Brew a bunch of different styles or pick 1 or 2 and really master them?

[myerstyson]

I have 3 brews I keep improving. I call them my house beers. Then I brew others to try out and some others as seasonal.

I really like improving my house beers. My numbers can use work on some. I have one right where I want it and consistent (Pale Ale), another which I'm still going to experiment with (Kotbusser) and one just about there (London Porter).

If this Wee Heavy I just brewed tastes as good out of the bottle as it did on secondary day, that may be my all-around "winter warmer" every year. Holy **** was it yummy.

 

[unionrdr]

I've been leaning towards the two bitters I've come to enjoy, now that I've tweaked them. The Cooper's English bitter with Munton's plain EL DME, & the Morebeer ESB kit. I like my PM Kottbusser as is, & the PM dampfbier is there too. We'll see how the mumme' goes for a gruit. APA's & IPA's are always good, even though I may change the hops used. Otherwise, the recipes stay virtually the same.

 

[BrooklynTom]

As many here have said, there is no real answer. I like to try different styles. It has helped me find my taste. I have a house Belgium Pale Ale and a porter that are always in rotation. the other 2 kegs will have just about anything in them, from cider, hard root beer, Irish Red, stouts........and so on. I know I am late to the party, but, I am now getting into IPAs and will give some a shot next go around.

 

[bassclefbrewing]

I would pick one to "perfect" but that doesn't mean you can't brew other beers while you are working on perfecting your recipe

 

[whovous]

I think at least part of the answer is to maintain a critical view of whatever you brew. Too often, I see people saying versions of "I just made my first brew and it is better than anything anyone ever made before." With that kind of attitude, it does not matter if you make something different each time, or you always make the same thing, you are not going to get better.

I try to find things wrong with all that I brew, and to think of ways to do it better next time. I am focusing on a single style until I can no longer think of ways to improve it. Then again, I have a new style in the FC right now.

 

[Terek]

I tend to stick to a few styles that i like, and brew them regularly. Then, hear and there, i will do something special. My 3 mains are an ipa, a rye ale, and a stout. Then every once in a while, i will do something different. Like this weekend, im gonna do a big pumkin ale, to age and be ready for next holiday season. In the spring, i will probably do a hefe, and a wheat something. But i tend to stick to the main 3. I have em down to a science, and i know what im gonna get every time i brew.

 

[Terek]

I think at least part of the answer is to maintain a critical view of whatever you brew. Too often, I see people saying versions of "I just made my first brew and it is better than anything anyone ever made before." With that kind of attitude, it does not matter if you make something different each time, or you always make the same thing, you are not going to get better.

I try to find things wrong with all that I brew, and to think of ways to do it better next time. I am focusing on a single style until I can no longer think of ways to improve it. Then again, I have a new style in the FC right now.

this is so true. i have the complete opposite attitude. I search out the flaws. Everything can be improved apon, and i want to improve. My rye is one that i have tinkered with the most. it is a friend/family fav. and has won some competitions. My buddy came over the other night, and we cracked a few open. He was like "this round was awsome! best rye yet" all i said was "i taste too much grass.........next time, ill take a 1/4 oz out of the dry hop"

 

[Gavin C]

Since starting homebrewing I've made lots of different styles.

I've made beers that I had never even heard of before I was a homebrewer. (That probably says more about my ignorance than anything else though.)

I think it's best to explore, at least in part, the vast array of beer styles available, broadening one's taste and knowledge horizons.

Variety encourages one to research styles, learning about different ingredients and brewing methods in the process. Putting theory into practice with recipe and process formulation is a lot of fun.

At the same time, each brew is a chance to refine our skills and brewing process and to try out new things. Keeps you eager for more brewing.

And never forget as I've recently learned.

"More Hops Better Good"

 

[sputnam]

i started out brewing a different style each time i brewed. A year and 30 batches later I decided to perfect my favorites...I like that much better.

 

[hotwatermusic]

You will probably answer that question on your own. There are benefits to both directions and as such you can keep that in mind as you develop your process.
I have a few beers I like and I try to brew when I get the itch. However, you also tend to stifle your ability to learn from your mistakes and problem solve when you don't introduce any new variables. You may learn a technique trying to brew an authentic Belgian beer that you will want to incorporate into that killer IPA you make. Brewing can be impossible to "get bored with" if you challenge yourself enough.
The flip side is that if you always make different recipes it becomes difficult to tell what changing one variable does for the finished product.
If you just want to always have beer on hand, the amount of cleaning and the attention to detail that is required just isn't worth it.

 

[unionrdr]

Well, that's the thing, isn't it? Keep beer around, or keep home brew around? How much effort to put into it? Which styles did I like or not? Which ones would I like to have 5 gallons of? All questions to answer...

 

[aprichman]

I think it's hard to decide on "house" recipes until you've experimented with different recipes and styles. I've brewed around 30 batches and none of them have ever been exactly the same. When I move to kegs I'll probably start refining some of the recipes I really enjoyed as house recipes.

 

[whovous]

I think it's hard to decide on "house" recipes until you've experimented with different recipes and styles. I've brewed around 30 batches and none of them have ever been exactly the same. When I move to kegs I'll probably start refining some of the recipes I really enjoyed as house recipes.

My thinking is exactly the opposite, and those differences are what makes this avocation so interesting. I had some pretty strong ideas about what I liked before I started brewing, so it made sense to me to choose my favorite like and to brew it over and over again until I felt I could not do it any better. I've just begun cold conditioning the fourth iteration of my APA recipe, and I think I have finally reached the point where I have something that is really competition worthy. I have no idea how it will score, since we all love our own creations, but I am definitely ready for constructive feedback.

