"Premium" Brew Kettle: Worth the Money?

Am going to order a 10 gallon brew kettle. As you all know, could range anywhere from an aluminum turkey fryer pot to a Blichmann (or maybe there's something even better out there).

Are the "premium" kettles worth the extra cash over the long term?

The Blichmann is pretty cool with the sight glass, ball valve, temp gauge, and ability to add a false bottom and auto-sparge. Even if it is expensive and the functionality can be replicated, it is a very pretty looking piece of equipment.

Thanks Teromous; anyone else want to jump in?

I've never used my kettle to do anything more than heat/boil wort. I think the money can be spent elsewhere on more beer ingredients.

Not worth it in my opinion, and 10 gallons is an in between size imo. I would go 15. My 5.5 gallon batches are 8.5 preboil.

I have a bayou classic stainless 11-gal. I bought it when I first started and it worked great for 5-gal batches. I have since stepped up to 10-gal batches so It mostly just sits there. Sometimes I still use it for heating cleaning water. I think it is a great kettle and was much cheaper than others I looked at.

I may be a bit outspoken here, but I think those "Premium Kettles" are a complete rip off. I don't see why anyone would buy one (even if the money was not an option). Before I made my keggle (which is great for 5.5 and 11 gallon batches), I used a 20 gallon aluminum kettle I picked up off CL for $30. Most people who buy Blichmann don't ever use all of those cool upgrades that are available for them anyways. The reality is most people will use a converted cooler mash tun and a propane burner with a kettle. Instead of buying an expensive kettle, convert a keg that you bought off of CL and buy a Banjo burner like this one http://bayouclassicdepot.com/kab6-kick-a-banjo-burner-plus.htm, which fits a keg or a large pot on top perfectly. I brought 14.5 gallons of wort from sparge/mash temp to boiling in 15 minutes yesterday.

I think that the premium kettle are worth every penny. A Geo metro drives A-B just the same as a Porsche, which would you rather have?

They cost more and are much nicer.

Wild- you boil off 3 gallons?

osagedr said:

Am going to order a 10 gallon brew kettle. As you all know, could range anywhere from an aluminum turkey fryer pot to a Blichmann (or maybe there's something even better out there).

Are the "premium" kettles worth the extra cash over the long term?

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Its an entirely personal question.


The Blichmann won't make any better beer than a cheap aluminum pot though.

Boerderij_Kabouter said:

I think that the premium kettle are worth every penny. A Geo metro drives A-B just the same as a Porsche, which would you rather have?

They cost more and are much nicer.

Wild- you boil off 3 gallons?

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A porsche has more functionality than a geo metro. It also performs better.


It could be argued that a cheap aluminum pot performs better than a blichmann (they certainly heat faster).

I suppose. I just think the better pots are more functional.

For example the Blichmann-

-easier to move because it is lighter weight
-flat bottom
-stepped bottom, extremely nice for MLT
-dimensioned specifically for brewers
-awesome sightglass means I can check volumes through my entire process and it is easy to clean
-a very nice thermometer (I have not had any problems with the placement, but others have)
-a great diptube system
-three piece ball valve (which contrary to my earlier belief is actually much easier to take apart and clean than a 2-piece)
-lids
-handles
-and you can be proud to own them and show them to friends

IME, keggles are very heavy and cumbersome to work with. Aluminum is a pain for cleaning, it scratches, it gets bent, it looks dull, etc. Clad bottoms are not worth anything because the liquid is not viscous.

My boils never went faster with an aluminum kettle and don't go any faster with my clad bottom pot than they do with a thin wall stainless one. That is just anecdotal though.

Basically, you can brew in whatever you want and get the job done. I have. I used aluminum, stainless econ kettles, stainless nice kettle with clad bottom, keggles, and now Blichmanns. They all brew beer. You pay more for nicer equipment that makes your life easier.

If you don;t want to buy the nice stuff then fine. It is just a choice you have to make, same as any other choice. I would love to eat steak out at restaurants everyday, but I can't quite afford it, can I?

Boerderij_Kabouter said:

Wild- you boil off 3 gallons?

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Yup, very near that.

wildwest450 said:

Yup, very near that.

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Wow... what burner and what size boil. Do you see any carmelization or anything? That is a crazy aggressive number.

Do you have a reason for boiling so hard? Did it add something? Is it worth me trying?

Boerderij_Kabouter said:

Wow... what burner and what size boil. Do you see any carmelization or anything? That is a crazy aggressive number.

Do you have a reason for boiling so hard? Did it add something? Is it worth me trying?

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Banjo burner, single or double batches.
I honestly feel my beer is better (definitely clearer) since I started boiling harder. It's not really a raging jump over the sides boil. Just a hard rolling boil.

First off, don't get a 10 gal. Get a bigger pot.

Second, how important is saving money to you? This nicer pots are..well..nicer, but cost more. A keggle will boil wort, you can put all the same doo-dads on it, but those blichmans just look stinking awesome.

The ONLY complaint I have about the keggle is the base. It won't fit very securely on many burners.

