Speidel Braumeister (brewmaster)

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You don't need to buy an extra burner for your sparge water the most water I've used were 11 liters when using the large malt pipe that can easily fit in one or two pots and heat it in your kitchen, also I don't see a reason why you can't preheat water and save it. About this think that you need to keep the water temp for almost two hours but with a good insulated container can be done.
You can make bigger beers with the braumeister longer boils or double mash or both, user Soviet mentioned a 1.093 wort by doing an overnight mash and 3 hour boil. One mash and 70 minute boil got me 1.075 wort two weeks ago... its a little trickier to make bigger beers but I don't brew big beers very often otherwise I'll be wasted 24/7
 
Anyone figured out methods to increase evaporation rate? Perhaps a fan+heat stick could lower condensing boil time such that high 5G OG batches using 50L malt pipe would be less time consuming.

I think someone had 8% per hour as an approx for BeerSmith. Maybe we can double that to half the time?
 
In the mean time, I have two questions:
1. It seems that a fair number of you sparge your malt tube. It is often mentioned that you "need another burner" to achieve this. Is there some reason you can't heat the water up in the Braumeister using manual mode, drain it into an insulated cooler, and hold onto it until sparge time? This would be easier in my mind and not require a second heat source. I haven't seen any mention of anyone doing this.

2. There's a lot of talk of not being able to do big beers on this system, especially on the 20L model. While I understand this isn't an acceptable option for some, is there any reason you can't do an extra long boil to concentrate your wort? Doing some quick math, it would seem that you could load the unit up with about 13 lbs of grain and boil down to about 3 gals and have a 1.110 wort. Would boiling for that long hurt the unit or beer somehow that I'm not aware of?

1. I lift my malt pipe and let is drain as I activate the boil. After a bit I press the grains with my mash paddle. Using this method I've got 82% efficiency. I recently grabbed a "hot pot" (Sharper Image brand from Tuesday morning ~$50) that holds approx 2L of water at 170*. Using that to re-hydrate the grains and press with paddle again I get approx ~85-90% efficiency. [btw I use latic acid to adjust mash pH]

2. I've used DME, honey or candy sugar to easily make 9-10% ABV beers.
 
You don't need to buy an extra burner for your sparge water the most water I've used were 11 liters when using the large malt pipe that can easily fit in one or two pots and heat it in your kitchen, also I don't see a reason why you can't preheat water and save it. About this think that you need to keep the water temp for almost two hours but with a good insulated container can be done.
You can make bigger beers with the braumeister longer boils or double mash or both, user Soviet mentioned a 1.093 wort by doing an overnight mash and 3 hour boil. One mash and 70 minute boil got me 1.075 wort two weeks ago... its a little trickier to make bigger beers but I don't brew big beers very often otherwise I'll be wasted 24/7
I'm not sure I'd ever sparge, it just struck me as being overly complicated to have a second heating source. A large part of the attraction of this unit is it keeps everything simple. Why would I want to make it more difficult by adding more stuff?

I did see the post by Soviet. I think the idea of doing an overnight mash is really interesting, but I'd have to read up more on that before I attempted such a thing.

1. I lift my malt pipe and let is drain as I activate the boil. After a bit I press the grains with my mash paddle. Using this method I've got 82% efficiency. I recently grabbed a "hot pot" (Sharper Image brand from Tuesday morning ~$50) that holds approx 2L of water at 170*. Using that to re-hydrate the grains and press with paddle again I get approx ~85-90% efficiency. [btw I use latic acid to adjust mash pH]

2. I've used DME, honey or candy sugar to easily make 9-10% ABV beers.
I would probably just end up using DME as you said. I really don't have much interest in doing a lot of big beers, I just want to have the option to do one if the mood ever strikes. I'm perfectly ok with boiling down to about 3 gallons (12L or so) to get a more concentrated wort if I do make a big beer, I just wanted to make sure that the water level is still high enough to cover the heating element. I would not be comfortable boiling down to the point the element is exposed to air.
 
