Help Design a Hop Farm Brew House

[HopBlooded]

OK, so I'm looking for some design help on a little construction project...

First, a little background: I am part of a hop growing family in Yakima and I recently started homebrewing. While new to the hobby, I am totally hooked and am 100% convinced about taking the leap from extract/steeped grains to all-grain and the capacity for larger batches.

We recently remodeled our office here on the farm. Our office is a 1911-built farmhouse that has an old milk parlor (a separate building) right next to it that we were thinking of knocking down. It's a little rough looking, but with a little work it would be in fine shape. The building is about 14' x 19' inside. Anyway, we got to thinking and decided that we would like to save the building if we could come up with a decent use for it. The obvious choice was to turn it into a brew house. We often have visitors from brewers, especially during harvest, and what better way to market and showcase our hops than to serve some (hopefully delicious) beer and be able to work with brewers in a really unique fashion.

So here goes. Right now I'm using a pretty good entry level homebrew setup but if we are going to do this, I'd like to do it the right way. Unfortunately, I don't know what "the right way" is quite yet. That's where I am going to lean on my fellow HBTers to hopefully tell me what they would do. Once we get going, I'll post pictures and keep everyone updated on our decisions and progress.

The only thing I have decided so far is that I want to skip bottling and keg everything. I'd like to take a section, maybe 5' x 10' or so, turn it into a walk-in cold room for kegs and/or lagering, and mount taps through the wall on the other side. So I've basically got nothing really decided yet. The questions I'd like your advice on are:

1.) Size. What size system should I build? 10 gal? 20? 1 barrel? I don't want to make the mistake of going too small and later deciding I should have gone bigger, but I don't want to blow a giant hole in the budget building something too big. Space is also a bit of a concern since we are limited to 14x19.

2.) Brewing Equipment. Should I go from scratch and build a stand and equip with Blichmann pots or similar? Or should I just go the easy route and get a Brew-Magic or MoreBeer BrewSculpture?

3.) Fermenters. How many? Conical? Sanke? What size? Any other thoughts?

4.) Plumbing, heating, and electrical. We've got the ability to do everything with propane (it's what we use to fire the burners in the kiln), but should I consider all electrical? What other plumbing and electrical decisions should I be thinking hard about?

5.) Miscellaneous. Any advice anyone has would be great. What would you do if you were in my position? If you've built a brewhouse/nanobrewery, what did you do that you really liked? What would you do differently?

Thanks in advance for all of your help! Cheers!

 

[RDWHAHB]

Oh man I am jealous. I would shoot for a 1 barrell setup. What do I know though? Propane fired. Mostly I just know that I am jealous.

 

[Southside]

I would use whatever you already have to the fullest... Ex. Pipe propane to the shed, you already has access to it. For the size of your system goes, figure out how much you drink and how much time you want to spend brewing. Ex. I was going to go to 20 gal batches, but I went to 10 gal instead. I brew 3 to 4 times a month and bottle some to have in reserve and keg the rest for me and my friends. I could have gone to 20 gal batches, however I love the brewing process so I like brewing more! System wise, I would build my own, it is part of the adventure Conicals for your primary and glass carboys if you are going to age anything.

Just my thoughts.

 

[Boerderij_Kabouter]

What is your budget?

 

[wildwest450]

1.) Size. What size system should I build? 10 gal? 20? 1 barrel? I don't want to make the mistake of going too small and later deciding I should have gone bigger, but I don't want to blow a giant hole in the budget building something too big. Space is also a bit of a concern since we are limited to 14x19.

How much beer do you drink? I don't need 31 gallons of one kind of beer around, so I chose a setup that does 5&10 gallon batches. The only time I brew a "big" batch is when splitting with a friend. The space you have should be plenty big enough. I'm currently building one 10'x24' with a 4'x10' cold room.

If you have propane at your disposal use it!

Where do you plan on getting your hops?

 

[HopBlooded]

Thanks for the advice so far!

As far as size goes, part of me wants to do a one barrel setup, just in case, but I really do love the brewing process, so the act of brewing isn't like it's a chore. Maybe a half barrel or 20 gallon setup is a good compromise? I know I can give away a fair amount of it. We will have the taps in the shed itself, plus I am in the process of building a keezer at home, my brother-in-law has a kegerator, and my dad is putting in a kegerator soon, so getting rid of the product should be easy...

 

[HopBlooded]

What is your budget?

Good question. The budget isn't set yet, so it's flexible. Ideally, it would be done nice enough that we are proud of it, but didn't spend a ridiculous amount of money on it. Our mechanic is a skilled fabricator, so if building a system is cheaper than buying something like the Brew-Magic, that would be nice...

