Homebrewers, Any reason not to go all grain from the start?

[LilBastage]

I know there's more to keep track of and more that could go wrong, but the biggest part of the appeal to homebrewing is the making of beer from grain. I bake and cook a lot of stuff from scratch. I don't like to use "mixes". I will use some of the pre assembled all grain kits to start out, but I want to stay away from extract for the most part.

I realize the costs for equipment are going to be larger, but if I'm going to go all grain eventually anyway, I'll just have to buy it once. The cost isn't really an issue to a point (3 figure range).

I'm looking at 5 gallon batches, kegging most of it and bottling some for taking to gatherings and sharing with friends.

I'm really going to enjoy brewing and it's something I've wanted to do for a long time. I've been doing a lot of reading (books and HomeBrewTalk), and I just think all grain brewing is the way I'm going to go eventually. I like the idea of experimenting with recipes.

Will I be making a mistake to go all grain from the start?

 

[Ernie111]

All grain might not be for everyone to start off. Your a detail orientated person so I don't think you will have any problems.
HomeBrew Talk is a great place for info, they can answer most any question. Every time I've had a one I would do a search and find the answer. John Palmer has his How to Brew book on line for free and it's a great resource.
With two extract brews and a partial mash under my belt I'm starting with all grain my self. The only advice I can give is read read read and ask questions. Good luck, great hobby and a lot of fun!

 

[Martin2D]

I started all grain over a month ago from the beginning. Definitely not worth your time on extract IMO, its so much more expensive. Check out brew in a bag. That way you can do everything inside and I get great results every time. I spent <$100 on all of my equipment. However, you can spend a ton more if you like!

 

[LilBastage]

I've studied the BIAB process and I'll probably use it my first few batches until I can decide which other method I want to use. I don't want to get into the whole all stainless brew structures or HERMS/RIMS systems, but some of the simpler set ups I've seen that use some of the DIY stuff and coolers for MLTs look very interesting.

My biggest reason for not going into bigger batches is so that I can do it all indoors. I'm not sure how long it would take to boil 10 gallons outside in January up here.

 

[thevalkrye]

I can boil 5 gallons in -30 Deg C (-22 Deg F) on a small 3500 btu burner pretty easily. You should have no problems boiling 10 with a nice Banjo burner.

On the other hand though 10 gallons is a lot more beer and when you first start out you will be wanting to make a lot of different styles/recipes so 5 gallons is a good starting point. Some people are tempted to make even smaller batches like 3 gallon ones because it can all be done on stove top and you can try a lot of recipes that way, however there is just as much work for 3 gallons as 5. In my opinion 5 gallons is an ideal starting batch size. Once you have a solid technique and recipe dialed in you can up your production to 10 gallons.

Don't be scared of all grain. People in the home brew world love to argue about finer points of brewing, but if you keep it simple and use a little planning there is no reason you can't go all grain right from the start. Read a lot and plan out your brew. Software suck as Beersmith can be a huge help in doing this.

Goodluck!

 

[LilBastage]

Glad to hear boiling outdoors wouldn't be a problem.

I'm going to start out with 5 gallons and I'll actually probably stay with that for awhile. I guess my concern with boiling outside is transporting everything into the house. My garage is detached (100 ft from the house) and not heated. I'm thinking about going electric and doing everything indoors. I'll need to install a venting system in the basement for the moisture, but the plumbing is all there and the space is not being utilized for anything else. Boiling on the deck has already been struck down.

I'm looking at ordering some equipment here pretty soon. I think I'll actually head down to Minneapolis and buy the stuff at Midwest Supplies in person. Shipping will cost more than the gas to drive down there.

 

[smellysell]

Go for it! I did one extract batch and realized I'd never be happy with it and made the jump. I'd highly recommend the cooler MLT, a lot of guys that move to a keggle MLT actually go back to coolers because they work so well. Definitely get beersmith or something similar also.

I'm building an electric keggle right now so I can brew indoors this winter, unfortunately I have no clue about the wiring and I really don't want to kill myself so I'm stuck at the moment.

 

[LilBastage]

Go for it! I did one extract batch and realized I'd never be happy with it and made the jump. I'd highly recommend the cooler MLT, a lot of guys that move to a keggle MLT actually go back to coolers because they work so well. Definitely get beersmith or something similar also.

I'm building an electric keggle right now so I can brew indoors this winter, unfortunately I have no clue about the wiring and I really don't want to kill myself so I'm stuck at the moment.

There's a lot of good info on HBT about the wiring and heating element requirements. If you're uncomfortable with it, by all means hire it out. Electricity is nothing to F around with. I'm lucky in that I have 240 already in place from the old sauna heater. I can just tap right into it.

You know better than anyone here how long I've been researching this. I'm just about ready to jump in. I'm hoping to have a decent brew ready for Christmas or New Years, but I'm not sure I'm going to make it. I tend to be pretty methodical with this kind of stuff if you haven't noticed.

 

[smellysell]

Go for it! I did one extract batch and realized I'd never be happy with it and made the jump. I'd highly recommend the cooler MLT, a lot of guys that move to a keggle MLT actually go back to coolers because they work so well. Definitely get beersmith or something similar also.

I'm building an electric keggle right now so I can brew indoors this winter, unfortunately I have no clue about the wiring and I really don't want to kill myself so I'm stuck at the moment.

There's a lot of good info on HBT about the wiring and heating element requirements. If you're uncomfortable with it, by all means hire it out. Electricity is nothing to F around with. I'm lucky in that I have 240 already in place from the old sauna heater. I can just tap right into it.

You know better than anyone here how long I've been researching this. I'm just about ready to jump in. I'm hoping to have a decent brew ready for Christmas or New Years, but I'm not sure I'm going to make it. I tend to be pretty methodical with this kind of stuff if you haven't noticed.

