Longtime beer drinker, newbie brewer

[Cecil Claspell]

After years of appreciating beers brewed by others, I finally made the leap to brewing my own. Consulting with a long-time brewing friend that suggested an all-grain setup (more options and flexibility) and kegging vs bottling (less opportunity for infecting the beer with unwanted stuff), I purchased an Anvil Foundry with the recirculating pump. I also ordered a stainless steel conical fermenter, thinking that it would easier to transfer my fermented beer if most of the spent yeast and hops settled below the level of the valve.

While waiting (2 to 3 weeks delivery time) for my new purchases to arrive, I found a turnkey brewing system being sold locally by someone that had quit brewing a few years ago. This system consisted of stainless pots with valves and thermometers, propane burner, wort chiller, stirring spoon, a half-dozen plastic fermentation buckets, home depot water water cooler, 4 corny kegs, CO2 tank with regulator and 3-valve manifold, and a kegerator with a single tower-mounted tap! I couldn't pass on this system even though I had my newly purchased equipment arriving soon.

I have brewed several batches of beer using the Anvil Foundry and most have been excellent. My favorites are Rushmore IPA and Fullers ESB clone. Least favorite is a Green Flash West Coast IPA clone as this turned out more like a session beer due to my lack of understanding of boil-off rates with the 110 volt Foundry - beer was weak and low-ABV due to too much sparge water that did not get boiled off during the 90-minute boil. I think I have this figured out now.

Next up: a SMaSh blonde ale.

Biggest challenge: there are so many different beers I want to make but I don't have the kegs or refrigeration to hold them all.

 

[doug293cz]

Welcome to the hobby and HomeBrewTalk.com. Sounds like you are off to a running start. There are a lot of experts here that can help you with any questions you might have.

Brew on

 

[ncbrewer]

Great start. Welcome.

 

[sixstring]

What size foundry did you get? If you're one of the lucky ones that's got the 10.5, then nice one, since you can't buy them for love or money at the moment.

 

[Cecil Claspell]

What size foundry did you get? If you're one of the lucky ones that's got the 10.5, then nice one, since you can't buy them for love or money at the moment.

Yes, it's the 10.5. When I ordered it, there was a delay of 3 to 4 weeks due to manufacturing issues. I think I received it in 3 weeks. This was enough time to look at and buy additional brewing equipment, research brewing fundamentals and figure out what I wanted to brew for my first batch. I really like the Foundry as it makes all-grain brewing very easy. I've thought about using the traditional brew kettles that I bought locally from a former brewer but I like everything I have made with the Foundry.

 

[Ramjet]

Welcome to hobby

 

[Willy]

Welcome to HBT. Great group here happy to help with any questions you might have.

 

[wallyLOZ]

Welcome from Missouri!

Sounds like you're off to a great start. Keep us posted on your journey.

 

[Cecil Claspell]

Welcome from Missouri!

Sounds like you're off to a great start. Keep us posted on your journey.

Hosted a party today and had my latest Rushmore IPA and Fullers ESB clones on tap. To appeal to guests that might not like their beers quite as bitter as I do, I also provided an ice chest with Firestone 805 and Pacifico beer. Everyone liked my beer! One person even brought their own growler to take home IPA to enjoy later. Looking at the ice chest after the party, it appears that nobody drank any of the commercial brews, opting to drink only those beers that were available through my kegerator taps.

I think I'd call that a success and a huge boost to my beer brewing confidence.

 

[Kickass]

One person even brought their own growler to take home IPA to enjoy later. Looking at the ice chest after the party, it appears that nobody drank any of the commercial brews, opting to drink only those beers that were available through my kegerator taps.

The positive feedback that keeps many of us going! The first question my buddies ask when they come over “what do you have on tap?” And most of them are BMC drinkers.

 

[Broken Crow]

Biggest challenge: there are so many different beers I want to make but I don't have the kegs or refrigeration to hold them all.

The good news is that once it's in the keg, you can store it anywhere that doesn't experience significant temperature swings...many of us keggers just keep our kegs un-refridgerated sitting in our basements waiting their turn.
The 'Bad' (matter of perspective) news is that once you begin your kegging journey, you'll find that kegs breed like rabbits and you'll need to buy more of them. (My personal recommendation is the AEB or Kegland cornies)
Welcome to the fun!

 

[Cecil Claspell]

The good news is that once it's in the keg, you can store it anywhere that doesn't experience significant temperature swings...many of us keggers just keep our kegs un-refridgerated sitting in our basements waiting their turn.

