1-Gallon Brewers UNITE!

[sumbrewindude]

D-usa -

I'd caution you a little on those bottles - first thing make sure they're a #1 on the recycle code for PET. I know that some folks use the #7's, and that's totally up to them, I just prefer to use #1's as that's the same plastic that BB's are made out of. If you look around you'll find waterbottles with the #1 code on them. Examples would be Culligan bottles and Primo bottles, both are PETE in my experience.

The other reason I'd caution you is because of the molded in handle. Those are a PITA to clean correctly, and if you're filling them high enough you will get kruesen on the inside of the handle. The Culligan bottles are round all the way, and the Primo bottles have a flat spot where the handle is.

FWIW, these are the bottles I'm using now - and other than the "ridges" to keep the bottle stiff, it's really not bad at all to clean. I really like the pockets on the bottom where the bottle was molded, it traps the yeast so when you tip the bottle to get all the wort out it doesn't slide into the siphon. They're as tall as a 3gal PETE carboy, but as "fat" as a 5gal carboy so if you've got a height restricted ferm chamber it might be an option.

http://www.menards.com/main/see-mor...lacier-mist-4-gallon-pet/p-1476254-c-6646.htm

They're a recyclable bottle anyway, so no deposit charge and the water's good to brew with too!

 

[d-usa]

Thanks for the info.

The handle did stand out to me as being a PITA to clean, especially if you get a load of krausen stuck in there.

They recycle code on these is actually #3 (DEHP free), which seems better than #7 but not as good as #1. It's good enough for all the pipes that carry the water everywhere though .

For $6 I might give it a try to see if I like stepping up to 2.5 gallons...

 

[DonWheelio]

It's not the size that counts, but how you brew it!

I walked in to Chapters one day and saw the Brooklyn Brewery 1G kit sitting there just daring me to buy it, so I did and proceeded to make a total school-boy error using tap water which created my first and last pool-water flavored Hefeweizen. After doing a little research and seeing how big the home brew world is I'm totally addicted and can't stop. I've made five 1 Gallon batches in 4 weeks and plan to go at a batch a week the next few months to experiment with everything until I find some recipes that I want to always have in the fridge. So far my biggest mistake was not entering my grain as DME into beersmith and making a super high gravity beer (which actually turned out quite drinkable). I have plenty ideas on paper and even more clone recipes to try once I have the basics comfortably down and figure out how to tweak the variables. I couldn't experiment nearly as much as I want to with a 5G kit and if the first kit I had seen was actually 5G I would have spurned it due to space constraints.

In my tiny apartment my girlfriends stuff takes up most of the available space so I bigger equipment just isn't possible, also my budget is low, I have a small electric-stove and I don't want to get stuck with lots of crap beer. So while I'm finding my feet and feeling the need to try as many different ingredients as possible to get a solid understanding of what tastes like what and what happens when I alter time, temp, amount, combination, etc, 1G is just about perfect. I can definitely see myself moving up to 2 1/2 gallons after a few months when I hit a recipe I like because, yes, 6 pints goes very quickly and when I have more space I'll definitely move up to 5G, but even then I can see myself still doing test batches of 1G.

 

[JoeBart]

In my tiny apartment my girlfriends stuff takes up most of the available space so I bigger equipment just isn't possible, also my budget is low, I have a small electric-stove and I don't want to get stuck with lots of crap beer. So while I'm finding my feet and feeling the need to try as many different ingredients as possible to get a solid understanding of what tastes like what and what happens when I alter time, temp, amount, combination, etc, 1G is just about perfect. I can definitely see myself moving up to 2 1/2 gallons after a few months when I hit a recipe I like because, yes, 6 pints goes very quickly and when I have more space I'll definitely move up to 5G, but even then I can see myself still doing test batches of 1G.

This is exactly where I'm at. I think I'd like to get a solid understanding of what I'm doing before fully diving in with 5 gallon brews. Though moving up to a 2.5 gallon brew is very tempting at the moment...

 

[teleplucker]

This is exactly where I'm at. I think I'd like to get a solid understanding of what I'm doing before fully diving in with 5 gallon brews. Though moving up to a 2.5 gallon brew is very tempting at the moment...

Like training wheels....hahaha.

