If you could start over...

[mygar]

Hi guys, total newbie to brewing. In 2 weeks I will be doing a batch at "you brew it'... they provide equipment, recipe and ingredients, know how to step you through process. It's an extract kit ... 5 g... but the cost is really reasonable. They store ferment in controlled room etc... you come back to bottle. This will give me some beer to drink till I get set up to brew my own!

I have landed on doing BIAB.. obviously, full grain..and I do not anticipate ever brewing more than 2.5 g... as I will probably be the only one drinking it most of the time.

So... looking at equipment.. boy lots to choose from. I have been thinking on the Anvil 5.5 gal kettle Anvil 5.5 Gallon Kettle | Durable, Reliable Quality along with the 4 gal fermenter 4 Gallon Conical Fermentor | Stainless Steel Brewing Fermentor . They make pretty slick fermenter cooler as well... but maybe sometime down road?Anvil 4 Gallon Bucket Fermentor Cooling System | Keep your fermenting beer cool with this cooling system!

Then there are the all eBIAB.. and of course .. scrounge pots from kitchen and buy a 3 gal glass carboy.

What would you advise a guy just starting out?

 

[Coastalbrew]

I'd say read"How to brew" by John Palmer, first. Then keep it simple. If you've never brewed before, use the pots you have already and do a few extract kits on your stove top to learn the ins and outs of cleaning and sanitation, and to gain some experience with process. You can make some very tasty beers with extract and steeping grains very easily on the stove with very minimal cost. Use plastic bucket fermenters for a while until you have a better feel for what you really need or don't need. The buckets are cheap, easy to use, virtually indestructible, and have a million other uses when/if you decide to upgrade. Most importantly learn lots and ask lots of questions to more experienced brewer's. Welcome to the obsession.

Cheers!

 

[mygar]

I'd say read"How to brew" by John Palmer, first. Then keep it simple. If you've never brewed before, use the pots you have already and do a few extract kits on your stove top to learn the ins and outs of cleaning and sanitation, and to gain some experience with process. You can make some very tasty beers with extract and steeping grains very easily on the stove with very minimal cost. Use plastic bucket fermenters for a while until you have a better feel for what you really need or don't need. The buckets are cheap, easy to use, virtually indestructible, and have a million other uses when/if you decide to upgrade. Most importantly learn lots and ask lots of questions to more experienced brewer's. Welcome to the obsession.

Cheers!

Thanks strongly considering that.. go on the cheap. I may not be able to hold off on buying a kettle though lol ... just the way I am. But can go with the car boys etc. Also, I have read Palmer's book ... the free online version.

 

[dawn_kiebawls]

Welcome to the forum! Go to the class and have fun! My advice is to ASK QUESTIONS and TAKE NOTES!

Aside from that and more related to your question, I would never limit myself to 3 gallons. I'm a 'lone drinker' in my house, though I may drink more than others, but some beers (high gravity, highly hopped, fruited, etc) require that you leave a significant amount of trub in the bottom of the fermentor. Meaning, sometimes I will brew a 5.5g batch but by the time I've added 5lbs of fruit, or .75lb hops once its in my keg I only have 4 gallons to keep sediment out. Then there's souring and aging big beers (quads, imperial stouts, barleywines, etc.)

Long story short, my advice is to take notes, but also to go with a larger system. You can brew a 3 gallon batch on a 5 gallon system. When you've waited a YEAR or more for a proper sour or wee heavy you'll wish you had those extra ~15 bottles. Cheers! (Hopefully my drunken ramblings havent scared you away from brewing and the hobby)

 

[mygar]

Welcome to the forum! Go to the class and have fun! My advice is to ASK QUESTIONS and TAKE NOTES!

Aside from that and more related to your question, I would never limit myself to 3 gallons. I'm a 'lone drinker' in my house, though I may drink more than others, but some beers (high gravity, highly hopped, fruited, etc) require that you leave a significant amount of trub in the bottom of the fermentor. Meaning, sometimes I will brew a 5.5g batch but by the time I've added 5lbs of fruit, or .75lb hops once its in my keg I only have 4 gallons to keep sediment out. Then there's souring and aging big beers (quads, imperial stouts, barleywines, etc.)

Long story short, my advice is to take notes, but also to go with a larger system. You can brew a 3 gallon batch on a 5 gallon system. When you've waited a YEAR or more for a proper sour or wee heavy you'll wish you had those extra ~15 bottles. Cheers! (Hopefully my drunken ramblings havent scared you away from brewing and the hobby)

Lol no you have not scared me a bit! This is exactly the advice I am looking for. I was originally thinking doing small batch... brew more often.. to learn. And i have a gas stove in house with power boil burner that should handle 3 or 4 gal. But 5+ gal ... would need to buy a burner and be outside. Will think about this

 

[corkybstewart]

Start with beers you like-unless your favorite is double barrel aged imperial stout. Seriously, start with simple beers and simple recipes-my first was an extract stout. Brew it a few times time to get your process down, then branch out and add one ingredient/process change at a time to see if it works for you. Keep in mind if you rush it and screw up a couple of beers your chances of bailing out are great. Looking back my first few beers probably sucked badly but I continued and turned homebfrewing into a lifestyle for over 25 years.

