How many fermenters (or gallons) do you have going?

[caffeine]

The Brew Demon recommendation is 1 week in the fermenter, 1 week in the bottles.

Most of the advanced brewers here recommend >= 2 weeks in the fermenter, and >= 2 weeks in the bottles.

I can ___easily___ drink 2 gallons of beer in 4 weeks. I can even easily drink 2 gallons of beer in 2 weeks, and I don't consider myself to be a heavy beer drinker.

I just purchased a mead / wine making kit with a 1 gallon carboy, but I don't think 2 gallons of beer and 1 gallon of wine will be enough every 4 weeks.

I can't be the only one who desires homebrew every day. So how many gallons do other brewers have going at any given moment?

[BlackDuck]

I brew 5 gallon batches and keg the beer. I can put up to 4 kegs in my fridge. Right now I have four in there. A pale ale, a Dortmunder lager, a Kolsch and a petite saison. The saison is almost gone though. And the Kolsch is still carving, probably be another 4 days or so before that one gets tapped.


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[HerbMeowing]

In my brew closet; production = consumption

2.5G batch every other Friday night.
Ferment 3 weeks
Warm condition 3 weeks
Cold condition 2 weeks

Just gots to figure out the right production schedule and build that pipeline ...

[mashani]

I keep 2 or 3 three gallon fermenters (with 2.5 or 3 gallons in them) going except for days in between bottling and brewing. I have a 4th fermenter if I decide for some reason I need to get more into the pipeline.

[John Sand]

I've cut back on drinking to avoid weight gain, but previously I was brewing 5 gallons once a month or more. Small batches and extract batches are quicker, you could bet another fermenter and brew every week. I had two or three fermenters my first year, and brewed often.

[caffeine]

I brew 5 gallon batches and keg the beer. I can put up to 4 kegs in my fridge. Right now I have four in there. A pale ale, a Dortmunder lager, a Kolsch and a petite saison. The saison is almost gone though. And the Kolsch is still carving, probably be another 4 days or so before that one gets tapped.

When I was in grad school, I did brew a few batches from scratch (boiling grains instead of using syrupy extracts) in 5 gallon batches. I think the reason why I didn't keep up with it is because it was SO difficult and SO time consuming. The five gallon carboys were miserable. So heavy, so unwieldy. In my case, I have to carry the fermenting brew into the basement. I'm not sure I'd be able to carry 5 gallons up and down those stairs. Some day I'll finish the basement and put a nice big sink and cupboard down there. That'll be a game changer.

Making the wort was a near all-day affair. I don't miss that either. Maybe I'll try making five gallons again some time. I only have 2 batches of Brew Demon under my belt and was going to make my third today. I'll live with Brew Demon for awhile before venturing further. But five gallons would definitely solve my problem, quite nicely.

Can you post a picture or a link to your kegs? Are they used to carbonate the beer? They're five gallons?

[caffeine]

In my brew closet; production = consumption

2.5G batch every other Friday night.
Ferment 3 weeks
Warm condition 3 weeks
Cold condition 2 weeks

Just gots to figure out the right production schedule and build that pipeline ...

Hahahaha! Yeah, I'm trying to figure out my production schedule!

You wrote a few things that I'm really curious about. Why 3 weeks? Have you really noticed a difference between beer that's been fermented for 1 week vs 2 weeks vs 3 weeks? You feel that 3 week fermented beer is noticeably different from 1 and 2 weeks?

And what is warm and cold condition? Is that like a secondary fermentation?

So a batch every other Friday, and the process takes 8 weeks. You must have 4 fermenters? I was thinking something along these lines, but I wasn't accounting for an 8 week process.

[caffeine]

I keep 2 or 3 three gallon fermenters (with 2.5 or 3 gallons in them) going except for days in between bottling and brewing. I have a 4th fermenter if I decide for some reason I need to get more into the pipeline.

I was actually thinking something along these lines but I wasn't sure if I was crazy for wanting 3 or 4 fermenters. It seemed a bit excessive, so it's good to know that it isn't unusual to have these "thoughts".

[caffeine]

I've cut back on drinking to avoid weight gain, but previously I was brewing 5 gallons once a month or more. Small batches and extract batches are quicker, you could bet another fermenter and brew every week. I had two or three fermenters my first year, and brewed often.

I was going to ask this too. I normally have a beer, sometimes 2, a day. But having those 1L bottles in my fridge makes it really easy to drink twice what I normally do. I've noticed some weight gain in the past few weeks.

[Beer-lord]

I try to have 2-3 kegs on tap all the time but I do share my beer with friends almost weekly. I brew every 3-4 weeks most of the year depending on weather and need. I don't drink every day but mostly on weekends I'll have a few.
Plus, I seem to always have a problem buying too much craft beer but there are worse problems to have.

[HerbMeowing]

In my brew closet; production = consumption

2.5G batch every other Friday night.
Ferment 3 weeks
Warm condition 3 weeks
Cold condition 2 weeks

Just gots to figure out the right production schedule and build that pipeline ...

Hahahaha! Yeah, I'm trying to figure out my production schedule!

