I am a weak fool who still does the extract brewing. I took morebeers RIS recipe and added 1 lbs of DME and added 3 star anise seed pods to the boil at 10 minutes left, and I like to add 2 oz of oak chips soaked in makers mark into the carboy. Even though it calls for dr English yeast I find...
Sorry to resurrect but I've done this a bit. I've done about 45 5-6 gallons batches. I've bottled 1-4 growlers in each batch. I'm not sure if its affected by the area I live in, which has an average year round temp of 55-60 degrees. I only mention it since I've seen so many other folks speak...