That's really good to know. I have 2 empty kegs that I cleaned and sanitized, waiting for their turn in the (kegerator) rotation. Now that I know I can fill, pressurize and leave in the garage, I'll be brewing a couple of beers that I had wanted to try. I'm guessing they need to be carbonated before walking away from them, maybe a forced carbonation? I'll give this a try next week.

 

[sixstring]

That's really good to know. I have 2 empty kegs that I cleaned and sanitized, waiting for their turn in the (kegerator) rotation. Now that I know I can fill, pressurize and leave in the garage, I'll be brewing a couple of beers that I had wanted to try. I'm guessing they need to be carbonated before walking away from them, maybe a forced carbonation? I'll give this a try next week.

If they're going to sit for a few weeks in the keg, then I believe you could carbonate them with some sugar, no need to force carb them. Or if you enjoy wasting C02 on kegs, then just hook up a C02 tank to them and let them carbonate at room temp and serving pressure over a few weeks.

 

[redrocker652002]

After years of appreciating beers brewed by others, I finally made the leap to brewing my own. Consulting with a long-time brewing friend that suggested an all-grain setup (more options and flexibility) and kegging vs bottling (less opportunity for infecting the beer with unwanted stuff), I purchased an Anvil Foundry with the recirculating pump. I also ordered a stainless steel conical fermenter, thinking that it would easier to transfer my fermented beer if most of the spent yeast and hops settled below the level of the valve.

While waiting (2 to 3 weeks delivery time) for my new purchases to arrive, I found a turnkey brewing system being sold locally by someone that had quit brewing a few years ago. This system consisted of stainless pots with valves and thermometers, propane burner, wort chiller, stirring spoon, a half-dozen plastic fermentation buckets, home depot water water cooler, 4 corny kegs, CO2 tank with regulator and 3-valve manifold, and a kegerator with a single tower-mounted tap! I couldn't pass on this system even though I had my newly purchased equipment arriving soon.

I have brewed several batches of beer using the Anvil Foundry and most have been excellent. My favorites are Rushmore IPA and Fullers ESB clone. Least favorite is a Green Flash West Coast IPA clone as this turned out more like a session beer due to my lack of understanding of boil-off rates with the 110 volt Foundry - beer was weak and low-ABV due to too much sparge water that did not get boiled off during the 90-minute boil. I think I have this figured out now.

Next up: a SMaSh blonde ale.

Biggest challenge: there are so many different beers I want to make but I don't have the kegs or refrigeration to hold them all.

I am very much in the same boat. All my kegs with the exception of one Torpedo keg I bought new don't fit in my current mini fridge converted to a kegerator. I have thought about storing kegs and might now that I read one of the comments on this thread. My closet usually doesn't get much hotter than about 70 in the summer, so that might work. Then when the serving keg is dry I can just transfer the next one into it and I am good to go. Nice.

Oh, and welcome to the group, there are a great bunch of folks here.

 

[Cecil Claspell]

If they're going to sit for a few weeks in the keg, then I believe you could carbonate them with some sugar, no need to force carb them. Or if you enjoy wasting C02 on kegs, then just hook up a C02 tank to them and let them carbonate at room temp and serving pressure over a few weeks.

I hadn't thought of using sugar to carbonate the keg, and also wanted to have some initial CO2 pressure to purge any air remaining in the keg headspace. How much sugar would I use in a 5 gallon corny keg and how much trub could be expected as a result?

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

Welcome to the forum from NY!

 

[doug293cz]

I hadn't thought of using sugar to carbonate the keg, and also wanted to have some initial CO2 pressure to purge any air remaining in the keg headspace. How much sugar would I use in a 5 gallon corny keg and how much trub could be expected as a result?

For 5 gals, fermented at 68°F (20°C) that you want to carbonate to 2.5 volumes, you would use 4.4 oz of table sugar (cane or beet, sucrose), or 4.8 oz of corn sugar (dextrose monohydrate.)

You should use a calculator, as things change based on final fermentation temperature (affects how much CO2 remains in beer after fermentation), volume being kegged, and desired level of carbonation.

Brew on

 

[T Murph]

Welcome to the madness we call a hobby, from Alabama. Sounds like you are off to a good start. Since you have a SS Conical, I suggest you try fermenting under pressure. Doing so provides you with a couple of benifits. 1st your beer is carbonated once fermentation is complete. 2nd you can use and/save the Co2 blowing off during fermentation to top off Co2 in a keg of beer, carbonate a flat beer and purge empty clean kegs to get the air out.

If you haven't already obtained one, a floating dip tube can be your best friend. I ferment using a SS Conical plus a couple of Fermzillas. I always ferment under pressure and avoid wasting as much Co2 as possible. One additional item you will need is a spunding valve to ferment under pressure.

