beer diary

[happyhoppytaff]

hail brewers.

ive been brewing for about 6 months now. at last i am brewing faster than i can drink. i have a few cases in the bedroom, a few on the landing, one under the staris and one in the shed. and, when i was bottling last night(my first stout) i found a few bottles i had forgotten about.

i checked the little coloured label on 'the forgotten beer' and checked on the callender and it is the oldest of my own beer i have ever had. it was nice.

but, nice as it was, my few scribbled notes on the callender dont really tell me much about the beer other than when it was brewed and bottled. i cant remember what kit i used or what sugars i used.

so, it is time to get a diary. i need now to make a few more notes on my beers other than when it was made. i have too much ale (awww, poor hoppy) too much to remember every detail about every beer.

when i have a moment i will go shopping for a little note book so i can keep a good record of; what kit, what sugars, when started, primary frmentation time, when bottled. then i will be able to talk at even greater length to my friends about the beer thay are drinking. they will of course be so busy drinking they wont be able to interupt me and i will be able to go on, and on, and on, and on...

:

 

[shearclass]

Sadly, I have a spreadsheet that I use to record such data

 

[dennisking]

Sad as it may sound I have a record of every beer I`ve brewed since 1978. It lists hop and grain bill, yeast used, mash temp. OG, FG, and tasting notes.

 

[Runwell-Steve]

Yep, it is sad.

I have a spreadsheet which shows all Grains and Hops and yeast used in each brew, also the water treatment I did. I don't keep tasting notes though, perhaps I should.

My spreadsheet also calculates how much ingredients I have in store as well, so I don't have to keep going down to the garage to check what I have left when planning a recipe or ordering more ingredients.

We are a sad bunch aren't we :geek:

 

[luckyeddie]

Sadly, I have a spreadsheet that I use to record such data

Me too.

We anally retentive types must stand together (because it hurts to sit down). A worksheet for each brew (backed up, of course) and the first sheet for stock control. How sad is that?

 

[Good Ed]

I have my Dad's winemaking notebook that he started in 1970; his first Geordie 2 gal beer kit cost 8/6; my first beer kit in 1971 from Boots cost 39p

 

[pjbiker]

I have a growing spreadsheet which I originally nicked from the Jim's beerkit site to work out recipes which I have tweaked over the last couple of years. I start a new file every year.

On brewdays, I scribble notes in a book because I don't have the spreadsheet open in the brewery. Record temperatures, volumes etc to refer back to. Used to record gravity at every sample and plot a graph but don't bother now. Just OG and FG.

It's keeping good records that allow you to identify and eliminate mistakes and successes :thumb:
Its just good scientific practice, nout to be embarrassed about.

 

[shearclass]

Sadly, I have a spreadsheet that I use to record such data

Me too.

We anally retentive types must stand together (because it hurts to sit down). A worksheet for each brew (backed up, of course) and the first sheet for stock control. How sad is that?

As the reason i started doing this to save money, mine calculates the cost per pint of each individual brew, and the cost per pint over all, taking into account how much i've spent on equipment. I only started doing this in January, so initial costs per pint were high as i had to buy quite a bit of stuff. But i got a couple of free ktis for my birthday, so once I've done them i should be down to about 70p a pint i think :)

 

[happyhoppytaff]

i'm glad i'm not alone. i thought homebrewers were a bunch of knitted-muesli-sandal wearing, tree huggers. it seems we are all frustrated, inebriated, micro biologists.

 

[BigYin]

I started a beer notebook with my first kit, and have kept that updated as I go on. I have been intending to create a stock control spreadsheet for grains and hops, although at the moment its just a pen and paper exercise in the back of the beer notebook.

I have a brewing guide cobbled together from threads on this forum that I copy over and amend for each ag brew, so I also have them as a reminder and information source :thumb:

definitely need to sort out a stock control sheet though...

 

[BarnsleyBrewer]

i am brewing faster than i can drink. i have a few cases in the bedroom, a few on the landing, one under the staris and one in the shed.

You taking in lodgers ? :whistle:

 

[doghouse gav]

I'm so glad I'm not the only loser!!
I have a notepad, apps on my phone and yellow post it notes all around the kitchen and garage much to the wifes amusement!!

This brewing lark int just a hobby it's a way of life!!
And I like it :thumb:

 

[happyhoppytaff]

i am brewing faster than i can drink. i have a few cases in the bedroom, a few on the landing, one under the staris and one in the shed.

You taking in lodgers ? :whistle:

:shock:

not in the fred west way, no

 

[pjbiker]

mine calculates the cost per pint of each individual brew, and the cost per pint over all, taking into account how much i've spent on equipment. I only started doing this in January, so initial costs per pint were high as i had to buy quite a bit of stuff. But i got a couple of free ktis for my birthday, so once I've done them i should be down to about 70p a pint i think :)

hahaha me too :rofl: exactly that!
Price per (drinkable) pint, consumables only =39p
Price per (drinkable) pint, including all equipment and development costs =86p
Total pints brewed= 1,747
(you do the math, as they say)

 

[marshbrewer]

I'm another spreadsheet user, I set mine up in Openoffice, then uploaded it onto my google docs account, so I can view it from anywhere, and I know it's backed up. I occasionally download it and back that up onto CD just in case google go bust (highly unlikely!)

 

[dennisking]

I have my Dad's winemaking notebook that he started in 1970; his first Geordie 2 gal beer kit cost 8/6; my first beer kit in 1971 from Boots cost 39p

Like your dad in the early days I would write down the cost of ingredients, quick example from 1979, 12lb [around 5.5kg] pale malt £4.08, 1lb crystal .34p, 1lb flaked maize .30p 5oz goldings .75p and 1 pk yeast .15p.

 

[micmacmoc]

I can't remember if it was on here or jims, there was someone recently who had found a set of recipes and records from the 70s and as a tribute to this late brewer had replicated a recipe from 1975 or so. It was a great story, anyone remember? Who knows where your records may end up.

I have a foolscap folder and several notebooks. My attempts at stock control are futile, by the time I finish a brew I can't be arsed doing the paperwork, usually a few pints have passed my lips by then!

 

[BigYin]

well, this thread pushed me into action, so a brewing spreadsheet is half way to becoming properly alive :mrgreen:

 

[Lobes]

Yeah, I've also been keeping track of everything since I started brewing. I started off using a day-to-a-page diary to keep track of the recipe I used, but have recently backed up everything to my google calendar. I also have a spreadsheet that keeps track of the ingredients needed for each of my brews, the cost, and also what ingredients I have left in stock.