The Next Step? Anyone have any good resources?

[DirtyWombat]

Hello,

I'm a pretty amateur homebrewer. I'm on my third batch of extract brewing (a Kolsch), and have a slightly modified Nostalgia KRS2100 Kegerator in which to put my kegged beer, and am planning on getting a small chest freezer and temp controller for a fermentation chamber.

Whats the next step? I can easily go to my local brewstore and pick up another kit, and much like cooking, follow the directions and get a drinkable beer. Thats fun and all, but my nature makes me want more.

What I want to do is progress to what I see as the next step - putting together my own recipe, and learning which hops/strains of yeast/additions create which flavor profiles. Would the next natural step be all grain brewing, or should I progress to modifying recipes with malt extract still?

Is there a good resource for this information, maybe on this board? I'm new and wondering where to go from here.

Thanks,

 

[kev211]

Well heres the "problem". There is no "next step". Thats the fun thing about this hobby and why I put quotes around problem. Its differnt for everyone. I know some guys who did 20-30 extract batches before finally making the plunge to AG (all-grain). On the other hand, I did one extract batch before switching. So its a matter of preference and what route you want to take. I would say, yes, definitely get the temp control. Thats huge. Then after that, why not go all grain? You can start by doing SMaSH's (Single Malt and Single Hop) so you can learn the flavor profiles of different malts and hops. That will help you create better beer in the long run IMO.

 

[Calypso]

There's always something to learn or improve. It sounds like you've given some good thought already to fermentation temperature. So if I were going to suggest the "next thing", I might suggest moving to all-grain 3v, all-grain biab, or even partial mash biab (that's what I do, with a hard limit of 8 pounds of grain and any extra coming from extract, and I can make excellent beers that way). Or maybe you should look into yeast starters. Or get your water tested and start exploring the water chemistry side of things in the Brew Science forum.

 

[sfish]

move away from kits and use grains and DME or LME.

Deside what beer you like (if you were learning about wine I would say pick a grape you like) Then look up recipes like on homebrewtalk, beersmith, beertools, byo mag., beertoad. whatever

Use the recipe as a guide and change it just a little, like increase the ABV, of the hops, using some software and take notes. take notes

And take notes

Relax and have a homebrew.

 

[ericbw]

Are you doing all extract? Next step would be to add some steeping grain to a recipe you liked. Or try a different yeast. In any case, pick the beer you liked best, and build the recipe from ingredients. Either at your local store or online. You can make small changes and see what you like.

What other beers have you done besides the kolsch?

 

[DirtyWombat]

Thanks everyone for some great replies! I think I will take it slow and as ericbw recommended I'll try building my own Irish Red Ale which as been my favorite recipe so far. Maybe after a few more batches with extract I'll be ready to go to Single Malt and Single Hop to help me learn the different flavor profiles. I like extract brewing so far, but I want a little more input and ability to adjust flavors, so I think I've got a plan!

 

[ericbw]

Irish Red is the pinnacle of beer. Perfect choice! And you can make a great one with extract and a few grains to steep.

 

[Sadu]

Try a 1 gallon allgrain SMaSH on your stovetop. These are quick and easy, cheap, don't require special equipment and good for experimenting.

I have one brewing with 1kg of maris otter and 3g of simcoe at 20/15/10/5/0/dry fermented with us-05. I think a proper recipe with combinations of ingredients do taste better but these let you really taste the ingredients which you need for building your own recipes.

Having been stuck with a couple of full batches that were average, I always do 1 gallon test batches first to get the recipe and process tweaked.

 

[kh54s10]

Like already said. The next step will be different for almost everyone. Some go through what would be considered steps. Others step right in and brew all grain first. The order of the steps will be in a different order from one to another.

 

[bobeer]

I did a few extract batches then made the small jump to 2.5 gallon biab ag batches. I found I had a lot more control over the outcome of the beer with ag and it was much cheaper than buying the extract.

Buy Beersmith, I think it's 27 bucks, and put your recipes in there and start tweaking abv, ibu, srm, etc... Beersmith is a great program and helps you understand what little changes do to your beer. Check it out!

 

[kristiismean]

Yep, beersmith.

And while extract brewing is a great hobby, and I support all that do it, all grain does give you much more control over the individual profiles. i recently made the switch, (still go back and do extract batches) and it's honestly is not that big of a deal. Get a mashtun, SS valve and brewbag.... and a bigger pot