Brew Pot Questions

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JonnyO

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Greetings all. I have a couple of questions concerning brew pots and brew volumes. I've only brewed 2 batches thus far and have gotten by with a 3-gal ceramic coated brew pot. I've been following True Brew kit instructions and only boiling about 1.5 gal. of wort and then diluting up to 5 gal.

1. Can someone give me a quick easy breakdown of the benefits of larger volume boils. It seems as most experinced brewers brew their complete volumes.

2. I also own a turkey fryer kit with a large pot which I assume is aluminum. I've heard conflicting opinions on whether aluminum will add bad flavors to the brew. One thread I read (sorry I don't remember who said it) suggested that "an aluminum brew pot shouldn't affect your beer if it's prepared properly." Can someone explain what "properly preparing" an aluminum pot refers to, and also give advise on the brew pots (keeping in mind that I can't afford a large SS pot right now).

Thanks for the help, I'm just trying to absorb as much information as I go.
 
Can someone explain what "properly preparing" an aluminum pot refers to
The aluminum pot will develop an oxide coating that forms a barrier between the aluminum and the wort. If you have a brand-new, bright and shiny pot then boil some water in it to get that coating. Don't scrub the coating off.

There are differing opinions, as you mention, and you can read a discussion here:

FAQ: Aluminum Pots for Boil Kettles?

I use aluminum.

Rick
 
Larger boils allow for better hop utilization and makes it easier to make a lighter color beer. Also, it's a necessity for all-grain brewing.

Aluminum is fine. The argument for/against it is ongoing, but it's okay to use. Trust me, I'm a scientist.
 
Full boils give you better hop utilization, less of the so called extract twang & keep your brew lighter in color due to reduced caramalization.
If you go to full boils you will most likely need or want a wort chiller to cool it down in a reasonable time frame.

Tons of people use aluminum pots, I have used one in the past & could not tell the difference at all.
As far as oxidizing the aluminum pot, i think you just boil some water in it and the oxide layer will start to form, I would go ahead and brew in it after that, your first batch of wort will finish the oxide layer off nicely & you wont be able to even tell.
 

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