Went to the local brewery Saturday night to hear a band, who was awesome BTW. The Wailing O’Sheas. And have a few pints. They have a very nice IPA there, called Googg. Not the best I’ve had, but very drinkable, and with a couple tweaks, something I would not mind having on tap.
I asked the the brewess for the recipe, and she told me to go scratch! I’ve asked several brewers, home and pro for recipes, and they were more than happy to share them. Even Sierra Neveda, regarding their ESB. They were very willing to help me. Even had a thread about it hear a year or so ago. It was my understanding that it is common courtsey among brewers to share recipes. Really, you can give 10 brewers one recipe, and end up with 10 different beers. This move on her part really kind of turned me off to the brewery. Her beer is good. Not great, but good. Price is good to, at 2-4$ a pint depending on what it is. And she always has good entertainment. Food is wonderful too, and priced well. Not saying I am going to boycot her, but it just left me kind of sour to her as a person, and brewer. I thought brewers were cooler than that. MAybe she did not get the memo?
I’d say she’s a little bit insecure in her brewing prowess.
Maybe she is on here and keeps hearing you say her brew is good but not great?
Try not to be upset…“Go Scratch” is not so bad. 
You should have said “Scratch what?”
What Weazletoe thought he said: “Excuse me, but would you kindly consider letting me have the recipe to this wonderful beer?”
What was really said ( taking into account a few have been consumed ): “Hey Bar Wench…give me this $%@ recipe so I can improve this shit for you!!” :o
No chance. I’ve told her more than once I enjoy her beer. Especially for 2-4$ a pint. As for “scratching” I may or may not have just summed up what she said. ;D
while most brewers are open & willing to share recipes, techniques, etc; some are not (for whatever/many possible reasons). if you like the place, music, price, etc; then I’d just keep going there. if she gets to know you better, she ‘might’ be more willing to share, if not don’t lose any sleep over it.
Damn, she could’ve just said no, politely. Most brewers, I think, are willing to give you some direction. I wouldn’t expect someone to give me the exact recipe or anything.
Is “go scratch” polite? I’d have no problem with a brewer telling me no, but they shouldn’t get offended. Anyone who thinks a recipe is ultimate ingredient to brewing good beer is clueless.
If you asked while she was busy, that might be part of the issue.
The brewers I know would discuss recipes generally but probably not go through the trouble to give proportions.
Just to be equitable…was her beer that good you would want to brew it? If not, the answer is easy.
Fuggetaboutit! 8)
Since you must be referring to an Idaho brewpub, she obviously did not want to confess that she uses potatoes to bump up the gravity of her brews,
Like I said in the op, the beer was good, and with a treak or two, would be nice to have on tap. And, when I asked her, my words were, “obviously not right now, but next time I’m in could I get a rough idea what that recipe is?” I am in there often. She knows who I am, and we talk plesantries each time. Funny thing is, she does not ever seem to want to talk beer. Guess she is just sick of it. :
Also, as I stated, I will go back. I’m not boycotting the place. Beer is ok, food is good, entertainment is good, and the price is right. I just lost some respect for her, is my gripe, I guess. Does she really think by giving me a recipe, I’m really gonna run her out of town , 12 gallons at a time? Let’s switch it up, and say I took her a sample of mine, and she really liked it, maybe even wanted to brew it. Of course I would give her the recipe. Not only that, I would not ask for, or expect money or even a mention on the tap handle.
i got an esb from a brewery that i thought was delicious and i asked for their hop profile and they gave me the hops they used, but told me i was on my own for the amounts and addition times. the owner of the brewery was a homebrewer, so i assume it was probaby a beer they had brewed in smaller batches at one time, but just didn’t want to share the info. with me.
I asked a brewer about a recipe once and he said “hold on”, then went in the back and grabbed his brewing log and gave it to me to peruse :) All of his recipes, and easy comparison to see how they varied from batch to batch based on what he had on hand.
But I’ve had the opposite experience as well, including interactions with some prickly brewers who seemed to not want to talk to anyone who knew anything about brewing. They just wanted to be told how great their beer was, like you said, not talk about beer. My favorite pro-brewers are those who love talking (and even arguing) about beer, not the curmudgeonly type. I find their beer to be better in general too, and I think it’s related - they know more because they enjoy the subject.
Yeah, it’s all just people. They’re an inconsistent, fickle lot. By and large the folks in craft brewing are wonderfully open, but then there are some who are closed off. I find this in all fields - many people willing to share and be proud and those who are closed and ready to assume that any sharing is liable to be grounds for mockery, jabs or theft. Combine that with the fact that no recipe is ultimately protectable except by trade secret and there you go.
Should you be upset? Nah. That’s human nature. Enjoy the final product and let the person in question continue through the world in their protective armor.
Weaz I want to be sympathetic with you but its tough. Its a freakin’ IPA, theres a thousand IPA recipes out there. Pale malt and some crystal, hops at 60,15 and 5. Plus you know you wouldn’t follow directions, you already said you’d tweak it. So why do you need the recipe? I know, its kind of like asking a girl for her number and getting told “no”. No fun but no big deal, theres plenty more where taht came from my friend.
I’m glad you’ve found a decent spot to hang out there. Is it close to home? I’ve got to drive 20 miles for the privilege of microbrew, and theres generally no band.
If you want to get back at her, next time suggest that she up her crystal a bit, or some credible and legit suggestion like that. Whatever you’d do to tweak it.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not looking for sympathy. And Yeah, It’s just an IPA. I just thought it was poor manners. No hair off my back that I didn’t get it. crap, if I really thought hard about a couple pints of it, I could probably crack the code any way. I was just curious if this was the way of most brewers, as I had thought the norm was to be a little more giving.
Whoever said she does not want to talk beer to anyone in the know, she just wants praise for her beer, I think you hit it right on the head.
And how from the where I live? Just about easily within stumbling distance. Five miuntes by car.
You could turn this around and say “it’s a freakin’ IPA, there’s a thousand IPA recipes out there. What’s one more?” 
It would irritate me a little. She could at least give you some direction. A brewer, like a chef, is certainly allowed to have a few secrets. But they also usually like to talk about the process and ingredients.
Maybe she doesn’t know what the recipe is. Quite possibly, the vendor who built the brewery did the formulation for her, and as a result she can’t hold a conversation about the ingredients or how it all works.