2013 Brew Year's Resolutions/Goals

[beersk]

This is a fun thread...

I forgot also: buy less commercial - I've been meaning to wean off commercial for a while now, and this year I'm going to do it!

May try and enter NHC if I have anything that meets the snuff test. 

beersk - maybe try posting your recipes and water profile and we can help out - I make pretty killer IPAs that I am generally happy with until the last drop.  I think the key many people miss is that you have to be literally gluttonous with the use of hops, especially late and in the dryhop.  just a thought.

Perhaps I'll start a thread about it posting a general water profile and recipe.  I can't help but wonder if there's something small in my process that I'm doing wrong that causes IPAs to be "meh" or taste different to me after a week of drinking it. It's weird, too, because my dad was over on Tuesday, he said the beer was really good. Then the next day it tasted funny to me and has since. This has happened a lot with my IPAs over the years.
I mean, it's happened to me with commercial IPAs also, where I'll have one that tastes good on one day, then another day, that same beer will taste "off".  It's weird. I don't seem to have this problem with non-hoppy styles.

[gauzzastrip]

Build a fermentation chamber.  AKA Convince the wife why I need another fridge.

[reverseapachemaster]

Finish my yeast project
Brew all the beers on my brewing schedule for the year
Develop a larger collection of sour cultures
Continue to improve QC
Develop brewing schedule for 2014 (maybe all saisons and sours?)
Get my damn hops to grow more than a few feet (I'm a terrible gardener but working on it)
Think about expanding my sour projects to include two base sour beers for 2014 (maybe a sour blond/pale ale and a flanders red) along with my lambic solera and wild ale
Find somebody locally to accept some of my excess 12oz bottles so I don't have to pitch them in the recycle bin

[deepsouth]

This is a fun thread...

I forgot also: buy less commercial - I've been meaning to wean off commercial for a while now, and this year I'm going to do it!

May try and enter NHC if I have anything that meets the snuff test. 

beersk - maybe try posting your recipes and water profile and we can help out - I make pretty killer IPAs that I am generally happy with until the last drop.  I think the key many people miss is that you have to be literally gluttonous with the use of hops, especially late and in the dryhop.  just a thought.

does 4.25 ounces of hops within the last 15 minutes and a couple ounces of dry count as gluttonous?  reason i ask is, i'm on the fence about dry hopping the last beer i brewed, but i only brewed it tuesday, so i still have time.  what's holding me back is the fact that in only have two ounces each of amarillo and simcoe and i undertand they will be hard to find.

[erockrph]

does 4.25 ounces of hops within the last 15 minutes and a couple ounces of dry count as gluttonous?  reason i ask is, i'm on the fence about dry hopping the last beer i brewed, but i only brewed it tuesday, so i still have time.  what's holding me back is the fact that in only have two ounces each of amarillo and simcoe and i undertand they will be hard to find.

They're both around from multiple sources right now, but I'd stock up while you can if you want them. You will see a noticeable difference if you use them as dry hops. Whether it will be hoppy enough for your palate without them, it's hard to say. If it were me I'd put all 4 ounces in as dry hops, possibly in 2 stages. The hops will taste a lot better in your beer than in your freezer, and you can always experiment with some substitutes if you can't find them later on.

[deepsouth]

does 4.25 ounces of hops within the last 15 minutes and a couple ounces of dry count as gluttonous?  reason i ask is, i'm on the fence about dry hopping the last beer i brewed, but i only brewed it tuesday, so i still have time.  what's holding me back is the fact that in only have two ounces each of amarillo and simcoe and i undertand they will be hard to find.

They're both around from multiple sources right now, but I'd stock up while you can if you want them. You will see a noticeable difference if you use them as dry hops. Whether it will be hoppy enough for your palate without them, it's hard to say. If it were me I'd put all 4 ounces in as dry hops, possibly in 2 stages. The hops will taste a lot better in your beer than in your freezer, and you can always experiment with some substitutes if you can't find them later on.

thanks!  i used the 4+ ounces late in the boil, but i'll throw a couple more ounces in after another week or so.

[udubdawg]

been experimenting with unfamiliar yeasts for most of the last two years.  Nearly 100 batches over that time; quite tiring.
Pretty much done with that, so moving back to brewing my favorites.  German Pils, Kolsch, Dusseldorf Alt, robust porter, oatmeal stout, IPA, and saison will fill up most of my time.

more emphasis on mead/cider this year.  got several going over the holidays.  I might share LESS mead though - this stuff is too expensive!   

Should be entering NHC depending on some taste tests next month.  If it happens, 2013 goal will probably be to advance something to final round, and next year's goal might be to medal.

Happy Brew Year--
--Michael

[hopfenundmalz]

For those of you wanting to attend the NHC, be careful, you might get hooked. This will be my 8th. Some have been to many more. 

[blatz]

This is a fun thread...

I forgot also: buy less commercial - I've been meaning to wean off commercial for a while now, and this year I'm going to do it!

May try and enter NHC if I have anything that meets the snuff test. 

beersk - maybe try posting your recipes and water profile and we can help out - I make pretty killer IPAs that I am generally happy with until the last drop.  I think the key many people miss is that you have to be literally gluttonous with the use of hops, especially late and in the dryhop.  just a thought.

does 4.25 ounces of hops within the last 15 minutes and a couple ounces of dry count as gluttonous?  reason i ask is, i'm on the fence about dry hopping the last beer i brewed, but i only brewed it tuesday, so i still have time.  what's holding me back is the fact that in only have two ounces each of amarillo and simcoe and i undertand they will be hard to find.

