lootcorp – a brewing blog

I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m a horrible blogger.

My previous redesign of the site failed epically. It was so much work to maintain the site with that layout, it killed any interest I had in posting. And I miss it – as I ease into the 2011 brewing season, it reminded me how much I love beer, the art of brewing, and writing about it for you guys.

So, I’m going to try this again. I’ve switched to a fairly generic theme, but work is underway to code my own. The only way this is going to work is if I setup the site to match my workflow and time constraints, something I should’ve done a long time ago. I’m not running an online magazine or a social networking hub…I’m just a guy posting pictures of beer he made in his backyard.

I’ll be trying to focus this site primarily on the homebrew stuff – technique and equipment articles, DIY projects, brew session reports, ingredient reviews, all of that good stuff. The more general or local beer stuff – event announcements, commercial beer reviews, beer industry news – will be written up on my Examiner.com page and linked to here.

Thanks for reading, and I hope I can give you a reason to subscribe and keep coming back.

-Jim

As we head into the long Memorial Day Weekend, I’d like to reflect on this past week of beer and brewing blogging fun and talk about some things I have planned for the site.

First of all, the page layout. I’m using a pre-coded theme to get up and running, but am working on making my own custom layout for the site. I like the clean look, but it is a bit visually boring, so I’m going to try and jazz it up a bit while keeping it clean and simple. I doubt I’ll have anything ready to roll out for quite awhile, but if you detest this layout, relief is on the horizon.

Next, the page needs a logo and more appropriate title (something that indicates that Lootcorp.com is actually a beer-related site). I’m thinking of running a contest (perhaps giving away the current hottest commodity in brewing, hops?) for a new title and logo design, but until I have some regular readers it’s a pointless endeavor. So, I’ll be working on putting something together, but if a few people leave comments that they’d like to have a go at it, I’ll make an official contest announcement.

I’ve been busy writing some articles covering various brewing topics – you may not have noticed the articles section…it kind of gets lost in the sidebar. Check it out, and I’ll keep adding to it as time goes on.

Finally, if anyone wants to contribute any articles, posts, or other material, I’m certainly open to it. If you’d like to send me some beer you’ve brewed, I’ll review it on the site. If you’re using some clever gadget or interesting technique you’d like to share with other brewers, let me know. If you have a question or comment about the site, I’d love to hear it. Leave a comment or send me an email!

I hope everyone enjoys a safe, happy, healthy, and beer-filled holiday weekend!