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Brewing has so many dimensions to explore, and it sounds like you haven't ventured down the water minerals path. Playing with sulfate and chloride using gypsum and CaCl will brighten your beer and accentuate bitterness. Try to follow a recommended pale ale profile, not designing your own...

When I researched, the complaints I found about the Presto included the thin metal denting easily and subsequently no longer holding pressure, or the regulator blowing off despite being young. Presto is significantly cheaper, though, which is an important consideration. I recommend reading...

I recommend having both. The Starsan bottle is convenient for measuring 2.5 or 5 gallons additions, while Iodophor is convenient for precisely mixing a smaller amount. I usually use Starsan on brewday because I use higher quantities, and Iodophor when santizing a flask for a starter, or a...

I recommend the All American 21.5 qt pressure canner. Perhaps twice the price as the competition, but I think the locking mechanism is superior to gaskets. Plus, it's a one-time purchase, and you could probably pass it off to your grandchildren. It easily fits 7 quart jars, with another layer...

I second Martin's Brun'Water generic color profiles. For example, a Kolsch I designed using only filtered DC water was mediocre at best. Using the "Yellow balanced" water profile, the Kolsch was spectacular by comparison. I think ensuring proper calcium levels also helped mash pH...

Lately I've been constructing my brewing water with great success. The DC area water is relatively soft but alkaline, so I found myself playing games with acid adjustments, randomly high pH levels, and muted flavors because of inconsistent minerals from the Potomac that are impossible to...

I'm only planning on a single finings treatment. I only recently experimented with gelatin on a Kolsch I just made, and the results were spectacular (still bottle conditioning). However, when reading about finings, I kept finding stories where people lost significant dryhop aroma after...

I managed to hit 1.070 using the exact grain bill they designed for 6 gallons. Brewed with RO water constructed to approximately match Mosher's Ideal Pale Ale water profile (closer to Tasty's with a calmer sodium balance), without any alkaline additions. No mash pH modification necessary since...