I just did my third AG batch and I feel like I'm starting to get my process down (except I almost forgot to aerate after pitching the yeast...doh!). I'm going to try to do some quicker extract with steeping or mini-mash. I did one all extract that will be bottled this week - still need to work some kinks out of the bottling process. And, figure out the next few recipes....and, do some more SMaSH brews to learn the hops....and, try some more malts....and, research a lot more (this forum is invaluable).

I may go bigger, but, for now, a three hour or less brew day with only 8 bottles of "experiments" and the kitchen/space requirements make one gallon pretty attractive. All bets are off if my brews improve, though.

 

[Avocado_Power]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/1-gallon-brewers-unite-311884/index424.html#post6051579

There's the recipe, I'd recommend scaling it up to 3gal at least. My EFF was higher than my projected 77% so the ABV pulled up to 8 instead of the 7.6ish. I was also surprised at the loss to the dryhops but then again I've never put that much dryhop in any of my beers yet. I lost almost an entire 12oz bottle to absorption.

I'll be brewing it again, that's for sure.

Calichusetts -

Any chance you'd share your IIPA recipe? I'm a huge fan of English malts (especially their crystal malts). I'm not a huge IPA/IIPA guy, but I do enjoy a good one every now and then - not to mention they're fun to brew!

I need to figure out how to put recipes into my little dropbox by my user name, figuring out where I posted the recipe for LIVID took longer than I thought.




ALSO!

Another huge thanks goes out to Rave808 (and whoever else, I can only recall Rave808 so I appologise to those I've forgot) who mentioned the Domino sugar dots for bottle carbonation. LIVID was the first I've bottled with this method and the carbonation came out GREAT! If the rest of the bottles are as good as the first one I'll be using this method exclusively for bottle carbing in the future.[/QUCraft.

Hey sumbrewindude, you've been rockin this forum and I wish I could try some of the brews you come up with. What did you ultimately pick for domino sugar dots? I feel like I remember you got the wrong size at first.

Have a 2-gallon kolsch extract in the Mr beer fermenter and a 1-gallon all grain chocolate stout in a one gallon glass jug. Got the recipe from this kick-ass book that every 1-gallon brewer should check out - its called "Beer Craft." I'll let you know if the recipe is any good but so far the rest of the book seems legit.

 

[Avocado_Power]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/1-gallon-brewers-unite-311884/index424.html#post6051579

There's the recipe, I'd recommend scaling it up to 3gal at least. My EFF was higher than my projected 77% so the ABV pulled up to 8 instead of the 7.6ish. I was also surprised at the loss to the dryhops but then again I've never put that much dryhop in any of my beers yet. I lost almost an entire 12oz bottle to absorption.

I'll be brewing it again, that's for sure.

Calichusetts -

Any chance you'd share your IIPA recipe? I'm a huge fan of English malts (especially their crystal malts). I'm not a huge IPA/IIPA guy, but I do enjoy a good one every now and then - not to mention they're fun to brew!

I need to figure out how to put recipes into my little dropbox by my user name, figuring out where I posted the recipe for LIVID took longer than I thought.




ALSO!

Another huge thanks goes out to Rave808 (and whoever else, I can only recall Rave808 so I appologise to those I've forgot) who mentioned the Domino sugar dots for bottle carbonation. LIVID was the first I've bottled with this method and the carbonation came out GREAT! If the rest of the bottles are as good as the first one I'll be using this method exclusively for bottle carbing in the future.

Hey sumbrewindude, you've been rockin this forum and I wish I could try some of the brews you come up with. What did you ultimately pick for domino sugar dots? I feel like I remember you got the wrong size at first.

Have a 2-gallon kolsch extract in the Mr beer fermenter and a 1-gallon all grain chocolate stout in a one gallon glass jug. Got the recipe from this kick-ass book that every 1-gallon brewer should check out - its called "Beer Craft." I'll let you all know if the recipe is any good but so far the rest of the book seems legit.

(Sorry for double-post - it screwed up the first time.)

 

[sumbrewindude]

Hey A_Power!

Yeah, I did screw up the sugar cube thing the first go around (don't get the pink box from C&H!). I DID find the right cubes from Domino at a different grocery store, and they're the only ones that Domino makes that I could find. The box is tall/skinny and has 196ish "dots" in it, just little sugar cubes - and they fit into a bottle mouth PERFECTLY. You can drop them in with no resistance at all, so if your cube doesn't fit, it's the wrong one!

