5 gallons is too much!

[rklinck]

JonM mentioned that recipes can be scaled (not inherently obvious with anything that involves chemical processes) and one person mentioned a place to buy equipment the remaining 2 pages - 2 posts just made snide unhelpful comments about how absurd it is to think 5 gallons is too much.

Okay, half the comments were gentle and compassionate and friendly and not "snide". But they still approached the problem by discussing what wasn't pertenant and trying to change the OP's opinion rather than simply answering the question asked.

Answering direct questions should always com first.

Discussing opinions and positing alternative point of view second.

Insisting an OP readjust his opinion to suit yours never.


Why? The OP *clearly* said he didn't want to and that he felt it was too much. What he *did* ask for was how to cut the extracts down. For which there is a simple, unambiguous, and utterly undisputed answer: scale the ingredients.

Opinions as to 5 gallons *is* the right amount are irrelevant.

I generally don't like to get into debates about what is the "proper" behavior, but you really need to relax my man. The OP clearly expressed that he thought that 5 gallons was too much because he does not drink that much and was worried that he would get bored with a single beer. Now, many of us attempted to point out that this was false logic because he would not be limited to a single beer. He seemed to be assuming that the typical brewer makes one batch, then waits until he finishes all of the beers from that batch before drinking beers from the next batch. We attempted to point out that this is not the case.

As for your suggestion that we should answer the question first, I disagree. If the premise seems flawed, pointing that out is actually MORE helpful than simply answering the question.

 

[rklinck]

But, jeez, I get so tired of people who insist that their way is the only way and that they're only trying to help people who think differently that they might be wrong.

5 gallons is two cases of beer and two cases of beer is a *lot* for a single person to drink. If a person says that *he* will get tired of a beer after half a case than *that* person will get tired of a beer after half a case. Take his word for it. *He*'s the one who lives in his body and knows what it does and doesn't do. Not us.

I understand that we should not force our views on people, but from personal experience, I know his concern may not be well founded. When I first started brewing, I did not drink much at all. It was more about me wanting to encourage my family and friends to drink at my house rather than going out (I somehow thought I would save money that way ). AT that point, the idea of 2 cases of beer seemed like a TON to me. Now, on the other hand, I pretty much have a pint every night and will have two or maybe three some weekend nights. My wife is now pregnant, so I am drinking the beer almost by myself, and 5 gallons just doesn't seem like that much beer.

 

[chezhed]

edit: deleted defensive nasty reply to a comment of my original post of "two pages and no-one answered the OP's question" remark


5 gallons is two cases of beer and two cases of beer is a *lot* for a single person to drink.

Speak for yourself

 

[DrewschBag]

OP, I will say that I started out just like you. My first batch was 5 gallons, I got sick of it and found it hard to get rid of. I did a lot of things wrong on my first batch too. To me, scaling the ingredients was more work than brewing the 5 gallon batch. But there are plenty of people who do it.

As soon as you make a beer that you absolutely love, you will have no problem with making a 5 gallon batch. You'll find yourself so proud that you'll be handing bottles to the neighbors, the mailman, and anyone else.

I'm not trying to force you to make 5 gallons, but I will say that most of the information that is available to a first time brewer pushes you in that direction anyway.

 

[woozy]

Okay, I apoligize. Like I said I'm in a bad mood

So, if an OP says "how should I dispose of my beer, I didn't hit my exact FG"?, then you should first tell him where to dump it, and second give him the option to keep it and taste it and see how it is, but never tell him he's crazy for throwing away good beer? Doesn't make sense to me.

Well, that's more of a factual correction. The premise is that missing a FG makes an undrinkable beer and the "heart" of the problem is "I made a beer that missed the FG what do I do now" in which case the answer is "It's okay; missing a final gravity isn't a problem".

At the "heart" of this OP question is "I want to make smaller batches of beer; can I" in which case the answer is "yes you can" and as a secondary "but 5 gallons of beer might not be as much as you think". But that *is* secondary and it *is* opinion.

I think it's pretty clear that the guy is new to the hobby and uncertain. Most of us offering him alternative thoughts to his plight hardly seems detrimental to me. It's of an encouragement than anything else.

Yes, it can be but it can also be discouraging as though one's concerns are simply refused to acknowledged.

I generally don't like to get into debates about what is the "proper" behavior, but you really need to relax my man.

Yeah, I do.

