Brewing "tight"

Broke my hydrometer during brew day this past weekend, so no OG reading on my Session IPA.

I tend to also brew on the "loose" side. I put a recipe together to get to an approximate OG/IBU level, but tend not to care if I end up off by a bit. Water I never measure exactly, though with grain and hops I know exactly what I’m putting in since it’s weighed out when I purchase it.

Originally posted by GarethYoung
I’m definitely on the sloppy end of the scale. I take gravity measurements and I measure mash temperature, but that’s about it, in terms of readings. Since everything I make is rank with brettanomyces, and possibly bacteria, already, I actually don’t even bother sterilising things most of the time. I look at cross-contamination, mostly, as a positive thing. I’m careful about IBU’s and mash temperature, but that’s about it, in terms of readings/calculations.

I’ve been brewing for a while though and used to be much more precise. I think you need to learn how everything works carefully before you decide what you can be relaxed about. I’ve got a fairly well worked-out process that does the damage, so I mostly just stick to that and judge things by eye and by taste.