I was expecting my effeciency would be around 1.045-1.050 (came in around 1.038). I think this was due to my grain crush being a little large.

perhaps try stirring the mash a few times during pump breaks, many people (myself included) have noted an increase in efficiency doing this, especially when the malt pipe is very full. pause it by pressing the up and down buttons, when it has a pump break, open, turn and stir for a minute, close it back up, restart. efficiency, to be pedantic, is the % of the potential extractable sugars in the grain that you extract. 1.038 is your gravity (i assume your post-boil reading, so original gravity)
 
dinnerstick said:
perhaps try stirring the mash a few times during pump breaks, many people (myself included) have noted an increase in efficiency doing this, especially when the malt pipe is very full. pause it by pressing the up and down buttons, when it has a pump break, open, turn and stir for a minute, close it back up, restart. efficiency, to be pedantic, is the % of the potential extractable sugars in the grain that you extract. 1.038 is your gravity (i assume your post-boil reading, so original gravity)

Agree I do the same thing
 
Searched through thread and couldn't locate a post. Has anyone tried to brew a large quantity from the 50L? (not big beer in OG but big size)

Seems there is tons of room in the vessel to top up to 80L or so. Eying a brewhemoth so trying to see if I could get 20G batch from the Braumeister. Seems like it would be possible using DME as long as math was done to scale everything up after the all grain mash.

Already bought a heatstick from amazon to aid to boiling power.
 
I just got back from a great Labor day weekend with my BFF (not sure guys have best friends forever, I figure it’s a Paris Hilton kind of thing)
But anyway I will change that to “My Best Beer Drinking Buddy”, BBDB.
It was his birthday and I brewed the clone for the occasion. I made a few mistakes along the way. The one mistake that worried me the most came at the end of the process. Of which I will now have to reproduce due to the fact that my brew was a big hit, even for the folks that normally don’t drink IPA’s. I transferred the beer to the keg and gave it what I thought was a good shot of Co2 and some dark sugar for natural carbonation. I then left for three weeks to visit family in Wyoming. I figured the longer I can leave the beer for conditioning the better. When I got home I wanted to check out how much carbonation had taken place. I lifted the relief valve slightly on the keg and it hissed for less than a half a second. Oh my god the beer didn’t produce any carbonation and what’s the deal with the Co2 I put into the keg before I left. (I had unhooked the Co2 line.) I looked at my gauge and realized I had a problem. The pressure gauge showing the amount of Co2 in the bottle was pegged out at maximum and the other gauge showed zero pressure available for the keg. I’m thinking, I just spent a seven weeks making a load of crap beer. I have to taste it to see just how bad it really is. I don’t want to show up with junk beer. I have a nitrogen setup, so I hooked it up and gave it a good shot, shook the keg around a bit and left it for a while. My curiosity got the better of me, I could only stand to let it sit for about twenty minutes. I opened the tap and got a glass of foam, “ok, just let it settle out….patience” I put the glass in the freezer for fifteen minutes, pulled it out and gave it a sniff. MMMM smells good, …Wow it tasted great. The Nitrogen really brought out the malt, the hops came in great at the end, and the creamy foam from the last sip in the glass was amazing. So I guess the moral of the story is, not all mistakes are bad and don’t forget to try some nitrogen, it’s not just for Guinness.
We tried a comparison with a bottle of the original DFH 90 min IPA. Mine was a little sweeter and of course creamier due to the nitro, the color was slightly darker because of the double mash. All in all, pretty damn close to the real thing. I can’t wait to brew it again. The keg lasted perfectly for the three day weekend, ending with the last glass going to my BBDB. Mission accomplished.
Many thanks to all Braumeister’s :tank:
Sharpfish Head 90 Minute IPA 2.jpg
 
Said and done! Got the malt pipe drilled at a friends CNC workshop, ten 12mm holes 12,5cm (5 inches) from the top, and also got a new distance sleeve. I'll be doing a test run monday or tuesday when I get a fermenter free. Really have my hopes up that I finally will be able to brew a high gravity wort, without double mashes, boiling for hours, DME or or other playing around.

644641_10151104062714681_187985983_n.jpg


391594_10151104267979681_1733798745_n.jpg
 
If I'm ever gonna brew a 50l batch i'll just use short M12 bolts, nuts and maybe if needed O-rings to cover the holes.
 
