Taking Notes?

[HumboldtBrewer]

I was wondering what to write into my notes? Do you take notes during the brewing process or just during tasting? I have my first two batches in the closet: Midas Touch clone in primary, and a IPA in secondary. My brew steps are still fresh in my mind so should I write these down?

 

[cheezydemon3]

......YES......that coming from someone who does not take notes.....anymore.

Take careful notes until you get your processes down, and then keep doing it if you want.

 

[Double_D]

I used to write everything down. I mean EVERYTHING. But it takes up too many pages. Now I just write down my timeline og and fermenting temp. And final gravity malt bill hops and yeast. One page with almost nothing compared to what I used to do. I use beersmith too but don't like all my recipes in one place.

 

[brewit2it]

I never take notes. I seldom did in class either:cross:

 

[brewvac]

I guess it depends on what you want to get out of your note taking. If you're trying out your own recipe, you may want to keep good notes on recipe, procedures, timing & stats so that you can replicate that brew. If you're following a clone recipe that someone else has written out directions for already, you probably don't need many notes.

 

[jaytizzle]

I use one of these:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004160R9S/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

We use them for work so I know they can take come abuse. Best part, if you use a write in the rain pen, they're fine even if you spill water all over them. They're a bit pricey but I only take up one sheet per brew and you've got 80 sheets that will last you quite awhile!

I always record date, ingredients, times for everything... really anything that I can think of that would be beneficial to know later.

 

[bobbrews]

I was wondering what to write into my notes? Do you take notes during the brewing process or just during tasting?

Write both. A good brewer should be able to brew the same exact beer a dozen times if asked, without complications. We all pride Budweiser for their consistency even though we may not love their beer... and they brew in Hectolitres!! If you can't do this consistently for the typical 5 gallon batch, then you've got problems.

Here is an easy template for tasting notes...

Appearance:
Aroma:
Taste:
Mouthfeel:
Overall Impression:
Score (A through F +/-):

 

[cheezydemon3]

Here we go.....what a GOOD brewer does....

Whatever. do what suits you.

I make great beer. Anymore, I take no OG, no FG, no notes, no samples, no peeks, etc.

i can re-create virtually any beer I have made from memory and knowledge of ingredients. Would I?

Never been compelled to.

Even my most fantastic beer might be better if I did this or that, so I shoot from the hip, and have a good following of fans and beer snobs.

 

[HawksBrewer]

Here we go.....what a GOOD brewer does....

Whatever. do what suits you.

I make great beer. Anymore, I take no OG, no FG, no notes, no samples, no peeks, etc.

i can re-create virtually any beer I have made from memory and knowledge of ingredients. Would I?

Never been compelled to.

Even my most fantastic beer might be better if I did this or that, so I shoot from the hip, and have a good following of fans and beer snobs.

This. If you are dead set on brewing the exact same beer every single time and you have trouble maintaining a consistent process then notes may be of assistance.

Some of us (cheezy included obviously) like to brew a new beer every single time, whether it is a new style or just a different take on an old recipe.

Repetition is redundant.

 

[H-ost]

Start out taking notes on ANYTHING. Once you get your process down and aren't constantly upgrading equipment you will learn what things are important for you to write down.

I wrote everything down and now I feel comfortable with my process and just jot down the gravities, timelines, and anything I did "wrong". After a month or two, you have brewed more than one batch, and your drinking a beer it can be pretty difficult to remember exactly what you did that might have given you an undesirable effect.

 

[Boerderij_Kabouter]

I keep what many would consider ridiculous notes. I find that it really improves my attention to detail and in turn the quality of my beer.

I have a three ring binder for each year. Then within the binder I have dividers. I mark the divider with the date of my brewday. Behind the divider goes a print out of the label for the beer, my beersmith brewsheet, a print out of my water calculation spreadsheet for that brew, Kaiser's logbook (braukaiser,.com), then a printout of the efficiency spreadsheet for the day (also sourced from Kaiser). On brewday, I use the brewsheet form beersmith for my water volumes and temp to shoot for and for what the designed hopping schedule is. I maintain all notes of the actual brewday in the logbook pages, including the actual hopping schedule (adjusted for age and acid percentages of the hops), the target and actual mash schedule, any screw ups, and general notes during the brewday. I note times for temperature rises, cooling, yeast propagation and pitch rate, aeration, etc. During the brewday I also have my comp running and use it for on the fly calculations and for monitoring my system efficiencies. Kaiser's efficiency spreadsheet allows me to monitor my efficiencies real time. If I am having a low conversions efficiency I can do something about it.

It is a lot of note taking, but it keeps me focused and engaged on the beer and my beer has markedly improved since I started the professional style note taking. I would highly recommend trying it while fully realizing it is not for most people.

 

[birvine]

I keep track of the process and ingredients. Then if I hit on anything great I can replicate exactly.

B

 

[brewit2it]

I keep what many would consider ridiculous notes. I find that it really improves my attention to detail and in turn the quality of my beer.

