Best System for Beginners

[callisbeers]

My father is interested in starting to brew and has asked me to do some research on what would be best for him. At his age, he does not want to do a lot of heavy lifting so I was thinking of some all in one systems or kettle/mash/HLT with separate conical fermentor. Any thoughts or suggestions?

 

[Bellybuster]

sounds like BIAB is the way forward for Dad.
If you're not into DIY I would look at Grainfather, BrewBoss and Colorado Brewing systems. All have a small footprint and are simple to operate. There are others as well but these came to mind

 

[brewshki]

what is his price range?

 

[TexasDroughtBrewery]

My father is interested in starting to brew and has asked me to do some research on what would be best for him. At his age, he does not want to do a lot of heavy lifting so I was thinking of some all in one systems or kettle/mash/HLT with separate conical fermentor. Any thoughts or suggestions?

This is really going to depend on your budget, all in one system can be VERY pricey. Whats your price point? I am thinking grainfather is a good choice.

 

[Gnomebrewer]

IMO the heaviest item to lift is the fermenter when it's full of wort or beer. So, the biggest consideration would be having a space that he could brew where he could pump the wort into a fermenter that is already in the fermentation chamber/fridge/freezer (if you're using one, which you should). Again at the end of fermentation, he'd want to be able to bottle or keg directly from the fermentation chamber.

So, thinking about the entire brewing area and process may be as, if not more, important than the actual brewing system.

5 gal batches with BIAB involve lifting somewhere around 10kg (22lbs) of wet grain in the bag (a rough estimate, I'm guessing a bit). If that's too heavy, you could rig up a pulley lift or go with a cooler mash tun on a tilting bench to tip out spent grain.

 

[callisbeers]

Price range would be up to 3K.

 

[Yooper]

Price range would be up to 3K.

At my age, if I was doing it all over I would either go with a 1-2 gallon stove top (cheap) system, or go with a Picobrew.

Lifting is getting harder and harder for me, but I am a 135 pound weakling. I make 10 gallon batches, and brewdays can be pretty brutal for me, even with a tippy dump, and some pumps.

 

[Bellybuster]

If I had that money I'd be looking at a 20 litre braumeister.

 

[brewshki]

I think it would be helpful to know what extent he would be willing to do heavy lifting. Being able to lift 5 gallons of wort once is much different than going to a small system. I use a basic cooler system with cinder blocks as a brew stand and no pump. I have to lift my HLT, full kettle from the ground to my burner, and then carry the full carboy inside and into the chest freezer. There are lots of ways to avoid this, but it could be system dependent. What size batch does he want to do?

 

[AZCoolerBrewer]

Sounds like budget isn't so important, so the new question after that is how hands on does he want to be. Yooper's suggestion, the Picobrew, is set it and forget it based on the advertising, but certainly has its limitations. For 3k you can get a f***load of equipment if you want to do everything manually. You could probably even pay workers to make your brew for you with that kind of skrilla.

 

[CA_Mouse]

At my age, if I was doing it all over I would either go with a 1-2 gallon stove top (cheap) system, or go with a Picobrew.

At your age? Remember Yooper, I'm older than you.

Lifting is getting harder and harder for me, but I am a 135 pound weakling. I make 10 gallon batches, and brewdays can be pretty brutal for me, even with a tippy dump, and some pumps.

That is what the other half is for. Or in my case the 22 year old and his younger sisters (never under estimate the combined will of 2 tweenage girls when they get promised ice cream).

 

[slym2none]

For 3K, I can make a Rube Goldberg device that will lift, pour, move, & brew everything. It might only work once, but I could do it!

 

[CA_Mouse]

For $3k I'd be looking at the Grainfather. As for moving fermenters and kegs around, one of the hydraulic lift tables from Harbor Freight would help in that area. Conical on wheels would be another option.

 

[Rhumbline]

It also depends on what level of technology he's comfortable with. The automated systems are great, I have a BrewBoss and I'm very happy with it but it might not be all that intuitive. It is great from the standpoint of being a one container system right up to fermentation. You could add a conical fermenter and be set, with a small footprint and no lifting.

Would he be comfortable with a tablet based system, or simple switches for pumps, heater, etc?

 

[wilserbrewer]

How about a little 4-5 gallon BIAB kettle on the stove for 2-3 gallon batches, sort of like training wheels. He can get a feel for what it is all about and decide if he is interested in a more advanced all in one type system. Cost is almost nothing, and reselling it would be about half of almost nothing.

I'm a believer in starting basic and growing in the direction you see fit.

 

[Yooper]

At your age? Remember Yooper, I'm older than you.



That is what the other half is for. Or in my case the 22 year old and his younger sisters (never under estimate the combined will of 2 tweenage girls when they get promised ice cream).

Oh, yes, that's right! And you're as scrawny as I am too!

I don't have any local grunts to lift heavy things for me anymore- my 23 year old moved to Atlanta, and my 26 year old is too much of a "girl" to even attempt lifting anything.

Bob does help when he's around, but he's 60 and scrawny as well. He can lift heavy things, though.

 

[wilserbrewer]

At my age, if I was doing it all over I would either go with a 1-2 gallon stove top (cheap) system, or go with a Picobrew.

1-2 gallon batches? So you would brew twice a day? lol

 

[Yooper]

1-2 gallon batches? So you would brew twice a day? lol

Have you seen the Picobrew though? It's cool- set it all up, and it ends up fermenting in a keg. The only thing you have to move is the keg when it's time to serve. Maybe someday that is the direction I'll go, or whatever else is available when "someday" arrives.

 

[m00ps]

For 3K, I can make a Rube Goldberg device that will lift, pour, move, & brew everything. It might only work once, but I could do it!

Or at least would make a great I Spy spread

 

[TexasDroughtBrewery]

Yeah you can get a grainfather all in one system and get a nice fermentator on wheels that you can pump the beer into... I think that's the route I would go.

 

[callisbeers]

Thanks for all the advice and questions. I will speak with my dad and see what his answers are to these questions.

 

[aprichman]

5 gallon kettle that's been converted to to an all electric BIAB setup for 2.5 gallon batches. Ferment in a 3 gallon carboy and bottle a case (~24 bottles). Great for a single person or a couple who don't drink a ton.

 

[iglehart]

I brew 2.5 to 3.0 Gallon beers. Cuts down on the weight

 

[aprichman]

I brewed all grain 2.5 gallon batches on my stove top and I loved it. My setup was pretty wonky with a 4 gallon boil kettle/HLT, a 7.5 gallon mash tun, and a 2 gallon pot to catch my first runnings from the mash tun.

I still run a slightly wonky "2.5" vessel setup, but now I have a 10 gallon boil kettle/HLT, the same mash tun, and a 5 gallon pot to catch the 1st runnings.