Asator
Active Member
- Joined
- Aug 30, 2018
- Messages
- 26
- Reaction score
- 4
Hello,
I'm a relatively new brewer, six 5-gallon extract brews under my belt. I feel like I'm steadily improving with each batch. I've come a long way from my first batch, a pale ale that ended up getting dumped, that was brewed on an electric stove in a 3 gallon stockpot.
I now have an 8-gallon kettle and a propane burner, to which I credit more of my improvements than to my increased knowledge and skill. My last two batches have been full boil, and I've used liquid yeast on both of them. They are pretty good, but still not where I want to be.
From talking to an acquaintance with much more experience and skill, he suggested I move into all-grain if I want to continue to see improvements. With my current setup, the best I could do is about a 3-gallon BIAB, which I'm very open to. He also suggested some new equipment I should purchase. In your opinion, which of these options would (hopefully) give me the ability to continue improving my beers?
1) Go to all-grain BIAB. I can only do 3-gallon batches BIAB batches unless I drop a bunch of money on new equipment, which I can't really do at the moment.
2) Get a wort chiller. I've been doing ice baths for my worts up until now. Even the full boil batches cooled down relatively quickly. They say a chiller will bring it down much faster, but is it really necessary?
3) Get a yeast-starter kit (stir plate and all). I've had very good results with my two Wyeast Smack Pack batches, but from what I've been reading, I haven't been pitching enough yeast just using a single pack.
I appreciate any ideas on this. If you have any other suggestions, I'm all ears!
I'm a relatively new brewer, six 5-gallon extract brews under my belt. I feel like I'm steadily improving with each batch. I've come a long way from my first batch, a pale ale that ended up getting dumped, that was brewed on an electric stove in a 3 gallon stockpot.
I now have an 8-gallon kettle and a propane burner, to which I credit more of my improvements than to my increased knowledge and skill. My last two batches have been full boil, and I've used liquid yeast on both of them. They are pretty good, but still not where I want to be.
From talking to an acquaintance with much more experience and skill, he suggested I move into all-grain if I want to continue to see improvements. With my current setup, the best I could do is about a 3-gallon BIAB, which I'm very open to. He also suggested some new equipment I should purchase. In your opinion, which of these options would (hopefully) give me the ability to continue improving my beers?
1) Go to all-grain BIAB. I can only do 3-gallon batches BIAB batches unless I drop a bunch of money on new equipment, which I can't really do at the moment.
2) Get a wort chiller. I've been doing ice baths for my worts up until now. Even the full boil batches cooled down relatively quickly. They say a chiller will bring it down much faster, but is it really necessary?
3) Get a yeast-starter kit (stir plate and all). I've had very good results with my two Wyeast Smack Pack batches, but from what I've been reading, I haven't been pitching enough yeast just using a single pack.
I appreciate any ideas on this. If you have any other suggestions, I'm all ears!