[Wort-H.O.G.]

Good beer can be made with slightly less than ideal water.

I agree to a point. Water profiles for flavor balance are something to tinker with after you're making good beer, but getting my mash pH right was a pretty noticeable improvement to me. I used to get pretty 'in your face' astringency on some styles not suited to my water.

yep- i had so  much bicarb in my well water that my PH was really high and caused many a problem beer. switching to RO made all the difference and allowed me to nail my brew water profiles.

[erockrph]

If you have a recipe you really like, but it's not perfect, then keep rebrewing it making one change (recipe OR process related) each time until you feel like you really have it dialed in. That's really the best way to learn what does what in the brewhouse. Once you get a feel for that, it's pretty simple to dial most recipes in, or to get a feel for what went wrong if a beer misses the mark.

[homoeccentricus]

FWIW, my tap water is pretty good:

Sodium, Na 33
Calcium, Ca 63
Magnesium, Mg 7.1
Sulfate, SO4 52
Chloride, Cl 46
Bicarbonate, HCO3 181
pH 8

Everything within acceptable ranges, so, again, the long tail, right?

[reverseapachemaster]

As others have said, fermentation temp control and water profiles really made my beers go from decent to great.
Even if your tap water is pretty good that doesn't mean it's pretty good or perfect for all styles. No water source is perfect for everything. Your water supply might be ok for some of the beers you are brewing but producing less than stellar flavor profiles on others.

If you feel like your water is solid and your processes are solid then the only thing missing in quality improvement would be the recipes you are using. I'm not sure from the handful of posts here that I know enough about your processes or water or recipes to point in any particular direction though.

[homoeccentricus]

If you have a recipe you really like, but it's not perfect, then keep rebrewing it making one change (recipe OR process related) each time until you feel like you really have it dialed in. That's really the best way to learn what does what in the brewhouse. Once you get a feel for that, it's pretty simple to dial most recipes in, or to get a feel for what went wrong if a beer misses the mark.

You mean like I have been doing with my oat bran 'n' egg pancake for the last year or so? I'm still optimizing that sucker. 

[homoeccentricus]

OK, OK, I got it. It's going to be the long tail for me. 

Well, there is no harm in asking, now is there?

Oh, BTW, did I mention that for me a "good" beer really means "world class"? Why go through all that trouble for less? I mean, I live in Belgium, so if I want a decent sour, trappist, Belgian IPA or saison, I simply go to the beer shop around the corner, or even to the supermarket. Even for unBelgian beers we have stuff from quite a few very good breweries here.

[klickitat jim]

Just say world class then. That way good still has a place ;-)

[HoosierBrew]

                   I live in Belgium, so if I want a decent sour, trappist, Belgian IPA or saison, I simply go to the beer shop around the corner, or even to the supermarket.

OK, it's a derail, but being a Belgian beer lover I'm envious like crazy when I read something like this. So, with that vast array of Belgian beers (many of which we don't get over here), what are some of your favorites? Gotta live vicariously through you !

[ynotbrusum]

Back on track... The biggies have been mentioned, but the other issue is simply repeating things over and over.  That is the way I have dialed in styles - from hop stand IPAs to Vienna Lagers to decocted Helles.  You really need to make a style until you really dial in your proceeds and like or love your results.  Also, don't become satisfied with your friends' assessment of your beers.  Get them to truly competent Brewers or judges and listen to what they have to say.  I did.

[theoman]

I think understanding ingredients is a big one. Way, way back when I was in the US doing partial mash brews, I would go to the homebrew shop and taste all the grains from the bulk bins. I would think, "Yeah, that's the flavor I want in this beer, and a little of that..." That's not so easy to do in Belgium since grain isn't sold in bulk, but you could buy 250g bags of everything you can find and taste them individually. You could even go so far as to make a mini mash. As for hops, I still re-read the profile of every hops I have before adding it to a recipe. From there, experience and maybe some advice from the good folks here will get you where you want to be.

[riceral]

                   I live in Belgium, so if I want a decent sour, trappist, Belgian IPA or saison, I simply go to the beer shop around the corner, or even to the supermarket.

OK, it's a derail, but being a Belgian beer lover I'm envious like crazy when I read something like this. So, with that vast array of Belgian beers (many of which we don't get over here), what are some of your favorites? Gotta live vicariously through you !

Yes, please do tell.

I plan to be in Belgium for 2 weeks in May and would like to hear what your favorites are, especially sours and saisons.

[pinnah]

am I stuck in this dreaded tail for ever and ever?

 ...I look back at my notes from when I was doing batch 15..sheesh I have learned a lot since then. 

Lots of good advise here; you may want to add in a few pounds of patience on your next year of brewing.

[homoeccentricus]

                   I live in Belgium, so if I want a decent sour, trappist, Belgian IPA or saison, I simply go to the beer shop around the corner, or even to the supermarket.

OK, it's a derail, but being a Belgian beer lover I'm envious like crazy when I read something like this. So, with that vast array of Belgian beers (many of which we don't get over here), what are some of your favorites? Gotta live vicariously through you !

Yes, please do tell.

I plan to be in Belgium for 2 weeks in May and would like to hear what your favorites are, especially sours and saisons.

See separate thread.

[homoeccentricus]

Just say world class then. That way good still has a place ;-)

Hahaha, just bragging. "Good" would be good for now.

[Wort-H.O.G.]

Just say world class then. That way good still has a place ;-)

Hahaha, just bragging. "Good" would be good for now.

not to mention your beer is likely better than you give it credit for....toughest critics are ourselves.