 

[mygar]

Start with beers you like-unless your favorite is double barrel aged imperial stout. Seriously, start with simple beers and simple recipes-my first was an extract stout. Brew it a few times time to get your process down, then branch out and add one ingredient/process change at a time to see if it works for you. Keep in mind if you rush it and screw up a couple of beers your chances of bailing out are great. Looking back my first few beers probably sucked badly but I continued and turned homebfrewing into a lifestyle for over 25 years.

I will do an extract first on my own I think. Thinking of german kolsch or pilsner...

Too bad I dont know anyone that brews that could mentor me a bit. That would help a lot!

 

[corkybstewart]

I will do an extract first on my own I think. Thinking of german kolsch or pilsner...

Too bad I dont know anyone that brews that could mentor me a bit. That would help a lot!

Pilsners are lagers which require colder fermentation which are hard for a first time brewer to pull off. Unless the "you brew it" place is set up for that. Kolsch also benefits from colder fermentation. Think simpler!
As for mentoring, if there is a homebrew club in your area join it ASAP-lots of mentors there who are very willing to help. Where are you?

 

[mygar]

I will do an extract first on my own I think. Thinking of german kolsch or pilsner...

Too bad I dont know anyone that brews that could mentor me a bit. That would help a lot!

Pilsners are lagers which require colder fermentation which are hard for a first time brewer to pull off. Unless the "you brew it" place is set up for that. Kolsch also benefits from colder fermentation. Think simpler!
As for mentoring, if there is a homebrew club in your area join it ASAP-lots of mentors there who are very willing to help. Where are you?

Dang it! Yep the "you brew it" is set up for it. Guess I would have to set up a fridge for fermenting.

I have looked online and of course there are some clubs. Seems covid has put some things on hold as far as the meeting, etc.

I'm located in greater sacramento, ca area

 

[myndflyte]

Might I suggest something larger than a 5.5 gal kettle. If you're doing BIAB, you're going to mash with the full water amount. If you want to end up with 3 gallons, then add the grain volume, plus the extra water you'll need to account for grain absorption and boil off, you're going to be pushing the max of that pot. Then once it starts boiling, you'll have to baby it so it doesn't boil over. It becomes a real pain.

I would suggest a 10 gal pot. It'll just cause way fewer headaches in the long run.

 

[brewswithshoes]

I agree with your smaller batch approach until you get more familiar with the process and being able to brew more often will certainly increase your knowledge. Especially if you already have the equipment for the smaller batches or can use what you have in the kitchen already. Also, i'd skip the carboy and just go with a fermenting bucket. You can upgrade your fermentor down the road and still use the bucket for other things

As others have said, start with simple recipes to get to know the ingredients. Some of the best info i've gained is from doing SMASH beers to learn what types of malts work for me, and also what each hop can bring to a recipe. I also agree with the posts above re: kolschs & lagers, not that they are impossible for newbies, but they are much harder to pull off well and may actually discourage you if don't like how their results turn out. Start with some ales and use some forgiving yeasts. If you don't have temp control, maybe try some of the popular kveik strains (bonus is they turn around beers mighty quick too)

Good luck and enjoy the experience !!

 

[mongoose33]

If I were to do it over.....well, that's tough to determine.

But there's this: you think you will be the only one drinking your beer, and that may be true if you don't have any friends or family. However, if your beer starts to be good--and no reason to think you won't get there--you'll have others wanting it.

So my suggestion is to go for a 5-gallon capacity, not half that as you're looking at now. There's a saying: "Buy once, cry once." It's pretty true, IMO.

**********

I have reconfigured the entire brewing operation three times. First was brewing extract in an 8-gallon kettle over a propane burner I had, then, fermenting in a Northern Brewer Bigmouth Bubbler and bottling using bottle conditioning to carbonate. It's where a lot of home brewers start.

Then, I kept improving things.

I switched to a mash tun for all-grain. I lucked into a guy getting out due to a newborn, he sold me a refrigerator and Inkbird for fermentation temp control as well as an Igloo cooler for the mash tun. If I could get crushed grain, I could do all-grain, with all the advantages pertaining thereto.