The OP clearly expressed that he thought that 5 gallons was too much because he does not drink that much and was worried that he would get bored with a single beer. Now, many of us attempted to point out that this was false logic because he would not be limited to a single beer.

He would still have five gallons of a single beer which to his view is too much.

As for your suggestion that we should answer the question first, I disagree. If the premise seems flawed, pointing that out is actually MORE helpful than simply answering the question.

It depends on the context. But saying "I think five gallons is too much for me" is *NOT* a flawed premise. It's an opinion. And a valid one.

My point is that if there is a simple *correct* answer (*everyone* here knows that you can scale a five gallon recipe to one gallon) and legitimate albeit non-universal opinion, you should answer the question. If someone ask "How do I secondary" you should say "Well, if you really want to the instructions can be found" before you say "You don't need to secondary and I don't think you should so I'm not going to tell you how and instead tell you not to secondary and growl at you every time you bring the subject up again".

As any reference librarian knows (and far far too few tech support people) there's actually a lot to properly answering a question. There is, as you state, actually getting the question out when the asker might have misconceptions ("I need a book on carpentry to fix a toilet") but there's also leading the query ("I want info on two stroke engines" "Oh, no. Four stroke engines are better.")

I know most of us are trying to be helpful ("Oh, no. Trust us. You will *totally* love brewing 5 gallon brews *so* much more than 1 gallon batches. EVERYONE does") but it can *really* come of as arrogant and heavy-handed leading by the nose which nobody likes.

Anyway, like I said, I was in a bad mood. And I missed that some had answered the question early on so my comment "2 pages and no-one answered the question" wasn't valid after all.

 

[kingwood-kid]

2.5G batches are great in a lot of situations.

If you brew something that doesn't age well, like a DIPA, it's better to brew 1/2 batch and have it fresh.

If you brew something really strong, it may not be a great idea to have 5 gallons on hand. I might be unemployed if I had made 5 gallons of my Quad or my Imperial Stout.

If you're brewing something experimental (I do this frequently), it's easier to drink and/or dump 24 bottles of subpar beer than to pull the plug on 5 gallons of a failed idea. If the experiement is successful, you can always rebrew. Although it's never quite as good the second time.
T
I'm the only one in my house that drinks beer. 24 bottles may go pretty slowly, let alone 48. Brewing 2.5 gallons regularly allows me to have a huge variety available to me.

 

[Peppers16]

The best thing I ever did was get brewing software (like beersmith and brewtarget) and begin to tweak recipes around to the volumes I want to work with (in a slightly more controlled manor than simply scaling the recipe). It really opens up your options, from initially feeling a bit 'trapped' to 5 gallon batches when you're still following recipes to the letter.

I now use the BIAB method to produce batches of about 15-17L. For me, that one gallon less makes the difference between feeling 'swamped' by a beer, and having space for a couple of different beers on the go at once.

 

[ch1719]

Lot of great info here. Thanks everyone! I realize I can make more beer while I still have plenty from my first 5-gallon batch, but what about all those BOTTLES?? I can't imagine how many bottles I'd have to buy to have several batches going at once!

 

[freisste]

Lot of great info here. Thanks everyone! I realize I can make more beer while I still have plenty from my first 5-gallon batch, but what about all those BOTTLES?? I can't imagine how many bottles I'd have to buy to have several batches going at once!

Great question! It does take about fifty bottles to bottle your 5 gallons (assuming you use 12 oz bottles and brew 5 gallons - both of which are acceptable and by no means your only option). So several 5 gallon batches would take a couple hundred bottles. There is a plethora of ways to store those bottles including refrigerators and shelving to name a few. However, one thing to consider is that you will presumably be drinking from the first and second batch before the third, fourth, and fifth are ready to be bottled. So some of the bottles from the first batch will be ready to be reused. Also, it can save you some money (or at least is more economical) if instead of buying empty bottles for ~$1/ea, you buy full bottles for ~$1.50/ea. These are of course options for you to consider, I don't want my heavy-handed response to lead you around by the nose or anything. We technical people sometimes can't get our point across as well as librarians. Have a nice day.

 

[Malty_Dog]

Lot of great info here. Thanks everyone! I realize I can make more beer while I still have plenty from my first 5-gallon batch, but what about all those BOTTLES?? I can't imagine how many bottles I'd have to buy to have several batches going at once!

