Budget Brewing - Setting up an all grain, easy brewery for less than $1000.00

jarhill brew kettles
affordable alternative brew kettle

I'm sure this wont be the last time we have this discussion, but hopefully it will sink in this time.   I recently was at my LHBS.   I met a lovely couple who were getting into home brewing.   The wife told me that she was wanting to purchase a 10 gallon, 3 vessel,  heat exchange recirculating mash system for her husband.   Now at first blush... what an awesome wife.   How cool... right?  WRONG. Buy the equipment that makes great beer with out spending a fortune.

back yard pro
210k  btu burner
fast heating
rapid boil

You do not need that kind of gear to brew great beer.   I think she was shocked to hear me say that. After all fancy shiny gear is cool.   But here is the issue,  it is NO MORE efficient than basic gear, and it does not make better beer.


So once again here is my proposed set up for a home brewery capable of world domination.  This is a brew in a bag system with a pump that allows you to recirculate during step mashes, as a vorlauff, or during chilling.

The Jaded Hydra is well worth it's
price tag,  You don't skimp on heating
or on cooling.  Make the investment!

The system:   BIAB  System - Capable of 5 Gallon batches of beer with maximum ease.  This system is easily powerful enough to shorten your brew day.   We have a similar set up and have made a simple blonde ale in under 3 hours, at 82.5% efficiency.   The key to the system is that everything is designed for speed and ease.   The burner is super powerful.  Brew in a bag eliminates transfer time.  The bucket fermenters are easy to clean and sanitize.  You will thank me for recommending this wort chiller, it is miraculous, and can cool the entire batch at one time, something counter flow chillers and plate chillers can not do.  I have done the math, and a 2.5 hour batch is conceivable with this system.

• Burner - Outdoor Pro Propane Burner - 210,000 BTU -        $67.00 +  $15.00 Shipping
• Jarhill 49 quart (12.25 gallon) Brew Kettle -                      $109.00      Free Shipping
• Brew Bag -  Wilser Brew Bag Grand Slam Package          $32.00 +    $5 Shipping
• Large Stainless Steel Spoon                                             $3.89 +   Shipping
• Pump - "Great brew eh" -   pump package #3                   $95.00 +  $18.00 Shipping
• Large stainless steel strainer -  for decoction                    $10.00  + free with prime 
• 5 gallon stainless pot -                                                    $33.00  +  $6.00 shipping
• 1 gallon pitcher                                                                $6.00    Walmart
• Home brewing starter kit - the other stuff you need            $69.00 +   Free shipping
• Cleaners, and water chemicals                                        $30.00   your LHBS
• Wort Chiller - Jaded Hydra - spend the money!                $149.00 + 8.00 shipping
• Pump hard ware - for re-circulation and whirlpool -             $40.00 + $12.00 shipping

Great brew eh! Pumps! they are more than adequate!

That is it, that is all you need to start making amazing beer at home.   You do not need a 3 vessel, computer controlled, electric recirculating mash, heat exchange, multi pump, pain in the ass to clean system.  To make great beer, you need to LEARN TO MAKE GREAT BEER.  Not spend more money.   I know people with $20,000 wrapped up in home brewing.  Their systems, don't make their beer any better.  In fact, most of the time their beer isn't as good as the people I know who keep it simple and brew a lot.  The best home brew I have ever tasted was made with a very simple system. This system costs less than $600.00.  And with it you can make literally any style of beer.  

Basic fermentation chamber is a must have!

So above it says less than $1000.00, so what is the deal?   Now you are saying $600.00  Well, we are not quite done.   To make world dominating beer you also have to have to control the temperature of fermentation. To do that you need to have a fermentation chamber.   Our favorite fermentation chambers are old refrigerators from apartment complexes.   But you can also make a fine fermentation chamber from a mini fridge and some lumber for about $200.00.  (fridge included).  You will also need a temperature controller.   Which you can get for about $50.00.  

So right now we are at $850.00 invested.   So where does the other $149.50 come into play?   Well that money is available for options.    If you have a 12.25 gallon kettle, then you can in theory do 10 gallon batches.  If you are careful and use a defoamer.    So I recommend you just get a larger kettle and still do BIAB.  All of that costs you about $70.00  The other 79.50?  Well, it is nice to be able to aerate, and to clean and rinse bottles more efficiently.    It's nice to be able to make yeast starters, not necessary, but nice.   Also a corona mill is a nice addition.  I've used mine for 20 years with no ill effects.   But these things are options.  Not necessary.

