Can I design my own beer?

[bendog15]

Or create my own recipe?

Novice brewer here- done 8 batches so far. They have all been malt extract kits from Midwest or Williams. Truthfully, they've all turned out great. I've been very pleased with the results.
What's the next step (before I move into all grain, of course)? Can I "design" my own beer? Is there a formula or recipe to use? I imagine it might be cheaper to buy ingredients rather than the kits. But I have no idea how brewers design or formulate their own beers.


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[Hello]

You can. You just need to pay attention the the percentages used. For example, your base grain whether extract or all grain, should make up more than half your recipe. Specialty grains will actually tell you how much you can use. Look up caramel 80, for example. It probably says "up to 20%". I'm guessing, I'm on my phone right now. So basically you want your base, you want specialty for color, taste, head retention etc and then hops and yeast.

Reading recipes is helpful and using percentages is very useful. Do you have beer smith or a comparable program to help you design a beer?

You can move to all grain when you're ready and have the equipment. You can also do BIAB. you don't have to do all grain ever if you wish. I know done people should didn't ever make the move.

 

[farmskis]

You sure can! You are in the right direction of seeking formulations. Some good resources... A few books "Designing Great Beers" , "The Joy of Homebrewing". A software that helps to formulate beers is "Beersmith". Another way to step into creating your own brew is to start by modifying ones you like and try to improve them more to your liking. you will get a feel for what changes what and how it affects the outcome. Most of all have some fun and while your at it enjoy a homebrew!

 

[farmskis]

I recommend starting by reading the books. It will help you to understand what Beersmith is doing behind the scenes.

 

[kenmcchord]

I think you could, and there are some good books out there on the subject. But I have to say there are a ton of great recipes out there that have all the grains (extracts), hops and yeast already figured out.

If you're like me, and what I mean by that is still relatively new to brewing, I have found it's been a better use of my time/energy/attention/focus to work on my technique rather than trying to come up with a recipe. With the recipes I've followed there were often times notes or reviews on how the beer should turn out, or better said what my expectations should be when it comes to fermentation, taste, etc. There are plenty of recipes floating around this forum (I personally have brewed the Tits Up IIPA, which turned out fantastic, found here) and if you're into or entertaining brewing software Beersmith has turned out to be a good investment for me. Beersmith comes with many recipes pre-loaded and there is just a ton more available on the web.

Good luck.

 

[geouy0523]

I recommend starting by reading the books. It will help you to understand what Beersmith is doing behind the scenes.

I agree with reading the books to get a better understanding for what each component (DME/LME, specialty grains, hops) of your brew can do to change the flavors. I'd also spend some time reading through the various recipe threads on this site, especially the ones where people are discussing changes to improve a recipe in some way.

 

[cluckk]

Start with the extract version of a SMaSH. Use a single extract--say a Light Dry Malt Extract for all the sugars and then use a single hop for each of the different hop additions. In this way you get to see what these bring to the party. Then in future batches you can layer in new additions--specialty grains, swap out hops, sugars, etc.

 

[unionrdr]

I started with Cooper's cans,adding DME & hops. did this for a couple years,then moved to pb/pm biab. I use Beersmith to tinker with recipes I came up with in the past. Or from recipes in the recipe forum on here. Beersmith has downloads into the program with recipes,grains,hops,etc. Even Breiss & Cooper's LME's/kit cans. You can also add indevidual ingredients you like as well. It's def worth the money.

 

[smccarter]

Reading is great, but the best tool I've found has been software. I use Brewtarget, but there are a few others out there. I'm just a cheapskate, and Brewtarget is free.

The BJCP style guideline is a really great place to start. Pick a style that you like, read about it - books, HBT, other sources... ask questions. Then formulate the recipe in the software of your choosing. Most of the applications take the guesswork out of it. Set your style, and the specs from the style guideline will populate the recipe. Add ingredients based on what you're wanting to do, and the software will let you know where you stand.

The recipe might not turn out to be an award winning beer, but it will be of your own design, so who gives a shiz? If it tastes good, brew it again. If not, change the recipe a bit and THEN brew it again.... and start the process over. That's what I do. Brew a recipe, tweak it, then brew it again.

 

[TheZymurgist]

+1 for Designing Great Beers, and there are a few other books that have helped me, also read a bunch of different recipes in the style you're looking to brew, and compare tasting notes. However, the best thing that's helped me is to brew a few different recipes within the style, and tweak/mix those to get exactly where I want it to be.

 

[unionrdr]

Yup,pretty much what I do. Beersmith has BJCP guidelines built into it. You pick a style on the bottom of the window,then choose from your customized brewing equipment profiles. Then brewing style,& from there you start inputing ingredients. The bar graph on the bottom of the window shows you where you're at in regard to the chosen style. So much fun to play with,you can create a beer before you even shop the ingredients.

 

[Schol-R-LEA]

I strongly recommend a few things, starting with books. How to Brew and Complete Joy of Homebrewing are excellent starting points; HtB is the more technically useful and easier to follow, though more focused on all-grain than extract; but for innovative recipe ideas and sheer enthusiasm, CJHB is hard to beat. Read both of those to begin with, and you'll get a solid foundation for improving your brewing.

After that, start playing around with a good brewing program such as BeerSmith 2 or BrewTarget. Experiment with the different ways of building a beer recipe with your choice of software.

The next book after that which I would recommend would be Brewing Classic Styles, which is focused mostly on recipe design and getting familiar with the variety of established styles. Then Designing Great Beers, a more advanced text mostly focused on all-grain but still giving great information for even starting brewers.

 

[smccarter]

One more thing....

Steal from other recipes. I don't believe I feel any shame if I take ideas from other folks. It's beer, it's a hobby, and it doesn't cost the person I'm stealing from a thing.

 

[Beernik]

Or create my own recipe?

Novice brewer here- done 8 batches so far. They have all been malt extract kits from Midwest or Williams. Truthfully, they've all turned out great. I've been very pleased with the results.
What's the next step (before I move into all grain, of course)? Can I "design" my own beer? Is there a formula or recipe to use? I imagine it might be cheaper to buy ingredients rather than the kits. But I have no idea how brewers design or formulate their own beers.


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My first beer was a kit.
My second beer was a kit I added peaches to.
My third beer is where I started modifying recipes I found.
By my sixth beer, I was writing my own recipes.

My first book was Brewmaster's Bible. There are a lot of extract recipes and good tables for ingredient ratios for beer styles.

 

[strangegreenman]

Hi! Just putting in another plug for Designing Great Beers. Far and away my favorite book, and I find copies of it in offices of brewpubs and microbreweries, too... you really want that book if you want to ger a crash course in designing malt bills, hop schedules and beer styles in general. Have fun with it!

 

[itchygomey]

Another plug for "Brewing Classic Styles".


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