Multiple brews in a day

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

theCougfan97

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 17, 2013
Messages
199
Reaction score
1
Location
Seattle
With less days to brew my only option is to brew more beer on those days I get. I see many people do this and I was hoping for some experienced advice. My 5gallon setup is as follows:
15 gal ss pot
5gal mash tun cooler (old)
10 gal mash tun cooler
1 propane burner
1 2000watt heat stick
1 50' copper immersion chiller

I assumed I would utilize both mash tuns by letting one rest on the sidelines while I brew the other. Is there any other must add equipment or process tricks I can use to reduce time?
 
The best way to reduce time is to figure out ways to mash two brews at once. For example, I have a Dusseldorf Alt recipe that differs from my Kolsch recipe only slightly (I add roasted barley to the Alt). I have brewed these together a couple of times. I mash a double batch of the Kolsch recipe, drain, sparge, and make sure the 13.5 gallons are mixed well. I then transfer half back to a mash tun and add the roasted barley while I am starting my boil on the Kolsch (one time I had emptied the spent grain and steeped the roasted barley and one time I left half the grain in and added the barley before adding the liquid back).
 
Sorry I should have mentioned I would like to do 2 seperate beers at 5 or 10 gallons each (10 when I get a solid dialed in recipe)

I was considering heating up all the water for two separate mash tuns, and leaving one to rest until I complete the first full batch and then drain and sparge the second batch.
Any reason that won't work?

I am also considering introducing a second pot to heat with my heat stick so the sparge water is ready to go for batch 2 as soon as I finish batch 1.
 
Camlocks for tubing connections. Also a big tub of sanitizer to put different utensils in to soak and sanitize in between batches.

Do you have a pump? And i don't see anything as far as a wort chiller mentioned either. That will help in between batches so u don't have to wait for one to cool very long in an ice bath.
 
I was considering heating up all the water for two separate mash tuns, and leaving one to rest until I complete the first full batch and then drain and sparge the second batch.
Any reason that won't work?

If I am understanding you, the idea is to start the mashes at the same time (not just heating the water at the same time). The only issue I would see is that you are likely to lose a pretty good amount of temp in the second mash tun while you are boiling, cooling, and transferring the first batch. This would mean that the second batch would be high on the fermentable sugars resulting in high attenuation. If you want to avoid this, you would need to do a good mash out on the second mash tun to denature all the enzymes. That would set your sugar makeup.
 
I'm not sure that the 10 gallon cooler mash tun is big enough for 10 gallon batches. Mine's a 12 gallon, and it's often a tight fit during sparging, and that's just with 5 gallon batches. To do a 10 gallon batch, you'd have to keep the grain bill pretty light, I would imagine.

As for the multiple brews, I'd be hesitant to try and run them simultaneously. I'd be afraid of getting too busy and missing a crucial step.

I've done multiple brew days in the past, but it was more serial, with a bit of overlap, than concurrent. I'd heat up my strike water and dough-in batch #1. Then I'd batch sparge, and while sparging, I'd heat up strike water for the second batch. I'd drain second runnings for the first batch, scoop the grains out of the mash tun, give it a rinse, then dough-in with the second batch while heating the first batch to boiling. Boil the first batch while the second batch mashes, then run batch #1 through the chiller, rinse the break material out of the kettle, and immediately drain first runnings for the second batch.

You don't have to thoroughly clean the equipment between batches because the boil will sterilize the wort.
 
No pumps but i do use an immersion chiller (50') copper.

Is attenuation bad? I was guessing I could monitor the temp and add hot water as needed.

With only the one pot is there a method people use to capture the first running of the 2nd batch? Would a bottling bucket work? Since I will boil that wort later anyway?
 
No pumps but i do use an immersion chiller (50') copper.

Is attenuation bad? I was guessing I could monitor the temp and add hot water as needed.

With only the one pot is there a method people use to capture the first running of the 2nd batch? Would a bottling bucket work? Since I will boil that wort later anyway?

Attenuation is not necessarily bad, but a highly attenuated beer will taste thinner than a less attenuated beer.

You could use the mash tun you use for the first batch to catch the runnings from the second batch.
 
I've tried to brew 2 beers in the same days 2 times.

First time 10gal of mine "american bitter" (the same beer just made with 2 mash, 2 boiling etc.. and than mixed together before pitching)

Second was 2 completrly different beers brewed the same day.

the total time is about 12 hours (while boiling the first wort I started with mashing, pay attention that you have to calculate also chiling time) some suggestions:

go sleep early the night before and don't drink beer before the end of job... I brew in the garage and it was hard job a 12 hour brewday in winter.
 
I usually do two different beers on the same day. If my timing is good (aka haven't had too much to drink) I can do two 10 gallon batches in around 8 hours. A typical single batch day takes 6-7 so it just makes sense for me to do two.
 
chefcurt said:
I usually do two different beers on the same day. If my timing is good (aka haven't had too much to drink) I can do two 10 gallon batches in around 8 hours. A typical single batch day takes 6-7 so it just makes sense for me to do two.

What sort of setup do you have? I am really hoping to do 2 5 gallon batches in 8 hrs (excluding cleanup)
 
What sort of setup do you have? I am really hoping to do 2 5 gallon batches in 8 hrs (excluding cleanup)

Usually this takes me more than 1 hour... exluding cleaning 9 hour it's about the time you take from mash-in of the first mash to end of chilling process of the second batch
 
What sort of setup do you have? I am really hoping to do 2 5 gallon batches in 8 hrs (excluding cleanup)

No problem, just Parti-gyle it! One mash, two beers. This limits the styles the two beers can be somewhat, but less than you might think. I have 5 two-batch days under my belt and they just keep getting better. The first 2-batcher was two separate mashes and was a long day. Ever since I've been doing Parti-gyle and it's easier and more fun. The last one was under 6 hours from heating strike water to both beers in carboys. But I have two brewpots which helps quite a bit.