One way to quickly overcome a bottle deficit might be to have a "beer gathering" of sorts where several friends bring some beer and you might buy a case as well. You'd be surprised how many empties you'll get in your recycle bin. I was like you once, originally purchased 2 cases of empties from my LHBS. Once I started saving bottles, and mixed in a beer gathering, I'm up to over 8 cases of empties. Now I'm starting to get really choosy about which particular bottles I keep and which ones I recycle.

We can further advise on the de-labeling/cleaning/sanitizing process.

PS. - I'm also a huge fan of 2.5 or 3 gallon batches. You get more hands on experience brewing, and its a case or so at a time. An amount you can be mentally comfortable with. If one gets messed up, its easier/quicker to part with as well.

 

[Epimetheus]

Is there any easy way to cut down on the amount of beer brewed from these extracts? Thanks!

I don not drink that much, either. Do whatcha want. This hobby is graded on a curve.

Some people feel they MUST use a 5 gallon recipe to make exactly 5 gallons, or two whole cases. YOU paid for it. Break it down however you like. Heck, use a 5 gallon recipe to make a 3 gallon Imperial Stout. Make 5 one-gallon batches and vary the hops. Yeah!

Me, I like to make 2.432 gallon batches. Sometimes they come out terrible and I am glad I did not make 5 gallons of swill.

 

[glick]

I second buying bottles prefilled. Much more fun that way and gives you something to drink while your first batch ferments

 

[Yesfan]

Lot of great info here. Thanks everyone! I realize I can make more beer while I still have plenty from my first 5-gallon batch, but what about all those BOTTLES?? I can't imagine how many bottles I'd have to buy to have several batches going at once!

Like the others say, that's where going "store bought" will help as your first batch is fermenting. You can kill two birds with one stone going this route. 1- you are getting to sample some different beers to give you an idea on a style you might like to brew. 2- As your sampling these different beers, you're building your collection of empties as you go. It's win-win.

On another note, while I like 5 gallon batches, there's nothing wrong with scaling down either. You have to brew more often, but you gain more experience due to this, plus you'll build up your variety quicker too (depending on how fast you drink your batches).

The only downside I see to smaller batches, is the smaller kegs are more expensive, if you're kegging of course. There's no where the amount of used 2.5-3 gallon kegs as 5 gallon kegs in the used market. Besides that, smaller batches are easier on the wallet as the grain bill will be cheaper, smaller carboys will be (slightly) cheaper, and you don't have to spend as much on a big freezer/fridge unless you just want that many taps available (nothing wrong with that either).

 

[ChrisL_]

I started with 2.5 gallons batches. Very easy to cut most recipes I half. But now I find it feels like a lot of work with not enough payoff. Add the fact that I share a few bottles with friends and co-workers and I find it goes fast ( and I have one a night, sometimes two max) now I have two five gallon kegs that I use for full five gallon batches of recipes I know I like and can brew well. I then have a 2.5. Gallon keg and do half batches of new recipes and styles that I am not sure about.

 

[Tippsy-Turvy]

If you're happy with smaller batches and want to have the same variety of brews available to you as 5 gal brewers have then you should look into the storage aspect of your unused ingredients (yes, we're all aware stored unused ingredients are not as fresh).

Here are some links I kept for my own use when I brew smaller batches with my good 'ol Mr Beer keg:

Storing hops:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/storing-hops-393693/

Storing LME:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/liquid-malt-extract-381079/

Storing Crushed Grains:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/storing-crushed-grains-376396/

General Storage Guidelines:
http://www.northernbrewer.com/connect/2012/12/storing-ingredients/#more-7713

 

[Curtis2010]

Noticed that Austin Homebrew Supply carries some small batch kits...probably others do too.

Also if you want to nail the original recipe, but just smaller, this is easier to do w software because technically it is not a linear change (just dividing by 2 for example will still make beer but not quite the same as the original).

 

[Peppers16]

Re: bottles. For the first couple of batches I got a collection of plastic bottles from buying budget sparkling water. Then over the months I amassed a big enough collection of glass bottles to use them exclusively.

Supplying beer-drinkers with homebrew in exchange for their empties is a neat little method, as is filching them from other peoples' recycling boxes

I've also been known to buy multi-packs of non-alcoholic beer when they're on offer. You get all those bottles at a fraction of the cost of buying them empty! Plus having a guilt-free beer at lunch is a nice little bonus

 

[woozy]

this is easier to do w software because technically it is not a linear change (just dividing by 2 for example will still make beer but not quite the same as the original).