Then after a few dozen brews using that, I went on an upgrade binge; the problem is the sunk costs in the earlier equipment purchases. Look at where I started and ended up in each phase of brewing:

Extract > Mash Tun > BIAB > Electric Brewing

Extract > Use LHBS crushed grain > grain mill > big motorized grain mill

Bottle Conditioning > Build a Keezer > Force carb > Beer on Tap!

No Ferm Temp Control > Swamp Cooler > Refrig Temp Control > Glycol Chiller

Kettle over propane > Kettle over Hellfire Burner > Electric Brewing

Bigmouth Bubbler > Conical Spike Fermenter

Bottle Conditioning > Force Carb > Self Carbonate in Spike Fermenter

**********

I know this almost has to fall on deaf ears, at least judging by how I thought in the beginning. Go up a level in what you buy, if you can afford it. The problem is whether you'll decide you really like this, and thus want to keep improving and adding capability, or whether you just stay where you are.

I have well in excess of $5,000 in my brewing operation right now. Some of that money is "wasted" in that I still have my Hellfire burner despite now exclusively doing electric brewing. I still have my Jaded Hydra immersion chiller despite having switched to a stainless steel counterflow chiller.

I wish there were some way I could have just jumped to where I am now, but there just was no way to know.

And having said that: I'm not sure my learning curve would have improved. I strongly suspect that my learning was greatly enhanced by going through these stages. I think that learning why I wanted to make the improvements was important to the learning curve, perhaps hugely important.

But one mistake I made early on was getting the 8.5-gallon Megapot from Northern Brewer. IMO, if you're going to do 5-gallon batches with BIAB, you'll wish you had a 10-gallon kettle. But how could I have known that?

*****

BTW, BIAB is a terrific way to get into all-grain at the most reasonable cost. Good luck, and no matter what, enjoy the learning and the journey. I sure have!

 

[mygar]

Might I suggest something larger than a 5.5 gal kettle. If you're doing BIAB, you're going to mash with the full water amount. If you want to end up with 3 gallons, then add the grain volume, plus the extra water you'll need to account for grain absorption and boil off, you're going to be pushing the max of that pot. Then once it starts boiling, you'll have to baby it so it doesn't boil over. It becomes a real pain.

I would suggest a 10 gal pot. It'll just cause way fewer headaches in the long run.

Hi yes I have been considering this. But I really want to do batches smaller than 3 gal at first... brew more frequently to learn. This may change though! But the 5.5 g kettle may be pushing it a bit

 

[Coastalbrew]

Also you don't have to do full volume boils with extract beers. You can brew a concentrated wort, then too it is with cool water in the fermenter. I did my first 7-8 batches in a 3G pot that I already had. Boiled about 2.25 G of wort, cooked that down a bit, dumped into the fermenter and then topped off with however much water I needed to hit 5G. Works fine and will let you learn about before buying a bunch of stuff that may not be what you want or need. Case in point, I started out thinking I wanted to do full volume biab, bought a 42qt put and tried it once, then decided I didn't want to do that again and bought an electric all in one system, Brewer's edge mash and boil, and now do 3 G batches inside in that system. I love it and for me it was the way to go. I use that 42 qt pot as my swamp chiller now to control my fermentation temp.

 

[CanaHomebrew]

I would suggest a 10 gal pot. It'll just cause way fewer headaches in the long run.

I agree with this! I just recently started homebrewing with a 5 gallon kettle. I felt the same way about only needing 2.75-3 gallons, but after a few boil overs resulting in a loss of volume, and messed up abv levels, decided I wanted to go bigger and bought a 10 gallon kettle.

On top of that, when you make something you are really proud of, you're any to share it with all your friends, and then you end up with only a handful of bottles that you can enjoy, so I'm even considering increasing my batch amounts now.

That said, my 5 gallon kettle did fine for me, it was great to be able to brew in my stovetop, and not have to find a place to store a big kettle (I live in an apartment, so space is limited) I still have it so I can brew in the winter, or try an experimental batch.

The other thing I would buy right off the bat is a wort chiller and an auto siphon Chillers are a little expensive, but make brew day a lot less work, and my auto siphon makes bottling SO much easier.

 

[mygar]

I agree with your smaller batch approach until you get more familiar with the process and being able to brew more often will certainly increase your knowledge. Especially if you already have the equipment for the smaller batches or can use what you have in the kitchen already. Also, i'd skip the carboy and just go with a fermenting bucket. You can upgrade your fermentor down the road and still use the bucket for other things

As others have said, start with simple recipes to get to know the ingredients. Some of the best info i've gained is from doing SMASH beers to learn what types of malts work for me, and also what each hop can bring to a recipe. I also agree with the posts above re: kolschs & lagers, not that they are impossible for newbies, but they are much harder to pull off well and may actually discourage you if don't like how their results turn out. Start with some ales and use some forgiving yeasts. If you don't have temp control, maybe try some of the popular kveik strains (bonus is they turn around beers mighty quick too)

Good luck and enjoy the experience !!