So there it is.  A realistic approach to getting set up for all grain brewing for less than $1000.00.  Can you do it for cheaper.  Yes.  Can you do it better, I don't think so.  Not with any reasonable speed on brew day.  Not with any reasonable speed and effectiveness in cleaning and sanitation.  And those two factors, a slow brew day, and hard to clean equipment are the biggest frustrations in home brewing.  So remember that as you make your purchasing decisions.  Focus on things that make your brewing better, not on fancy shiny gear.

Having said this, there is no doubt that there is amazing brew gear out there that can improve your brew day experience.  There is no doubt that the major manufacturer's make some of the finest brewing equipment available.  If you have money to burn, go for it.  Get the best gear you can, but still remember, if it isn't easy to clean, it isn't worth buying.  If it makes your brew day longer, it isn't worth buying.  

End the Arguing... No more trolls

It's time to end the argument.  We all won anyway.   At the end of the day we all had beer.  Beer to share, beer to enjoy.  Yummy delicious beer.   So quit freaking arguing over how to make it.  Sometimes I feel like a broken record.  But here we go again. 

• Wort production method doesn't matter
• Barley doesn't know how it is being mashed
• Someone else's method may be better, or worse than yours
• The important thing is, that it is fun, and that it makes great beer. 
• If you spent $1000 on wort production before fermentation temperature control, you missed the point!

So is time to quit telling others that the way they brew is wrong.   Or that they are less of a brewer because they use a particular method.   You aren't more of a brewer if you use 3 or 4 vessels, you aren't more of a brewer if you use the latest state of the art eHERMS or RIMS system with a vent-less water heater and a bluetooth controller (although that is pretty cool)  You aren't less of a brewer if you no sparge in a cooler, or biab.  Enough. already! If you make beer, you are a home brewer.   

What prompted this latest rant?  A troll. A lecherous wart covered, dung eating troll with tusks and leathery skin.  The kind of beast that should be driven out of the kingdom (summon Arthur and the knights)... the internet troll.  

You know the type,the type who changed his on line name to "mstrbrewr" after his first Mr Beer kit.   Since then he's managed to brew a couple more times, but he has read and committed to memory everything.    His un welcome answers to questions are straight out of the books he's read. But not from his vast practical experience.   He's full of knowledge and passion for this hobby,  and he just had to share it all, now! Share it from his lofty position on the old couch in his mom's basement. 

Tonight a guy on one of the forums made a pretty innocuous comment about 90% efficiency with  brew in a bag.   The conversation was pleasant, until Tommy Troll chimed in.  He explained to all of us that "this was not possible".   He quoted Palmer, he quoted Fix.   What he did not do is show any compassion or share any experience.   He attacked.   In his dully honed opinion, "only fly sparge  could get a person to 90%."  Despite several people letting him know they had done it several times.   He then proceeded to explain that biab is "much less efficient". And I had had enough.  He was desperate to display his knowledge. To establish his prominence in the brewing community.  He is, after all, the new brew sage we have been waiting for.  

So here we go again.  There isn't one right way to brew.  Even commercial brewing is changing, many do not even have HLTs or Grants any more... opting instead for instant water heaters.  If you open your mind you'd know that.   My team and I are building a 1 BBL BIAB Recirculating Mash system.  You are welcome to use it (for a nominal fee) when you need to brew big, Are you really going to say no, because it's BIAB?

I am a classic example, and I was a classic fool.   I resisted biab for years.   I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that my fly sparge system was the most efficient way to make beer.  I knew my system so well that I could coax 78-80% out of it.   But on a cold and snowy day I joined a friend who was brewing in his kitchen with an electric turkey fryer. All grain BIAB.  Winter / Kitchen brewing was something I couldn't do.   We got 83%.  I checked, and re checked.  I tasted the mash, perfect.  I rechecked the mash extraction efficiency.   There was no where to hide.  I had to admit it worked.   I now get 82.5% efficiency consistently with brew in a bag, on my kitchen counter top.   But please,  yes. Explain to me how only fly sparge is real  brewing.   Because I was doing that before you were born. 

