Where do you record your recipes?

[graduate]

When I began brewing I bought a small ring binder and wrote down my recipes. I'm on #48 now but there are some interesting older brew sessions. Recipes with taste notes and funny comments from a few drunken brew sessions.
It goes from extract beers to mini mash and finally into all grain. The records begin in 04 until now. I recently bought Beersmith and I'm using it for recipe calculation and storage now.
I find myself still writing in the old notebook though. I would hate to lose those records.
Do you keep things on paper as well as in your brewing software?
Thanks

 

[Ace_Club]

I've got a homemade spreadsheet that I record my recipes/sessions in. I also print pdf versions of each and keep them in my gmail account in case there is a software malfunction.

 

[StoutattheDevil]

Most Are carved into my arm...the other batches are those of which we do not speak...

 

[JLW]

I also use a spreadsheet and I really like Ace_Club's idea of creating a back up just in case. I persoanl record the following data: Style, Name, Commerical Brewery (if a clone), pre-boil gravity, OG, FG, ABV, Recipe and notes starting with brew day all the way through botting and drinking.

What else do you all record that is important info?

 

[KevinM]

Paper & beersmith/Brewzor, blogs and several email accounts. I do similar things with encryped password systems (it's better than writing 500 passwords on a single piece of paper).
Like Ace is doing, I recommend multiple (redundant) backup systems. Paper burns, files corrupt, computers crash and even email isn't all that secure (hotmail misplaced some email a month or so ago).
I'ved worked at a software company that handles sensitive information using cloud computing. I took some mental notes on their computing processes, including multiple backups, multiple locations. Unfortunately I don't have the underground bunkers and several hundred servers, but I'm happy enough to have mine on several systems. Heck, just one on hotmail and a copy on gmail & google docs is good to me for many things. Which was what I was doing originally. It just reinforced my backups.

 

[winnph]

I used to scribble on scraps of paper and keep them in a folder, but I kept losing stuff. Rather than go the notebook route, I ended up writing the source code for an online brewers log, been using that for the last few years:

http://beer.winnphillips.com

Sent from my Droid using Home Brew Talk

 

[lumpher]

i use beersmith on my pc, but i back the recipe files up to a thumb drive every time i add 1. i'd hate to lose my notes...

 

[JNye]

I use a notebook for my records of what actually went down. I also use BeerToolsPro and I will go back after brewday and record the OG and maybe some tasting notes. But the notebook is still the primary resource.

 

[superjunior]

man I'm old school, three ring binder for me

 

[ToddO]

I like the idea of creating a spreadsheet but for now I just use a note pad. Also plug recipes into hopville and then save the web page to the desktop but I rarely look back at those..

 

[lumpher]

lots of paper-pushers here. been a computer tech for over 20 years, so i use electronic recording

 

[djonas]

I use a mixed system of program files and pdf's for the brunt of the information, and a good old lab notebook for specific occurrences.

 

[beergolf]

I keep a three ring binder. Each brew gets a checklist a copy of the recipe and the OG/Hops ratio chart. I make notes on the checklist and then also transfer them to the recipe in Beer Alchemy software.

 

[Bruin]

I think KevinM must work for the CIA! Got my first chuckle of the morning from StoutattheDevil about carving the recipes into your arm! Me, I'm one year into this. My very organized SWMBO got tired of moving my note piles around and put everyting into a 3 ring binder. I just received an order from Austin Homebrew and they sent me a complimentary pad to use for brew notes. I will start using that now, it's a nice little pad with checklists and categories.

 

[Malticulous]

Lots of mine are at hopville. I started with beersmith but lost them with a hard drive. Some are in the recipe section here. Most I can recall out of memory anyway.

 

[sjbeerman]

My smart phone..

 

[joety]

I print out the recipe from Beersmith, make my notes on their for temps, SG readings, etc., and keep them in date order in a three ring binder.

 

[superjunior]

I just received an order from Austin Homebrew and they sent me a complimentary pad to use for brew notes. I will start using that now, it's a nice little pad with checklists and categories.

those are pretty darn nice, I've used them now for my last couple batches

 

[Gridlocked]

Post it notes stuck to the wall. It ain't perfect but it's easy. But, now that I'm getting more and more into the hobby, I made myself a worksheet to fill out on brew-day.

 

[MX1]

I like the idea of creating a spreadsheet but for now I just use a note pad. Also plug recipes into hopville and then save the web page to the desktop but I rarely look back at those..

