For strike, I want to heat the water to a specified temp (say 152 degrees F), then I want to wait while I dump in some grain, then press a button and go to the next step - mash1. For mash 1, I want to hold a constant temp (150F) for a specified period of time, then go to the next step mash 2. For mash 2, I want to increase the temp to 160F, then start a timer and hold the temp for 30 minutes. Then I want to go to boil - get the temp to 212 then start a timer, stopping after 60 minutes.
It seems to me that if the process is purely sequential, then conditional or switch/case methods would be easier to use and follow. Push buttons (or serial commands) for "next >", "< prev" could allow the operator to go 1 step forward or back in the process.
Just some food for thought ... "beer for thought?".