No matter how big or small your brewing operation intends to be, you will need to look into installing a brewhouse. Usually customizable for each brewing operation, it is very important to get every detail right the first time around. This requires a complete understanding of all that goes into a brew house. You need to know before you visit your supplier, what components (otherwise known as vessels) your brew house requires to make it work.
The Basic Components
While the vessels or components of your brew house need to suit your own purpose, you still can expect to purchase certain items common to this brewing craft and trade. The variance will come in the size and number of vessels you will require. Among the vessels your brew house will consist of are:
* Roller Mill: This piece of equipment cracks the barley types chosen to produce the brew
* Hot Liquor (Water) Tank (HLT): This tank or tun, heats the sparge and strike water to the temperature required for the desired brew. Sizes vary in accordance with the amount of your brew. Breweries utilize it to ensure consistency in their brews.
* Mash Tuns: This vessel takes the malted barley and mixes it with water
* Lauter Tuns: This vessel separates the unfermented beer (wort) from the grain.
* Brew Kettles (Boilers): These vessels are the site where the brewer adds the mash and boils it to a specific gravity before inserting different types of hops to produce the desired beer and to control the level of bitterness to that desired.
* Whirlpool: This clarifies and separates the wort before transferring it out
* Heat Exchangers: These instruments transfer your wort out of the Whirlpool.
* Fermenter: A brewhouse may feature a primary and a secondary fermenter. It depends upon the size of the operation and the
Obtaining the right equipment for your brew house requires time, patient and research. You need to consider the size of your brewery. You must also look at the amount of beer you intend to produce. Even if you have a firm number in mind, you need to take into consideration the potential of growth. In other words, you may want to start with a smaller 3 vessel brewhouse but choose equipment that offers you the option to expand without expensive retrofitting.
Choosing Your Brewhouse
As noted previously, not all brewers have all vessels. Some brew houses are composed of three vessels. Others utilize four. It is important to talk to other brewers with similar goals to yours. You also need to consult those who provide and install the equipment for breweries. They can help you customize a brewhouse that will work for you.
