Quick intro

Ok so after stalking this and other forums for the best part of 12 months or so, I though I would throw my hat in and share my experiences.

So my name is Dave.......and yes I am a home brewer.

I guess it all started about 35yrs ago with my Dad, being a beer lover, brewing his own. He used a kit that was put together by a local home brew shop, from memory consisting of DME, sugar and whole hops, on reflection quite advanced for its day.

I recall it being quite bitter and occasionally a little on the flat side, probably due to the fact it was consumed soon after being bottled. Non the less always drinkable. You never forget that aroma of hops being boiled. You either love it or hate it and I loved it. 

My own experiences started with a second hand Burco boiler, plastic bucket with a hot water cylinder jacket (mash tun) and a Boots pressure barrel. 

My all grain experience lasted for about a year or so, the results again always drinkable but I didn't really get to grips with the principles. Children and old houses seemed to get in the way and with what seemed to be the copious amounts of cheap beer and wine finding its way into the UK from the booze cruises of the day from northern France it didn't seem worth the effort or cost. Moreover there was also a reasonable choice of real ales on tap at the local to satisfy the need. Timothy Taylor Landlord and Boddingtons, (pre Whitbread takeover) being my all time favourites. 

Fast forward to 2006 and arrival to NZ. Well I won't go into a tirade but safe to say the beer on offer was not commensurate with this great land. Chilled to within an inch of its life and issuing enough carbon dioxide to make a hole in the ozone, I was disappointed to say the least. Not a whinging Pom for nothing. Contemplating a return ticket I was saved by the fabulous Galbraiths Ale House just like a real boozer, so it can be done, just need a decent curry now.

Unfortunately Auckland City being forty minutes away was hardly a option for a swift pint. (A pint! ....mmm, now that's another topic in itself)  

So my home brew journey was rekindled. I started with extract kits. Trade me being a good source for ABC bottles, plastic buckets etc.

I was pleasantly surprised with the variation of kits on offer and the ability to add enhanced malt extracts to suit and more varieties hops than I ever knew existed. I could only ever recall Northern Brewer Fuggles and Goldings. That was the extent of my knowledge. 

Over the following years I whittled my choice down to Mangrove Jacks, IPA being my favourite. After experimenting with the enhanced additions I kept it simple with 1kg of dextrose and some additional aroma hops. The extract method was easy and produced relatively good results.

The bottling aspect however became very tedious so I began to research other methods of dispensing. Corny kegs, as a home brewer seem to be the obvious choice. Not a cheap solution by any means, requiring a reasonable investment but you can go easy on the conditioning CO2 thereby saving the planet.

Fast forward another 7yrs or so and how the beer scene has changed! Even the language to describe such, boutique/craft? It seems that highly hopped and a high abv are the current theme. Ok for a sip I suppose but if you like to quaff a couple of pints then not so. The curry houses too have exponentially improved.

Okay so we now have more quality beers on offer but still served, in my opinion, too cold and overly carbonated. Cask and a beer engine anyone? Is it reasonable to mention the price of such offerings? I know hops are an expensive commodity but...  

So my quest continued.

The decision to progress to all grain started about a year ago, the research lead me try out the BIAB method. I dusted off my trusty Burco, I knew there was a reason I had transported it 12k miles. So together with a pump, a cheap controller and some tubing I was all grain brewing.

The more I read the more complex the whole brewing process seemed to become. I was now looking at mash temperature and mash thickness, pH levels, water chemistry, yeast strain selection the variations, as you know go on.

I did half a dozen batches or so and was quite pleased with the results. I did find however that the Burco was just not quite big enough and the 2.5kW element not powerful enough to provide a good strong boil.

Now with the bit firmly between my teeth the research continued arriving one day to a site that you all will be familiar with, the electric brewery. Now all I needed was a lottery win.

To ease the expenditure and after much deliberation I chose a RIMS tube from Brew Hardware and two 20 gallon Blichmann boilers.

A box for a panel came from Trade me and the "internals" from various places, Auber, Ebay and thanks to Barry on this forum for the pointer to that Aladdin's Cave of bits and pieces, Aliexpress.

After what seemed an age, China post can certainly test the patience, it has finally come together.

Bringing you swiftly up to date............

The system is loosely based on the Brutus 20 idea, trimmed down using one pump. The bench is work in progress but it does the job.

The sequence of events are, heat the total volume of water in the boil kettle to strike temperature (treated with salts to the desired profile of course). Transfer the required volume of water to achieve the correct mash thickness into the mash tun. Recirculate through the RIMS tube for the duration of the mash. Raise the remaining water in the boil kettle to mash out temp and then transfer it all to the mash tun. The entire volume is then recirculated to mash out temperature in the mash tun and then finally transfered back to the boil kettle.  

Initial efficiency was disappointing being in the mid fifties. The reason for this was due to using a flexible tap braid in the mash tun as a filter. It worked very well after the grain bed had settled, the wort became crystal clear as the mash progressed but obviously the recirculation must have channelled with the narrow pick up point of the tubular braid. So much for cheaping out on the false bottom.

Two months later and with the addition of the Blichmann false bottom (a real work of art) the situation has drastically improved. The last couple of brews have produce efficiencies in the mid to high seventies. There will be limits I guess with this method of sparging.    

Now just to perfect those brews of old...........