Batfink, what do you reckon is the lowest gravity you can get with your modified malt pipe and how many liters?
 
I hope you get this attachment, I have actually got the Braumeister, it was cheaper to get it from Germany( just a retail shop) especially with the euro being so low I am happy with it but I almost bought the one in the attachment if it comes through.You will have to haggle if you are interested.
Here goes I will try and send it

homebrewing.jpg
 
First Brew-

Overall went very well. I had planned on 5 or 6 hours...ended up taking around 10. First problem was when I was cleaning the SB for the brew I realized it didn't have the nozzle/sprout...so ran to Home Depot and made one.

Also create an immersion chiller with ice slush solution that worked great (used a pond pump).

I was expecting my effeciency would be around 1.045-1.050 (came in around 1.038). I think this was due to my grain crush being a little large.

Machine worked perfectly the entire time...had a really nice boil.

Had a great time doing it can't wait for next run at this. Biggest problem was I started drinking beer about 4 hours into brew thinking I should be done in a few hours....so by the time I got to the 10th hour I was rather intoxicated.

Be careful with your measurements. I spent a while screwing around with my crush, only to realize that my mash efficiency had always been high (80s%), it was my BREWHOUSE efficiency—i.e. how much trub I was leaving behind that brought that number down. After fiddling with diptubes and whirlpooling, I realized that simply tipping the unit and propping it up, allowing the trub to settle into the corner did the trick. Instead of leaving 3 gallons behind, I now leave .75 gallons.
 
Finally got around to write a few words about how my first brew went with the modified malt pipe. Brewed the base for a huge Imperial Stout last Monday with a 20 lb malt bill and 8.5 gallons of brewing water. Did a 60 min mash at 152 F, a 15 min mash out at 172 F and a 90 min boil. My OG was 1.092 which was ok, although I won't be completely happy until I manage to break 1.100 (seems to have become somewhat of an obsession to me :D). As soon as the main fermentation is compleated i'll throw in some yeast nutrient and a wine yeast, and over a period of two weeks feed it with 4.5lb of Muscovado sugar.

Anyway, the brew went great and the amount and size of the holes was just enough to keep a good flow.

398982_10151112408309681_1165150598_n.jpg


309132_10151112408529681_2113006081_n.jpg


This last picture is a Double IPA I brewed on Wednesday with 9.5 gallons of water and a 17 lb malt bill. The OG on this one was 1.078.

393621_10151118280364681_1015489249_n.jpg





Batfink, what do you reckon is the lowest gravity you can get with your modified malt pipe and how many liters?

I really don't have no idea yet, but I will be using the 20l malt pipe for smaller beers, since I don't do over 6 gallon batches anyway.
 
I hope you get this attachment, I have actually got the Braumeister, it was cheaper to get it from Germany( just a retail shop) especially with the euro being so low I am happy with it but I almost bought the one in the attachment if it comes through.You will have to haggle if you are interested.
Here goes I will try and send it

What the hell is that thing? I can't find any info on it, other than the pic you posted.
 
Finally got around to write a few words about how my first brew went with the modified malt pipe. Brewed the base for a huge Imperial Stout last Monday with a 20 lb malt bill and 8.5 gallons of brewing water. Did a 60 min mash at 152 F, a 15 min mash out at 172 F and a 90 min boil. My OG was 1.092 which was ok, although I won't be completely happy until I manage to break 1.100 (seems to have become somewhat of an obsession to me :D). As soon as the main fermentation is compleated i'll throw in some yeast nutrient and a wine yeast, and over a period of two weeks feed it with 4.5lb of Muscovado sugar.

Anyway, the brew went great and the amount and size of the holes was just enough to keep a good flow.

398982_10151112408309681_1165150598_n.jpg


309132_10151112408529681_2113006081_n.jpg


This last picture is a Double IPA I brewed on Wednesday with 9.5 gallons of water and a 17 lb malt bill. The OG on this one was 1.078.