Do a search, you will find that a memebr here has made a very detaild and useful spreedsheet.

I cant seem to link today..

Tim

 

[PerpetualBuzz]

Do a search, you will find that a memebr here has made a very detaild and useful spreedsheet.

I cant seem to link today..

Tim

Here it is, I just downloaded the update last night. This thing is pretty cool.

CP's Brew Chart: [ame]http://rapidshare.com/files/445323364/CP_s_Brew_Chart.xls[/ame]

The thread with ongoing discussion and suggestions is here...

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f14/cps-brew-chart-2-0-a-221089/

 

[Gridlocked]

I'm hopefully upgrading from my post-its to this spreadsheet as a "print off and fill in with a pen" during the brewing session. It's my first shot at it, so if you see anything that you'd suggest changing or adding just let me know.

 

[winnph]

I'm hopefully upgrading from my post-its to this spreadsheet as a "print off and fill in with a pen" during the brewing session. It's my first shot at it, so if you see anything that you'd suggest changing or adding just let me know.

Only thing I'd say is maybe a little more space for notes. I tend to be a bit long-winded in my narrative descriptions of the brew, though, so maybe it's just me.

 

[Gridlocked]

Yeah, I thought about that, but I figured I'd do one of three things. Write smaller, use the back of the page, or just default to adding post-it notes. I'm not very detailed.

 

[winnph]

Ahh yes, the back of the page! See, I've started thinking so electronically that I forgot paper has a backside.

 

[Hex]

I use unlined white printer paper and store them in a folder.

 

[Gridlocked]

The only laptop that SWMBO would let me use in the garage is too sketchy to be reliable and I'm a very non-detail-oriented brewer, I have learned. I've TRIED to keep track of things but it just doesn't work out.

 

[winnph]

Actually, I've thought of some other stuff that you might want to add, unless you're keeping track of this info elsewhere:

-Yeast (strain, whether a starter was used)
-Fermentation temperature
-Days in primary (/secondary, if used)
-Bottling/kegging date

I also link my tasting notes to my recipe on my online database, but I guess there's no reason to try to put that much information on a brew-day spreadsheet.

 

[stellaontap]

I print print a brew sheet using beer smith for every batch I make. I then put that in a three ring binder. I write my notes on it during the brew session and add tasting notes later when the beer is ready to drink.:cross:

Eric

 

[Bacon]

I use a bound journal i picked up on sale from barnes and noble. it's even got a nice flap in the back where I can store hastily scribbled notes on random pieces of paper, which are usually my actual brewday notes. They usually get transcribed formally into the book after the fact, sans obscenities.

 

[CPooley4]

I use my Brew Chart

Thanks for the plug MX1 and PB. The next version will be out sometime in the near future as well which will should be a very nice improvement thanks to many ideas in the thread linked above.

 

[PGHBrew]

I print out each recipe and notes from beer tools and place them into a 3-ring binder. I also make a spreadsheet that's like a table of contents for each year. Its list the name/style of beer, OG, FG, IBU and ABV. It really helps in finding recipes that I brewed before.

 

[VABeerSnob]

Add me to the old-school group that uses lined paper in a three-ring binder. I'm now in my second binder. The binders have pockets inside the front and back covers for other important papers like the owner's manual to my malt mill, some label designs, etc.

I number my brews, and initially give them a reference name. As I brew, I take copious notes including not just the grain bill and the yeast brand/type, but even stuff like how I cleaned/sanitized equipment, how the tap water smelled, etc. The notes are updated thru fermentation, bottling, and finally, tasting. I want as much info as I can get if the beer was a success or a failure.

Coincidentally, I am doing brew number 48 today. I started in 2008 with an extract kit and moved through partial-grain to all-grain.

 

[biochemedic]

I see a lot of beersmith users here, but I use promash...one of the things I like about the session files is there's a section to type notes built right in! It's broken up into sections for mash/brewing, fermentation, and tasting.

I used to take notes on the fly, but I found once I did my first all grain there was enough going on that it was easier to have my recipe printout with all the calculations/volumes, etc. in front of me...I take written notes on that then transfer to the session file later...

Oh, and the best thing I ever did was to set up a networked RAID drive on my home network...I have automatically scheduled backups to that from all the familys' laptops.

 

[logan3825]

I made an Excel spreadsheet when I started. I still print one off every time I brew and put it in a three ring binder. It has been changed a couple times since I started. I also enter everything into Beersmith. I run Beersmith off of a thumb drive so I can use it on any computer.