Home Brew Recipe Development [4 Steps to the Perfect Beer]

Oh, Hey, I’m Trent Musho from the Bru Sho. In today’s video, I’m going to show you the ins and outs of Homebrew recipe development; from conception to creation. My tubular techniques to make sure you have a bodacious brew.

Using my patented beer method, developing Homebrew recipes will be a sinche.

What’s the ‘B-E-E-R’ method?

I’m glad you asked the four pillars, the recipe development are brainstorm, educate, engineer, and realization.

Every time I brew, I use these four simple steps to develop the perfect recipe. Let me show you how it works.

B = Brainstorm your beer.

The best part about home brewing is you can create anything your mind comes up with, or you can recreate any beer that’s hard to find in stores.

Start by thinking about what inspires you. It could be a beer you had at a brewery and loved, or a style of beer you’ve never tried. Maybe something you saw in a book or magazine, or maybe you want to try and recreate a favorite beer of yours.

I’m often inspired by travel. Whether that’s a beer I had on a trip that might be near to impossible to find back at home or a beer made with ingredients from another part of the world.

I also draw inspiration from food. I think about a good food pairing and how it might cross over into a delicious brew. For example, the peanut butter porter recipe I made it was inspired by my favorite candy.

Or even just fruits or foods that I think would pair great with beer like pumpkin and an Amber ale.

You can really get wild with it and go to the extremes with flavors or go for a more traditional style. The choice is yours, but only you can find inspiration for a recipe.

E = Educate with resources.

Using various resources, you can start to educate yourself on how that inspiration can come to life. If you’re looking for more traditional styles, books and magazines are a great starting point. There are near endless options to look at and they’ll give you great examples of what a typical recipe might look like.

And they’re usually tried and true recipes that can be reliable.

For more out there ideas, you can use those same books and magazines to build a base for your ingredients, and then tweak from there.

Another amazing resource we all have at our fingertips is the worldwide web. There are forums, blogs, brewing software with sample recipes and even the great visual learning space of YouTube. You can always reach out to me on Instagram or on the discord server with questions, and I’ll do my best to help you out.

Doing a quick search can give you tons of recipe, examples. So it’s on you to do some investigating, to find the good ones. Major magazines, often have the recipes available online, or if you’re a member of the American homebrewer association or AHA, they have hundreds of recipes available for you to check out.

Also search for some commercial examples of the style you’re trying to make. Some breweries post to list of ingredients on their website. That’s a great way to get some ideas on how the pros do it.

In general, I would stay clear from the recipes on beer softwares as they’re not usually tested as well as the published ones, but in my experience, it’s specifying several recipes and compare, see what types of grains or hops they use and in what amounts.

Do some cross comparison and develop the recipe to your liking. And the more you brew, the better understanding of the ingredients you’ll have for the next time.

E = Engineer the recipe.

With your inspiration in mind and your resources in hand, it’s now time to engineer and formulate the recipe.

The best place to start is with the brewing software. I use BeerSmith, but brewfather is a popular choice as well as Brewer’s friend, which is free to use.

From their start in putting some grains and hops, depending on what your desired original gravity color and bitterness is.

In most software, there are scales that change when you add ingredients and tell you if you’re in the right range for your style of beer.

Think about how each ingredient impacts the flavor and aroma of your beer.

• Are the grains your adding, benefiting the desired outcome, or can you simplify?
• Do you need to add a specialty ingredient or can you get those flavors from a unique grain or hot?
• What temperature should you mash up and how might that play into the final mouthfeel of the beer?

This is really all a matter of preference, but this is where those resources are key. You can always just pick a recipe and copy it straight up and then tweak from there. In fact, copying recipes from magazines into a brewing software is a great way to practice using it and become more familiar.

I often use brewing software as a dry run for the brew day. It allows me to walk through all the steps from mash temp, to adding ingredients at the correct times.

But finally, when I’m done tweaking the recipe, it’s time to brew.

R = Realization of the beer.

This is the fun part. Now it’s time to make it happen. At this point, all the hard work is done. You found your inspiration, you’ve done the research and you formulated the recipe. Now just relax and brew it.

Take good notes along the way. Not only on brew day, but as the beer ferments. And again, once it’s done.

• What worked and what didn’t?
• How can you improve this next time?

Maybe use less one ingredient or add something different. That’s another benefit of using software. You’ll have a digital record of your recipe, so you can go back and make tweaks for the next time.

And when you’re trying to be new things were rarely turned out perfect the first time – that’s, what’s fun about recipe development. You get to try and try again to nail that recipe just right and make it your own.

There’s no better feeling than finalizing the recipe that you can go back to over and over again. So don’t give up if you feel like it’s not right after the first, second, or even 10th time, you’ll eventually get there as long as you take good notes and follow these steps.

Just remember beer = brainstorm, educate, engineer, and realization. Well, this is the best method I found, I’d love to hear from you. How do you go about developing recipes? Where do you find inspiration? Let me know in the comments, happy brewing and cheers.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Can One Begin Their Journey on Becoming a Brew Recipe Developer?

Embarking on the path to becoming a brew recipe developer is an exciting endeavor that involves a blend of creativity, technical knowledge, and a love for brewing.

The first step is to gain a solid understanding of the brewing process, which can be achieved through hands-on experience, reading brewing books & magazines, and learning from other experienced brewers.

Additionally, pursuing education in related fields such as food science or brewing science can be beneficial. Engaging with brewing communities, both online and locally, can also provide invaluable insights and resources for aspiring brew recipe developers.

What Tools or Software are Recommended for Recipe Development?

Recipe development software is a crucial tool for modern brew developers. Software like Brew Love Software or other beer brewing software helps in formulating and storing recipes, calculating brewing metrics, and even sharing recipes with a brewing community.

Utilizing such software can streamline the recipe development process, making it easier to tweak and refine your home brew recipes to perfection.

Where Can I Find Resources for Recipe Development?

Recipe developer resources are plentiful if you know where to look. Aside from online forums and communities dedicated to home brewing recipes, there are also numerous books, magazines, and online courses available. Local homebrew clubs and brewing supply stores can also be great resources.

They often provide not only materials but also workshops and opportunities to network with other like-minded individuals passionate about brew development.

How Can I Source Ingredients for My Home Brew Recipes?

Sourcing high-quality home brew ingredients is fundamental for recipe development. Local brewing supply stores, online retailers, and even farmers’ markets can be good sources for fresh and diverse ingredients.

Establishing relationships with suppliers and other local brewers can also lead to discovering new or rare ingredients that can make your home brew recipes unique.

What Education is Typically Required to Become a Professional Recipe Developer in the Brewing Industry?

The educational path for professional brew developers can vary. Some may have formal education in food science, brewing science, or related fields, while others may have honed their skills through years of practical experience and self-study.

Regardless of the route taken, having a deep understanding of the brewing process, ingredients, and the science behind it is crucial for success in developing recipes in the professional brewing arena.