I am only just to the point where I am willing to try something new, but even now, my next session is going to take me back to my APA as I have lots of new ideas I want to try.

 

[BigMack]

I started off just brewing a different style every single time just to experiment, but now I am starting to work on getting a few recipes tweaked to where I want to have them around at all times. I think a combination of both is good. Maybe try finding one recipe you want to perfect and then alternate brews doing that one style every other time you brew. Then you get to "master" one brew while still experimenting with different styles.

 

[Bill_in_VA]

I brewed 50 batches before I ever did one twice. And I never understood the house beer thing until now. If I had never taken all that journey I wouldn't have stumbled on my current favorites. I think you can learn a lot from the variety of it. I change my system a lot too, I've brewed on stove-top and propane, have an electric system and still recently did a 3 gallon stove top for fun one night. I've even went back and did some of my first BIAB after building the full electric about 65 batches in.

 

[kh54s10]

When I started I thought I preferred pale ales. I started by brewing a lot of styles. I have gravitated to a lot of brown ales and one pale ale that I am trying to perfect.
I love stouts and porters. And IPAs, pale ales, lagers, Belgians, Saisons..........

When deciding what next I look at my stocks and pick one that is most interesting at the time. I have brewed all sorts and like them all.

Variety is the spice of life.

 

[specharka]

In 3 years and 25+ batches, I have not yet brewed the same thing twice. Don't get me wrong, there are beer styles that I return to to try and hone my craft, but the world of beer is so wide and delicious it seems like wasting time to revisit a prior recipe.

OTOH, I am a big believer in the value of consistency. I would rather make a consistently decent beer than one great beer out of many mediocre ones. And there's no doubt about it, breweries are built by flagship beers. Sam Adams Boston Lager, SNPA, New Belgium Fat Tire, Allagash White, Dogfish Head 60M. The success stories are endless.

You could say I feel strongly both ways.

 

[poptarts]

I'm all for brewing different things and new recipes but don't get stuck with only High abv beers or only dark beers etc. Keep a good mix going. I try to aim for 1 higher abv, 1 easy drinker, 1 dark style at all times.

 

[aprichman]

My thinking is exactly the opposite, and those differences are what makes this avocation so interesting. I had some pretty strong ideas about what I liked before I started brewing, so it made sense to me to choose my favorite like and to brew it over and over again until I felt I could not do it any better. I've just begun cold conditioning the fourth iteration of my APA recipe, and I think I have finally reached the point where I have something that is really competition worthy. I have no idea how it will score, since we all love our own creations, but I am definitely ready for constructive feedback.

I am only just to the point where I am willing to try something new, but even now, my next session is going to take me back to my APA as I have lots of new ideas I want to try.

IMO perfecting your process has a lot more impact on if a beer is "competition ready" than the recipe itself. Recipe formulation is important, but as long as the beer is brewed to fit within a style, aspects like yeast management have a far bigger impact.

 

[Qhrumphf]

IMO perfecting your process has a lot more impact on if a beer is "competition ready" than the recipe itself. Recipe formulation is important, but as long as the beer is brewed to fit within a style, aspects like yeast management have a far bigger impact.

If competition ready is the metric then process makes the difference between 20s or even teens, and 30s. And recipe makes the difference between 30s and 40s. So I'd say both are important. Ballpark for style isn't good enough. Subtle elements of balance and intangibles are recipe derived as much as process, and form the barrier between good and great beer.

Of course a silly recipe for a stout that includes no roasted malt won't do well even if process is impeccable, but bad process won't save even the best recipe in the world.

So i suppose i would agree that it's easier to botch the process and good recipes are easy to come by, which makes process a little more important. But i wouldn't deny that recipe is still very important.

 

[madscientist451]

Do you like the way the beer is coming out or are you having some problems?
Mastering a style and figuring out a process are two different things.

 

[dwhite60]

Lots of things in life are like women, or men for that matter.

One forever. Or, a little variety.

To each his own.

I've got a stout, a saison, and a porter now that are being my house beers. They need some work but they are good as is.

I try to keep these on hand and brew something different now and then.

Back when I got started I brewed a BUNCH of different stuff. It really is like dating

All the Best,
D. White

 

[arnobg]

It was recently recommended to me (I'm pretty new too with only about 6-7 brews under my belt) to try some SMASH brews when I asked the same question as you. This will help note difference in hop and grain varieties to help you build recipes later.

For instance brew a 2-row Cascade SMASH then a Marris Otter Cascade Smash and see how different grains taste, then take the one you liked best and try it with different hops, then move on to combinations of hops.

 

[charles]

In the 5 years I've been brewing I have only made the same recipe a few times. You need to take notes determine if you like the recipe and do it again. I have always like tweaking recipes. Good luck have fun and happy brewing.

 

[grevengrevs]

I used to brew something different every time I brewed but I have now settled down to 2 that I brew over and over and one brew that varies depending on how i'm feeling.

 

[unionrdr]

Idk about y'all, but I have some recipes I basically like, but still must tweak to get them the way I envisioned them. Others I designed to use the basic malt/yeast part of the recipe, but leaving the hop styles interchangeable, but to the same hopping schedule. This sort of recipe also lends itself well to trying different hops. As to the former, I am, for example, still trying to come up with just the right PM stout recipe for my colonial Whiskely ale. And IPA's have so many hoping variations as to give endless possibilities. And so many bitters, so little fermenter space. I'm finding, at this point, that I like English-style bitters. Besides rare or extinct German beers...