Yes I will hold off on kolsch and lagers ... will look at smash. Need to look around for some simple recipes. The kveik yeast sounds like it would work well for me considering my ambient temps right now

 

[mygar]

If I were to do it over.....well, that's tough to determine.

But there's this: you think you will be the only one drinking your beer, and that may be true if you don't have any friends or family. However, if your beer starts to be good--and no reason to think you won't get there--you'll have others wanting it.

So my suggestion is to go for a 5-gallon capacity, not half that as you're looking at now. There's a saying: "Buy once, cry once." It's pretty true, IMO.

**********

I have reconfigured the entire brewing operation three times. First was brewing extract in an 8-gallon kettle over a propane burner I had, then, fermenting in a Northern Brewer Bigmouth Bubbler and bottling using bottle conditioning to carbonate. It's where a lot of home brewers start.

Then, I kept improving things.

I switched to a mash tun for all-grain. I lucked into a guy getting out due to a newborn, he sold me a refrigerator and Inkbird for fermentation temp control as well as an Igloo cooler for the mash tun. If I could get crushed grain, I could do all-grain, with all the advantages pertaining thereto.

Then after a few dozen brews using that, I went on an upgrade binge; the problem is the sunk costs in the earlier equipment purchases. Look at where I started and ended up in each phase of brewing:

Extract > Mash Tun > BIAB > Electric Brewing

Extract > Use LHBS crushed grain > grain mill > big motorized grain mill

Bottle Conditioning > Build a Keezer > Force carb > Beer on Tap!

No Ferm Temp Control > Swamp Cooler > Refrig Temp Control > Glycol Chiller

Kettle over propane > Kettle over Hellfire Burner > Electric Brewing

Bigmouth Bubbler > Conical Spike Fermenter

Bottle Conditioning > Force Carb > Self Carbonate in Spike Fermenter

**********

I know this almost has to fall on deaf ears, at least judging by how I thought in the beginning. Go up a level in what you buy, if you can afford it. The problem is whether you'll decide you really like this, and thus want to keep improving and adding capability, or whether you just stay where you are.

I have well in excess of $5,000 in my brewing operation right now. Some of that money is "wasted" in that I still have my Hellfire burner despite now exclusively doing electric brewing. I still have my Jaded Hydra immersion chiller despite having switched to a stainless steel counterflow chiller.

I wish there were some way I could have just jumped to where I am now, but there just was no way to know.

And having said that: I'm not sure my learning curve would have improved. I strongly suspect that my learning was greatly enhanced by going through these stages. I think that learning why I wanted to make the improvements was important to the learning curve, perhaps hugely important.

But one mistake I made early on was getting the 8.5-gallon Megapot from Northern Brewer. IMO, if you're going to do 5-gallon batches with BIAB, you'll wish you had a 10-gallon kettle. But how could I have known that?

*****

BTW, BIAB is a terrific way to get into all-grain at the most reasonable cost. Good luck, and no matter what, enjoy the learning and the journey. I sure have!

I suspect the more you get into the hobby ... the more you learn and the upgrading of equipment is inevitable. I think you are absolutely right.. those stages was a learning curve. Since I'm at the beginning it makes sense to go basic and cheap as possible I think

 

[mygar]

Ok so update with good news. Have a friend of a friend that got out of brewing. It appears I now have free gear for 1 and 5 gal batches. Kettles, carboys, buckets, bottle drying rack, bottles, capper, pretty much everything! Only thing... its lot of stuff. Need to find a place and not piss my wife off haha

 

[jekeane]

I have owned just about every variation of equipment and currently run a 3v electric setup. If I were starting over knowing what I know now I would start out with a single vessel system.

I am a firm believer in buy once cry once if budget allows.

Based on your desire to do 2.5 gallon batches I would suggest the following.

Buy once cry once:

Anvil Foundry 120v system with recirculation and chiller $375
Anvil 4 gallon fermentor x2 $99 each
A small dorm fridge (used) $50?
Inkirbird temp controller $30
Brewing odds and ends Bottles hydrometer etc

Starting with a kettle and bag is fine. But you will want to find a cheaper alternative to the anvil otherwise its not cost effective. look at something like a bayou classic off amazon. At $120 for the anvil kettle and say $25 for a decent bag you are now a little less than half the cost of the all in one system.

 

[Immocles]

Sounds like you got the situation figured out!