With your equip, you could easily get a moderate (6-8% ABV) and a lower (3-5% ABV) beer out of a single mash in the 10-gal MLT. You'll need at least one bucket, two might be nice. And if you don't already, it's best to break up your batch sparge into 2 steps so that along with the 1st runnings you have 3 different strength runnings to use to blend your two beers to their appropriate pre-boil gravity. Put the first runnings in the bucket, the second in your 5-gal MLT (or 2nd bucket), and then once you dump the 3rd batch of sparge water in the MLT you can transfer the 1st runnings along with however much of the 2nd (and/or 3rd) runnings in as you want. Then start that one boiling, and in the meantime use the bucket and/or 5-gal MLT to blend out your second beer.

Depending on how much overlap in grain bill, you can do anything from just a big and small version of the same grist, or have the first (bigger) beer be all base malt and then steep specialty grains for the second beer. Here's the styles I've done just to get your imagination going, other combos are certainly possible:

Belgian Dubbel / Dark Strong (used some extract to bump these up a bit due to lack of MLT space. It worked out ok, but two high grav beers are more complicated)
Barleywine / English Pale
Belgian Strong / Pale Ale
Imperial Pale / Dark Mild --> my latest and favorite so far. 100% MO mash with just first/second runnings for the pale, and steeped all the specialty grains in the brewpot for the mild. Both beers were excellent, IMHO.

Here's just one of I'm sure many threads on some of the math involved in Parti-gyle: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f36/parti-gyle-please-check-my-math-277958/

Have fun! As it happens, I'm going to try for 3 batches this Saturday. I have 2 brewpots and going to borrow another burner, but I think I can do it!
 
What sort of setup do you have? I am really hoping to do 2 5 gallon batches in 8 hrs (excluding cleanup)

I usually do my batches consecutively. I have enough equipment to do two separate beers at once but that would mean too many things happening at the same time for my short attention span to handle. For a typical brew day I will use my 15 gallon keggle and my 72 quart coleman extreme mashtun. Depending on the size batches I'm making I sometimes will use a second pot for heating mash and sparge water in. This can also be done on the stove to save on time and propane. Timing the batches so one is finished running off when the other is finished cooling is a real trick but it is possible with good planning and knowing your set up well.
 
I always do 2x10G brew days. It's pretty simple if you consider critical pieces of equipment that can only be used for one batch at a time.

In my case i only have 1 HLT water, 1 MLT and 1 boil kettle. So I mash in batch 1, run it off, refill and immediately heat the HLT while boiling the wort. In the last 10 minutes of the boil i mash in the next batch and then star to refill and reheat the HLT again. Once the boil is done i start the cool down and rack it out. Batch #2 follows behind it. If you're not comfortable with doing this much back to back, wait until you're into the cool down before you mash in batch #2. That'll give you adequate clean up time for the next batch.
 
I found a really good price on a pump. My thought is I can setup a heated recirculating mash tun. My thought being once the 1st batch of wort is run off and I have started to boil I clean out and refill my mash tun with water and turn on the heater and pumps to start heating the strike water. Then once up to strike temp adding in the second grain bill. If I am recirculating the wort I am assuming I can put in all the water necessary and not have to batch sparge. Since my cooler is only 10 gallons I will probably use a large pot to hold the heater element and the extra few gallons of recirculating wort.

Any reason my recirculating mash tun won't work?
 
You could also do a partigile; mash and drain the first runnings, start the boil and then add more grains and re-mash for a second lighter gravity brew. Use the 15 gallon and the propane for the boil vessel, and the heat stick in the 5 gallon to heat mash water. You could use the larger mash tun for both brews.
 
I've done multiple brew days in the past, but it was more serial, with a bit of overlap, than concurrent. I'd heat up my strike water and dough-in batch #1. Then I'd batch sparge, and while sparging, I'd heat up strike water for the second batch. I'd drain second runnings for the first batch, scoop the grains out of the mash tun, give it a rinse, then dough-in with the second batch while heating the first batch to boiling. Boil the first batch while the second batch mashes, then run batch #1 through the chiller, rinse the break material out of the kettle, and immediately drain first runnings for the second batch.

This is basically what I have done - it was a 9hour day and I have done it twice.
 
An extra kettle and burner for mash/sparge water. Then you should be able to dump your mash, then mash in again before the first beer has even hit boil.

I use
20q, 5g, 8g, 10.5g kettles
2 5gallon coolers
Blichmann burner, 3 burner camp

A couple weeks ago I managed a 3 mash 4 90min boil day. Took about 12hours,but should have been much less. Had a blast though and was awesome seeing 20 gallons sittin in the chamber
 
An extra kettle and burner for mash/sparge water. Then you should be able to dump your mash, then mash in again before the first beer has even hit boil.

I use
20q, 5g, 8g, 10.5g kettles
2 5gallon coolers
Blichmann burner, 3 burner camp

A couple weeks ago I managed a 3 mash 4 90min boil day. Took about 12hours,but should have been much less. Had a blast though and was awesome seeing 20 gallons sittin in the chamber

Damn you just upped the ante for my next marathon day. Thought I was doing well with 2 mashes, 3 boils in 12 hours. Since I just picked up a few more carboys, this will be possible once I keg those 3 this weekend...hmmm.

Oh and to the OP, GO HUSKIES!:D
 
Back
Top