A Home Brewing Journal — Beer · Cider · Kombucha · Coffee

Notes from a decade of five-gallon batches — the good ones and the drain pours.

WD Brewer is a working brew log: real recipes, honest equipment notes, and the fixes that actually work when a batch goes sideways. No sponsored fluff, no recycled listicles.

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The Brew Log

Every batch, in order

Everything below actually happened in a garage or a kitchen — nothing is theoretical.

Batch No. 013 — Latest Entry

66–68°F held
swamp cooler, no fridge

Beer·Process Guide·8 min

Fermentation Temperature Control Without a Fermentation Chamber

Hold steady ale fermentation temps with a swamp cooler, a stable closet, frozen-bottle swaps, and warm-tolerant yeast — no fermentation fridge required.

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041 Cold Brew at Home: Steep Time, Dilution, and How Long the Jug Keeps Coffee · Beginner · 7 min · Sep 3, 2026 040 Rotten-Egg Cider: Reading a Sulfur Smell Before It Sets Cider · Intermediate · 8 min · Sep 3, 2026 039 Bitterness by the Numbers: Alpha Acids, IBUs, and Boil Time Beer · Intermediate · 8 min · Sep 3, 2026 038 Reading the Surface of a Kombucha Jar: Mold, Kahm, or Normal Kombucha · Beginner · 8 min · Sep 3, 2026 037 Brew Temperature: The Minute Between Boil and Pour Coffee · Beginner · 7 min · Aug 27, 2026 036 Auto-Siphons, Racking Canes, and the Tubing In Between Equipment · Beginner · 8 min · Aug 27, 2026 035 Sulfiting Fresh-Pressed Juice: Campden by pH, Not by the Gallon Cider · Intermediate · 8 min · Aug 24, 2026 034 Diacetyl in Homebrew: The Butter Note and the Warm Rest That Clears It Beer · Intermediate · 8 min · Aug 24, 2026 033 Choosing a Kombucha Vessel: Glass, Crocks, and Metals to Avoid Kombucha · Beginner · 8 min · Aug 20, 2026 032 Buying a Used CO2 Tank: Stamps, Dates, and Regulators Equipment · Intermediate · 8 min · Aug 20, 2026 031 Building a House Blend at Home: Three Coffees, One Scale Coffee · Intermediate · 8 min · Aug 17, 2026 030 Measuring Cider Acidity: Titratable Acid, pH, and When to Adjust Cider · Intermediate · 8 min · Aug 17, 2026 029 Steeping Specialty Grains: Color and Body in an Extract Batch Beer · Beginner · 8 min · Aug 13, 2026 028 Kombucha Brewing Temperature: How Warm Is Too Warm Kombucha · Beginner · 8 min · Aug 13, 2026 027 Coffee-to-Water Ratio: The Number Behind a Weak Pot Coffee · Beginner · 7 min · Aug 10, 2026 026 Bottle Cappers: Wing vs. Bench, and the Caps That Hold Equipment · Beginner · 8 min · Aug 10, 2026 025 Bulk Aging Cider: What Changes After Month Three Cider · Intermediate · 8 min · Aug 6, 2026 024 Making a Yeast Starter: When a Five-Gallon Batch Actually Needs One Beer · Intermediate · 8 min · Aug 6, 2026 023 Which Tea Actually Feeds a Kombucha Culture Kombucha · Beginner · 7 min · Aug 3, 2026 022 Sizing a Brew Kettle: Headroom, Boil-Off, and Material Equipment · Beginner · 7 min · Aug 3, 2026 021 Roast Weight Loss: The Number That Makes a Roast Repeatable Coffee · Intermediate · 7 min · Jul 30, 2026 020 Pressing Your Own Apples: What a Bushel Actually Yields Cider · Intermediate · 8 min · Jul 30, 2026 019 Kombucha and Alcohol: How Much Ends Up in a Home Batch Kombucha · Reference · 6 min · Jul 23, 2026 018 Reading a Hydrometer: Original Gravity, Final Gravity, and ABV Beer · Beginner · 7 min · Jul 23, 2026 017 A Refractometer for Brewing: Reading Brix and the Alcohol Trap Equipment · Intermediate · 7 min · Jul 20, 2026 016 Water for Coffee: Why the Tap Can Undo a Great Roast Coffee · Beginner · 7 min · Jul 20, 2026 015 Choosing Yeast for Cider: Ale, Wine, and Champagne Strains Cider · Reference · 7 min · Jul 16, 2026 014 Airlocks and Bungs: Three-Piece vs. S-Shaped Equipment · Beginner · 8 min · Jul 16, 2026 012 How to Brew Your First Batch of Beer Beer · Beginner · 7 min · Jul 11, 2026 011 Kombucha 101: Starting Your First SCOBY Kombucha · Beginner · 6 min · Jul 4, 2026 010 Home Coffee Roasting for Beginners Coffee · Beginner · 8 min · Jun 27, 2026 009 Hard Cider at Home: A Beginner's Guide Cider · Beginner · 6 min · Jun 20, 2026 008 IPA vs. Pale Ale: What's Actually Different Beer · Reference · 6 min · Jun 13, 2026 007 Home Brewing Equipment You Actually Need Equipment · Buying Guide · 7 min · Jun 6, 2026 006 Why Is My Homebrew Flat? A Troubleshooting Guide Beer · Troubleshooting · 7 min · May 30, 2026 005 Second Fermentation: Flavoring Kombucha Without Exploding Bottles Kombucha · Beginner · 7 min · May 23, 2026 004 Backsweetening Cider Without Bottle Bombs Cider · Reference · 6 min · May 16, 2026 003 Reading a Coffee Roast: Light, Medium, and Dark Explained Coffee · Reference · 6 min · May 9, 2026 002 Glass vs. Plastic Fermenters: Which Should You Buy? Equipment · Buying Guide · 6 min · May 2, 2026 001 All-Grain vs. Extract Brewing, Compared Honestly Beer · Reference · 8 min · Apr 25, 2026

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