The world changes,  and we change with it.  By the way arguing about wort production... kinda misses the point.  I have correctly and precisely fermented average wort at perfect temperatures, and produced superior beer.  Once again malt has no idea it is being mashed.  Enzymes couldn't care less whether you biab, fly sparge, batch sparge, or no sparge.  After 3 or 4 years, of brewing you're ready to have really helpful experienced advice.  But not after 1 or two years of just reading and studying. Be kind. Be helpful, share your actual experience.  And remember almost everyone has read, and owns the books you are quoting.   If the real answer was in the book they would have found it already.   So don't sit around with the books in your lap trying to answer questions.    Believe me we've all read the books.   Ask questions.  

And finally, we don't need a new sage... but we could all use another beer loving friend. 

ENOUGH ALREADY... All you really need to make great beer.

OK, here I go again.   Just saw some posts online that set me off.   A guy was claiming he couldn't go all grain until he finished his home water filtration system, and his ridiculous brew rig.  I happen to know this knucklehead, he lives in my neighborhood (you know who you are).  He is a good guy but he has gotten caught up in the whole "the best rigs make the best beer" silliness.  So here we go again...

FACT 1 : The best rigs do not make the best beer...the best brewers do!

The man who taught me to brew all grain beer passed away 10 years ago this month.  We called him Mankind.  Out of respect to his family I reserve his name.  He was a legend in the Kansas City brewing scene.    He was only 51. He died of a brain aneurysm.   But his wisdom and sense of humor stay with me. I have saved every funny email he ever sent out.   He brewed amazing, award winning beer in his garage with jankity equipment he found or sourced for free.   He was legendary for going to closed up restaurants, and churches and getting their pots.


Our mash tun was three 5 gallon buckets, one had the holes drilled in the bottom to be a screen. (some of you have been asking why 3?  He hated valves, valve have to be cleaned.  So with three we could vorlauf the entire volume of wort for each batch)   We spent an entire afternoon drilling little holes to make it.   To keep it warm we would pour a little more nearly boiling water into it... The boil kettle was a turkey fryer, aluminum.  He stirred the mash almost constantly.  He kept his recipes and his process simple.  The only extravagance he owned was a 75' copper 1/2" immersion wort chiller.  He was a wort whisperer.   He could literally see, hear, and feel what was going on in the mash tun and the boil kettle.   No valves or pumps. A bamboo stick was the sight tube... You have probably only tasted beer as good as his once or twice in your life time.  The best brewers make the best beer, you do not need to spend thousands of dollars on your gear.  

FACT 2 :  If you can't control fermentation temperatures... your rig doesn't matter.   

Don't spend any additional money on your mash/boil rig until you have a fermentation chamber.   "brewers don't make beer, yeast makes beer". Mankind used to say, "if you aren't controlling your fermentation temperature... you don't love brewing... you just like making wort".   Many people have won major awards with extract brews.   My Champagne lager may actually be better as an extract.  No one I am aware of has won major awards without being able to control fermentation temperatures.  Even Saisons, and Dark Strong Ale, which like higher temps... don't like up and down fluctuations.


FACT 3 :  If you made something that is difficult to clean... you failed. 

Cleaning is the most important thing you do.   And yes it sucks.  So if you build a rig that you don't want to clean... you failed.   If you build a system that is difficult to clean...you failed. Other than the recirculating eBIAB systems, the new systems are bears to clean.   Mankind also used to say "if you don't enjoy cleaning... you don't enjoy brewing".   The late Dr. George Fixx taught us that many of the issues we have with our brews are minor infections.  Not big nasty scary pedio infections, just minor infections.   Other neutral yeasts that were part of your pitch or in your air. They keep your beer from being everything it should be.  I rarely comment on this because I don't want to start the whole infection debate again.   So just read his book.  Many many times when someone is posting about a beer not attenuating all the way... a bell goes off in my mind... "minor infection" but I don't post it because implying that someone was not awesome in their cleaning and sanitation regimine is considered uncouth.

FACT 4 :  All you really need to brew great beer.  And this is a fact.  

