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Post #7551 made 9 years ago
by GregtheBrewer
Hello EVERYBODYEEEE!
My name is Greg from Melbourne Australia. Real newbie here...I have only just started brewing this year, and I guess mainly in honour of my Dad, who passed away at the end of March. He was a brewer by trade (with Carlton and United Breweries) and after he retired we bought him a Cooper's DIY brewing kit. Surely someone like him should be eminently qualified to come up with a good brew, eh?
Well, the kit sat in his garage UNTOUCHED for 22 years- from the day we gave it to him until the day he died! So seeing it still sitting there, my wife said (so it's her fault! :thumbs: ) "We should give that a go!" And thus began my journey! I am now up to brew no.19, but these have all been extract (K&K, Recipe Packs, partial mash etc) and I have been very happy with the results so far. Thing is, I could not help but feel that AG brewing is real brewing, so I started to think about how to get into it. I have decided that BIAB is the best way to start (and maybe continue) so I am going to buy a Robobrew and get brewing!
Looks like this will be a great place to learn and get some support! Oh, and BTW, I found out about the forum on Brulosophy...great place in its own right, and LOVE those exbeeriments!!!

Post #7552 made 9 years ago
by Scott
Hi Greg and welcome to the forum.

19 batches so far... Wow! That's pretty good. How large were the batches?

Have you already ordered your RoboBrew yet? If not, are you open to other ideas? RoboBrew and lots of the other automated systems like that seem cool, but are subject to many of the "issues" of conventional 3V brewing. (Like needing to add rice hulls to avoid a stuck sparge, needing to run a separate sparge, etc.).

I think most of us would recommend doing Traditional Full Volume BIAB. So in a way it doesn't seem as cool...because you don't need as many "brew trinkets""... BUT...for us homebrewers, it usually works a little better - is simpler with less equipment to clean. Full volume mash is thinner and it helps us get higher EIB - Efficiency Into Boil (aka Brewhouse Efficiency, etc.). So it works better, and for those of us brewing normal homebrew size batches it doesn't have any downside...

I have a 16 gallon / 60 liter pot. Normal batch sizes for me of finished beer is 5 gallons / 19 liters into the keg (and 5.5 gallon / 21 liters VIF - Volume Into Fermenter). Traditional Full Volume BIAB with a large BIAB bag. Can do double batch without any adjustments, depending on OG, of about 9.5 gallons of a 1.050 beer. With a couple tricks I can get it up over 10 gallons...

So anyhow, if you are totally convinced you want your brew setup to be a RoboBrew (or any of the competitors to it on the market...or even conventional 3V brewing), more power to you... Brewing is fun and All Methods can make good beer! But for the homebrewer, brewing traditional homebrew volumes - there is no downside - and I think many big upsides, to using traditional full volume BIAB.

Let us know if you have any questions, and good luck! :luck:
Last edited by Scott on 29 Jul 2016, 20:59, edited 11 times in total.
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Post #7553 made 9 years ago
by yellowbenzene
:thumbs:

Hello folks, I'm Neil from Scotland and I have been all-grain brewing for one year with 25 batches under my belt using BIAB - normally 5L batches of Belgian style beers and Saisons.

I've just upgraded my equipment (SS kettle at last) and hope to use the methods and calculators on this site to make great BIAB beer. I use an induction hotplate, wort chiller and Spiedel fermenters. I bottle-condition all my brews.

Currently fermenting a Belgian IPA dry-hopped with Amarillo. Today I'm doing a California Common style beer but using Hallertauer as I can't get Northern Brewer here...

Anyway thanks for creating such a useful resource.

:peace:

Post #7554 made 9 years ago
by Scott
Hello Neil, and welcome to the forum!

With your upgraded kettle are you continuing with smaller batches of 5 liter batches? :scratch: I drink too darned much beer for that, would be brewing twice a week! :nup: I use Speidel fermenters as well; Love Them!!!