Boerderij_Kabouter said:

I suppose. I just think the better pots are more functional.

For example the Blichmann-

-easier to move because it is lighter weight
-flat bottom
-stepped bottom, extremely nice for MLT
-dimensioned specifically for brewers
-awesome sightglass means I can check volumes through my entire process and it is easy to clean
-a very nice thermometer (I have not had any problems with the placement, but others have)
-a great diptube system
-three piece ball valve (which contrary to my earlier belief is actually much easier to take apart and clean than a 2-piece)
-lids
-handles
-and you can be proud to own them and show them to friends

IME, keggles are very heavy and cumbersome to work with. Aluminum is a pain for cleaning, it scratches, it gets bent, it looks dull, etc.

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I agree that Keggles suck.

As to the other things, My aluminum pot is lighter than a blichmann, has a flat bottom,etc.


Also, what the hell does this mean:"-dimensioned specifically for brewers"

wildwest450 said:

Not worth it in my opinion, and 10 gallons is an in between size imo. I would go 15. My 5.5 gallon batches are 8.5 preboil.

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Ditto. 10 gallon pot is not worth it. Get a 15 gallon pot. With the 10 gallon you will need to watch it carefully to avoid a boilover. With the 15 you won't.

Geez guys I had to talk myself into a 10 gallon b/c I was thinking 8 would be big enough for my 5g batches. Now you're saying 15?! Aaaarrggh!

If you only ever intend to do 5g batches (and are very confident about that) I highly recommend getting the 10g version. 15g is bigger than you need for a 5g batch IMO. I advocate buying nice things, but wasting money should be avoided where possible.

Blichmann designed the kettles with specific height/width ratios to produce desirable boil/mash characteristics (ala professional brew kettle technology).

8 gallons is tight for a 5g batch. Even if you use a huge preboil volume like Wild, you can just use some Fermcap-S and have no problems. I love that stuff!!!

Okay...so given the extras with the Blichmann, and if a guy were to buy a false bottom for it, then you would mash right in the kettle without having to buy a separate MLT? Or should a person forget about mashing in the kettle and set up a cooler as an MLT?

You need separate vessels for mash and boil. Unless you use a lauter tun arrangement and pump back into the kettle... almost no one does this on the HB scale.

You need a HLT AND a BK. You can use a kettle with false bottom as your MLT, or you can use a cooler, again plus and minus to every decision.

Boerderij_Kabouter said:

You need separate vessels for mash and boil. Unless you use a lauter tun arrangement and pump back into the kettle... almost no one does this on the HB scale.

You need a HLT AND a BK. You can use a kettle with false bottom as your MLT, or you can use a cooler, again plus and minus to every decision.

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Thanks--so if I'm getting a cooler setup for MLT there is no reason to get the false bottom for the BK?

There is that whole brew-in-a-bag deal. Where you mash and boil in the same vessel...

osagedr said:

Thanks--so if I'm getting a cooler setup for MLT there is no reason to get the false bottom for the BK?

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Correct, you do not need a false bottom for the boil kettle. They do produce a hopblocker for separating out hops and trub. There are a ton of ways to separate that stuff out though whether you go with the Blichmann or not. No devise or anything is really necessary, you can just dump everything in.

My brewing motto is do one thing better each time I brew. Separating out hops and trub isn't a big one in the grand scheme IMO. Worry about that later.

:EDIT: BIAB is a very viable option, you could do some reading on that. Then you only need one vessel.

Go with the 15 gallon for sure. I never brew a 10 gallon batch for myself.... but i do brew 10 gallon batches with friends. Brewing with someone is much easier, there is only 10% more work, and you have 2x the number of hands to help, someone to man the grill while you are checking temps...etc.

Even if you don't have someone to brew with now, if you are good at homebrewing, eventually you will give a brew to someone who says "wow, this is good, i'd like to do that"

Boerderij_Kabouter said:

Correct, you do not need a false bottom for the boil kettle. They do produce a hopblocker for separating out hops and trub. There are a ton of ways to separate that stuff out though whether you go with the Blichmann or not. No devise or anything is really necessary, you can just dump everything in.

My brewing motto is do one thing better each time I brew. Separating out hops and trub isn't a big one in the grand scheme IMO. Worry about that later.

:EDIT: BIAB is a very viable option, you could do some reading on that. Then you only need one vessel.

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Thanks again for the advice. For my extracts w/grains and partial mash I've just been using a grain bag.

Boerderij_Kabouter said:

o produce desirable boil/mash characteristics (ala professional brew kettle technology).

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I know they say that, but frankly,

1)their pots dimensions aren't all that different from plenty of other commercially available pots.

2) Have they tested anything to see whether these fancy dimensions actually make a difference? The only think I can see dimensions of a boil pot changing is boil-off rates, and frankly, there are pluses and minuses to high/low boil-off rates.

sjlammer said:

Go with the 15 gallon for sure. I never brew a 10 gallon batch for myself.... but i do brew 10 gallon batches with friends. Brewing with someone is much easier, there is only 10% more work, and you have 2x the number of hands to help, someone to man the grill while you are checking temps...etc.