 

[sixstring]

I hadn't thought of using sugar to carbonate the keg, and also wanted to have some initial CO2 pressure to purge any air remaining in the keg headspace. How much sugar would I use in a 5 gallon corny keg and how much trub could be expected as a result?

See doug's response for the sugar amounts. As for pressurizing, just get the beer in there, and then pressurize the keg to 12 psi so the lid seals nice and tight and then you're done. Leave it in storage and let it carbonate with the sugar.
I second T Murph's advice about floating dip tubes. Those things are brilliant. The ones i use are the floatit 2: https://www.amazon.com/FLOTit-2-0-Behind-Floating-Double/dp/B0BH8SCDSN
Or go pick up some from Brewhardware.com: https://www.brewhardware.com/product_p/floatingdiptube.htm (i've not tried these so I don't know how good they are, but I'd guess they're all pretty much the same).

 

[Cecil Claspell]

For 5 gals, fermented at 68°F (20°C) that you want to carbonate to 2.5 volumes, you would use 4.4 oz of table sugar (cane or beet, sucrose), or 4.8 oz of corn sugar (dextrose monohydrate.)

You should use a calculator, as things change based on final fermentation temperature (affects how much CO2 remains in beer after fermentation), volume being kegged, and desired level of carbonation.

Brew on

Thanks for the link to the calculator, it's very handy. I also found several other calculators, including the recipe calculator that lets me scale based on the equipment I have. I found my Anvil Foundry 10.5 listed in one of the pre-made equipment profiles, so that makes everything very simple.

 

[Cecil Claspell]

See doug's response for the sugar amounts. As for pressurizing, just get the beer in there, and then pressurize the keg to 12 psi so the lid seals nice and tight and then you're done. Leave it in storage and let it carbonate with the sugar.
I second T Murph's advice about floating dip tubes. Those things are brilliant. The ones i use are the floatit 2: https://www.amazon.com/FLOTit-2-0-Behind-Floating-Double/dp/B0BH8SCDSN
Or go pick up some from Brewhardware.com: https://www.brewhardware.com/product_p/floatingdiptube.htm (i've not tried these so I don't know how good they are, but I'd guess they're all pretty much the same).

I looked at the floating dip tubes on Amazon and I'm trying them. Not from Amazon, but I ordered three of them directly from Home Brewer Lab (https://homebrewerlab.com/). Unlike Amazon, they won't be shipped today and arrive tomorrow. Also unlike Amazon, they don't add on the hidden shipping cost so I'm saving over $5 for each item.

Thanks for the suggestions!

 

[sixstring]

I looked at the floating dip tubes on Amazon and I'm trying them. Not from Amazon, but I ordered three of them directly from Home Brewer Lab (https://homebrewerlab.com/). Unlike Amazon, they won't be shipped today and arrive tomorrow. Also unlike Amazon, they don't add on the hidden shipping cost so I'm saving over $5 for each item.

Thanks for the suggestions!

sometimes Amazon is worth it, sometimes not. No different than shopping at Walmart really. However, enough of that nonsense, let's not get into how one thing is good and one thing is bad, etc.
The important thing is you have floating dip tubes. And it looks like they're flotits too. You definitely won't be sorry. Just be gentle with them when you're force carbonating a keg by rolling it or using what I call the Stevie Wonder method (), as the tubes on those are really easy to accidentally disconnect.

 

[IslandLizard]

many of us keggers just keep our kegs un-refridgerated sitting in our basements waiting their turn.

that I know I can fill, pressurize and leave in the garage

It depends on the (seasonal) temperatures in the area you're storing those kegs. Recommended "Cellar temps" for beer are typically around 50-55°F.
Temps in garages usually vary widely with the seasons, also heavily depending on location of course.

Storing beer will be OK at 60-70°F, although higher temps may change the flavor and aroma with longer time, sometimes for the better, but usually unwanted.

I had "aged" a kegged Pumpkin Ale for 4 or 5 months in my lower level utility room where temps tend to be 60-65F. With time that improved flavor drastically, integrating flavors and aromas, subduing a somewhat over the top spiciness it had, becoming one the best "specialty" ales I ever brewed.

 

[ncbrewer]

Storing beer will be OK at 60-70°F, although higher temps may change the flavor and aroma with longer time, sometimes for the better, but usually unwanted.

I'm a believer in this. Since I don't have a really suitable storage place, I drink each batch as soon as it's conditioned, and don't start on the next batch until it's gone. That (pretty much) keeps the beer from aging badly.