Again, welcome! And let us know if we can help.
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Post #7555 made 9 years ago
by GregtheBrewer
Scott, thank you kindly for your very friendly and warm welcome!
In answer to your questions, all my brews thus far have been 21 to 23 litres V.I.F. I took the plunge and ordered the Robobrew, but I have done it with eyes open.. there is a thread on Aussiehomebrewers that discusses it in some depth, so I have been made aware of some of the issues you mentioned...especially the stuck sparge. Not wanting to go 3V to begin with, I thought it looked like a reasonable starting solution without excessive cost. Turns out I should have asked some opinions from everyone here before I leapt! Never mind!
What I thought I would do is scale down my first brews with it rather than jumping straight in to the volumes I am used to....I figure if I use my Cooper's craft FV, and make enough wort for 8.5L V.I.F, I should be able to avoid some of the problems people have mentioned with the Robobrew (well, should at least be able to avoid a stuck sparge and boilovers anyway!)
Hopefully this is a reasonable approach...look forward to hearing your thoughts. Once I am familiar with the process, I can scale up and/or move to full volume BIAB.
Cheers, and thanks again!

Post #7556 made 9 years ago
by jakeslouw
Jakes from South Africa

50L batch size BIAB system, gas powered, old 100L copper geyser.

Have done about 100 gallons (400L) this year already. Mostly darker ales due to my bore-hole/well water profile.

Have just written the BJCP so waiting in agony for the results

Typically use Beersmith2 but I'm getting the feeling Brad's software isn't set up for BIAB properly.

And yes, I use an electric hoist to get the bag out of the kettle....... :thumbs:

Post #7557 made 9 years ago
by yellowbenzene
Scott wrote:Hello Neil, and welcome to the forum!

With your upgraded kettle are you continuing with smaller batches of 5 liter batches? :scratch: I drink too darned much beer for that, would be brewing twice a week! :nup: I use Speidel fermenters as well; Love Them!!!

Again, welcome! And let us know if we can help.
Thanks, Scott.

For my inaugural full volume AG batch I made 15l California Common style beer as I mentioned earlier, only with Galena and Perle as a substitute for Northern Brewer. Went perfectly and bubbling away as I type. Cheers!
Last edited by yellowbenzene on 01 Aug 2016, 07:28, edited 11 times in total.

Post #7558 made 9 years ago
by MMM2
Hi!
1. I'm a BIAB'er from high desert New Mexico, USA.

2. I happened to stumble across this site searching on the net for alternative AG brewing methods, don't recall exactly where (that happens a lot!).

3. Haven't really explored this site too much yet but any place sharing information about brewing gets me interested.

4. I've been brewing for almost 3 years, I did mainly Extracts, some Partial Mash kits and recently started BIAB (accidentally ordering an all-grain kit...) and got permanently hooked!

5. I am retired. Now I CAN make time for a new hobby! My wife, who doesn't EVER 'drink', gladly helps me whenever i need 4 hands!

I guess I can call myself a very lucky guy!
Prosit to all!

Post #7559 made 9 years ago
by ShorePoints
Welcome aboard MMM2. Most of us here consider ourselves lucky to have found this great site. Using the BIABacus and getting solid advice sure helped me. You and your helper will be making great beer without having to rely on luck. Read lots, ask questions, brew, repeat....
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Post #7560 made 9 years ago
by Scott
Hello Jakes,

Looks like we missed you... Sorry. :shock:

Welcome to the site! 50L batch sizes... Wow, that's pretty big! And 100 gallons so far in 2016. That's a lot too, even more than me - and I make and drink a lot of beer! :party:

Most all of us prefer the BIABacus tool. Excel based spreadsheet, tailored to BIAB. Here is a link to the BIABacus: http://www.biabrewer.info/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=1869.

And here is a link to terminology that was developed by BIAB pioneers for more Clear Brewing Terminology: http://www.biabrewer.info/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=2685.

