Formulating your own recipe to create what you hope is an unbelievable Homebrew is probably the most difficult part of brewing your own beer. However, it can be the most rewarding as well. Maybe you’ve gathered the equipment needed, books and even talked to veteran brewers. You might even have many partial mash or all-grain batches under your belt. Something is missing though. While you are enjoying the brewing process, getting to know your equipment and honing your techniques, however you want more control over the process, more of a challenge.
I confess, I probably brewed at least 4-5 all-grain batches before I finally felt ready to try my hand at creating my own recipes. I was scared to death. Trying someone else’s proven recipe is safe and if you make a mistake or two, it’s likely to be close enough. Working on your own recipe puts the added stress of not getting the recipe right. That can make or break your beer, even if your brew day is perfect.
There are dozens of books out there that will assist with recipe formulation and getting to know everything that needs to be considered, however there are a few in particular that I keep close at hand: Ray Daniel’s ‘Designing Great Beers’; Randy Mosher’s ‘Radical Brewing’; and the recently published ‘Brewing better Beer’ from Gordon Strong. I suggest looking at these and any others as your resources.