I have a three ring binder for each year. Then within the binder I have dividers. I mark the divider with the date of my brewday. Behind the divider goes a print out of the label for the beer, my beersmith brewsheet, a print out of my water calculation spreadsheet for that brew, Kaiser's logbook (braukaiser,.com), then a printout of the efficiency spreadsheet for the day (also sourced from Kaiser). On brewday, I use the brewsheet form beersmith for my water volumes and temp to shoot for and for what the designed hopping schedule is. I maintain all notes of the actual brewday in the logbook pages, including the actual hopping schedule (adjusted for age and acid percentages of the hops), the target and actual mash schedule, any screw ups, and general notes during the brewday. I note times for temperature rises, cooling, yeast propagation and pitch rate, aeration, etc. During the brewday I also have my comp running and use it for on the fly calculations and for monitoring my system efficiencies. Kaiser's efficiency spreadsheet allows me to monitor my efficiencies real time. If I am having a low conversions efficiency I can do something about it.

It is a lot of note taking, but it keeps me focused and engaged on the beer and my beer has markedly improved since I started the professional style note taking. I would highly recommend trying it while fully realizing it is not for most people.

Wow, you spend more time on paperwork than I spend on my entire brewday.

My note taking usually consists of working up my recipe on Beer Calculus while screwing off at work on Thursday or Friday. Then I print it and put it in my plastic grocery bag that I brought my lunch to work in, with my dirty lunch tuperware container from that day (sometimes I forget to bring home the one from the day or two before so there could be a few tubs of mostly eaten pasta or rice and meat in there.)

When I get home I set it on the counter and play with my kids, then get a homebrew or 2 and start cooking dinner (my wife's a ****ty cook and I'm a pretty damn good one). Some point between Friday evening and Saturday morning my wife takes out my lunch containers, likely mumbling about what a jackass I am for not rinsing them out, then she throws out the plastic bag with my printed recipe inside it. As I get started brewing Saturday morning I realize my recipe printout is gone but I just say "F-it, I know what I want to make anyway." The beer usually comes out damn good.

 

[TimpanogosSlim]

It's pretty much a law that your best brew will be the one where you made some mistake and will never be able to determine what, precisely, happened. Making it impossible for you to replicate the experience.

I know that's true for me so far. My first batch of Happy Wife Pale Ale was awesome. I know i did it wrong. I have identified a couple things i did wrong, but have not been able to replicate it.

I think collecting data the first few times you brew a given recipe is a good idea. Like the temperature of the wort coming out of the mash tun and a brix number. So that if you end up wondering how something happened, you can work it out without having to rely on fuzzy memory.

 

[amandabab]

I keep what many would consider ridiculous notes.

I keep ridiculous OCD notes.:rockin:

 

[Boerderij_Kabouter]

I am strongly in the corner that mistakes do not make the best beers. I know it is a popular idea and a nice way to keep hope alive, but in my experience, my best beers come from a solid recipe formulation, a clean execution, and a lot of attention to the details.

Like I said in my first post, everyone has their own interests in brewing and that may not be taking notes or paying any attention to what they are doing (I do that sometimes too) but I think someone should represent the side of the coin where good quality control and methodical execution are an important part for many people.

Also, I would wager I brew in less time than 98% of the AG guys on this site. I have a well designed system (two actually) that I can brew two separate beers on from setup to clean up in about 5 hours. The notes do not add a minute to the brewday. I just use the time in between tasks to take notes, and prepare for my next step.

Different strokes for different folks, but there are folks who do not believe in the 'time heals, accidents are good' thing.

 

[TimpanogosSlim]

I am strongly in the corner that mistakes do not make the best beers. I know it is a popular idea and a nice way to keep hope alive, but in my experience, my best beers come from a solid recipe formulation, a clean execution, and a lot of attention to the details.

Like I said in my first post, everyone has their own interests in brewing and that may not be taking notes or paying any attention to what they are doing (I do that sometimes too) but I think someone should represent the side of the coin where good quality control and methodical execution are an important part for many people.

Also, I would wager I brew in less time than 98% of the AG guys on this site. I have a well designed system (two actually) that I can brew two separate beers on from setup to clean up in about 5 hours. The notes do not add a minute to the brewday. I just use the time in between tasks to take notes, and prepare for my next step.

Different strokes for different folks, but there are folks who do not believe in the 'time heals, accidents are good' thing.

It's a joke. If you failed to follow the instructions to the letter, and then got a good brew out of it, how would you know how to do it again if you didn't take notes?

I'm pretty sure my brew day is usually between 4 and 5 hours (all grain), from measuring water into the HLT to installing the fermenter in the basement.

There is plenty of time to take notes.

 

[brewit2it]

It's a joke. If you failed to follow the instructions to the letter, and then got a good brew out of it, how would you know how to do it again if you didn't take notes?

I'm pretty sure my brew day is usually between 4 and 5 hours (all grain), from measuring water into the HLT to installing the fermenter in the basement.

There is plenty of time to take notes.

I tend to multitask like crazy on brewday (and pretty much other times as well) so I get a lot more done than just a batch of brew in the 5 hours I am brewing.