Yes, but 85% of the time this won't be significant. After all, the *recipe* itself is almost never quite the same as the "original" with amounts given not because they are the very best flavor or even precisely what the recipe writer used, but because the are the nearest unit measurements.

Most recipes don't even give the Alpha Acid Units of the hops. Making a 5 gallon batch with 19% AA rather than the "original"'s 16.3% is going to be more different than a 2 gallon batch with 2/5 of the 16.3% hops.

But, yes, you are correct that recipes aren't completely linear and software can help you fine tune and it's useful knowledge to understand how scaling works.

 

[woozy]

Re; Bottles.

Where is everyone getting the ~$1/bottle idea. My LHBS, which charges too much for everything, sells bottles for $12.50/24 case and most HBS's sellthem for less. ~$.50 /bottle I'd say.

Still that is a one way-money flow as they are only bottles. I've always fantasized but never dared going up to a homeless person with a shopping cart and offering 6 cents a bottle.

I have bought 3 cases of new bottles at $12.50 each. It's a one way money-flow, but it's cheap for the convenience of getting started. Once started between friends empties and re-using I practically never am for want. But to get started... meh, what's a $37.50 one-time investment.

 

[progmac]

i've scaled back a lot of my brewing to 2.5 gallons. it just makes sense. i love the 3 gallon carboys.

i will brew 5 gallons of a tried-and-true recipe.

i have enough beer that anything "just okay" sits around. i despise having 5 gallons of just okay bottled beer sitting around. the good stuff goes fast, whether it is 3 gallons or 5.

i don't give away my just okay beer, either, because i don't want to be judged by it. so it just sits there.

 

[codefox]

Make the 5 gallons and then ship half to me, I'll drink it 8)

 

[progmac]

I understand that we should not force our views on people, but from personal experience, I know his concern may not be well founded. .

"it's not that i want to force my views on you, it's just that your views are wrong."

 

[progmac]

Lot of great info here. Thanks everyone! I realize I can make more beer while I still have plenty from my first 5-gallon batch, but what about all those BOTTLES?? I can't imagine how many bottles I'd have to buy to have several batches going at once!

you'll have bottles coming out of your ears before you know it

 

[m3n00b]

you'll have bottles coming out of your ears before you know it

Indeed. In 3 months you'll have stacks of cases in your garage! Just throw a few parties where everyone has to bring pry off beers.

 

[BadWolfBrewing]

I've been doing AG 3 gallon batches for a couple years, due to space and electrical circuit limitations. As the beer kept getting better (and after I switched to kegging) the batch size now seems way too small. That is a LOT of work for 25-30 12 oz servings. I almost cried when my pilsener ran out. Switching to 5 / 10 gallon batches as soon as my stout-tanks order comes in.

If 3 gallons is what you want (I wouldn't do less) you don't need to buy kits, Either pick up a book (brewing classic styles is great, by JZ) and scale down recipes, or ask folks on the forum to help you create your own recipe.

 

[Nelrock]

I've got 10 gallons going right now :-D

 

[ch1719]

Love the idea of reusing bottles from beer I buy at the store. Probably a silly question, but is there an easy way to tell just by looking at the bottle in the store if it's a twist-off or pry-off?

 

[m3n00b]

Love the idea of reusing bottles from beer I buy at the store. Probably a silly question, but is there an easy way to tell just by looking at the bottle in the store if it's a twist-off or pry-off?

Yes. Look for a uniform bulge around the cap. Twist offs will have many smaller ones.

 

[J187]

I think the most important thing to take away from all the advice here is this:

When we started this hobby, probably 95% thought that making 5 gallons (48 bottles) of beer would prove to be a TON of beer. We all had visions of cases of yet-to-be-consumed beers piling up high over the months... most of us were excited about the prospect of having beers forever!

Then the overwhelming majority of us realized that 5 gallons isn't that much at all. It goes FAST! It's hard to understand BEFORE you actually start brewing. This is why we are offering alternative advice. I'd say 80%+ of the people on this site would admit to being shocked at how fast their beer goes. Friends, family, etc.

 

[J187]

Yes. Look for a uniform bulge around the cap. Twist offs will have many smaller ones.

And most domestic beer will be twist while a great deal of imported stuff are pop top.


You can also ask local bars and pubs and catch people returning bottles to a depot. Places that serve craft beer are nice because they typically have pop tops and very often they pour the beers into glasses.