Let us know if you have any questions. And please do share what you are doing as well. You've got an interesting situation. Could go to the BIAB for new members page and post some pictures of your setup, a new post...? :drink: Again, welcome!
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Post #7562 made 9 years ago
by ShorePoints
Welcome to the forum Ash. When you dust off your gear, you can skip the mash tun if you are going to BIAB. Some things are different to what you may have done 5 years ago but the result is still beer. Who can argue with that? Read lots, try out the BIABacus and ask questions.
    • SVA Brewer With Over 100 Brews From United States of America

Post #7563 made 9 years ago
by TimmehG
Hey guys, Tim's the name from Canberra. MOved up from Melbourne about 6 months ago. Was recommended to the site from the Brew Your Own at Home brew shop in Kambah ACT, which is where I'll be getting my first lot of ingredients from by first BIAB tomorrow!!
Haven't brewed for over 6 months, so getting back into it. Was only doing can kits, so taking the step up!!
Work for a commercial air con company in Fyshwick which my mate runs, loving it.

Cheers guys!!

Post #7564 made 9 years ago
by JayP
Hi,

I'm a new brewer from Perth, Western Australia.

With the help from my local home brew store, last weekend I completed my first brew - a mini BIAB Pale Ale using a 15L K Mart pot that gave me 9L or thereabouts into the fermenter.

Im going to try a darker ale / stout this weekend.

I came across this forum as was recommended in Aussie Home Brewer.

Incidentally, I wrote up a brew day report with a few pics for AHB.

http://aussiehomebrewer.com/topic/91719 ... newbie-ag/

Thanks in advance for all the help and resources I am sure this forum will provide.

Cheers James
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Post #7565 made 9 years ago
by Scott
Tim and James, Welcome to the site!

Let us know what questions you have...if any...and someone will be along to help.
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Post #7566 made 9 years ago
by Patcreery
Hi all, my name is Patrick, I've been brewing extract batches for about 6 months with pretty good success. Looking to take the plunge into all grain, but am an apartment dweller with limited space, and according to SWMBO, a limited budget, so BIAB makes a lot of sense. Going to try a BIAB maxi version of my house IPA soon, so I thought that I should pick all of your brains first!

Post #7567 made 9 years ago
by jpcomeau
Hello everyone. My name is Jean-Pierre but you can call me JP. I am from the United States, specifically Jacksonville, Florida. I have been brewing using extracts for several years and I want to get into all grain. I introduced a friend into brewing and he when directly to brewing in a bag. So, that is why I am here to gain knowledge about brewing in a bag.

Post #7568 made 9 years ago
by JayP
Hi and thanks.

I do have a question about the BIABacus actually. I'm using small equipment and as such have received the "approaching limits" message with various combinations of VIF and so on. I see on the RHS there is an option to reduce the mash volumes, add water before the boil and so on is. Is this how we mini BIAB-ers can manage water volumes safely and make sure we remain on track to his our target SG ?
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Post #7569 made 9 years ago
by Scott
Hi JayP,

A really quick answer for you... Yes, if tight on liquid space it will warn you and you can withhold water and add it later. Can do a dunk sparge where the pulled grain bag gets out I. Another container with a small amount of water, and that gets added to the boil. (More sugar extracted this way - higher efficiency, a little bit anyhow).
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Post #7570 made 9 years ago
by JayP
Hi Scott,

I was also interested in the Robobrew and are absolutely interested in alternatives. Electric was the main attraction to be honest.

So would you recommend a 40L Urn as effective solution (electric not gas) ?

viewtopic.php?f=24&t=80

James
Scott wrote:
Have you already ordered your RoboBrew yet? If not, are you open to other ideas? RoboBrew and lots of the other automated systems like that seem cool, but are subject to many of the "issues" of conventional 3V brewing. (Like needing to add rice hulls to avoid a stuck sparge, needing to run a separate sparge, etc.).