Even if you don't have someone to brew with now, if you are good at homebrewing, eventually you will give a brew to someone who says "wow, this is good, i'd like to do that"

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That's interesting, my neighbour/buddy likes a lot of what I have brewed and we did an extract batch together last year. He's an electrician and loves to tinker so is interested in the idea of setting up RIMS/HERMS with solenoids, pumps, whatever. He also has hundreds of feet of SS 3/8 tubing that for whatever reason got rejected at a job that he's offered to connect everything together.

Boerderij_Kabouter said:

I would love to eat steak out at restaurants everyday, but I can't quite afford it, can I?

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You could be eating steak at restaurants every night, but you chose to buy Blichmann's.
,
J

I bought a 9.2 gal kettle with connical botom and drain valve(side).

Upgraded from Alu, turkey fryer pot to the SS.

Worth every penny!

Boils better, turns over the hops in the boil more evenly.
Swirling durring the IC submersion durring cooling, the connical bottom is PERFECT for retaining trub. And as the valve is above the trub, its a direct feed to the fermenter, NO Siphon Needed!!! WOOOOT!

It has made my process improved over what I started with.

Granted my kettle was still cheaper than the Blingman.

HalfPint said:

You could be eating steak at restaurants every night, but you chose to buy Blichmann's.
,
J

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I think he meant real steak, not driving a Geo to Golden Corral with a $30 used aluminum turkey fryer you just picked up off of CL duct taped to the roof.

SpanishCastleAle said:

I think he meant real steak, not driving a Geo to Golden Corral with a $30 used aluminum turkey fryer you just picked up off of CL duct taped to the roof.

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Hell, with the money I saved from driving my grandmothers old geo and using a $30 turkey fryer kettle, I could at minimum eat at golden corral 25 times. Hell, I'd be drinking just as good as beer as him, but I'd get to share my evenings with a bunch of country bumpkins at the buffet.

Yes, life would be good.

J

When I can find one for cheap on CL or even a Keggle I will be all over it. My 32Qt tamale steamer has me right near the damn top. Next brew I'm going to try some fermi caps.

TurboBrew said:

First off, don't get a 10 gal. Get a bigger pot.

Second, how important is saving money to you? This nicer pots are..well..nicer, but cost more. A keggle will boil wort, you can put all the same doo-dads on it, but those blichmans just look stinking awesome.

The ONLY complaint I have about the keggle is the base. It won't fit very securely on many burners.

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+1 on Turbobrew's first two comments. Regarding the the keggle not fitting on many burners, I too experienced that issue but was easily resolved by purchasing a round weber grill grate (22.5"?) from HD for about $10

Boerderij_Kabouter said:

You need separate vessels for mash and boil. Unless you use a lauter tun arrangement and pump back into the kettle... almost no one does this on the HB scale.

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Not many do the lauter tun/pump thing, but lots of home brewers mash and boil in the same kettle. Many of the bayou pots come with a steamer basket that's really handy for doing BiaB and keeping the bag off the bottom of the pot if you step mash or otherwise want to fire the pot with the bag+grain in it, and also make it so you can lift larger grain bills without worrying about the seams on your bag.

Plus, they don't have the sight glass, thermometer probe, and all that other crap that's primarily just a cleaning hassle.

I don't mind spending more money on something nice that I won't ever have to replace, and will still suit my needs as they change through time. If I decide to stop brewing, the resale value of nice equipment will still be high. When I purchased my home, I furnished it with furnature that I will enjoy for the rest of my life and beyond, as I did with my music recording gear. It is nice not to ever look back or repurchase something better later, because life is simply too short, enjoy!

If I had purchased an inexpensive 15 gallon pot for $139.00 instead of the better one for $239.00, and then two years later got so into brewing that I wanted better equipment, I would spend another $239.00 wishing I had just bought a good one to begin with, like a Blingmann, or whatever!

I understand that some folks can't afford to spend that much on a tight budget, but if there is a way to swing it, get a good kettle.

Can't you mash and Brew in the same Kettle? I would imagine you could just run the wort after mashing into a plastic bucket, clean out the spent grains and dump the wort back into the kettle and start your boil? I suppose you would have to have another cheap kettle for your HLT though.

I didn't get a blichmann, but I do have one of the fancier kettles from morebeer. It has the ball valve for draining, and a second fitting that I placed a thermometer into. The thermometer IMO was worth every penny...having constant instant read temps without having to reach into the hot pot is awesome. The ball valve means i'm not having to dump wort into a funnel to get into my carboy...which I like. In fact, using an old entertainment center and my bottling bucket, I've got something of a "3 tier system" going where I can run the hot water out from the kettle into my cooler MLT.

My kettle is 8Gal so I might go bigger, but I'll definitely get another kettle with a spigot and a temperature gauge.

Buy Blichmann for your HLT and MLT...go turkey fryer on your BK as you don't need the bells and whistles on that.

I'm in the process of Bliching out my MLT then will be my HLT ... but my 20G $150 fryer I got off Amazon is fine by me for the BK.