Let's assume I want to build a propane-fired system. Design thoughts?

Single-tier? Multi?
Pumps? How many?
Brew pots? I like the Blichmann BoilerMakers, but are there others I should consider?

Seriously, any advice is awesome at this point. The more things to consider, the better.

 

[RegionalChaos]

If it were me I'd do a 1 bbl setup. Single tier, two pumps, tippy dumps to clean. Build it so you can do 20 gal batches if you want. The 55 gal BoilerMakers looked like a decent price to me when I was looking the other day. Put in a cold room to ferment and store. I think it is a good addition to the hop farm, so it would work great for entertaining clients that come to check the place out. Have some tasting taps, etc.. Just out side of the cold room, and in the brewery, so you and clients can have a drink and bs about the setup. Sounds like an awesome opportunity no matter what you do with it though...

 

[Synovia]

How many hop varieties do you grow?


I'd want atleast on beer on tap showcasing each hop variety. I'd be looking more instead of bigger.


And go electric. If you're going to be running a semi professional set up, it'll pay for itself quickly. Propane is about ten times as expensive.

 

[Boerderij_Kabouter]

Do you need to pay your mechanic? Building is cheaper if you count the labor as free. If you count your time, DIY is way more expensive.

My dream build looks like this:

it works like this:

It is a three vessel system including a direct fired MLT for step mashing or mash temp maintenance, a HERMS coil, and a dual coil chilling system. All burners are automated to maintain desired temps during whatever process. I designed it for maximum flexibility in brewing process.

If I could do what I wanted, I would build that for 15.5 gallon finished batch sizes.

With Boilermakers and all stainless it would cost ~$5,500 by the time you were done (assuming free DIY labor).

For out of the box systems, I really like More Beer's sculptures. I would buy a single tier.

 

[DKershner]

And go electric. If you're going to be running a semi professional set up, it'll pay for itself quickly. Propane is about ten times as expensive.

Not if they would have to wire the dairy building and they are already buying propane in bulk. Plus, I know at least in Oregon the prices are fairly comparable, and the large brewery I am fairly familiar with uses Nat. Gas.

I would base the size of the system on how much you need around. 5 taps for customers, 5 for you. Customers have 1/2bbl kegs, you have 1/6bbl, then I would go with 1bbl.

If you are going cornies or 1/6bbl sankeys for everything, get a 15 or 20gal system.

 

[DKershner]

Single-tier? Multi?
Pumps? How many?
Brew pots? I like the Blichmann BoilerMakers, but are there others I should consider?

I would base the single/multi/pump situation on whether or not you have electricity and ceiling height. You can do without electricity with a 3-tier, but your size options are limited without a hoist.

Nothing better than blichmann pots, so if you are going to be brewing a lot, go for em.

 

[HopBlooded]

How many hop varieties do you grow?


I'd want atleast on beer on tap showcasing each hop variety. I'd be looking more instead of bigger.


And go electric. If you're going to be running a semi professional set up, it'll pay for itself quickly. Propane is about ten times as expensive.

Yep, my idea was to have ~10 taps so that there is a pretty wide variety of is flexible enough to really do a lot of interesting things. We grew 9 varieties last year, and having a single-hop brew of each would be nice.

 

[HopBlooded]

If it were me I'd do a 1 bbl setup. Single tier, two pumps, tippy dumps to clean. Build it so you can do 20 gal batches if you want. The 55 gal BoilerMakers looked like a decent price to me when I was looking the other day. Put in a cold room to ferment and store. I think it is a good addition to the hop farm, so it would work great for entertaining clients that come to check the place out. Have some tasting taps, etc.. Just out side of the cold room, and in the brewery, so you and clients can have a drink and bs about the setup. Sounds like an awesome opportunity no matter what you do with it though...

Thanks! Good call on the tippy dumps. That idea will be on the short list.

 

[HopBlooded]

Do you need to pay your mechanic? Building is cheaper if you count the labor as free. If you count your time, DIY is way more expensive.

It is a three vessel system including a direct fired MLT for step mashing or mash temp maintenance, a HERMS coil, and a dual coil chilling system. All burners are automated to maintain desired temps during whatever process. I designed it for maximum flexibility in brewing process.

If I could do what I wanted, I would build that for 15.5 gallon finished batch sizes.

With Boilermakers and all stainless it would cost ~$5,500 by the time you were done (assuming free DIY labor).

For out of the box systems, I really like More Beer's sculptures. I would buy a single tier.

That's a slick setup and is in a price range that could fly. Just curious, how would you go about mounting the heat exchange coils inside a Boilermaker? Is it as simple as drilling out the pots and mounting, or is there more to it than that?