Man I'm just having too much fun brewing. Truth be told I'm behind the ball - I've got two recipies sitting currently because dummy me bought two 3gal recipies and no 1.5gal recipes this go around. I was supposed to brew my first 3gal over the holiday weekend, but got stalled out with equipment issues. Dang Murphy!

I've got so many recipies already, from the web, from the forum, and from other 1gal brewers in this thread! Can't beat that at all. I keep meaning to get a few books, Radical Brewing is high on the list, along with Wild Brews.

If you like that book, I've heard that Brooklyn Brew Shop has a book with 1gal recipes also - I read a lot of positive things from those guys/gals for beers. That might be one to check out too!

 

[Broham1]

D-USA
I did almost the same thing on my 4th beer too. FG was at 1.060 when I was supposed to be at 1.075.

Finished cooling it of, made sure it was mixed thoroughly and took my FG reading. Was supposed to be 1.057 and ended up with 1.046.

I think you guys mean OG/SG, not FG. FG is what you measure *after* fermentation, hence *final* gravity.

Trying to be helpful, not nitpicky, as it could lead to a lot of confusion down the road.

 

[Broham1]

Finished cooling it of, made sure it was mixed thoroughly and took my FG reading. Was supposed to be 1.057 and ended up with 1.046.

D-USA
I did almost the same thing on my 4th beer too. FG was at 1.060 when I was supposed to be at 1.075.

I think you guys mean OG/SG, not FG. FG is what you measure *after* fermentation, hence *final* gravity.

Trying to be helpful, not nitpicky, as it could lead to a lot of confusion down the road.

 

[d-usa]

It was in fact OG.

That's what you get when you have a homebrew while brewing...

 

[Broham1]

It was in fact OG.

That's what you get when you have a homebrew while brewing...

If that's the only mistake you made, you're lucky!

 

[d-usa]

Well, I did end up with a OG that was 10 points too low, so there were a couple mistakes!

Gave a 2.5 gallon batch a try today. I think that is going to be the maximum size I can do without moving my operation to the garage. I can just fit the pot in my oven to keep the mash at the correct temperature for BIAB, and my fancy oven is boiling the 5 gallon pot at a reasonable level. Any bigger and it would probably take too long to boil and I wouldn't get a good rolling boil.

So lots of 1 gallon batches to try stuff out, and 2.5 gallon batches for the stuff I like!

 

[Avocado_Power]

Hey A_Power!

Yeah, I did screw up the sugar cube thing the first go around (don't get the pink box from C&H!). I DID find the right cubes from Domino at a different grocery store, and they're the only ones that Domino makes that I could find. The box is tall/skinny and has 196ish "dots" in it, just little sugar cubes - and they fit into a bottle mouth PERFECTLY. You can drop them in with no resistance at all, so if your cube doesn't fit, it's the wrong one!

Man I'm just having too much fun brewing. Truth be told I'm behind the ball - I've got two recipies sitting currently because dummy me bought two 3gal recipies and no 1.5gal recipes this go around. I was supposed to brew my first 3gal over the holiday weekend, but got stalled out with equipment issues. Dang Murphy!

I've got so many recipies already, from the web, from the forum, and from other 1gal brewers in this thread! Can't beat that at all. I keep meaning to get a few books, Radical Brewing is high on the list, along with Wild Brews.

If you like that book, I've heard that Brooklyn Brew Shop has a book with 1gal recipes also - I read a lot of positive things from those guys/gals for beers. That might be one to check out too!

I bet several marketing folks at Domino's are scratching their heads. They're probably used to having little old ladies as their primary shopping demographic (sugar cubes for tea/coffee). Not sure they even know about the homebrewers yet. I am definitely picking up a box next time I'm at the grocery store. Thanks!

I will check out BBS book and also look into those other two books. Anyone else on this thread come across some useful homebrew books (other than Joy of Homebrewing or How to Brew)? I particularly liked Beer Craft's emphasis on 1-gallon batches.

 

[BigRock947]

I bet several marketing folks at Domino's are scratching their heads. They're probably used to having little old ladies as their primary shopping demographic (sugar cubes for tea/coffee). Not sure they even know about the homebrewers yet. I am definitely picking up a box next time I'm at the grocery store. Thanks!

