New to brewing - need help!

[bk_15]

Hi guys,

I am new to brewing and have a business opportunity but need to do some proper due diligence before assessing the viability of it all! I'm trying to work on some general costings and have figures for different sized smaller breweries ranging from 5 barrel to 15 barrel, but I am struggling to understand what size brewery I am looking at. I've attached the info I believe it relevant from the inventory below:

FERMENTING ROOM
With 2, 4½ barrel fermenting vessels, stainless steel sink
unit and cooking system.
FURTHER FERMENTING ROOM
With 4½ barrel fermenting vessel and 10 barrel fermenting
vessel.

Is the barell size of the brewery limited to what it can produce in one batch? And if so, would this be limited by the below:

MASH AREA
With 4½ barrel hot liquor tank, 5 barrel mash tun and mash
tun hopper.

Please excuse my ignorance, I am a mere accountant at the moment but would be grateful for any assistance!

Thanks.

 

[COLObrewer]

Yes this is a 5 barrel system, however one could concieveable do back to back mashes of the same recipe for the 10 gallons fermentor, or all the fermentors for that matter. The different fermentors are typically for different style/recipes of beer to ferment at the same time, traditionally.

 

[bk_15]

Thanks for the response. So is the system termed 5 barrel due to have one 5 barrel mash tun in this case?

For instance if there were two 5 barrel mash tuns with the same fermenting vessels as above, this would be a 10 barrel system?

And as for the actual inventory, would I be right in saying that the production capabilities would be limited by the fermentation vessels as opposed to the mash tun capacity?

 

[COLObrewer]

Yes correct in all above, The system capability is designated by the smallest capacity receptacle in the system, i.e. if you had a 10barrel mash tun and only one 5barrel fermentor, it would be a 5barrel system, etc.