Large Volume Brewing (27+ Gal)

[RipUSMC]

Does anyone have some experience on brewing batches of 27-gallons or larger? I've brewed two test batches at larger volumes and it feels like I'm getting it mostly right but could use some advice. I'm not looking for mega volume (or micro brew) scales at 1-bbl or larger but kind of the "in between" spot. Seems like there are differences from brewing the typical 5-, 10-gal batches. Any thoughts, tips or other resources on this subject are appreciated.

 

[RiverCityBrewer]

I don't brew 27+ but I do brew 20 gallon batches, so hopefully that doesn't disqualify my observations.

1) It takes longer to heat things, take that into account and try to streamline your processes to save time.
2) Yeast is critical, get very good at making large starters and maximizing cell counts to get fast, healthy fermentations going.
3) Oxygen is critical, I found an aquarium pump didn't cut it anymore when fermenting all in the same vessel, O2 was necessary.
4) Buy in bulk, you are probably already doing this but its worth mentioning to keep costs down.
5) Fermentation temperature control, if using a single vessel to ferment in the yeast can get it quite warm when pitching proper rates. I've had 8-10F temp jumps at the core.
6) Sanitation, seems like a no-brainer, but there is a lot more to be lost if sanitation is lax.

What is it specifically that you feel you might not be getting right?

 

[ajdelange]

The two things to be aware of, IMO, are that recipes don't scale and that at whatever scale you brew your equipment will drive your process and thus have an effect on the beer. If you go from one 20 gal. system to another you can expect different beers (not dramatically, though) from just this effect. If you go from a 5 gal system to a 20 gal system you get this effect plus the scaling effect. This is not something to worry about. You will adjust to the larger system just as you did to the system you are coming from.

The main differences between large and small systems in practical terms is that you are dealing with larger thermal masses. The good news in this respect is that small temperature fluctuations are 'integrated out'. The bad news is that if you overshoot it takes longer to correct.

Another thing that is probably worth mention is lauter/sparge. A lot of grain requires a large lauter tun diameter if grain depth is to be kept small. This can be a problem. I brew in 55 gal SS chemical drums. If I try to sparge 120 lbs grain in a 55 gal drum a stuck mash is guaranteed. The system manufacturer's solution is to lauter/sparge half the mash at a time. Not a very appealing solution as my brew day is long enough already. Rice hulls solve the problem.

 

[RipUSMC]

Great advice, I think temp control is still my biggest challenge with large volumes. You alls advice is helpful. Confirms some of what I'm doing and reinforces what I need to do better.