I'm starting to be a believer in the total batch hop amounts quoted by FW, RR and Stone - 3-5# per bbl which means ~ 8-12oz per 5 gallons. 

As erockph said - as is typical there was a big scare at first on those hops you mentioned but it isn't as bad as expected - I have 4# of 2012 simcoe, 3# 2012 Amarillo and 2# 2012 Citra in my freezer right now so it can be found

[gmac]

Not sure what my brewyear's resolution is going to be because I don't know what I want to do.  So, I guess I'll make that my first resolution:  Figure out what I want to do with my brewing.  Do I want to start a nano (somedays I think I do) or do I just want to focus on making the best beer I can for myself? 

Depending on what I decide, that will lead me to my next resolution:  Set up my brewery.  I've got a big garage now with lots of room so I have to decide how to set it up, what size to set up etc.  I'm leaning towards a minimum 1/2 bbl set up but I've gotta determine how big I can go with batch sparging.  I like batch sparging with a cooler but how big can I go?

Lastly, perfect bottling (or canning) my beer so I can share with others.  I hate bottling but only having kegs means that I cant' really share my beers very much.  I'd love to get a home canning unit but that's more in line with my decision to do a nano than stay homebrewing.

[deepsouth]

This is a fun thread...

I forgot also: buy less commercial - I've been meaning to wean off commercial for a while now, and this year I'm going to do it!

May try and enter NHC if I have anything that meets the snuff test. 

beersk - maybe try posting your recipes and water profile and we can help out - I make pretty killer IPAs that I am generally happy with until the last drop.  I think the key many people miss is that you have to be literally gluttonous with the use of hops, especially late and in the dryhop.  just a thought.

does 4.25 ounces of hops within the last 15 minutes and a couple ounces of dry count as gluttonous?  reason i ask is, i'm on the fence about dry hopping the last beer i brewed, but i only brewed it tuesday, so i still have time.  what's holding me back is the fact that in only have two ounces each of amarillo and simcoe and i undertand they will be hard to find.

I'm starting to be a believer in the total batch hop amounts quoted by FW, RR and Stone - 3-5# per bbl which means ~ 8-12oz per 5 gallons. 

As erockph said - as is typical there was a big scare at first on those hops you mentioned but it isn't as bad as expected - I have 4# of 2012 simcoe, 3# 2012 Amarillo and 2# 2012 Citra in my freezer right now so it can be found

thanks paul.

[kramerog]

Easy Goals in no specific order (do all):
1.  Make a series of 4 single malt APAs varying the malt from bath to batch.  One of the 4 using Vienna is fermenting.
2.  Brew an Old Ale this year for competitions next year.
3.  Make vinegars.  I'm hoping my wine vinegar is working.
4.  Finish my new mash tun including calibrating for volume.  Get my mash dialed in.
5.  Brew a Berliner Weiss based on the 2012 NHC competition.
6.  Commemorate my sister's wedding with a fruit mead.  Got the honey.  Not sure what fruit to use.
7.  Figure out how to best control fermentation temps using a water bath in the winter.
8.  Maintain a small bank for sour bacteria.  Got a Brett deposit.  Next add a lacto deposit.
9.  Make enough different beers in enough quantity to keep me happy as a beer drinker with plenty to share.

Aspirational Goals (do 1 or 2):
1.  Launch a new superlocal homebrew club
2.  Win a keenly contested competition (a category would be fine, a B.O.S. would be great)
3.  Regularly do labels and caps for commemoration beers.
4.  Make homebrew competitions and such legal in Illinois.  Participate in them regardless.

[snowtiger87]

1. Get my electric basement brewery up and running !
2. Get my electric basement brewery up and running !
3. Get my electric basement brewery up and running !
4. Get my electric basement brewery up and running !
5. Get my electric basement brewery up and running !
6. Get my electric basement brewery up and running !

7. Buy less commercial beer.
8. Organize and execute the Man Cave Pub Crawl I have been talking about for a year.
9. Brew more collaboration beers with my buddy - We call it "Grumpy Men Brewing"
10. Drink less - work out more.

[fmader]

March will be my first year anniversary for brewing. I've been brewing all-grain since July and have messed around with my own recipes (my first two grain batches). I have brewed five of my own recipes and several all grain kits. There is much more satifaction in brewing my own recipes. My uncle and I brew together. He builds our equipment and I formulate recipes and do the education part. We have threw more kits to brew (White House Honey Ale, Dead Ringer IPA, and Victory Noble Pils). Once these are gone, I don't want to purchase any more kits.

1. Brew only my recipes.
2. Brew a series of different Pale Ales in late March to experiment with hops.
3. Brew a series of different IPAs in July to experiement with hops.
4. Brew more stouts (Founder's Breakfast Stout and Bell's Java Stout for starters)
5. Brew a couple of beers that involve real fruit (cherry stout and peach wheat are on the schedule)
6. Begin harvesting yeast
7. Brew at least 24 beers (This shouldn't be an issue, because we've brewed at least every 2 weeks since we started)
8. Use whole leaf hops a few times
9. Continue to learn about the craft
10. Continue to have fun brewing

I've only been a member to the AHA for a few weeks, but I've learned a lot. Thanks to everyone to making this forum worth while!

[reverseapachemaster]

5. Brew a couple of beers that involve real fruit (cherry stout and peach wheat are on the schedule)

Good luck with the peaches. I've never been able to get a good peach flavor out of them. It usually ends up as sort of a muddled fruit character. Likely a result of peaches being a low acidity fruit. Hopefully you'll have better luck.