393621_10151118280364681_1015489249_n.jpg







I really don't have no idea yet, but I will be using the 20l malt pipe for smaller beers, since I don't do over 6 gallon batches anyway.

What's your post boil volume with this setup?
 
It was about 6.5 gallons. Started out with 7.9 gallons (30l) and had saved only 0.5 gallons (2 l) for sparging, since I wasn't sure there would be enough liquid to cover the heating coils. It seems you need about 8 gallons of water to start with, with a 16.5 - 22 lbs grain bill to keep the heating coils from running dry.
 
What the hell is that thing? I can't find any info on it, other than the pic you posted.
O/k you won't find a Tantabrew website where you will find it is google :-Beijing Weijiachuang Machinery and Control Technology the business owner does have another website though he will sell direct through that website you will end up on he initially had it up for about $800 U.S I paid for it with paypal but he renegged on the deal and gave me my money back or said I could pay a total of $1500 for it which is still really cheap for a 60 litre copy of the Braumiester (and with a full copper shroud) which he claims is better (it whirpools as well)
I think he has a good business there and can afford the "take it or leave it" attitude when charging a retail price from a wholesale outlet, you will see what his business interests are when you visit his website and you can see he has to be doing well. I do a fair bit of business with China and believe me it takes a lot for them to return money once they have it in their claw.I am still going to go and see him next time I go over there,if I can swallow my pride ,I hate to loose.
 
I finally have what I think is a great setup for fermentation. I bought one fridge to see if it would work to my satisfaction. It worked like a charm. (DFH 90 Min clone) So I now have a second fridge so I can ferment 10G at a time.
Earlier I had bought an ice cream freezer thinking it would be a good fermentation chamber. I found three problems, 1. Being an ice cream freezer it created a lot of moister which I would have to deal with. 2. It didn't fit through the door where I wanted to store it, in the pantry. (Hhmmmm ever hear of a tape measure...Dumb Ass) 3. It has a glass top letting in light and spoiling the brew. If it fit into the pantry I was not going to have to worry about the glass top.
I was talking to a fellow brewer who mentioned when he uses a secondary fermentation he does it in a corny keg. This alleviates one more chance for contamination. Since it’s already in the keg all you have to do is hook up the Co2 line give it a proper shot, cool down and serve. He doesn’t worry about the few bits of yeast/hops that make it into the keg. They usually come out in the first few glasses. As for dry hopping, I have a couple of the corny keg lids with the loop on the underneath side to hang a bag of hops. So my thought is to use the temperature controlled ice cream freezer for secondary fermentation. That way I won’t be tying up my primary fridges doing secondary fermentation. Brewing more and getting more beer conditioned, is the name of the game. The DFH brew took a month to complete, three weeks of conditioning, and three days to empty the keg. I can also use the ICF for lagering when I decide to take the plunge and brew the wonderful Ayinger Celebrator Doppelbock.
First photo is the DFH clone in a 6.5 G carboy
Second is a test running both units on one controller
Third is the ICF and Keggerator

90 Min DFH (2).jpg


Temp Test.jpg


CIMG4876.JPG
 
while we're on the topic here is my weird fermentation control; i have the 20L brouwmeester (mine has recently renounced german citizenship for dutch), i had been packing it full to get in the range of 25L post-boil and 23 or so into the fermenter, even overpacked it a couple times to the detriment of efficiency, now i take it easy and aim for spot on 20L at the end of the boil to knock out just under 19 into my mad corny keg fermenter. i have taken to 'recirculating' the wort by hand for a minute (with a pitcher and one of my arms) after lifting the malt tube to set up a bit of a grain filter, sparging once with a relatively high volume and only collecting the beginning of the sparge runoff. that gives good efficiency and a pretty clear wort, and it's quick. i had been really stirring the grain to assist lautering, both in the initial drain of the malt pipe and then again in sparging, which i would typically do over a separate pot while starting to bring the temp up to the boil. i like my new way better, slightly lower efficiency (65-70 compared with 70-75, didn't calculate my last one yet) but i can just adjust the recipe. in a big fermenter like a 30L bucket i don't care if i carry over a lot of trub but every cubic mm counts when you're pressed for space!
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/my-ugly-peltier-temp-control-junk-350722/
sorry it's so long. i got excited that it actually worked. at least scroll to the photos!
just finishing my second beer in the corny fermemter, this time using the spunding valve after the sizable and fragrant blowoff from wyeast 3787 westmalle strain subsided. i love beer
 
