As a fellow engineer I can tell you this is a hobby that won’t quit. As the saying goes, the more you know...the more you realize you don’t know Jack. I find myself looking something up and find 3 new things to research. Effectively back peddling. I would say don’t dwell on all these very specific details yet. It will never be fully understood. The best thing to do is focus on one thing at a time or two. Learn, practice, get good at it then learn a new thing or get a new piece of equipment to take the next step. Too many steps too quick, you could burn your self out and give up because if you make a mistake there are too many variables for you to know exactly what did what. I would recommend only trying something new every two batches of the same/similar style/recipe. More the better. You could do something. ‘Exactly’ the same way two or three times in a row, but have different tasting beer. Just the time yeast was packaged, or time of the season or where (same ‘brand/name/style’) hops were harvested. Don’t think you need to learn everything right now. Enjoy what you make, or try any way, and take it a step at a time.