I will check out BBS book and also look into those other two books. Anyone else on this thread come across some useful homebrew books (other than Joy of Homebrewing or How to Brew)? I particularly liked Beer Craft's emphasis on 1-gallon batches.

Ray Daniel's Designing Great Beers is a must have IMO...its my go to book when I'm working on a new recipe.

 

[jgarretson]

Are you guys buying the Domino cubes or tablets? The web says text cubes have 198 per 1lb box and the tablets have 96 per 1lb box.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[Owly055]

After my initial complaints as far as the ****ty spigot, I contacted the company and they promptly responded that they were considering enlarging the hole to use the standard brew bucket spigot........... Which suggests that I'm hardly the first customer to complain. I didn't ask for an "adjustment" or replacement. I also proposed moving the fermentation lock to the lid.......... and their response was that if I made beers that typically had a high krausen, I should use a blow off tube...... a good suggestion, but still the bubbler sticks down too far as far as I'm concerned.......... something that can be corrected simply by drilling a hole in the lid.

My first beer in the Demon is one I call "red victory" with 2 row, melanodin, and victory, hopped with Magnum and Willamett and dry hopped also. The trub has settled nicely into the cone at almost exactly the right level. The trub line is about half an inch below the opening of the spigot so there will be very little waste. A big issue with small batches like this. The diameter at this point is about 5" my math shows that this represents only about 6 oz of beer.......... not bad at all!

H.W.

Today was a brew day......... I did a 2.5 gallon brew and put it in the Demon. While sloshing the Demon out with starsan, I noticed it was leaking......... Traced the leak to the valve assembly, pulled the valve out, and discovered that the threaded shank had broken! I had hand tightened it.... not excessively....... about like I have other spigots, but the shank had broken off and I had trash it.

Fortunately I had just emptied my 6 gallon brew bucket full of kombucha, so I robbed the standard brew bucket valve from it. The shank was much larger, so I whittled the hole out using my scalpel........ The nut on the inside just barely fit, but it works fine. I didn't have anything else but the 6 gallon brew bucket I could put it in.

I'm sitting here listening to the sweet sound of a bubbler percolating away..... I gave this batch a "heavy pitch" from the yeast I'd harvested from the krausen of my last batch, and it took off immediately........ I did make a starter about 4 hours before I put the brew in the fermenter.

The cone bottom looks just about right........the trub is going to just about fill it..... It's above the spigot at the moment, but by the time it's fermented out, it should be at the proper level.

VERY THIN PLASTIC TANK.......... is a problem of sorts. You don't want to squeeze or handle it, as it will push lots of air out the bubbler......... and in my case, it swallowed some starsan......... not a problem, just an irritant.

Problem #3 is the location of the fermentation lock......... Instead of being in the lid, it's on the top of the tank toward the outer edge........... This location puts the cork down within 1.5" of the top of the liquid (2.5 gallons)......... where if it was in the lid there would be an additional inch. The potential for krausen to push up into the bubbler exists...... Before I use it again, I'll drill the lid.

Note that the lid gasket is an option that comes with the bubbler kit. Their intent is to simply allow pressure to escape through the threads....... There is a plug for this hole, and if necessary, I'll simply loosen the lid and plug the hole if the krausen gets too close.

H.W.

 

[BikerBrewer]

After my initial complaints as far as the ****ty spigot, I contacted the company and they promptly responded that they were considering enlarging the hole to use the standard brew bucket spigot........... Which suggests that I'm hardly the first customer to complain. I didn't ask for an "adjustment" or replacement. I also proposed moving the fermentation lock to the lid.......... and their response was that if I made beers that typically had a high krausen, I should use a blow off tube...... a good suggestion, but still the bubbler sticks down too far as far as I'm concerned.......... something that can be corrected simply by drilling a hole in the lid.

My first beer in the Demon is one I call "red victory" with 2 row, melanodin, and victory, hopped with Magnum and Willamett and dry hopped also. The trub has settled nicely into the cone at almost exactly the right level. The trub line is about half an inch below the opening of the spigot so there will be very little waste. A big issue with small batches like this. The diameter at this point is about 5" my math shows that this represents only about 6 oz of beer.......... not bad at all!

H.W.

