1-Gallon Brewers UNITE!

[Opiate42]

Nobody does secondaries any more (well, some of us old farts do!)

I do!!!! I'm a new fart, been brewing for just shy of 2 years now

 

[markb91]

I use a secondary as well and siphon with a muslin bag on siphon. My friends hate how clean/clear beer gets (they only primary.)

 

[Oberon67]

Today I used some of my new Briess 2-row and put up another gallon batch of beer. This was a brown ale; I used the following:

2 quarts of 2-row
4 oz. (volume) of Caramel 120
1 tsp. US Goldings (5.1% alpha) each at 60, 40, 20, and 5

(Can you tell I don't own a kitchen scale? )

Although I had lightly ground the 2-row in a little Krupp coffee grinder prior to mashing, I did not sufficiently break up the grain and I was dissatisfied with the extraction... my wort was too light. So I added about 1/2 cup of light corn syrup and 1/2 cup of table sugar. Original gravity came out to 1.069. It would have been higher... the initial reading was 1.090... but I did not have a 1-gallon jug to ferment in, so I split the batch between two 2-liter soda bottles, and added just a bit of water to cut the headspace.

Pitched out of my little half-pint colony of US-05. We will see tomorrow if it took off. Meanwhile I've got to pick up another gallon jug or two...

 

[banks741938]

I've been doing a lot of research to find the best priced kits including shipping online and think I may have found one. Just want to know if anybody else has used them before. They are perrys brewer. Here is the link https://perrysbrewer.com . I like northern Brewers kits and brooklyns kits just really hate buying a kit for $14ish. And turning around and paying $7.99 for shipping. Perrys has free shipping and kits have grain bag and caps. There also on eBay to. Thanks guys!!!

 

[markb91]

Do you guys have milling techniques? Or do you only use a mill? My LBHS wants to charge me to use their equipment and I believe that's absurd.

 

[fuzzy2133]

Do you guys have milling techniques? Or do you only use a mill? My LBHS wants to charge me to use their equipment and I believe that's absurd.

If you are getting grain from them yes it is absurd! I have the cheap corona mill and it works ok. Beats using a blender or rolling pin.

 

[jimdkc]

I do!!!! I'm a new fart, been brewing for just shy of 2 years now

I use a secondary as well and siphon with a muslin bag on siphon. My friends hate how clean/clear beer gets (they only primary.)

When I started brewing, everybody almost always did secondaries.

I think I've seen "No need to secondary!" almost as much as "Why don't you just brew 5 gallons?"

 

[Oberon67]

Pitched out of my little half-pint colony of US-05. We will see tomorrow if it took off.

...and today both Pepsi 2-liters were bubbling away like mad.

I think I'm going to enjoy this batch.

 

[Oberon67]

Oh, hey, fuzzy2133 and Calichusetts... With my barleywine, do I need to rack into a secondary fermenter and keep it there for a few months, or can I just prime and bottle it after a month or so in the primary?

So since I added the amylase week before last, this batch has been steadily churning away with obvious yeast action. It's been about six weeks on the primary now, and I'm wondering how long it's going to take to settle down.

I understand the rules are different for big beers, and patience is called for. I believe it.

 

[Sharkbrewingco]

If you are getting grain from them yes it is absurd! I have the cheap corona mill and it works ok. Beats using a blender or rolling pin.

I am thinking about getting a mill (Cereal Killer) also. Some recipes require grain that I can't get from my LHBS. Problem is that I need to buy at least a pound while my recipe requires ounces. I know I can substitute grains, but will the beer be the same. Also with the mill, I can buy the grain now. Then mill and brew at a later date if need be.

 

[jimdkc]

I am thinking about getting a mill (Cereal Killer) also. Some recipes require grain that I can't get from my LHBS. Problem is that I need to buy at least a pound while my recipe requires ounces. I know I can substitute grains, but will the beer be the same. Also with the mill, I can buy the grain now. Then mill and brew at a later date if need be.

Yeah... I'm seriously considering pulling the trigger on a Barley Crusher (BeerSmith.com has a pretty good deal on them!)

Small quantities of grains will keep much longer un-crushed. I'm also considering buying a 55 lb. sack of base grain for a long SMaSH series (thinking maybe Vienna!)

 

[Sharkbrewingco]

Yeah... I'm seriously considering pulling the trigger on a Barley Crusher (BeerSmith.com has a pretty good deal on them!)

Small quantities of grains will keep much longer un-crushed. I'm also considering buying a 55 lb. sack of base grain for a long SMaSH series (thinking maybe Vienna!)

My LHBS has the mill I'm considering for about $100. I'm going to look at it before purchasing it. I am also thinking about adapting it to a smaller 2 gallon bucket since I will only milling a small amount. I currently buy grain for 3 batches of beer. Sometimes I don't get to that 3rd one for some time. Like you said maybe by milling my own, the grain will stay fresher. I can't recall at the moment, but I seen where you can buy in 10 lb. increments.

 

[Sharkbrewingco]

I am curious to know if any one who brews 1-2.5 gallon batches uses a burner or stove top?

 

[jimdkc]

I was at Costco the other day and the bakery there gave me a couple of buckets: a 2-gallon bucket that will probably become a fermenter or a bottling bucket, and a 4-1/4-gallon bucket which I think will become my grain milling bucket. It's the same diameter as a 5- or 6.5- gallon bucket, but considerably shorter.