Well a little update on my proccess: I know crush my grains a little finner about 1 mm in the barley crusher, I ´ve pack the malt tube with to 7 kilos of malt, the pumps struggle a little but no fountains so far, I brewed a Double IPA all malt (no sugar in boil to dry it out) And I got a 1.077 wort with a 70 minute boil, that end up a tad sweet for my tastes so I brew the next one adding 0.5 of sucrose in the boil OG was 1.085. So I´m happy so far without having to make modifications or double mash or longer boils. I´m going to brew a quad probably next week and I want to hit high 90 in the OG I´ll probably boil longer and that´s it. Anyway the hole drilling in the malt tube looks like a good idea. I´m going to get into that next year when I get a spare malt tube (there is no way I´m drilling mine). Catch you later braumeisterians.
 
What evaporation rate do you guys use in your brewing software to calculate boil off with the 50l?

When I first got my 50L, I did a few extended boils purely for the purpose of establishing a starting point and I ended up with a rate of around 5L/hr. Your mileage my vary, based upon a bazillion other factors :)

Robert
 
Hello all, this is my first my first post. I've lurked for long enough, learned lots from you guys. Just received my brand new 20L Braumeister today. I'm wondering what enhancements you recommend. Things like a pick up tube and/or gaskets around the screens, etc. Thanks
 
Welcome emanz1.

The BM's are so shiny and purdy it's ALMOST a shame to use them - NOT! You'll have great service from your BM.

I have the Thermocollar which helps to promote a slightly more rapid boil. But I wonder whether a thicker material (which can withstand 100*C) might be more effective at less cost.

I also have the copper hood (Thanks again clasley!!!) so that I can connect a flexible dryer hose and bend it towards my stovetop hood extractor. (SWAMBO can't stand the smell of the boil :eek::mad: But hey! - At least she doesn't drink my beer either.:ban::ban::ban: ) It makes a perfect grain funnel too.

Makomachine here uses these Fagor pressure cooker gaskets. I have 2 ready to go as soon as my kitchen reno is complete.

:off:**** This boughten beer is so F'n inferior. :mad:

I am not using a pick-up tube. I wait for all the trub, hops, etc. to settle-out after whirlpooling and before starting to send the cooled wort to the fermenter. The 20L BM is light and easy to tilt so that very little precious liquid is wasted.

Keep us posted emanz.:mug:
 
Wasp, Thanks for the words of encouragement and helpful offerings. My thinking on the dip tube was that it might get some of that precious wort out (without tipping) and provide some contact with copper. Am I delusional or did I pick up somewhere in all my lurking on the brewing forums that boiling wort likes, dare I say even benefits, from some contact with copper? Anyone else heard that?

Thanks again, looking forward to getting all the prep work done so I can crunch some grain and do something fun.
 
I just got my 20l in the mail to day and there appears to be no shipping damage! :ban: YAY! :ban: Now if I only did not have to wait until November :( for my Speidel 30l fermenters. I guess I'll run a more convenient 240 outlet in the meantime, and make a power cord I didn't think my Braumeister would be here this quick and don't make one yet. I can almost taste the beer, and I'm going to imagine it tastes great! ;)
For those who have some brews in how do the stickers hold up (I already removed the warning one from above the logo), I usually strip the stickers off everything and wanted to know if they get funny from the heat / moisture Thanks! in advance
 
...
For those who have some brews in how do the stickers hold up (I already removed the warning one from above the logo), I usually strip the stickers off everything and wanted to know if they get funny from the heat / moisture Thanks! in advance

Stickers hold and are after 31 brews as new.
 
Stickers will hold, the only thing don´t do what I did on my 3rd or 4th brew I´ve use some stainless steel cleaner to make the outside shiney and that kind of decolered the stickers but they are holding just fine and I don´t thing they´ll get peel off in years.
 
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