[majorvices]

I guess my idea of a slump is the beers aren't tasting as good as you think they should. Which is a process problem. Absolutely agree it could be jaded style issues too.

[802Chris]

Great point made by all. For me sometimes it comes down to trying LESS new things. I got upset lately when I brewe a few batches that were not to my liking for various reasons. Looking back, I realized it was because I was being lazy and making up poorly designed recipes on the fly and I was making styles I might not drink if I were ordering/buying beer. Combine this with trying new brewing methods, and it's no wonder brewing was LESS FUN and I made MEDIOCRE BEER!!

I have since committed to myself to ONLY brew my four favorite styles (the ones I typically pay for Stout, IPA, Bitter, and Light Lagers) and to stick to either batch or no sparge brewing on my reliable system.

With a GREAT C.A.P. on tap and a nice IPA in the pipeline, I feel great about brewing again and I'm excited to perfect my 4 house recipes.

[Iliff Ave]

I guess my idea of a slump is the beers aren't tasting as good as you think they should. Which is a process problem. Absolutely agree it could be jaded style issues too.

My slumps are usually related to having different expectations about a finished batch usually related to not fully understanding what certain ingredients may bring to the equation. More experience based I suppose.

My current slump has to do with not enjoying a particular yeast strain I have never used and having different expectations for a 50/50 red x/pilsner beer after experiencing what 100% red x is like.

[erockrph]

Great point made by all. For me sometimes it comes down to trying LESS new things.

This is it for me. I am always trying out something new, and this can be risky. If you brew a couple of batches in a row that don't turn out as you hoped, then it can fill your homebrew pipeline with a bunch of beer that you're not excited about drinking. I haven't been able to brew as much as I'd like over the past year or two, so it can take a while to bounce back from that.

For me, this means brewing a couple of batches of beers that I know I love to refill my homebrew pipeline. For me, it's my Märzen, my session English IPA, or an IPA that stays close to a proven winner in the past (it's hard for me not to experiment at least a little when it comes to IPA's). If you have to experiment, keep it to small tweaks of a proven recipe (like maybe changing a hop variety or two, but not quantities/procedure; or maybe trying a new yeast strain).

[BrewBama]

My disappointments are usually from me jacking with a recipe. You know the drill: I don't have this grain so I sub that. I want this hop over the one called out. Or this yeast is what I have because you know, yeast is yeast, right?  Wrong. Why doesn't this work? Because balance is usually inherent to recipe ingredients and when I go substituting I usually end up disappointed with a beer that has no focus. Two or three in a row leads to a slump (for me). To break out, I brew a tried and true recipe from a more accomplished brewer -- looking for a simple straight forward ingredients list -- which nearly always turns out awesome. Cheers!


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[MagicRat]

Lots of good advice here.  Going back to my roots and brewing an APA with a half pound of crystal-20 and 4 ounces of Cascade and WLP090.  This is about as foolproof as it gets for me.


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[yugamrap]

I think there's an upside to having an established seasonal brewing schedule.  I like to brewing sync with seasons, events or commemorations - or to have beers ready for competitions.  So, that kind of puts me on a rotating schedule for about 2/3 of the beers I brew with most of those getting brewed at least once or twice a year.  In between those, I try new styles or techniques - and some of those have found their way into the rotation.

I find that the repetition is very helpful in both learning and troubleshooting.  And, mixing-in new styles and techniques keeps things interesting and can help improve the beers in the regular rotation, too.  I like to brew Berliner Weisse for the summer - so this year I'm going to change it up a bit and try kettle souring.   

[jimmykx250]

The last slump I had was in my last hobby woodworking. 2+ years ago and my fire has still not rekindled. Its about the time my neighbor introduced me to home brewing. I think I was just plain ass burned out, needed a change and a new challenge and I had done some pretty large projects one after another and just burned out.
When I brew in the garage im surrounded by all my tools and I have no intention of parting with them just haven't got the fire back. Home brewing I think I will do for quite some time as you can always take short breaks look for recipes that inspire you or taste something that makes you say I can brew that. I also believe
that you can always go back to a tried and true recipe and knock it out of the park.