 

[HopBlooded]

I would base the single/multi/pump situation on whether or not you have electricity and ceiling height. You can do without electricity with a 3-tier, but your size options are limited without a hoist.

Nothing better than blichmann pots, so if you are going to be brewing a lot, go for em.

The ceiling is fairly low, about 8 feet, so too tall of a system is probably out... I think single tier is going to be the way we go. Thanks for your input!

 

[david_42]

ProBrew is worth reading just for the discussion on tanks. You may also be able to find a deal on a 1-barrel system. People are always upgrading.

With an 8' ceiling, single-tier is the way to go. One fermenter with space for 3-4 more would be a good approach. Consider getting a fermenter that is double the size of your base system.

 

[HopBlooded]

Thanks David. That's a great link.

So would you really start with one fermenter? Fermentation always feels like the main constraint since it takes ~2 weeks at a minimum. I was thinking 2 or 3 fermenters to ensure I had plenty of capacity. Am I missing another solution that would free up fermentation capacity?

I guess if I were doing 10 gallon batches or smaller, I'd just invest in an army of carboys. What about those of you who brew larger batches? How did you solve the fermentation bottleneck? Ideally, I'd like the capacity to brew at least 3 batches a month. What is the best way to accomplish this?

Thanks again for everyone's input!

 

[TheAleMaster]

Fermenters are always, always the bottleneck.

If you are nostalgic and a fan of fellow Yakimanian Bert Grant, you would build a gravity fed system. But being you only have 8' ceilings, that probably wouldn't work. I'm sure you've seen his old brewhouse on Washington Avenue:

Mash and lauter tun are in the top level. Brew kettle in the second level, then down into a hot wort tank and heat exchanger.

 

[Boerderij_Kabouter]

I will do it like Pol when I do it again. I hard mounted mine the first time and was happy with it, but it would be nice to have the two coils be removable.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/kill-watt-brewery-build-compilation-158348/

 

[david_42]

If you plan on conditioning in the fermenter, then having several would be a good idea. I was thinking in terms of moving the beer to bright tanks after the fermentation. A bright tank is much simpler to build and since the fermentation is over, you don't need active cooling.

 

[bendavanza]

With low ceilings you could have the HLT on a higher tier considering all you do is fill and drain, which can be done though the diptube assembly. I'd think between you, your family, and the hop tours you should be at least 20g and up to 1bbl (31g). I would have plenty of fermenters since you want 10 faucets. How often do you like to brew a batch? I feed my 6 tap 5 gallon each kegerator system with 3 carboys but if you had maybe 2-3 conicals and did further conditioning in 1/2bbl kegs you could free up the conicals more rapidly saving you some $.
For the cold room, there are a few threads here on the site that use a modified window unit and they can be very efficient. Commercial walk in s are pricey and not very efficient, but they are quicker to temp stabilize if you have a lot of walk in and out. In your case I would think the in and out would be minimal, compared to a floral shop which has the door open and shut all day.
Do you have electric available? If so, electric has proven to be very efficient and clean, while also adding some automation and predictability. Gas can be automated with PID's, valves and such as well.
The idea of having craft beer at your hop farm to showcase the variety of hop flavors is fantastic. Be careful you may have more traffic than you want.
I would second getting on probrew, and also keeping an eye on craigslist and ebay, you might find a complete system for pennies on the dollar compared to new.
Also, a flash boiler may be ideal there are a couple threads here showing how effective they are at heating water fast, and also using the steam for boiling. GreenMonti is building a calandria that looks very promising for steam use.
The higher volume you are planning to do will make any efficiency upgrades pay off much more so than for the 5 gallon occasional home brewer.

 

[Ragutis]

Thanks David. That's a great link.

So would you really start with one fermenter? Fermentation always feels like the main constraint since it takes ~2 weeks at a minimum. I was thinking 2 or 3 fermenters to ensure I had plenty of capacity. Am I missing another solution that would free up fermentation capacity?

I guess if I were doing 10 gallon batches or smaller, I'd just invest in an army of carboys. What about those of you who brew larger batches? How did you solve the fermentation bottleneck? Ideally, I'd like the capacity to brew at least 3 batches a month. What is the best way to accomplish this?

Thanks again for everyone's input!

I have four sanke kegs for fermenting. Also a pony keg and glass carboy for special small-batch secondaries. Haven't have a bottleneck issue yet. Last year I brewed 70 gallons between Nov. 14 and Dec. 21. That's a few days over five weeks.

 

[HopBlooded]

Fermenters are always, always the bottleneck.

