wives approve it….

[HerbMeowing]

2015 Box Score
Brewed: 67G
Batches: 27
Life-time batches: 231

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18 IPAs
3 pale ales
2 IIPAs
1 old stock ale
1 wit
2 fruit (cranberry)

Notes:
0 drain pours
5th & Last attempt to clone Ballantine IPA
Pliny clone still delicious
Herb's 'Early Tap' rural raspberry wheat on sabbatical

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New hops: Galaxy ... Horizon ... Citra
New grains: Swaen pale ... red wheat
New equipment: Bosch portable drill to power grain mill

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Most improved:
Wit
Milling time & effort

Least improved:
LHBS

Best new things:
Chill trub to recover clear wort
SMaSH
Citra

Greatest achievement:
BJCP style: Dishwater - BYO SNPA clone ... including the re-brew

Greatest disappointments:
BYO SNPA clone ... including the re-brew
Rahr 2-row scarcity

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2016 Goals
Keep on Brewin'

[FedoraDave]

Review:

I brewed 168 gallons of beer in 2015. That kind of makes visible cartoon exclamation points shoot out of my head, but I do try to brew nearly every Sunday. What makes me really shoot my eyebrows up to my hairline is that my pipeline always seemed on the verge of being depleted. In fairness, though, two out of every three batches are 2.5 gallons, and they go pretty quickly. I also brewed three batches that weren't intended for my pipeline, as they were for my daughter's wedding rehearsal dinner and gifts for the groomsmen. And I always supply homebrew for family gatherings, parties, yada yada yada. Still, maybe I should make one of my 2016 goals limiting my daily consumption.

Goals:

Limiting my daily consumption. I do need to lose weight, and beer consumption is a large factor in that pursuit.

I've begun my Hopsperiment brews, which take a simple grain bill and then changes the hops bill every batch, so I can learn more about different hop strains and, as a result, brew more interesting, complex beers. This will continue in 2016.

I also want to keep better notes on my batches. My dirty little secret is that I haven't kept a brew log in the past. Most of my beers have been satisfactory, and those that were disappointing were either abandoned, tweaked a bit, or the problem was obvious, and easily avoided in the future. But my sister gave me a really nice brew log for Christmas, and it would be a shame not to put it to use. Whether it solves problems, answers questions, helps me create better beer remains to be seen, and I'm not one of those who follows the daily progress of each batch, but it's another step I should take, and now I have no excuse not to take it.

I still want to investigate new styles, or at least create variations on the styles I've already investigated. I have a really nice saison recipe, and I'll definitely brew it this summer, but there's no reason I can't try some new things with a saison; different grains, different hops, different yeast. And I want to revisit some of my standard in-house recipes and maybe contribute something new as a result of my Hopsperiments.

I want to have the pipeline more seasonally appropriate, which involves advance planning. Wheats and saisons and IPAs in the spring and summer, darker beers in the fall and winter. My daughter was disappointed that I didn't make any spiced porter for Christmas, so I need to make sure I do that, and do it early enough for extended conditioning.

[Kealia]

I only managed 30 gallons this past year due to life and the abundance of great beers available to me these days. I liked what I brewed so I have no complaints, really.

If I have a goal this year, it's to brew up something on the 10G system that a couple of guys I just met have. That would be cool.

[Inkleg]

If I have a goal this year, it's to brew up something on the 10G system that a couple of guys I just met have. That would be cool.

Just give me a week advance notice of when you'll be here. And we don't have to brew a Stout, I'm cool with 10 gallons of an IPA.