Experience with half batches?

[monty3777]

Due to issues outside my control I won't be able to do an outdoor brew for several weeks. In order to get brewing I am contemplating doing a half batch on my stove top (can't fit my regular AG boil kettle on my stovetop or I'd do the whole thing). I am contemplating cutting the recipie in half and doing two different brew days. Here's my concern:

I have everything for a Bavairan Weizen but the wheat malt and the pilsner were crushed and put in the same bag at my LHBS. Should I worry that they won't be mixed together thouroughly enough to have a good result if I simply use half the content? Has anyone tried this?

Second, since I will use my regular Ale Pail will there be too much head space durning fermentation if there is only 2.5 gallons in the bucket? Can you see any problems with that much headspace?

I know I should just wait and do it all at once, but I'm itching to get going. Time to brew is here. Plus, if this works then I will be able to brew all year long!!! It's all mental :fro:

 

[pericles]

Don't worry about the headspace in the fermenter; plenty of breweries, Anchor included, ferment with no lid at all. In fact, I'm increasingly hearing that lids on fermenters put osmotic pressure on yeast that can inhibit fermentation.

If you're concerned about the size of your batch, and you're worried about splitting up your grain bills, maybe consider a no-sparge brew? Take the first-runnings from your mash as is - or even maybe add MORE grains - and then boil 2.5 gallons on the stove-top. Once you're done, add water until you reached your desired OG, which should be at about 4 gallons or so for a Weizen.

 

[Revvy]

There's a ton of threads on here for small batch brewing.

You can brew any sized batch you want. I do a lot of 2.5 gallon recipe test batches. You can even do 1 gallon AG brews. The basic brewing guys call that the six pack brew.

A recipe is scalable, so a 1 gallon recipe is 1/5th of a 5 gallon one....a 2.5 gallon one is half the ingredients.

2.5 gallons is one case of beer.

I use my normal 5 gallon mash tun for most of them, but I do a lot of Experiments, test recipes, or beers that I know I won't need/want more than a case of.

I sometimes use an unmodified 2 gallon cooler for a lot of my small btaches it holds up to 4 pounds of grain.

I just us a folding steamer in the bottom along with a grain bag. Just break off or unscrew the center post.

One of these, it helps to lift the grain bag above the spigot to keep the drainig from getting stuck.

I posted a lot of info in the mr beer thread that you may find helpful.

I posted some all grain small batchrecipes here, https://www.homebrewtalk.com/785533-post702.html

ANd a bit of a primer on AG with pics here https://www.homebrewtalk.com/738927-post659.html

But I mostly use my regular 5 gallon cooler mash tun which holds 14 pounds of grains...and 14 pounds of grain for a 2.5 gallon batch can be a mighty big beer.....


One of our memebers chubbykid had plans for a minikeg mashtun http://sites.google.com/site/chubbykidhomebrew/Home/equipment/mini-keg-lauter-tun

THe basic brewing radio guys are big fans of tiny batch brewing...3/4 gallon (1 6pack) in a 1 gallon winejug fermenter.

They demo the 6-pack IPA here

[ame]http://en.sevenload.com/shows/Basic-Brewing/episodes/PERGFAJ-01-12-06-Basic-Brewing-Video-A-Six-Pack-of-IPA[/ame]

and they also have done barleywines as well.

I ferment my 2.5 gallon batches in all manner of things, I have a 3 gallon better bottle, I also use 3 gallon water jugs, AND my old Mr Beer keg (it's perfect because you can even lager in your own fridge with it when you are starting out.)

You can even ferment a 2.5 gallon batch in a 5 gallon carboy if you want, though I would say a 6.5 gallon carboy is a little too much headspace for my confort.

Hope this helps....any more questions feel free to ask...But look through ALL THE OTHER INFO first and I bet you, you won't HAVE any other questions. This has been thoroughly covered like just about everything else.

 

[monty3777]

There's a ton of threads on here for small batch brewing.

Hope this helps....any more questions feel free to ask...But look through ALL THE OTHER INFO first and I bet you, you won't HAVE any other questions. This has been thoroughly covered like just about everything else.

Thanks for your lengthy and well though out reply to a question I didn't ask. I'm not asking how to do small batch brewing. I'm asking a specific question that, as far as I can tell from the searches I did before posting this, has not been answered previously. The question is have any of you actually split an already milled batch of pilsner malt and wheat malt? If so, did the distribution of wheat malt and pilsner work after splitting it up?

Perhaps my second question, about fermenters and headspace, has been answered before - but I figured it wouldn't hurt to add it on.

 

[jtakacs]

just mix it up before you split it - should be fine.