• Knowledge and Experience... get it by brewing, or brew with a friend who knows what they are doing.   Feel free to ask an experienced brewer.  Brewing is fun, we're almost always ready and willing to brew with you. 
• A large pot, for 5 gallons you need a 8 - 10 gallon pot. Aluminum is fine. Just boil water in it first and let it boil off. 
• A good brewing thermometer
• a large stainless spoon.
• A 1 gallon water pitcher.
• A brew bag or a voile sheet.
• A Heat source capable of boiling your wort.
• A water report and some basic chemicals for pH adjustment.
• A clean fermentation vessel.
• An air lock.
• FERMENTATION TEMPERATURE CONTROL
• Scrub brushes and Sanitizer, I prefer starsan. 

That's it.  You need nothing else.  I suggest that before you invest in a fancy wort production machine, you invest in a fermentation chamber, and anything that makes your cleaning easier and better. Before you spend thousands on an "e RIMS 3 vessel system" that is controlled by an ap on your phone... Build a lagering chamber.   Your focus should always be, cleaning, temperature control, and to a slightly lesser degree aeration.

That is all...keep brewing.
Prost.

Dumbest things I've read about home brew on the internet...

I love the internet.   Obviously I am a fan of blogging, and forums and chat rooms.  But,  you have to source your information carefully... Today I present to you some of the dumbest things I have read on the internet about home brewing.  Here are some examples to avoid,  with out names attached... I'm not petty, just a humble servant of home brew truth.

This is MOLD on a batch that was
supposed to be a sour.  It can and does
happen. ideal sour bacteria is probably
not floating around your kitchen...

infections - "let it ride man...it might be great"   first pet peeve... not every infection is a potentially good thing... mold will not magically turn into bret brux and create an amazing beer.  Mold is just mold...   Not every infection is safe... acetobacter is not something to be taken lightly.  I'm so tired of people posting infections that are obviously mold and having some one say... let it ride...   Best advice "if you didn't mean to brew a sour... pour it out... or take lots of photos and take it to your LHBS and ask what it is..."

for comparison sake, and to
end the silly arguments.
Here is a healthy Brett Pellicle.

I think you all get my point.  You just can't tell from a 2" photo on the internet.  It might be wonderful... It might be potentially dangerous to people with mold allergies, asthma, and other sensitivities.  So best advice is to go get some professional advice from your local home brew shop, or an extremely experienced home brewer, who brews sours.  And remember, even if it is an ok sour bacteria... The pitch rate of the bacteria is no where close enough to create what you want.  So if you are going to "let it ride"  I still suggest a trip to your LHBS to get some viable adequate cultures of bacteria.


tannins - "don't squeeze the bag...you'll extract tannin" listen to me round eyes... you are not strong enough to extract tannin by squeezing a grain bag...the extraction of tannins from barley occurs when a certain set of conditions are all present...and chief among them is a pH over 6 in your mash and sparge.   It is really hard to get your pH that high when brewing.   Especially if you are using pH stabilizer.so squeeze your bags biab brewers... get all that wonderful wort out of there 

dms - "if you don't boil for an hour or more... you'll create DMS"   You do not create DMS. The DMS precursor amino acid S-Methyl Methionine is present in all grains...it is necessary for germination. SMM is the DMS precursor, not some magic brewing dust in your boil kettle.  In a kernel of well modified malted barley it is only present in very very low levels. With well modified barley... there is very little risk of DMS.  If you boil hard for 15 minutes or longer.... there is almost no risk.  DMS fear is a hold over from the early days of home brewing.  Back then we didn't get grains that were fully modified.   Perhaps 75-80% of a bag of grain was well modified (meaning the acrospire had reached the top of the kernel) the rest were not there yet.  So there was a much greater risk of DMS.  I have tasted DMS beer... I doubt that most of you ever have tasted a beer ruined by DMS.  It is really rare now.  If you want to taste it get a can of cream corn and throw some hops and canned spinach in it mix it with a beer... that will be close.

diacetyl -  this one's a doosy... "if you ferment over 65 you'll have diacetyl every time"... WRONG FALSE... GO TO JAIL DO NOT PASS GO DO NOT GO HOME.  Here's another classic... "the amount of diacetyl is directly proportionate to the % of crystal and roasted grains..."  what the what...  Diacetyl is a normal product of yeast metabolism.   The amount of buttery, or butterscotchy character you get IS related to the fermentation temperatures. But 70-74 isn't a problem.  The good people at your preferred yeast vendor love brewing as much as you do, probably more,  they have worked hard to create and mutate yeasts that don't kick off a lot of alpha acetyl.   Alpha acetyl is the precursor, that is what becomes diacetyl.   Here is the good news... modern yeast absorbs and breaks down diacetyl.  That is why we ferment for 2-3 weeks minimum. The primary fermentation is usually done in 5-7 days, assuming good aeration and good pitch rate.   The extra time is for the yeast reabsorbing and cleaning up other less desirable flavors. Wyeast, White Labs, and Fermentis all have excellent resources on line...

