One Gallon Recipe Conversion

[mistercameron]

I got a one-gallon all-grain kit from Brooklyn Brew Shop for Christmas. My primary from the first kit batch is almost done and ready for bottling and I'm looking for my next recipe. I'm assuming that I can take a 5-gallon recipe and pretty much use only 20% of the listed ingredients and it should all work out fine, right?

Oh, and one more related question: Can I assume grains are malted unless otherwise noted?

Thanks guys!

 

[Tall_Yotie]

Howdy there are welcome!

Yes, recipes scale exactly with the size of the batch. I would suggest, however, to do a 2.5g batch (half size) rather that a 1 gallon. It makes the math easier, you can use a standard fermentation vessel (head space will be taken up by CO2), and is more economical as far as yeast and hops goes (1 vial of liquid yeast is great for a 2.5g batch).

And yes, you can assume they are malted unless otherwise stated.

So, what are you planning on making for the second batch? What was your first?

EDIT: Sorry, just re-read it, saw you had a 1 gallon kit (and assuming equipment). You can still scale down to 20% for a 1g batch, but I would say when you get to it make the upgrade to a 5g setup, if you so desire. Much more worth the time to do a larger batch than 1g. Happy brewing!

 

[Aerolithe]

I'm about to bottle my very first batch of beer (American Wheat, although it may not end up being a very typical one), and for a variety of reasons I decided to use two one-gallon jugs as my fermenting vessels. I was originally going to just use a 5 gal recipe that was scaled down to 2 gal (40%), but running the calculations for hop utilization resulted in a lower suggested amount of hops. However, after re-running the math, it turns out I did it wrong the first time (used boiling volume instead of final volume) so its possible that the differing hop utilization is just a result of high alpha acid content for the variety used and the fact that my malt/water ratio may be different than is standard for a 5 gallon batch.

If anyone has any other advice for brewing smaller batches, I'd really love to hear it. I've already confirmed what I've been told about faster fermentations, I used a starter and the bulk of activity took place in the first 12-18 hours.

Also, slightly off topic but I feel like it's somewhat relevant, shouldn't all grain brewing be simpler for one or two gallon batches in that the volumes needed are lower, so I may not need as much specialty equipment, namely not needing to buy a giant brew kettle? It seems from my superficial research that my 5 qt stockpot would be adequate for a one gallon batch of all grain brew, is this correct?

Edit: Pic of both jugs fermenting, in a plastic tub to handle the anticipated blow-off

 

[Tall_Yotie]

All brewing is easier in small batches, all grain especially, just as it is easier to control the temperature. However, as you stated measuring out hops is worse for smaller batches. Also, dividing up yeast if using liquid is a PAIN for small batches. There should really be no need for doing a starter for a 1g batch, and even a 2.5g batch unless it is a really high gravity beer.

Hops utilization should not car about batch size if the amount of hops is scaled with the volume.

The advantage of larger batches is that you can be more precise on your measurements, especially for specialty grains; 4oz for a 5 gallon batch is 0.8oz for a 1 gallon, and if your scale is off by 0.1oz, it is a big factor for the smaller batch than the larger.

And I would use a 2 gallon pot rather than a 5qt pot for boiling a 1g batch. If you are talking about mashing grains, then it depends on the recipe as each needs different amounts of grains and this space.

 

[mistercameron]

Thanks for the warm welcomes! I've been reading HBT quite a bit for the last month and I've learned quite a bit. The cumulative knowledge and experience here is pretty amazing.

My kit came with an IPA, but I'm thinking of doing a hefe from Papazian's book next. I think it's called Noople-Tucker Hefe. I have a couple of big 6qt pots that worked well for the kit, but the sparging was probably the hardest with my kitchen colander... nearly overflowing with grain. I'll probably pick up a grain bag with my next order.

I always love spending money on new hobbies, but I'm really forcing myself to do a few batches with the kit I own before I start moving to 5gal batches. I have a couple of friends willing to loan me gear while I build my collection so I can at least buy a little at a time and see what gear I like best.

As for measuring things out - I know that's going to be the tricky part. I'll have to dig out my digital food scale to see how accurate it is. And worse come to worse, I can spread mashing & lautering between a coupe pots. My electric cooktop will be the deciding factor in getting decent boils.

I think the biggest thing I learned was to stop fiddling with the mash and put the lid on the pot! I had a heck of a time controlling the temperature because I stirred it too much and tried controlling the temps with the stove. I later saw somebody's post about doing a one gal batch in a pot like mine that held the target temp range the entire hour with only a little bit of stirring. Lesson learned. It probably won't be the best beer I've ever had, but RDWHAHB, right?

 

[Tall_Yotie]

leaving the brew just sit there undisturbed is the hardest part. I have my wife on active "don't worry, let it do its thing" mode to keep me from screwing with the brew every 5 minutes.

If you are in no rush to get to a larger batch size, that is fine. Check out CraigsList, at least in my area there is always someone putting up equipment, at least a brew kettle which is a major plus to have. One you have that big pot you are most of the way there, especially if you ever fall back to an extract recipe.