I bought a Demon several months back and had bought a second one shortly after that, I've never had a problem with the valve on either one yet. I guess I must be lucky, I've done about 20 plus brews with them so far, like you said very little loss of brew with them. I really like mine but I'm going to be keeping an eye on the valves from now on.

 

[Owly055]

Did you get brown or clear? I initially ordered the brown, then realized that there was a clear option and had them change the order.......... In fact, I bottle in clear bottles as well..... I like to see the beer!

H.W.

I bought a Demon several months back and had bought a second one shortly after that, I've never had a problem with the valve on either one yet. I guess I must be lucky, I've done about 20 plus brews with them so far, like you said very little loss of brew with them. I really like mine but I'm going to be keeping an eye on the valves from now on.

 

[sumbrewindude]

Are you guys buying the Domino cubes or tablets? The web says text cubes have 198 per 1lb box and the tablets have 96 per 1lb box.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

Cubes - 198 sounds about right for the number, they should be about 4g per cube.

All this talk of conicals is really not helping my desire to get one.

 

[KindofBlues71]

Ray Daniel's Designing Great Beers is a must have IMO...its my go to book when I'm working on a new recipe.

Brewing Classic Styles is a good book, and I just picked up Radical Brewing. I'm really looking forward to the American Sours book that's coming out soon.

And speaking of Brewing Classic Styles, does anyone have tips/tricks for resizing the recipes to 1 gallon? The recipes all start with 7 gallons, 6 in the fermenter and 5 gallons for bottling/kegging.

Sent from my KFSOWI using Home Brew mobile app

 

[bford]

Link to a thread about a cool kickstarter.... that IF it works, would be awesome for small batch brewers!

If it works, I'll be picking up one for sure.

and here's the Kickstarter for the BrewOmeter.

 

[Avocado_Power]

Link to a thread about a cool kickstarter.... that IF it works, would be awesome for small batch brewers!

If it works, I'll be picking up one for sure.

and here's the Kickstarter for the BrewOmeter.

Wow that would be so awesome. I see why you put "if" in caps though...they're still a long way off

 

[Avocado_Power]

Did you get brown or clear? I initially ordered the brown, then realized that there was a clear option and had them change the order.......... In fact, I bottle in clear bottles as well..... I like to see the beer!

H.W.

Hi Owly and Biker Brewer (and anyone else with the demon conical fermenters) - is there any word on when the company might come out with an updated design that takes into account user feedback? I'm so tempted to get one but could wait if a new model is just around the corner...thanks!

 

[Avocado_Power]

Thanks to everyone who chimed in with book recommendations! Here's a list of what people have collectively recommended, complete with links to publishers' sites:

Beer Craft
Brooklyn Brew Shop
Radical Brewing
Wild Brews
Designing Great Beers

 

[Avocado_Power]

Thanks to everyone who chimed in with book recommendations! Here's a list of what people have collectively recommended, complete with links to publishers' sites:

Beer Craft
Brooklyn Brew Shop
Radical Brewing
Wild Brews
Designing Great Beers

Whoops, left one out:
Brewing Classic Styles

 

[bford]

So.... people bottling with Domino sugar cubes... how many do you use per bottle on average? (though I've had no trouble bottling with corn sugar..) Still, the ease of dropping in a cube.

 

[BikerBrewer]

Hi Owly and Biker Brewer (and anyone else with the demon conical fermenters) - is there any word on when the company might come out with an updated design that takes into account user feedback? I'm so tempted to get one but could wait if a new model is just around the corner...thanks!

I didn't hear about an upgrade untill reading the posts here so I don't know when. I'm very happy with mine so far and that upgrade would be nice.

 

[sumbrewindude]

A_Power - That book list looks great, though unless you're specifically interested in sours or chasing wild yeast, you could probably drop the Wild Brews. It's fairly focused on that topic. I've got it on my list because, well, I'm just goofy like that (American Sour's is another on my list eventually, but they're both under that main list).

BFord - one 4g cube per bottle, that should work out to around 2.2/bottle. I've been happy with the carb so far, but if you like really carbonated beer you might be disappointed.

 

[MrBrown]

Brooklyn Brew shop should be coming out with a new book in May. Keep an eye out for it.



I Brewed with my dad for the first time yesterday and wanted to show him how fermentation was going. A picture turned into a video then turned into a small production.