I was just going to toss my two cents in. I brew in that 3G range most often. I used to do stovetop 2.5-2.75G batches in the garden variety 5G starter kettle, and it was very tight. Smaller grain bills weren't too bad, but even mid range beers got uncomfortably tight. So I would definitely agree to bump up the kettle size a bit. Its a great set up for 1G gallon (or splitting 2 gallons into 1G jugs for experiments). Last Christmas my wife bought me the basic Mash & Boil unit from brewers edge and I fkn love that thing. 7.5G capacity, I biab inside the mash pipe. I haven't done a 5G batch on it yet, but I full volume mashed a heck of a lot of 4G batches.

You might find yourself like me and find that 3G is sort of that perfect amount. Its an easy case of bottles and allows me to brew twice a month (and maybe one 1G batch off the stove) and keep a pretty consistent variety. You will always run into that beer that you wish you had 10G of, but you're always going to have the means to brew again. When I was brewing 5G extract kits, I hated seeing 6 cases stacked up in the basement, but only 3 varieties.

Oh, and I think fermenter types are really up to the users preference, but should you decide to hang out in that 3G range, I suggest a 3gal siphonless fermonster. That little guy was lifechanging for me.

 

[porterguy]

Ok so update with good news. Have a friend of a friend that got out of brewing. It appears I now have free gear for 1 and 5 gal batches. Kettles, carboys, buckets, bottle drying rack, bottles, capper, pretty much everything! Only thing... its lot of stuff. Need to find a place and not piss my wife off haha

First boilover in the kitchen could kill your hobby (personal experience). Get something like "Fermcap" to help prevent boilovers, unless your boiling capacity has PLENTY of room. Brewing in the garage (if that's an option) prevents a lot of conflict such as tying up the kitchen, "making a mess", etc. If your wife drinks beer, I would also suggest trying to brew something she likes, if it fits the above types of parameters people mentioned. The gear storage space needed can definitely be an issue, so having support from your significant other can be very helpful.

 

[mygar]

I have owned just about every variation of equipment and currently run a 3v electric setup. If I were starting over knowing what I know now I would start out with a single vessel system.

I am a firm believer in buy once cry once if budget allows.

Based on your desire to do 2.5 gallon batches I would suggest the following.

Buy once cry once:

Anvil Foundry 120v system with recirculation and chiller $375
Anvil 4 gallon fermentor x2 $99 each
A small dorm fridge (used) $50?
Inkirbird temp controller $30
Brewing odds and ends Bottles hydrometer etc

Starting with a kettle and bag is fine. But you will want to find a cheaper alternative to the anvil otherwise its not cost effective. look at something like a bayou classic off amazon. At $120 for the anvil kettle and say $25 for a decent bag you are now a little less than half the cost of the all in one system.

Excellent... thank you. I have been looking at all this stuff … equipment outlay costs and came to same conclusion. What's attractive about all in one e system is smaller footprint in regards to storage.. better control over temp, etc.

But now since I have free equipment I will use this the learn the basics and look at an all in one e system.
Only thing about them is I really only have access to 120v … and heating times can be long I hear using 120

 

[corkybstewart]

Excellent... thank you. I have been looking at all this stuff … equipment outlay costs and came to same conclusion. What's attractive about all in one e system is smaller footprint in regards to storage.. better control over temp, etc.

But now since I have free equipment I will use this the learn the basics and look at an all in one e system.
Only thing about them is I really only have access to 120v … and heating times can be long I hear using 120

That's why I never went with an electric system-and thunderstorms never knocked out my propane in the middle of a boil.

 

[schmurf]

Like you I only brew smaller batches, and in the 3 years I've been brewing I never have wished for a bigger kettle. I have a 20 litre kettle, good for brewing about 15 litre I guess, but I'm mostly using a braumeister 10 litre. That size is perfect for me i have no need for a bigger one.
I don't think there is a need to start with extract, i started with BIAB/all grain and more recently added extract brewing to my repertoire. Yes extract is quicker and easier but BIAB ain't that much more difficult either.

 

[mygar]

Like you I only brew smaller batches, and in the 3 years I've been brewing I never have wished for a bigger kettle. I have a 20 litre kettle, good for brewing about 15 litre I guess, but I'm mostly using a braumeister 10 litre. That size is perfect for me i have no need for a bigger one.
I don't think there is a need to start with extract, i started with BIAB/all grain and more recently added extract brewing to my repertoire. Yes extract is quicker and easier but BIAB ain't that much more difficult either.

Yes, after reading about BIAB … seems to be not much more difficult. So, have been seriously considering doing a small batch for first ever at home.

In addition, I have signed up to brew at "you brew it" ... you use their equipment, recipe kits, fermentation room...come back to bottle. The costs is not bad at all and a brewmiester steps you through the process. So, this will introduce an extract brew prior to trying BIAB at home.

 

[corkybstewart]

Yes, after reading about BIAB … seems to be not much more difficult. So, have been seriously considering doing a small batch for first ever at home.

