Product ReviewsBrewing Classic Styles : 80 Winning Recipes Anyone Can Brew by Jamil Zainasheff and John J. Palmer (2007, Trade Paperback)

A great tool for growing your homebrewing skills!

As a novice (noob) in the homebrewing world I know I have a lot to learn. Not only the process of making "good beer, but also knowing the ingredients of what makes the "right kind" of beer.

I've never been a world traveler and just don't have a whole lot of experience with different beer styles. I couldn't begin to tell you the details of difference between a Porter or a Stout (yes, I fully proclaim my ignorance!) I've been a product of "Bud/Miller/Coors" for many, many years.

So, that's the quick background - here's how the book has helped me.

The book is an excellent source of information with detailed recipes for each style in the BJCP. As I've learned from Jamil's Podcasts (http://www.thebrewingnetwork.com/ - which has an episode for each style of beer; the perfect companion for this book); "brewing to style" is actually really important. While I've been able to brew some beer at home, I've never really been sure that it is "right"... Yeah, it's drinkable (still better than B/M/C!)

So, I buy the book and decide to start with an English Bitter - read about the styles, pick the recipe and the brew is sitting in my fermenter right now. Between the podcasts and the book, I KNOW that this brew will turn out better than I would have brewed before.

As Jamil references, Ray Daniel's book "Designing Great Beers", forms the framework for many of these recipes. Not to mention, each recipe is an award winner. Reading Daniels book, which helps with the technical background and theory, allows Jamil's to shine forth with practical examples.

I know there are lots of free recipes on the net. Yes, I also know that the recipes from the Jamil Show are published. But this book is more than that - it is a useful compilation of both the recipes and kinda the why part too.

In short, I needed to learn how to brew a (and I laugh at this part) "basic" style before I need to start playing/tinkering/creating my own recipes. Jamil's book helps me learn how to do this.

Oh, don't forget, you'll also be supporting your fellow homebrewers!Read full review...

Recommended Reading/Reference

John Palmer wrote the first 3 chapters with some technical information. The remainder of the book is recipes by Jamil Zainasheff. All of the recipes are written as Extract/Partial Mash recipes with All grain substitution recipes. I've read dozens of books of recipes and what I find interesting about Jamil's recipes are how complex they are, for example he very often uses multiple base grains and multiple crystal malts in the same recipe. You can't argue with his results but I've always believed the Japanese axiom about genius being in the simple. I highly recommend this book.Read full review...

Brand new book

It is brand new and the hard print is in high quality. I still did not read it, but what I have seen it seems as a good purchase...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: new | Sold by: etsupplyco

Great price, great quality.

Great price, great quality.

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: thrift.books

Understanding beer brewing better.

This book was recommended to me by a good friend and brewer to help me better understand how to design a better beer recipe.

LME & DME conversions to all grain.

This has all the info I had been searching for.

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: new | Sold by: innersleeve-1