But anyway, there is nothing wrong with taking notes, go for it if you like the process. But it is simply not the case that it is essential in order to make good beer, especially after you've made 20 plus batches and it is all second nature.

 

[HumboldtBrewer]

Awesome, thanks guys. I started my notes on those first two beers and I just wrote down: date, batch #, OG and FG, mistakes for wort process, fermenting and bottling, and then notes on the finished product. Also fermenting temps are also noted.

Anything I may have missed? I basically wanna look at my notes on tasting day and figure out what those off flavors may be, if there is any of course.

 

[ArtimusBeerimus]

I run a homegrown message board for my fantasy sports leagues, and I've requisitioned one area/forum solely for the pursuit of my brewing adventures.

Started it out with the idea that I wanted to document stuff for myself - was never good at journalling, but I spend hours a day on the 'puter anyway, so it made the most sense for me.

Each brew has its own thread and I just type in whatever comes to mind. Plans for the brew, recipe info, readings, what I'm listening to or drinking at the time, tasting notes, changes for next time... Whatever that enters my noggin at the time.

I don't try to get all my thoughts into a single post (like right now), so it ends up being a little timeline of my beer.

Documented my hopyard build out, threads with tips I've culled from various places... Photos everywhere, as well. Was doing all of that before I found HBT (which obviously has a million huge advantages if its own)... It would prob bore you guys to tears (imagine this thread full of posts by me), but I love it. And it's always there for future reference.

Anyway, I've tried different methods of documentation - spreadsheets, online tools, even BeerSmith which is great for what it is, but the unstructured format of a message board really suits me best so far.

 

[CBXBob]

My notes so far are mostly the brew date, the name of the brew, (only kits so far) yeast strain, starting gravity, rack dates with gravity, and notes on sample tastes, bottling date, first taste date, usually followed by either smiley, or frowney faces. Have yet to repeat a recipe, I love adventure

 

[Calichusetts]

I guess I am also the OCD, over-the-top note taker. I got through a small journal about every 15 brews.

I record:
Date (Great when I have a brainfart and forget when I should rack or bottle)
Weather (Just general, 60s, 80s, etc...just to compare to my boillff during a hot humid and the middle of winter)
Recipe (Not just a printout, if I accidently add 1 oz extra of vienna, I make a note of it)
Volumes
All Times and addition and temps during mash (I thought I was doing too much work, but by now in my brewing, I know if its in the 60s in my house, it takes 18 minutes to get my strike water to 165 exactly, on a high setting on my stove)

I also do a direct heat to my mash, I look back on my notes and have really gotten a sense of when i need to turn on my mash to low setting to avoid the 1 degree loss of heat or see the effects of 2 minutes of stirring with no lid.

After that, I record how long it takes to boil, my hop additions and weight, how long I whirlpool, when I chill to 180, 120, and 80 degrees, and finally, what amount of pitch of the yeast

It was insane at first, but like I said, I basically know how long every aspect of my brew takes and when I need to prepare or make a change. Brew days are quite relaxing now that I have such an understanding

 

[cheezydemon3]

This. If you are dead set on brewing the exact same beer every single time and you have trouble maintaining a consistent process then notes may be of assistance.

Some of us (cheezy included obviously) like to brew a new beer every single time, whether it is a new style or just a different take on an old recipe.

Repetition is redundant.

It's pretty much a law that your best brew will be the one where you made some mistake and will never be able to determine what, precisely, happened. Making it impossible for you to replicate the experience.

I think what Timpangoslim is saying, or at least what I believe, is that experimentation, not excessive notes and minor adjustments, that will result in the greatest beer ever. It will also result in the most bad beer.

I am PAST making BAD beer (really only one batch that some might consider "bad" some really liked it)

I am strongly in the corner that mistakes do not make the best beers. I know it is a popular idea and a nice way to keep hope alive, but in my experience, my best beers come from a solid recipe formulation, a clean execution, and a lot of attention to the details.

This will result in tons of SOLIDLY good beer. You have my respect. Epic beer though? I doubt it.

Some of us are happy with "some of the best beer in the world"

Others of us want the Holy Grail.

good luck and happy brewing to all of us. We are brothers and sisters in brewing, regardless of philosophy.

 

[TimpanogosSlim]

I think what Timpangoslim is saying, or at least what I believe, is that experimentation, not excessive notes and minor adjustments, that will result in the greatest beer ever. It will also result in the most bad beer.

I am PAST making BAD beer (really only one batch that some might consider "bad" some really liked it)

Yeah. But more directly, as beginners, we are going to make mistakes. Many of those mistakes will not have meaningful results (see "is this an infection" and "my airlock blew out" threads). Some of them will result in bad beer. Some of them will result in unexpectedly good beer.

But with beer you only know the results of your mistake like a month down the road or even further - it's not like cooking dinner where you get immediate feedback.

In order to properly learn from your mistakes in brewing, you must take notes.

In a larger sense, we all start out brewing other peoples recipes but eventually have to learn how to make the beer we brew our own.

We will undoubtedly brew some questionable beer during the experimentation phase. But it's all part of the learning process.