Recently I had the idea to review my brewing recipe software of choice, this got me to thinking about the other types of software out there and I decided to get some other bloggers involved to review the software they use.
I use beer alchemy for all my recipes, I liked the look of the interface and the fact that it was mac native was attractive as well. The software retails for $29.95 and gives you the ability to install the software on up to two computers.

Admittedly I don't use all the features the software offers. I mainly use it to write out my recipes and get a target for original gravity, IBU, and color. All of the measurements have options for which method you choose to calculate them. You can keep brew day notes, a record of what you brewed and when and track your inventory. (these are the features I don't use) The software is really easy to jump in and start using, It's fully customizable to your batch sizes, extract or all grain, and addition of new ingredients. To get your recipe onto paper you can either export the files through email, PDF, or as a webpage (I use the webpage so it prints nicely). Additionally you can change the alpha acid amounts on the hop additions, and formulate your grist bill by desired pre boil gravity and percentage of the individual malts and you can create custom mash schedules. It really has all the features you would ever need.
Additionally there is a mobile version of the software available. The mobile version has all of the same features as the desktop version, however, it's not quite as user friendly as the desktop version.


All in all I think the software is totally worth the $30 price, I have no interest in doing all these recipe calculations by hand. I think the simple interface makes it easy to jump right in and start designing recipes.










Here are some links to my collaborators blogs:
BrewMate- Beer & Garden 
iBrewmaster- Homebrew Academy
Beersmith 1- Atomic Donkey Brewing
Brewtarget- Shegogue Brew

In an effort to advance my tasting skills in order to take the cicerone exam I picked up a few books that I figured could help me.
Tasting Beer was an enjoyable read The beginning follows the same pattern any beer book does it follows the history of beer in 20 or so pages going from the ancient Sumerians & ancient Egyptians to the modern brewing industry, stopping to talk about porters in England along the way. Still Tasting Beer is more than just a general beer book.
The second chapter starts the tasting portion sensory evaluation, judging tips, presentation of beer, pairing beer with food. This is the portion of the book thats most useful. Tasting beer can be a difficult subject to broach in print but The book gives you a method to efficiently communicate whats going on in your glass and mouth. The book discusses some of the common flavors found in beers (intentional and off flavors) mouthfeel, carbonation, and how the brewing ingredients and process effect the final product. The book has several charts showing the differences in color, alcohol, and bitterness relative to styles.
The last half of the book is a discussion of styles. They are separated by country of origin and go briefly into the history of the given styles. This part was a bit tedious at times (reading about 15 styles and their original gravities/ IBU's can be boring at times) as it reads somewhat like a list.
Randy Mosher is part of the faculty at the sibel institute, he teaches courses in sensory panel management among otheres. He is a well respected author and lecturer in the beer world.
Overall i really enjoyed the book. I feel it started me on the road to really tasting and evaluating beer rather than just drinking it, however, reading a book is no substitute for experience when it comes to tasting and judging beer but thats the fun part. This book comes highly recommended