Nice write up, Mr. T. Your recipe and process is similar to the one that I've done in the past for basic Kimchi, but I haven't made it quite some time. Most of the people that I dine with (family/friends) are the ones you described in your first sentence, and I always ended up tossing a large portion of any batch I made after a few weeks. I love the stuff so in order to feed my addiction I'm lucky that I have a good Korean restaurant nearby that offers an excellent version that I purchase to take home. I love it mixed in with fried rice or as an accompaniment to smoked pork chops or ribs in a Mongolian marinade.
I did get a better response to Kakdugi, but not much.
How long do you keep the Kimchi refrigerated after fermentation, assuming you don't finish the entire batch? Also, which brand of fish sauce do you use?
Thanks for the post. It just may inspire me to make some again, though in a smaller quantity.