Why do we brew 5 gallon batches?

[demonrichie]

In Canada we brew in 5 IMP Gallons, I think that is roughly 6 US gallons or 23L.

Just a comment, nothing else.

yea everything comes in 6 gal format in canada especially the kits its a pain tho since every time you go to look for a recipe or supplies the american end is 5 gallon.

 

[elkdog]

+1 to 5G being easy enough to move around. The more weight you put in (remembering that most homebrewers, and certainly most beginners don't have brew sculptures or pumps to help move the beer) the fewer people can manage it. So 5G is a nice round amount that works well with cornies and bottles. Clearly you're not restricted to 5G, but it's a fairly logical place to start. On a personal note, 50 of the same beer is plenty for me; I like to keep the rotation fairly diverse, so 5G suits me fine, though I'm getting a couple of house brews dialed in that might someday see a 10G batch.

 

[billc68]

There is a brew shop in Halifax NS that sells 105L stainless steel fermenter or 28 G.

 

[SkiSoloII]

My last batch was 11.5 gallons. 5 gallons into a 5g corny with 1 oz Amairillo dropped in. 3 gallons (I have 3g cornys) into another, DH with 1 oz Cascade, 32 bottles without any DH. 3 different batches of a nice PA out of the same brew day! I love it!

Oh, and I used White Labs Cali blend for 6.5 gals and Safale S-04 for the other 5 gallons.

For those uf us with less time to brew, larger batches are a blessing.

Dave