I have a 16 gallon / 60 liter pot. Normal batch sizes for me of finished beer is 5 gallons / 19 liters into the keg (and 5.5 gallon / 21 liters VIF - Volume Into Fermenter). Traditional Full Volume BIAB with a large BIAB bag. Can do double batch without any adjustments, depending on OG, of about 9.5 gallons of a 1.050 beer. With a couple tricks I can get it up over 10 gallons
Last edited by JayP on 09 Aug 2016, 10:59, edited 11 times in total.
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Post #7571 made 9 years ago
by Scott
Hey JayP,

Quick answer on this...and probably not well thought through. :dunno:

In my opinion traditional full volume mash BIAB is definitely the preferred alternative. And doesn't matter, either electric or gas... I use gas and brew outside, setup and break down each time. Some situations I could see electric being nice, more permanent setups. Crazy the amount of elaborate systems that have been introduced that are BIAB, with lots more bling, more complexity, more cleaning (pumps for sparging, etc.), and less efficiency normally for all that extra work. They do have potential to make just as good of beer, however...(not better). Why do we make it more difficult...? Maybe because we all like the look of "bling"... Reading the one of the main US brew forum's BIAB section is kind of frustrating for me. And see lots of comments about efficiencies being kind of low. That's why many Brewers still think that BIAB has lower efficiency (because most of these other "based on BIAB" systems are not full volume and require sparging). And I was "there" not too long ago, with advice and opinions that range the gamut. I am SO happy that I made decisions I did on equipment and also hanging out with Biabrewer.info as my main source of knowledge.

40 liters is about 10 1/2 gallons... I like to shoot for batches with about 5 1/2 gallons into the fermentor...so just under 21 liters. I like to have ability to brew higher ABV brews occasionally, or do almost a double batch... My pot is 16 gallons / so just over 60 liters. Almost went with 10 gallon and so glad I went larger. But if I never brewed larger than 5 gallons the 10 gallon / 40 liter pot would probably work... (But nothing wrong with overkill...). So depends on batch size, and I don't have much personal knowledge on the 40 liter urn that Beach Bum recommended... Here is a highly recommended post from PistolPatch dealing with volume size. http://www.biabrewer.info/viewtopic.php?f=89&t=3533

Some of the guys on here brew with electric and would be better giving electric specific answers. Let's see... Mally from UK is all electric, and Mad Scientist recently converted to electric too. And you will likely find some Brewers that like (or don't mind) the extra complexity that tends to frustrate me... Hope this helps...

To get a higher quality answer on this, could I suggest going to the Electric BIAB page and review some of the different posts and answers...then post a clear question and some of the electric BIAB guys will better help you out! http://www.biabrewer.info/viewforum.php?f=24 (Guess this wasn't so quick...).
Last edited by Scott on 09 Aug 2016, 15:09, edited 1 time in total.
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Post #7572 made 9 years ago
by Scott
Patrick and JP,

Welcome to the forum! Let us know what questions you have...

Patrick - there is a Mini BIAB page here for the folks that do smaller brews on stove, and whatnot. http://www.biabrewer.info/viewforum.php?f=23

JP - for sure would recommend checking out the advice on this site about equipment if you are yet to get set up.
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Post #7573 made 9 years ago
by J Hurdon
Hi,
I've been extract brewing for a couple of years and have tried one recipe many times to no success. I've not created a single batch yet that I am happy with or can even drink for that matter. I think my main problem has not being able to control the fermentation temperature and have solved this by buying equipment that can do this for me. This makes me very excited as I have done one batch with the new equipment and recently took a sample of an 8 day old English ale that tastes great. No more horrible solvent aftertaste. I'm very excited and look forward very much to learning biab.

Cheers!
Last edited by J Hurdon on 11 Aug 2016, 18:26, edited 1 time in total.

Post #7574 made 9 years ago
by Wolfman101
Hi All
Chris from Adelaide, Australia
I've been brewing for a couple of years with extracts, kits and bits and have decided to take a step up after a friends gentle persuasion.
I've downloaded Biabacus and am ready to make my first SMaSH - MArris Otter and Simcoe for an APA.

I've just picked up a second hand urn, and will be brewing over the weekend with any luck from postal deliveries.

Thanks
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