In addition, I have signed up to brew at "you brew it" ... you use their equipment, recipe kits, fermentation room...come back to bottle. The costs is not bad at all and a brewmiester steps you through the process. So, this will introduce an extract brew prior to trying BIAB at home.

I wish I had something like that when I started. I didn't even know anybody else who had brewed beer for the first year I brewed. And since that was before internet forums were available(back then 12 hours of internet cost $50/month) I taught myself to brew using Papazian's books.

 

[mygar]

I wish I had something like that when I started. I didn't even know anybody else who had brewed beer for the first year I brewed. And since that was before internet forums were available(back then 12 hours of internet cost $50/month) I taught myself to brew using Papazian's books.

Yea can't go wrong. The cost is 55 to 85 depending on kit you choose. You can bring your own bottles or purchase some there (hear it's less than online). You get to cart off your 5gal batch home. Seems like a win .. win.

 

[jekeane]

Excellent... thank you. I have been looking at all this stuff … equipment outlay costs and came to same conclusion. What's attractive about all in one e system is smaller footprint in regards to storage.. better control over temp, etc.

But now since I have free equipment I will use this the learn the basics and look at an all in one e system.
Only thing about them is I really only have access to 120v … and heating times can be long I hear using 120

120v heating times wont be as much of an issue if you are doing 2.5 gallons.

 

[MikeCo]

I think if I were to start over, I would get the Anvil Foundry all-in-one system. I like the AIO systems for their small footprint, temperature control, and ease of use (from what I read). The Foundry has the added benefit of being convertible to 240v power for faster heating times than most of the others on the market.

 

[mongoose33]

Excellent... thank you. I have been looking at all this stuff … equipment outlay costs and came to same conclusion. What's attractive about all in one e system is smaller footprint in regards to storage.. better control over temp, etc.

But now since I have free equipment I will use this the learn the basics and look at an all in one e system.
Only thing about them is I really only have access to 120v … and heating times can be long I hear using 120

You have all sorts of options. My usual suggestion for new brewers is to stay simple in the beginning and master the process. Some newbies--I don't think this is you, but the point remains--want to brew the triple coconut IPA with hopalicious oak chunks in a witbier format while overcarbing. The more complicated things are at the outset, the more likely something will go wrong, and then what do you identify as the culprit?

Your "windfall" reminds me of mine--guy was getting out and sold me his refrigerator, Inkbird controller, mash tun, and a ton of other stuff whose value I figured was in excess of $450. I paid $150, and it really jump started my process learning.

*****

The only way for me to convert to electric brewing was to wire 240v into my garage. You're right, if the batches are "standard," meaning 5-gallons, you'll be spending a lot of time waiting if all you have is 120v.

*****

BTW--isn't this fun? Learning the ins and outs of brewing has been one of the most fun things I've ever done. And, I got beer!

 

[mongoose33]

I suspect the more you get into the hobby ... the more you learn and the upgrading of equipment is inevitable. I think you are absolutely right.. those stages was a learning curve. Since I'm at the beginning it makes sense to go basic and cheap as possible I think

Oh, absolutely. And there's a certain...joy, I think, in the process of learning about all this. At one level brewing is pretty simple, but you can go down the rabbit hole in a big hurry. I sure did.

But I do not regret for one moment going through all the upgrades and such. That learning curve was important for discovering what was truly important and what was less so.

For instance, I used to test pH in every batch; after a while, I knew ahead of time what it would be, and yep, there it was. I probably don't test pH more than once every 6 or 7 batches, but it was the testing of pH, and learning how it affected the beer, that was the important part.

And don't let anyone convince you that you need all that fancy stuff to brew good beer. I brewed some great stuff using BIAB methods.

 

[Jayjay1976]

That 'You Brew It' class sounds AWESOME. IMHO, that is absolutely 100% the best way to get started in homebrewing.
If I had it to do over again, I would have attended brew classes before attempting to make beer and then I would have brewed several extract kits before diving into all grain brewing and recipe creation. If they had a class like that near me I would take it in a heartbeat.

I chose the full DIY approach, learning as I went and I had to stomach a LOT of mediocre beers before finally producing something worth writing home about. In hindsight I could have avoided a lot of frustration and disappointment by starting off with kits. This is my #1 regret.

As for brewing method/equipment, I brew on a DIY electric BIAB rig, 6-7 gallon batches at a time in an 11 gallon pot; my setup is kinda like a wort hog but home-built. I also built an all-copper counterflow chiller and use a pump to recirculate the boiling wort but it takes about 45-75 minutes to cool down to pitching temps depending on the season. In retrospect I would omit the wort pump and use a standard immersion chiller for a faster cool down and less trub in the fermenter. Apart from the obvious efficiency problems and slow chill, I perceive a bit of a metallic flavor in some of my beers; recirculating through that copper chiller is my prime suspect.

