Splitting NB All-Grain Kits in half?

[bucketheadmn]

I am wondering if anyone has bought a Northern Brewer all-grain kit and split it in half? I did a search and did not find many posts on doing this. They currently are running the $19.99/IPA kit with you buy three. The problem is that I only have the equipment to brew 2.5 gallon batches. Seems like it is a decent deal and I assume that as long as I keep the grains dry I should be able keep them stored for a while.

My concern is that all grains come crushed together in a single bag so not sure how perfectly I could get the grains split in "half". Thoughts on doing this?

 

[BigJoeBrew]

I would say you could do it, just by mixing the grains together and then splitting it in half. There is no way for certain that both have the same amount of each grain, but you could definitely split the hops. I purchased this deal too, but i do 5 gal batches. I say go for it and it will probably turn out fine if you mix the grains well before splitting!

 

[wilserbrewer]

Sure you could split the supplied recipe.

If you have a larger fermenter, and your hot side or brewpot is too small, you can brew twice and ferment together.

There is actually a technique called the Texas two step, whereby you brew half the batch day 1 and pitch yeast, then brew the second half day 2 and just add it to the fermenter. Benefit being that the yeast gets a chance to start in a lower volume, then is ramped up....kind of like stepping a starter but at the 1/2 batch level. I did it once for a much larger batch, seems to work well. I believe some small breweries do this cause the brewhouse is small, but fermenters and demand is larger.

 

[Roland_deschain]

Contact them and ask if they would grind the grains separately. The worst they could say is no.

 

[wilserbrewer]

Imho grains crushed separately and grains crushed together and mixed and split would make little difference.

After mixing the the grain for the full batch a bit, I would split them by scooping some for batch 1, then scooping some for batch 2....you wouldn't want to take the top 1/2 of the bag for batch 1 and the bottom 1/2 for batch 2.

 

[madscientist451]

I'd get a scale and just shake up the bag of grain and divide it by weight and not worry about it. It will still be beer.

 

[wilserbrewer]

Haha typical scientist....Split by weight or well mixed volume I wouldn't worry either way.

 

[bucketheadmn]

Contact them and ask if they would grind the grains separately. The worst they could say is no.

That was the first thing I did, they said no. Now I just need to figure out if I would do 6 batches in a few months....

 

[wilserbrewer]

That was the first thing I did, they said no. Now I just need to figure out if I would do 6 batches in a few months....

How big is your kettle? There may be other options available with a little creativity and flexibility.

Stored properly, I would think you will get more than a few months shelf life out of the kits....

 

[bucketheadmn]

How big is your kettle? There may be other options available with a little creativity and flexibility.

Stored properly, I would think you will get more than a few months shelf life out of the kits....

I have a 5 gallon kettle and a single 5 gallon fermentor. I purposely have my equipment set up for smaller batches only. As far as storage I got the information from BYO. If I was able to mill the grains myself I could get a year+ out of unmilled grains. The trouble is that I do not have a mill and since work is only a 15 minute drive from NB it is hard to justify spending the $100+ on one.

At this point it is good to know that if I ever do want to buy a kit I can split it.

 

[RM-MN]

I have a 5 gallon kettle and a single 5 gallon fermentor. I purposely have my equipment set up for smaller batches only. As far as storage I got the information from BYO. If I was able to mill the grains myself I could get a year+ out of unmilled grains. The trouble is that I do not have a mill and since work is only a 15 minute drive from NB it is hard to justify spending the $100+ on one.

At this point it is good to know that if I ever do want to buy a kit I can split it.

A big bag of unmilled grains is less expensive than buying one kit at a time. A Corona style mill is less expensive than the roller mill you were looking at too. Check this out.

http://www.discounttommy.com/p-189-...er-for-wheat-grains-or-use-as-a-nut-mill.aspx