If you are nostalgic and a fan of fellow Yakimanian Bert Grant, you would build a gravity fed system. But being you only have 8' ceilings, that probably wouldn't work. I'm sure you've seen his old brewhouse on Washington Avenue:

Mash and lauter tun are in the top level. Brew kettle in the second level, then down into a hot wort tank and heat exchanger.

A gravity fed system would be nice and simple, but our height constraint will probably prevent that.

It's sad to see the old Grant's brewhouse today. Not only is it empty, it's falling apart a little bit. The guys from Yakima Craft are using some of the equipment I think, but I don't know what has happened to the rest of it. A shame to see an icon of the craft beer movement go the way that Grant's went.

 

[HopBlooded]

I will do it like Pol when I do it again. I hard mounted mine the first time and was happy with it, but it would be nice to have the two coils be removable.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/kill-watt-brewery-build-compilation-158348/

That's a beautiful setup he has there! I think I'm going to be spending some time in that thread today. Thanks!

 

[HopBlooded]

If you plan on conditioning in the fermenter, then having several would be a good idea. I was thinking in terms of moving the beer to bright tanks after the fermentation. A bright tank is much simpler to build and since the fermentation is over, you don't need active cooling.

I hadn't thought of that. Assuming that we would build at least a 1/2 barrel system, what types of vessels would make the best bright tank? I'd like to "package" in corneys because they are so easy, and I apologize if this is a stupid question and I'm overlooking an obvious answer, but if you were doing this, what would you do with the beer between the fermenter and corneys?

Thanks again!

 

[HopBlooded]

With low ceilings you could have the HLT on a higher tier considering all you do is fill and drain, which can be done though the diptube assembly. I'd think between you, your family, and the hop tours you should be at least 20g and up to 1bbl (31g). I would have plenty of fermenters since you want 10 faucets. How often do you like to brew a batch? I feed my 6 tap 5 gallon each kegerator system with 3 carboys but if you had maybe 2-3 conicals and did further conditioning in 1/2bbl kegs you could free up the conicals more rapidly saving you some $.
For the cold room, there are a few threads here on the site that use a modified window unit and they can be very efficient. Commercial walk in s are pricey and not very efficient, but they are quicker to temp stabilize if you have a lot of walk in and out. In your case I would think the in and out would be minimal, compared to a floral shop which has the door open and shut all day.
Do you have electric available? If so, electric has proven to be very efficient and clean, while also adding some automation and predictability. Gas can be automated with PID's, valves and such as well.
The idea of having craft beer at your hop farm to showcase the variety of hop flavors is fantastic. Be careful you may have more traffic than you want.
I would second getting on probrew, and also keeping an eye on craigslist and ebay, you might find a complete system for pennies on the dollar compared to new.
Also, a flash boiler may be ideal there are a couple threads here showing how effective they are at heating water fast, and also using the steam for boiling. GreenMonti is building a calandria that looks very promising for steam use.
The higher volume you are planning to do will make any efficiency upgrades pay off much more so than for the 5 gallon occasional home brewer.

Thanks for the advice. I'll look around for the threads about the walk-in.

We have electric available, but I'd have to do a little more studying about using it. I understand the concept of using a water heater type element, but I need to figure out how to build one and control the temperature. Propane with Boilermakers seems easier (not necessarily better). Read thermometer, adjust gas. An electric system adds a bit of complexity, doesn't it? That's OK, I'd just have to understand it better. Thanks again!

 

[Boerderij_Kabouter]

For your production, I would suggest brewing 15g at a time. I would purchase two of these for fermentation:

Then I would use sanke kegs with the dip tubes shortened as clearing tanks in the cold room.

 

[The Pol]

That's a beautiful setup he has there! I think I'm going to be spending some time in that thread today. Thanks!

If you have any questions about it, feel free to post them or PM me. The thread is not awfully detailed, but more of a photo diary of the build. I am headed home tonight, so I hope to have it 100% complete with the wireless control bridge installed finally.

 

[broadbill]

Negative Nancy/arm-chair quarterback comment coming in 3...2....1....

Is this really the best use of your business capital?

Is this something other hop-farmers are doing to promote their product?

Would having an operating brewhouse on-site that much of an incentive for a visiting brewer to buy your hops vs. the hop farmer down the road?

What do you expect to see in terms of a return on investment in equipment, ingredients (obviously the hops would be at cost, and most importantly: your time? Is it really worth your time focusing on making beer instead of out tending fields, managing your employees, or doing the books?

Is there better ways you can spend this money? For example, buying more land to plant hops, converting untillable land into tillable? Better equipment? Better marketing?

It's great you are so excited about your new hobby, and its great that you business is so complimentary to it. It's not that I have a problem with mixing the two, but it seems like some important money questions have not been addressed yet. Just my 0.02...take it FWIW.