I also wouldn't have waited 45 batches before brewing a lager. They really aren't that hard to do properly and the crisp, clean flavors will impress your family and friends. You might even gain a few fans of your beer. Which is nice.

 

[mygar]

You have all sorts of options. My usual suggestion for new brewers is to stay simple in the beginning and master the process. Some newbies--I don't think this is you, but the point remains--want to brew the triple coconut IPA with hopalicious oak chunks in a witbier format while overcarbing. The more complicated things are at the outset, the more likely something will go wrong, and then what do you identify as the culprit?

Your "windfall" reminds me of mine--guy was getting out and sold me his refrigerator, Inkbird controller, mash tun, and a ton of other stuff whose value I figured was in excess of $450. I paid $150, and it really jump started my process learning.

*****

The only way for me to convert to electric brewing was to wire 240v into my garage. You're right, if the batches are "standard," meaning 5-gallons, you'll be spending a lot of time waiting if all you have is 120v.

*****

BTW--isn't this fun? Learning the ins and outs of brewing has been one of the most fun things I've ever done. And, I got beer!

Yes researching and learning plays a big part in all my hobbies... but I can be a bit obsessive at times haha!

And yes... I want beer. I don't know if its just me... but going out for a beer can be a pain in azz. Waiting on poor service... and it's not cheap... CA expensive. I figured once I am set up and learned on a particular method using all grain... my costs will be lower and much more satisfying drinking my own brew.

 

[corkybstewart]

Yes researching and learning plays a big part in all my hobbies... but I can be a bit obsessive at times haha!

And yes... I want beer. I don't know if its just me... but going out for a beer can be a pain in azz. Waiting on poor service... and it's not cheap... CA expensive. I figured once I am set up and learned on a particular method using all grain... my costs will be lower and much more satisfying drinking my own brew.

I've lived in beer hell for the past 40 years so I learned to brew what I like. And once all my equipment was paid for(much of it homemade) I got the cost down to about $30-40 per 10 gallon batch, depending on the hop bill. I bought malt and hops from a brewpub nearby-their cost plus 10%, that made my ingredient costs very low. But cost wasn't why I brewed, I did it for the creativity. Once I got the process down, and got through my high ABV beer phase, it was all about coming up with a wide variety of high quality beers that were unique to my brewery. No rules, just whatever I wanted to brew.

 

[Jayjay1976]

Yes researching and learning plays a big part in all my hobbies... but I can be a bit obsessive at times haha!

And yes... I want beer. I don't know if its just me... but going out for a beer can be a pain in azz. Waiting on poor service... and it's not cheap... CA expensive. I figured once I am set up and learned on a particular method using all grain... my costs will be lower and much more satisfying drinking my own brew.

Eh, you *might* end up saving money in the long run, but you'll need to brew at least 5 gallon batches, brew with grain not extract, buy your grain in 50lb sacks and your hops by the pound to find those efficiencies.

Me personally, I like the fact that I can afford to use extravagant ingredients in a batch when the mood strikes me, whereas the big guys have to constantly trim down costs to remain profitable. A lot of us here brew our own beers because we enjoy styles that we otherwise couldn't afford to indulge in. Big luscious Belgians, funky farmhouse ales, over-the-top hoppy IPAs and other styles that typically sell for quite a bit more than typical beers.

I like to brew holiday ales to share with friends, some of them I put up and enjoy seeing how they evolve over the course of a year or two. When I was a newbie (I'm still a newbie) I found that I never had any bottles leftover to age. Now that I brew every other weekend I find myself up to my ears in beer. You'll want to brew often and build up a pipeline, that way you have daily drinkers to enjoy whenever and then special batches reserved for special occasions. I understand the allure of small batch brewing, but the time invested isn't any less than to brew up a larger batch. Before I got into kegging I would push the limits of my kettle and fermenter volumes to turn out 6.5-7 gallon batches in order to maximize the return for my time invested. I had to maintain and store hundreds of bottles which took all the fun out of it; now I only bottle beers for competition or to lay down for a while to age.

 

[corkybstewart]

I understand the allure of small batch brewing, but the time invested isn't any less than to brew up a larger batch.

With my first all grain system I spent 6-8 hours brewing a 5 gallon batch. After I built a 3 tiered gravity/pump system I was doing 10 gallons in 5 hours. Adding different hops for dryhopping(in the kegs) I could get 2 totally different tasting beers from one 10 gallon batch.

 

[mygar]

Eh, you *might* end up saving money in the long run, but you'll need to brew at least 5 gallon batches, brew with grain not extract, buy your grain in 50lb sacks and your hops by the pound to find those efficiencies.