 

[mistercameron]

If you're a member of Sam's Club (or know somebody who is), you can get a 40qt aluminum stock pot for about $32 right now. BargainFittings.com has pretty reasonable prices on cooler and keg/kettle weldless kits. Those are probably the two places I'm going to look first to get my 5gal kit started unless something better comes along on Craigslist

 

[ReverseApacheMaster]

Hops utilization should not car about batch size if the amount of hops is scaled with the volume.

Actually there is a difference in hops utilization across different batch sizes. It's why you get better hops utilization on a full boil versus a a partial boil.


To the OP - I do a lot of 1 gallon batches for experimenting with new recipes and techniques, beers I only want a small quantity, etc. You may want to look into finding 4 liter jugs to avoid having so much blow off. The Carlo Rossi wine jugs are 4 liter jugs, which is almost 1.25 gallons. (The burgundy is pretty good in food and the chardonnay is decent if you add a little oak to it.)

It's definitely easier to do basic AG techniques on a smaller batch, especially if you don't have bigger kettles yet. I do my smaller batches BIAB style. The downside is that if you try to do a more complex mash schedule, like a decoction mash, I find it more difficult because you're trying to decoct such a small amount. I usually net 9-11 bottles out of a one gallon batch.

 

[trevorc13]

I love doing 1 gallon all grain batches of beer. I have BYO's 250 clone recipies, and anything that looks good I just divide by five. I use a 2 gallon igloo drink cooler, and after mashing, I use the spout at the top to pour my wort into my 5 gallon kettle. I put a strainer over the kettle because the first bit of wort that comes out also has grain coming out of it. I have made an imperial nut brown with this and it is one of the best beers I've made.

A suggestion is using hop bags though. You still get a lot of trub from these batches, and reducing that as much as you can is beneficial. Cooling down the wort takes no time, and the space required in minimal. Also, you don't need a starter, although purchasing a $7 vial of yeast is about half of my beer costs. This is a great way to experiment with different types of grains and hops, without worry that you spent a lot of money for nothing.

I still do 5 gallon extract batches, and usually do the two in the same weekend. This way I can at least fill my keg up, and have a six pack waiting for me when the keg runs out. Have fun!

 

[RugenBrau]

Actually there is a difference in hops utilization across different batch sizes. It's why you get better hops utilization on a full boil versus a a partial boil.

Can yoou explain this a little more. I'm looking into doing 2.5 gallon batches and I'm findinding so much conflicting info that my head is spinning. The more I read about hop utilization the less I know. Thanks

 

[Yooper]

Can yoou explain this a little more. I'm looking into doing 2.5 gallon batches and I'm findinding so much conflicting info that my head is spinning. The more I read about hop utilization the less I know. Thanks

Hops utilization doesn't scale exactly. It's not just "double the hops" for 10 gallons. HOWEVER, it's really "close enough". It's not exact, but making a 1/2 batch with 1/2 the water and 1/2 the malt can be very close to the original with 1/2 the hops.

 

[RugenBrau]

Perfect...i'm just scaling from 5 to 2.5 gallon batches. Thanks.

 

[jonmohno]

I do 2 gallon wich actually gives me 1.6 wich is perfect for thirding recipes, if you can half you can third as well but Halfing it would be nice im thinking about getting a 3 gallon carboy for doing a repeat of an experiment that turned out really good and want more of. One gallon will just go too quick especially when you have to test them each week to see if its ready yet then end up with 2 left by the time they are really ready to drink. And if they are really good you cant share your pride and joy much.The fact that you can make friends enjoy it and maybe get drunk. ha
Just because you got a one gallong kit dosent mean you cant go out and buy a couple two gallon buckets or some more one gallons or 3,5. Because if you like it and your beer thats what youll end up doing. cheers.

 

[Tall_Yotie]

I think there was confusion from the person you are quoting.

They were thinking it was a 2.5g batch down with a 1g boil and then topped off, not JUST a 1g batch.

If you did a full boil for a 2.5g batch you would get different hop utilization than if you boiled 1 gallon and then topped of the fermenter the the 2.5g mark.

If you use X ounces of hops in a 5 gallon batch, and use 20% of that much hops in a 1 gallon batch, you will get the same hops utilization (assume both are done as full boils).

Does that help clarify at all?

EDIT: Didn't see that there was a second page of replies. So seems it was fairly well explained. Not exact utilization, but close enough for us.

 

[GallonJugs]

Hi there, I also got a 1 gallon Brooklyn kit for christmas, and I had the same problem managing the temperature while mashing. I've read a lot since then, and when I went back I saw that the instructions in the Brooklyn kit said to leave the mash uncovered for the 60 mins! I now realise that was a huge source of my problems when trying to maintain temps. I made a second 1 gal batch last weekend, and this time put the lid on, and surrounded my pot with towels to help maintain the temperature. This time it kept the right temperature for most of the hour without me doing anything. A big improvement.

I got the Brooklyn Brew Shop's book and another book Beer Craft, I prefer Beer Craft, as it goes in to much more detail of the why's of brewing, and it contains 1 gallon recipes for some of the major types of beer and info on ways to play around with those base recipes.

I personally went to my local brew shop, and the guy there helped take a 5 gallon hefeweizen recipe down to a 1 gallon version. It's an incredibly simple recipe, so if you want it - let me know!