BIAB isn't efficient... "I don't like BIAB because it is only about 65% efficient..."  No sparge BIAB may be less efficient than sparging methods.   But, no sparge 3 vessel is also less efficient than batch sparging, which is less efficient than fly sparging.   The truth is grains, enzymes, and flavonoids don't know if they are in a 3 vessel system or a pot on your stove.  Efficiency has way more to do with the brewer, and their practice than the system you are using... Unless you are using an automated single vessel system (they regularly run over 80%).  BIAB is no less efficient than 3 vessel.   But, and this is an important thing to remember, There is more going on in your mash than conversion of starch to sugar through the Embden–Meyerhof–Parnas metabolic pathway. Better efficiency does not equal better beer.

Worst Recipe Ever... and a common trend.  I see recipes all the time on the internet in various recipe forums for "partial mash" that have no mashable grains... ONLY BASE MALTS NEED TO BE MASHED,  A RECIPE ISN'T PARTIAL MASH UNLESS YOU ARE MASHING FREAKING GRAINS. Sorry, had to get that off my chest.   I have seen a recipe this week on one of the sites that called for... wait for it... 4 # of Black Malt,  3# of Chocolate Malt, and 10 # of Crystal #20... it was described as a sweet stout... uh...well... oh buddy no... just no.   I asked if he meant .4, .3 and 10# of stout malt?  he said no, they brew this all the time... so be careful on the free recipe forums.  There are some new guys, who have lots of enthusiasm, but no real knowledge yet.... Brewtoad is working to correct some of these problems, they are adding a feature to make sure that partial mash actually has base grain, and that there are base grains, or extract in every batch.

The moral of the story... educate your self.  Yes, have fun on the internet.  Read the blogs.   But double check the information.   I can't say I work hard to bring you cutting edge research... I leave that to the Brulosopher, Professor Brew, and Woodland Brewing Research.  But I can say I've been doing this a long time.  I don't know the things I know because I am brilliant (I am but that is another story).  I know these things because I have failed as much as anyone else and had to go to the LHBS and ask what I did wrong.  Or spend time in Dr. George Fix's book "Principles of Brewing Science"  That is all for now brew fans.   Keep on brewing and keep on sending your comments and questions...

What's the dumbest thing you have read about home brew on the internet... please no names or handles...

Lucas Cashman had some great comments, so I added them...

Autolysis... if you don't rack of the primary you'll get autolysis... So many reasons why this isn't a big concern for home brewers... Let's just say it this way... if you aren't aging a beer for more than 4 months in the carboy, Autolysis is not an actual issue for home brew.  The volumes of yeast are just not enough to cause this phenomenon in noticeable amounts.   Current Advice is this... unless you want to use the yeast cake for another batch... or you are going to age a beer (i.e. Barley Wine, RIS) don't rack it at all.

White Sugar makes a cider taste... this one is partially true.  White sugar in large % of your grist can give a cidery taste... but when used for bottling, or used to help dry out a batch... it won't.   Yeast will eat the simplest sugars first in the EMP metabolic pathway.  Glycosis is the conversion of 1 molecule of glucose into 2 ethanol and 2 CO2.  It is a process we can control with healthy adequate yeast pitch, temperature, and wort composition.  If you give the yeast a super simple sugar to eat, they will eat it fast , and they will kick off other compounds in the minor metabolic pathways, in order to eat it fast. But if you give them sugar after they have converted most of the maltose, glucose, and maltriose, fructose... you will extend yeast activity and help to dry out a beer...

Extract Beers are Twangy... too much has been written about this already.  So i will just say... Baloney.  They are not.  They haven't been for years.  The twang that you get from extract has to do with brewing experience and practice not the extract.   A well made extract beer is nearly indistinguishable from an all grain beer.  And a well made partial mash beer is often superior due to the advantages it has in terms of water chemistry and pH.  The reason I prefer all grain and partial mash is that to me they are more fun, offer more variety, and they cost way way less.