Me personally, I like the fact that I can afford to use extravagant ingredients in a batch when the mood strikes me, whereas the big guys have to constantly trim down costs to remain profitable. A lot of us here brew our own beers because we enjoy styles that we otherwise couldn't afford to indulge in. Big luscious Belgians, funky farmhouse ales, over-the-top hoppy IPAs and other styles that typically sell for quite a bit more than typical beers.

I like to brew holiday ales to share with friends, some of them I put up and enjoy seeing how they evolve over the course of a year or two. When I was a newbie (I'm still a newbie) I found that I never had any bottles leftover to age. Now that I brew every other weekend I find myself up to my ears in beer. You'll want to brew often and build up a pipeline, that way you have daily drinkers to enjoy whenever and then special batches reserved for special occasions. I understand the allure of small batch brewing, but the time invested isn't any less than to brew up a larger batch. Before I got into kegging I would push the limits of my kettle and fermenter volumes to turn out 6.5-7 gallon batches in order to maximize the return for my time invested. I had to maintain and store hundreds of bottles which took all the fun out of it; now I only bottle beers for competition or to lay down for a while to age.

Well I don't have too large of a social network to drink the amount of beer you are talking. My kids age... work ... my other hobbies.. my time is pretty booked, except weekends. We also are new to area where we are at as well. So, its pretty much just me at the start here. I can only imagine brewing what you are talking about though... that would be awesome and seems years down the road lol. But if I go out for beers around here my average tab is 30 just for myself. I mean... I should be able to brew 5 gal for that cost right? But I hear what you are saying. Its more than just the cost, its another fun creative hobby for me I hope.

 

[mygar]

With my first all grain system I spent 6-8 hours brewing a 5 gallon batch. After I built a 3 tiered gravity/pump system I was doing 10 gallons in 5 hours. Adding different hops for dryhopping(in the kegs) I could get 2 totally different tasting beers from one 10 gallon batch.

That's a crazy amount of beer … do you guys brew every weekend... or do you have keggar parties all the time? Man... I need to become friends with one of you guys! Anyone located near Sacramento CA?

I initially plan on 2.5 gal … but maybe couple years down the road you can point me back to this thread and we will laugh!!

 

[bwible]

I’m with you - I used to have the math written down as to how many beers what size container was. There’s 128 ounces in a gallon so if we round off then a gallon is about (10) x 12 oz bottles. A 5 gallon batch is 50 bottles. 10 gallons is 100 bottles. 3 gallons is 30 bottles. A 5L mini keg is 169 oz which is about (14) x 12 oz. Multiple batches add up quickly.

It goes back to the joke “If you measure beer in gallons and you don’t think 40 gallons is alot of beer, you might be a homebrewer.”

I am also the lone brewer/beer drinker in my house. The wife likes stouts and dark beers, but she will only drink one or two. Not many. And not all the time.

I started out brewing 5 gallon batches like everybody else because thats the “norm” and what so many recipes were based on. I bought a kegging setup with several 5 gallon kegs. And quickly realized its just too much beer. I didn’t go through it, all my containers were always full, one batch lasted a long time, I didn’t have much variety and I couldn’t brew frequently or when I wanted something different.

I now brew 3 gallon batches. I do have the Anvil 5 gallon pot. Its solid, quality. My only gripe with it was the thermometer, which got in the way of my immersion wort chiller because there just isn’t that kind of space in a pot that size. I bought the hole plug from Blichmann and now I just don’t use the thermometer. I think a 5 gallon pot is big enough to do 3 gallon biab. I also have the Anvil Foundry 6.5 and while it’s a cool piece of hardware its not a whole lot different functionally than just doing biab in a pot on your stove.

I use a 5 gallon carboy as a primary fermenter and a 3 gallon carboy for secondary or settling. 3 gallons yields a case plus a 6 pack. With 5 or 6 cases of bottles and a couple 3 gallon kegs I can have plenty of variety without having a ton of beer on hand. I don’t do many parties or keggers either.

I also find the smaller containers easier to work with, move around, etc.

Ray Daniels’ book Designing Great Beers is well worth owning too. When I look at my beer brewing books most of them look brand new. My copy of Designing Great Beers is folded, bent, stained, dog eared and has pages falling out of the spine. You can tell which book I actually use.

 

[bwible]

A lot of us here brew our own beers because we enjoy styles that we otherwise couldn't afford to indulge in.

Or that we otherwise can’t find here. I brew bitters and English ales because they are not readily available here in the US and the majority of what we do get is not in great condition. Mild ale is unheard of. Where do you find Altbier in the US? Other stuff like that.

I know a guy who brews big beers and barleywines because thats what he likes to drink and they usually cost $60 a case. So he can make out by brewing those himself.

All jokes aside, I don’t try to brew Budweiser. AB is better at it than me, they brew it cheaper than I can and even sell it cheaper than I can brew it. And its readily available here