I'm not trying to be pretentious here, so please don't take it that way.
Did I pick up Brewing Classic Styles too late in the game? Personally, I'm looking at some of these recipes and I can't imagine how he is winning competitions with them.
I've had the book for awhile, but didn't really start looking at it until about 6 months ago when I started brewing lagers regularly. I brewed one of his, the Vienna, and I don't think it came out even close to the style. After doing further research, my next planned iteration is so far from the one in the book that I have to scratch my head.
Im not knocking Jamil, he obviously makes good beer, but I can't seem to get on his bandwagon. He recommends adding caramel malts to replace decoction and seems to think decoction is pointless. I can't imagine a BJCP certified judge preferring a lager with caramel malts over one that was decocted. The flavors are not even close!
Opinions?
Did I pick up Brewing Classic Styles too late in the game? Personally, I'm looking at some of these recipes and I can't imagine how he is winning competitions with them.
I've had the book for awhile, but didn't really start looking at it until about 6 months ago when I started brewing lagers regularly. I brewed one of his, the Vienna, and I don't think it came out even close to the style. After doing further research, my next planned iteration is so far from the one in the book that I have to scratch my head.
Im not knocking Jamil, he obviously makes good beer, but I can't seem to get on his bandwagon. He recommends adding caramel malts to replace decoction and seems to think decoction is pointless. I can't imagine a BJCP certified judge preferring a lager with caramel malts over one that was decocted. The flavors are not even close!
Opinions?