Best Notebooks & Tasting Journals for a Beer Geek

Beer journal drawings

The Best Beer Tasting Journals and Notebooks For Brewers and Beer Lovers

I have gathered what I believe are the best beer notebooks and tasting journals for a beer geek. Not just beer gifts for men, but a gift for a great note-taker who likes to have a beer.

Maybe you’re looking for a good gift for beer lovers or you’re a home brewer looking for a proper home brewing recipe journal. Or you want to save your notes about your beer and just want a new beer journal for yourself, I made this post for you.

While most people use Untappd for their beer journaling and tasting notes, putting pen to paper is still a thing us beer geeks do. In fact, we can do both. We’re multi-talented with our drinking and beer notes that way.

You can get really simple with your journal and have something for just writing down basic beer stats, or you can do some advanced sketch-notes like the one pictured at the top by Catherine Madden.

BTW, If you purchase through the links posted below, I may receive compensation (key word MAY). Let’s take a look at the notebooks and journals that are beer-worthy:

Best Self Project Action Pad

The Best Self Project Action Plan pad, is for when you plan to drink beer and relax. At the moment of writing this post, it’s 50% off.

This is perfect for a home or pro brewer along with a pro home drinker that wants to document. It may not be specially made for a beer person, but it definitely can be adopted by one.

There are a ton of great notebook options at Best Self.

The Leuchtturm 1917 Medium A5

This one has no particular beer things within. It is just a really solid notebook that you can make however you want to. Plenty of open (but ruled) notebook space to create and document all the beers or brewing notes your buzzed little heart desires.

It has two bookmarks and that 150 gsm paper – which just means ink won’t bleed through to the next page. I use this one for my Craft Beer podcast and it performs well.

There are 31 writable lines per page. And it’s durable. Slightly larger than a normal Moleskin style usually is.

It is running around $25.00, but check it on Amazon right now, to make sure.

Beer Drop

The Moleskine Beer Journal

This is part of Moleskine’s “Passion” series of notebooks. Moleskine is my favorite brand of notebook to use, it would make sense to get this Moleskine Beer Journal:

Moleskine Beer Journal

It says on Amazon there is only six left. Not sure if that is a ploy to get you to buy it and then as soon as you do there is still magically one again. They don’t seem to be producing it anymore so this may be a collector’s item.

This is the one I would use for a beer diary. Actually, it is too collectible to use (I am a nerd). I use a straight up Moleskine notebook for my beer diary or beer brewing notes (if I were to get into brewing someday).

It has popped up on Bookshop.org too, but it comes and goes.

FEATURES:

  • Beer-themed shapes embossed on its cover.
  • Traditional Moleskine stickers but with a beer theme.
  • Five themed sections for tasting notes.
  • Section for notes about the place you purchased your beer.
  • Glossary for beer tips.
  • Has 240 pages and is large format size 5 x 8.25 inches.

The price in the past has been $20 to $25. But if it’s becoming this rare, that price is probably a steal now. At the time I am writing this it is $29.00 on Amazon.

I got one as a gift and opened it on my YouTube channel:

Using a simple blank Moleskine can work too if you like to set-up things yourself. Find a template that works for you and copy it.

Continue reading “Best Notebooks & Tasting Journals for a Beer Geek”

Music I’ve Been Listening To With My Beer: The Mountain Goats “Bleed Out” on Cassette

Can of “Taking It Easy” IPA from Original Pattern Brewing with a tape (all red) of the Mountain Goats “Bleed Out” cassette
Original Pattern Brewing’s “Taking It Easy” paired with “Bleed Out” cassette from The Mountain Goats

I don’t know where someone clued me into the Mountain Goats but they did. I am not gaga from them, but they are cool.

I liked the new song “Training Montage” enough that it motivated me enough to buy the tape of their new album “Bleed Out”.

It’s a fun red:

Kinda rad “Bleed Out” cassette

I drank an Original Pattern Brewing SIPA with it called “Taking It Easy”. It was a nice beer and I did what it told me and took it easy while I listened.

I recommend both things. ✌️🍻📻

This Double Strata From Alvarado Street Made Me Buy The New Interpol Album

Double Strata Alvarado Street Brewing
“Double Strata” from Alvarado Street is good but it also causes you to spend money

I am having just the right kind of buzz right now. The right kind to order a new record that I can’t truly afford but bought anyway.

While drinking the excellent “Double Strata” WCIPA from Alvarado Street Brewing (and after a “Booming Rollers” from Modern Times), I was reading this music newsletter.

He mentioned the new Interpol album and remarked how the band has gotten better over time for him. A feeling I share.

That coupled with a beer buzz pushed me to go and pre-order “The Other Side Of Make Believe”.

So now, $36.37 later, I will be having their new record show up at my door right about the time I totally forget that I ever bought it.

This Rhinelander Beer Board Sign Is LIT

Rhinelander Beer Board Sign

I don’t know anything about Rhinelander brewery but I want that sign board!! It is simply perfect.

Especially if you’re a home-brewer like the owner, John Harry, you can put your own beers on it:

John is so lucky to get that. I searched all of eBay and found nothing like it.

If you see something similar out there, let me know. I would love to have something like it up in my garage.

BTW, John is the historian for Point Brewery, the second oldest brewery in Wisconsin. Sounds like a pretty cool thing to be.