Yeah, I've read around quite a bit trying to figure it out, but I think I'm probably just going to hire it out.

 

[MX]

Alan,
Glad to see you getting your hands dirty with us!

From everything I know about you, going all grain should be no problem.
I use very common everyday equipment.
2 30L buckets
1 6 gallon turkey pot with burner
1 50qt cooler with ss braid and a bottle spigot for a Tun.
and every on gasp at once
3 5 gal Culligan water bottles for secondary/bulk aging.

I want to keg, but that will wait until I make it back to the states. So will the brewery build.

I am not the "be all / end all" but if you have questions, just ask.

Tim

 

[LilBastage]

Thanks for the info, Tim. I've been doing a lot of reading and research and I'm thinking of building a Countertop Brutus 20 system. I can scale one up to do 5 gallons pretty easily, I think, and it seems to be the best system for me to shoot for (fairly compact, and some decent inexpensive automation). The efficiency numbers are a bit of a concern, but I'm going to put that out of my mind for the time being as long as I'm getting good beer. I think if I crush my own grain and look at some water issues down the road, I'll be fine. We have pretty hard water up here so I'll likely use bottled for awhile until I can get that straightened out without using the softener. We're looking at a new salt free system, but I'm not sure if that will be any better for brewing or not.

I'll just be starting out with similar equipment, Tim. The Counter Brutus 20 will give me something to look forward to. I doubt I'll ever go over 5 gallon batches. That's a lot of beer for the small group of people that will likely be enjoying it. Once I get the pipeline going, I think I'll be in pretty good shape. The basic parts are pretty easy to come by/make and the automation can wait a few batches to be sure.

I pretty much have to go electric in the house. I don't have water or propane to the garage and I can't run a hose out to the garage in the winter for water, it's just too far and the water will freeze. Maybe someday I can run a permanent water line and propane line to the garage and move out there, but that's not really something I want to tackle anytime soon.

I'm going to get the fridge for my kegs this week and I hope to get down to the Cities next week to get all the brewing equipment. It sure would be nice if there were somewhere up here with equipment and stuff, but surprisingly, there's not. There's one place that has some extract kits and specialty grains along with some basic bucket type equipment, but it's in a terrible area and not worth the hassle to get there.

Now, someone buy the La Riquezas I have in the B/S/T room so I can get the Perlicks for my fridge conversion! :laugh:

 

[MX]

I can not get the picks of the B20 system, but I will look at them tomorrow at the house.
I brewed in the house once...ONCE wife put the kill switch on that then bought me a turkey fryer set up for 50 bucks.
I use 1 kettle and 1 cooler to brew. Slows me down, but I am never in a race.

I have some grain to mill tomorrow, I will try to take a few pics of what I got going on and post them.
If not I can do it on Thursday.
I do not care to much about my Eff numbers. As long as I keep them around 70-ish% I am good.
The Porter I made 2 weeks ago was crappy at about 59%...that upset me, but most of the time, I just go with it.

You can also look at the pico brewing page, LINK

My brew setup will improve when I get back to the states, I have visions of a 2 Kettle (32qt) and 70qt Coleman Extreme Mash tun
Set up on a 1.5 tier dual burner rig with a pump or 2.....pumped batch sparges, gravity fed run-off....

anyway
Welcome to the Dark Side

Tim

 

[LilBastage]

Here is the build thread on the Countertop B20. I plan on using one of those heavy duty busser carts you see in restaurants from time to time. That will help me keep it out of the way when not in use and keep everything contained. I just need to do some figgerin' on the weights and stuff. If that won't work, I'll just build a two cabinet island for it. It won't be mobile that way, but I can stash it all in the cabinets when not in use.

I am really stoked by all of this. I can't wait to get started.

 

[MX]

Also, you can try Home Brew Chatter right now they are a smaller, looser community. I am really liking it there.

Tim

 

[MX]

I can not get the picks of the B20 system, but I will look at them tomorrow at the house.
I brewed in the house once...ONCE wife put the kill switch on that then bought me a turkey fryer set up for 50 bucks.
I use 1 kettle and 1 cooler to brew. Slows me down, but I am never in a race.

I have some grain to mill tomorrow, I will try to take a few pics of what I got going on and post them.
If not I can do it on Thursday.
I do not care to much about my Eff numbers. As long as I keep them around 70-ish% I am good.
The Porter I made 2 weeks ago was crappy at about 59%...that upset me, but most of the time, I just go with it.

You can also look at the pico brewing page, LINK

My brew setup will improve when I get back to the states, I have visions of a 2 Kettle (32qt) and 70qt Coleman Extreme Mash tun
Set up on a 1.5 tier dual burner rig with a pump or 2.....pumped batch sparges, gravity fed run-off....

anyway
Welcome to the Dark Side

Tim

Here is the pic....



Inside of the mash tun

Tim

 

[LilBastage]

Nice setup, Tim. I like the organization all on one cart. Very tidy. :thumbs:

I'm still working on my system. I have all the parts except the electronics done and I got my fermenters, keg setup, and other "stuff" yesterday. I've got a couple of recipes picked out so a grain bill order is on the horizon. I plan to be brewing on October 4th. Hopefully, I'll have a decent blonde ale for Thanksgiving (it's supposed to be a quick turn around recipe) and a good stout for Christmas/New Years.

I'll post some pics of my rig once it's complete.

 

[Q_The_Cop]

Good luck brother! I'm still doing the Mr. Beer route right now. I want to get a couple of those under my belt before I try anything else. I am looking to get into the all grain brewing though. Living in a one bedroom apt, in a complex usually puts the kibosh on that though. Brewing your own is so rewarding and fun. I can honestly say... Yep I made this!