Organization (Recipes and Notes)

[CortneyD]

Hi! Just curious how y'all manage your recipes and notes and keep track of where batches are at? I started with a binder full of notes and hand written recipes and quickly moved on to a less arduous set up.
I've cobbled together a way that works for me that's half old-school (3x5 cards tied to carboys with pending racking and bottling dates) and half technology-driven (I have a Notion template that tracks all of my batches, To Do recipes, dates, tasting notes, PAs, etc), but I'm always curious if there's a better way? What do you use? How do you keep everything accessible and easy to find?
Thanks all!

 

[CortneyD]

PS- if any of you have or are interested in the Notion template I'd happily share it.

 

[Ohio Bob]

I’m old school, everything is hand written. A three ring binder holds 1 page per vintage of hand written notes, a 3x5 piece of paper taped to each carboy has dates of last racking, was it oaked, etc. nothing fancy.

 

[CortneyD]

I still have my original binder with handwritten recipes (I have transferred them over to the Notion site) but this is also where I have some yeast data and charts so I'm just feeling very clunky with all this stuff AND the books with recipes, etc. But, I'm glad to hear you use the 3x5 method for the carboys- its so cheap, easy and effective! Thanks for the feedback!

 

[Old Corker]

When I started making wine I just went to my go-to and used a surveyors field book. I have used them for a lot of note keeping tasks for most of my life bc they are a convenient size. For the carboys I stole an idea from Steve at All in One Wine Pumps. I made cards ~3x10 so two from one piece of printer paper, put some words and lines on them and laminated them. I punched a hole in them and put a string on them. Note are written with dry erase markers. I went for durability bc I spill sometimes.

 

[CortneyD]

OOH! That is fantastic! Thank you for sharing- I'm going to have to work on finding someone I know with a laminator now!

 

[Rembee]

I also hang 3x5 index cards on my carboys with the name of the wine and dates of when I performed certain task. I also keep a more detailed summary in a note book/journal for every wine that includes the recipe, dates of when things were added, racking dates and tasting/aroma notes throughout the wines process.

 

[ChuckD]

Three ring binder for recipe, additions and notes. I then transfer everything to an Excel spreadsheet so I can read it more easily.

 

[sour_grapes]

You may be interested to take a look at this recent thread: Logging and Documenting

 

[Jovimaple]

I also do the laminated form trick, although I have been using wet erase markers (like for overhead projectors) and they do get blotchy when I splash on them accidentally.


Dad gave me his old wine log books. One was full but the other was not, so I started logging in that. I wanted more room for details, though, especially with my first batches when I was just learning. I bought a dozen cheap small notebooks and used one for each flavor/type of wine, but I generally don't record quite as much detail anymore. I created an Excel spreadsheet with a separate worksheet for each type of wine (examples: kits, Skeeter Pee, each type of fruit, etc.). I generally use about 3 lines per batch on each worksheet for my notes, although some lines have a lot of data. Here are a couple of screenshots from 2 different batches of Skeeter Pee, which I call Lemon Thunder:


I recently added the "Done" column so I can filter them out if I want to concentrate on only the current wines on each page.

 

[CortneyD]

Jovie- that looks great! I love a good Excel Database, its similar to what I built in Notion- which is just a bit easier for me to visualize/sort/find and less reminiscent of work databases!

 

[mainshipfred]

I don't take a lot of notes. At crush I'll log SG and pH readings and acid if required. My protocol for nutrients and additives is always the same so I don't bother. The different yeasts go on the fermenters and transferred to the carboys. On occasion I'll log the progression. Then I'll log the gross lees racking and MLB addition, maybe a pH reading. The only other thing I log is when I make sulfite adjustments but that goes on the carboys and barrels because I can see it at a glance. So you might want to say I suck at it.

 

[CortneyD]

I don't take a lot of notes. At crush I'll log SG and pH readings and acid if required. My protocol for nutrients and additives is always the same so I don't bother. The different yeasts go on the fermenters and transferred to the carboys. On occasion I'll log the progression. Then I'll log the gross lees racking and MLB addition, maybe a pH reading. The only other thing I log is when I make sulfite adjustments but that goes on the carboys and barrels because I can see it at a glance. So you might want to say I suck at it.

LOL- no, you are just much more confident in the recipes/math/science than I am. I need notes to follow!

 

[cmason1957]

I do a mixture of methods. Some kits I use the tags sold by @vacuumpumpman at allinonewinepump.com, some I put the recipe/notes I use into sheet protectors and hang around the carboy. Those notes end up in a notebook later.

 

[ChuckD]

View attachment 84578

I do a mixture of methods. Some kits I use the tags sold by @vacuumpumpman at allinonewinepump.com, some I put the recipe/notes I use into sheet protectors and hang around the carboy. Those notes end up in a notebook later.

I just love zooming in and checking out all the “mad scientist” wine rooms posted on this site. It’s great inspiration.

I see you are another basement dweller

 

[Old Corker]

LOL- no, you are just much more confident in the recipes/math/science than I am. I need notes to follow!

I had the same thought. I’m still early enough in my wine making journey that I can’t call my process done. It seems I make some little tweak to my process with every batch. I only do kits so there are not as many notes to record compared to those who do grape and fruit wines. No recipes. I don’t think the laminated will ever go away for me. I like being able to see at a glance where the batch is. Makes it easier to plan wine tasks. I’d be in trouble if I didn’t have some kind of system.

 

[CortneyD]

I had the same thought. I’m still early enough in my wine making journey that I can’t call my process done. It seems I make some little tweak to my process with every batch. I only do kits so there are not as many notes to record compared to those who do grape and fruit wines. No recipes. I don’t think the laminated will ever go away for me. I like being able to see at a glance where the batch is. Makes it easier to plan wine tasks. I’d be in trouble if I didn’t have some kind of system. View attachment 84587

Your laminated tags look great! I agree, I need reminders of where everything is at, what's coming due or ready to bottle!

 

[winemaker81]

In the very distant past I recorded cryptic notes in a small binder. In recent years I record things on paper, but transcribe to my web site, and I have a MS Access DB that has specific details.

 

[BarrelMonkey]

There was another recent thread on this subject here - might be worth checking out. (And welcome to WMT!)

ETA: Looks like @sour_grapes beat me to it!

 

[Scooter68]

I keep track of my recipes/notes in an old black and white "Theme Book" hard cover book with plenty of pages. I also put hard plastic tags on the carboys with start date and racking info on them. If I dose it with K-Sorbate before bottling, I also note that on the carboy tag.

Funny Game I play is while the siphon is working I slide the tag up over the neck from the old carboy along the hose and then down over the neck of the new carboy. - Yeah things you do to keep yourself busy while 3 gallons manually siphons from one to another. I keep the old carboy on a stand at an angle and the the tip of the siphon suspended just above the lees (When there are enough to see) and keep everything lined up as it goes. I also add the K-meta dosage to the clean new carboy and just let the wine flow mix it in as the racking happens.