 

[jimdkc]

I am curious to know if any one who brews 1-2.5 gallon batches uses a burner or stove top?

I've done a one 1-gallon stove top brew, but it was about 5 years ago! It was my Avenue Irish Ale (recipe a few pages back!) It came out great!

I'm planning on another 1-gallon stove top brew soon... I have the ingredients, but I want to build a temperature controller for a mini-fridge for fermenting first!

 

[badlee]

@sharkbrewingco
I will use my cooker(stove top) for anything under 3 gallons if 1) I am not in a hurry,or 2) the weather is not too cool.
We do not have gas lines in the houses here in Thailand, so when I do chooses to use the big burner,I just disconnect the cooker from the gas bottle and hook the burner up.

 

[Oberon67]

I am curious to know if any one who brews 1-2.5 gallon batches uses a burner or stove top?

I use all three of my wife's stock pots, her good stainless strainer (the medium-sized one, which nests perfectly in the mouth of the tallest stock pot) and our gas stove in the kitchen.

 

[banks741938]

I've been doing a lot of research to find the best priced kits including shipping online and think I may have found one. Just want to know if anybody else has used them before. They are perrys brewer. Here is the link https://perrysbrewer.com . I like northern Brewers kits and brooklyns kits just really hate buying a kit for $14ish. And turning around and paying $7.99 for shipping. Perrys has free shipping and kits have grain bag and caps. There also on eBay to. Thanks guys!!!

Guess no one has used these guys before.... Seems like a great deal. I'm gonna try them out

 

[ickmund]

I recently bought a couple of 5L carboys, and have brewed with BIAB to fill them. It's all been going great, and I love the 2½-3h brew days, but there's one thing that bugs me, and that's all the sediment I end up with in the bottom of the carboy.

I mill pretty fine since doing BIAB, and on bigger batches I don't really care. When I do 10L batches, I use a 15L bucket. For 20L batches, I use a 30L bucket. Grain flour can tag along all it wants, plenty of space! But I want to maximize what I get out of those 5L carboys.

Any techniques to counter this?

I've been considering letting the already chilled kettle sit for an hour or two, sealed up as well as I can do it, to let everything settle out. It'd push the limits on brewing on a weekday after work thou, I'd probably end up pitching around midnight, and then have some cleaning up to do. Could it sit in the kettle over night maybe? Or is that pushing it in terms of possible infections?

 

[Calichusetts]

I am curious to know if any one who brews 1-2.5 gallon batches uses a burner or stove top?

I have no issues doing my 3.5 gallon batches on my stove top. I actually have to turn down the heat once it starts to boil as its a little too vigorous. I use a megapot so that almost all the pot is on the element.

 

[Kirkwooder]

I am curious to know if any one who brews 1-2.5 gallon batches uses a burner or stove top?

My stove top has a power burner that I have brewed 5 gallon batches on. One of the reasons I like these smaller batches is the fact that I can easily do them on the stove in bad weather.

 

[Daveyg]

Gonna take a stab at brewin this weekend, got two one gallon kits for Christmas.

 

[phug]

I've been doing a lot of research to find the best priced kits including shipping online and think I may have found one. Just want to know if anybody else has used them before. They are perrys brewer. Here is the link https://perrysbrewer.com . I like northern Brewers kits and brooklyns kits just really hate buying a kit for $14ish. And turning around and paying $7.99 for shipping. Perrys has free shipping and kits have grain bag and caps. There also on eBay to. Thanks guys!!!

If you're in canada, noblehop.com does one gallon recipe kits for 10.99 including caps. Bags too I think

 

[banks741938]

If you're in canada, noblehop.com does one gallon recipe kits for 10.99 including caps. Bags too I think

These kits are very similar. They have grains bag caps and priming sugar.

 

[fuzzy2133]

So since I added the amylase week before last, this batch has been steadily churning away with obvious yeast action. It's been about six weeks on the primary now, and I'm wondering how long it's going to take to settle down.

I understand the rules are different for big beers, and patience is called for. I believe it.

IF you have enough volume to fill a secondary i would do it IMO. Just wait for a stable FG so most of the yeast and trub has dropped out.

 

[Sharkbrewingco]

Guess no one has used these guys before.... Seems like a great deal. I'm gonna try them out

If you order 3 kits from Brooklyn, I believe shipping is free.

 

[banks741938]

If you order 3 kits from Brooklyn, I believe shipping is free.

Didn't know that I'll have to check it out

 

[fuzzy2133]

I am curious to know if any one who brews 1-2.5 gallon batches uses a burner or stove top?

3 gallons is the most I do on the stove top. Even then I don't get a decent boil going with 18,000 BTU's. However I am using a cheap stock pot from the commercial kitchen store. I'll have to check its size compared to a mega pot.

 

[Oberon67]

IF you have enough volume to fill a secondary i would do it IMO. Just wait for a stable FG so most of the yeast and trub has dropped out.

It's still visibly fermenting... I'm watching the bubbles... but I can cold-crash it if need be in order to rack to secondary.

 

[BarkingSpider]

This looks like a nice add-on for small batch brewing. I'm not too fond of the 2 gallon buckets (air leaks), and the 1 gallon jars (no head-space), so these would probably solve both issues. Negative being more pricey than both: http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/small-batch-big-beers-booster-pack.html