Homebrewing

After successfully assembling and wiring my new Electric Brewing system it was time to make my first beer with it. The style I chose was a Robust Porter as I have previously had success with a Coffee Porter and a Bourbon Coffee Porter so this time I wanted to try a basic BJCP style and focus on getting to grips with using Electric instead of Propane as an energy source and also find out what Brew In A Bag (BIAB) was like process wise as opposed to infusion mashing with my old three-tier Sanke keg based system.

In this article I will run through the wiring and assembly of my new 240 volt Brew-Boss BIAB electric brewing system - this will include looking at GFCI options.

500 Tips & Recipes for Making Great Beer by Ted Bruning & Nigel Sadler. Published by The Taunton Press. Priced at $21.95. Available in Hardcover.

In this last article on Electric Brewing we are going to see how each of the options meet our initial requirements and pull together some of the findings into a summary.

In the fourth part of this series of articles on investigating how viable electric brewing is we take a look at the options available for converting our existing 3-tier Sanke-keg based propane system.

In the third part of this series of articles on investigating how viable electric brewing is we take a look at RIMS-based systems which utilize direct heat during recirculation to maintain the mash temperature.

In the second part of this series of articles on investigating how viable electric brewing is we take a look at HERMS-based systems which utilize a Hot Liquor Tank (HLT) together with a Heat Exchanger to indirectly heat the mash.

An investigation into whether or not it is possible to have a brewing system that allows me to homebrew year-round and also improve the amount of control over, and automation of, the brewing process. This article covers the investigation to find out what the alternatives and associated costs are plus examine the pro's and cons of each identified solution.

Whilst attending the NHC 2014 we met with a number of product suppliers at the Homebrew Expo including Cool Brewing LLC. They were showcasing their Fermentation Cooler which is "an inexpensive and easy solution to keeping your homebrewed beer fermentation temperatures in control".

Whilst at the National Homebrewers Conference in Grand Rapids, Michigan, we met with a number of product suppliers and were fortunate enough to sit down with Annie Johnson, 2013 AHA Homebrewer of the Year, to discuss PicoBrew's Zymatic in more detail.