You wrote a few things that I'm really curious about. Why 3 weeks? Have you really noticed a difference between beer that's been fermented for 1 week vs 2 weeks vs 3 weeks? You feel that 3 week fermented beer is noticeably different from 1 and 2 weeks?

Convenience is why.
If I brewed every other week and fermented two weeks ... I'd be brewing and bottling on the same weekend.
By fermenting 3 weeks ... one weekend I brew ... the next weekend I bottle -- once the schedule gets rolling.
Week 0: brew #1
Week 1: nada
Week 2: brew #2
Week 3: bottle #1
Week 4: brew #3
Week 5: bottle #2

And what is warm and cold condition? Is that like a secondary fermentation?

'Warm' conditioning is the three week period after bottling where the beer carbonates at room temperature.
Two weeks is more than enough to carbonate fully but I go three weeks ... again for convenience.

So a batch every other Friday, and the process takes 8 weeks. You must have 4 fermenters? I was thinking something along these lines, but I wasn't accounting for an 8 week process.

Yes; every other Friday and the process from start to cracking the first cold one takes 8 weeks (3 weeks fermenting + 3 weeks 'warm' conditioning / carbonating + 2 weeks 'cold' conditioning). Back in the day when I brewed with extracts ... the beer needed 6 weeks total conditioning (IMO) for the flavors to mature.

The idea is to build a pipeline so there's a continuous supply.
Some of your beer is fermenting ... some is conditioning ... and some is ready to serve.
Again ... my production schedule is based on what's convenient for me.

Two fermentors are all I need -- three if one is used as a bottling 'bucket' (maybe a 4th to use as a 'secondary' for fruit additions or oaking). I bottle with 1L PETs b/c it's quicker than capping 12 oz glass bottles.

Check out Craigslist for extra MB / BD fermentors and PET bottles.

[mashani]

I keep 2 or 3 three gallon fermenters (with 2.5 or 3 gallons in them) going except for days in between bottling and brewing. I have a 4th fermenter if I decide for some reason I need to get more into the pipeline.

I was actually thinking something along these lines but I wasn't sure if I was crazy for wanting 3 or 4 fermenters. It seemed a bit excessive, so it's good to know that it isn't unusual to have these "thoughts".

Think of it like HerbMewoing mentioned, I have overlapping batches going so I bottle one, free up a fermenter or two, while the other one is still going, then I will brew again some weekend, fill up a fermenter or two, then the next week bottle the other fermenter, then will brew again sometime after that, then bottle... etc... it just keeps the "pipeline" from running out.

And then if I can't brew for a week for some reason, the pipeline still doesn't run out.

[John Sand]

I've cut back on drinking to avoid weight gain, but previously I was brewing 5 gallons once a month or more. Small batches and extract batches are quicker, you could bet another fermenter and brew every week. I had two or three fermenters my first year, and brewed often.

I was going to ask this too. I normally have a beer, sometimes 2, a day. But having those 1L bottles in my fridge makes it really easy to drink twice what I normally do. I've noticed some weight gain in the past few weeks.

It took me a long while to start kegging, and it's a significant investment, but it does allow you to pour only half a beer if you want. Twelve ounce glass bottles were my first easy step after one liter plastic. I got mine at the beer distributor I frequent, they let me have them for the 5c deposit cost. I also started saving bottles from craft beer, pry-off not twist-off.

[bpgreen]

I like that Herb mentioned cold conditioning. I think it gets short shrift a lot of the time.

I never thought it had any value until I got stuck out of town with some beers that were supposed to be in the fridge for four days and were in for almost 2 weeks. The difference was pretty obvious.

[BlackDuck]

I brew 5 gallon batches and keg the beer. I can put up to 4 kegs in my fridge. Right now I have four in there. A pale ale, a Dortmunder lager, a Kolsch and a petite saison. The saison is almost gone though. And the Kolsch is still carving, probably be another 4 days or so before that one gets tapped.

When I was in grad school, I did brew a few batches from scratch (boiling grains instead of using syrupy extracts) in 5 gallon batches. I think the reason why I didn't keep up with it is because it was SO difficult and SO time consuming. The five gallon carboys were miserable. So heavy, so unwieldy. In my case, I have to carry the fermenting brew into the basement. I'm not sure I'd be able to carry 5 gallons up and down those stairs. Some day I'll finish the basement and put a nice big sink and cupboard down there. That'll be a game changer.

Making the wort was a near all-day affair. I don't miss that either. Maybe I'll try making five gallons again some time. I only have 2 batches of Brew Demon under my belt and was going to make my third today. I'll live with Brew Demon for awhile before venturing further. But five gallons would definitely solve my problem, quite nicely.

Can you post a picture or a link to your kegs? Are they used to carbonate the beer? They're five gallons?

Here’s a pic of the beer fridge. It’s currently full with 4 kegs. What you can’t see behind the left keg is a CO2 tank and regulator. The beer is constantly hooked up to the CO2. I carbonate at serving pressure so it takes about a week to fully carb 5 gallons. Once that’s done, it’s ready to drink. But it stays hooked up to the gas the entire time it’s in the fridge.


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