I'm getting in a rut

[braukasper]

Dave I use Munich malts as base malts. Even the Munich 30 has enough conversion power to be used on its own. One of my Dads favs is the 30 with German noble hops.

[mashani]

I've done 100% Munich beers too, IE SMaSH (Munich + Simcoe). Which was excellent. I did mash that for 90 minutes to assure full conversion, as although it can self convert it's pushing the edge. I wouldn't add any other kinds of malts that need conversion though to such a thing, that could be problematic. I'd add some kind of pale malt if I was adding such things.

[braukasper]

Thanks Mashani I did forget to say that. When I use the Munich 30 with other grains that need to be mashed. I add some 2-row or enzymes to ensure conversion. I generally use Magnum Hops as First Wort Hop charge. Then a nice noble hop whirlpool.

[FedoraDave]

I haven't been doing this that long ( just over a year), but I haven't brewed the same recipe twice yet. I have made a few beers that I wouldn't mind brewing again because they turned out pretty good, but I enjoy trying something new every time. There are so many styles and variations within those styles, that I like the excitement of getting a different result every time. If I want the same thing consistently, I'' buy a commercial beer that I like. I have made a nice saison that I may try again in the summer, to see if I can replicate it consistently, but for me, the excitement is in making something NEW!

This is the beauty of homebrewing. People can get satisfaction for whatever itch needs to be scratched. You like making a new recipe every time. I can totally understand that, and while I like to have "house recipes" that I can fall back on, and keep in the pipeline because I really like them, I also like to formulate new recipes (see my Kölsch thread in "Advanced Recipes").

Other people have their own needs to satisfy with homebrewing. I could never see myself doing this, but Screwy Brewer spent months researching a pretty-much defunct beer from the '50s and '60s, and did his best to replicate that beer, including getting as close to the original malts and hops used, and even engineering his water to be as close to the original as possible. Now, that's a labor of love, and I'm filled with admiration and outright awe at this effort. I'm sure the beer is outstanding, as well. That kind of pursuit is not for me, but it certainly was for him, and that's so cool, it's hot.

I've just noticed that, even when formulating a new recipe, I'll start with 2-row as the base malt, and work from there. And while I may need some 2-row to aid in conversion, it doesn't necessarily need to be the prominent grain. I'd like to take another go at my Trilby Brown Ale recipe, but substitute some Maris Otter for a bit of the 2-row and see if that makes a difference. And I'd like to mix some Vienna or Munich into some other styles I may want to try.