[spikbeatz]

Lol. I hear that.

[gymrat]

I recently did a clone of Breckenridge Avalanche Ale. We were doing a house warming party for a guy and that is his favorite beer. I got the ingredients from the website and got fairly close for a keg to serve at his party.

[jestersbrewworks]

Why imitate when you can innovate?

[denny]

Why imitate when you can innovate?

Because sometimes you want a beer that tastes like something that's already been done.  Because sometimes you want to test your skill by seeing if you can hit a target.  Then, you can take what you've learned and try something new.

[jrmontecarlo]

One of the main reasons I enjoy brewing is the challenge of making a good quality beer.  I don't care if my friends or neighbors don't drink it cause it is dark.  I don't see the point of trying to re-create the wheel.  The only time I will look for a clone recipe is to see what was making a specific flavor.  We are all better off with home brewers being different that is how we have so many new and tasty beers.

[yso191]

I think we are better off letting people do what they want to do.

[denny]

I think we are better off letting people do what they want to do.

+1.060, Steve.  Everyone has their own reason and way to brew.  No need to judge them or feel superior about your own reasons.

[Jimmy K]

I think we are better off letting people do what they want to do.

+1

[HoosierBrew]

+1.  There's value in both approaches to me. Creativity and pushing the envelope in doing something different and unique that doesn't follow style guidelines is pretty fun, on occasion. But the challenge of brewing to style or of loosely recreating a favorite beer is a great way to develop brewing skills. I don't judge somebody for their approach - you have to brew what you like !

[cswest]

I do a couple cloned batches a year, often from the same brewery.  I feel like I gain a lot of insight on a brewery's process and how they put a recipe together. Plus it helps me dial in my system because without their exact equipment changes will be necessary.

[ncbluesman]

To each, his own.

For me, I'm in a phase where I love to try to reproduce certain beers.  I've done several beers from CYBI podcasts and have been very impressed with the results. Living on the East Coast, I'm not able to buy some of the west coast beers I've enjoyed, such as: Deschutes Mirror Pond & Black Butte Porter or Firestone Walker's Union Jack & Pale 31, Pizza Port's Shark Bite Red. It allows me to focus on my process, remove variation and improve repeatability while producing delicious beer from proven recipes.

Maybe when I'm done having fun with other people's recipes, I'll focus on the creativity of recipe formulation. Then again, maybe not.

[beersk]

I think we are better off letting people do what they want to do.

+1.060, Steve.  Everyone has their own reason and way to brew.  No need to judge them or feel superior about your own reasons.

For instance, I prefer to brew beers with starting gravities under 1.060

[udubdawg]

I think we are better off letting people do what they want to do.

+1.060, Steve.  Everyone has their own reason and way to brew.  No need to judge them or feel superior about your own reasons.

For instance, I prefer to brew beers with starting gravities under 1.060

+1.047

[denny]

For instance, I prefer to brew beers with starting gravities under 1.060

Actually, these days I do that more often than not.  Yeah, I just blew my image, huh? 

[beersk]

D'oh! You blew your cover, man!