My current fermenting setup is based on my home brewing of (primarily) wine and extract beer kits. I have two 30L food grade buckets with tight sealing lids but badly fitted grommets that leak so much the airlocks don't work and plastic taps with bulkhead fittings that leak if not cranked down tight. And four 20L food grade buckets that I bought later and drilled my own holes in. I also have 6 5L glass demi-johns that are used for bulk-ageing wine or storing low-wines. My boiler is a 30L keg so for a flavoured spirit I really want to making about 90L of wash and for a neutral I need closer to 150L. My free time is not unlimited, and is largely in the evenings.
I have a second 30L keg which has had a large (28cm diameter) hole cut in the bottom and is used as a mash tun. I have a stainless butterfly valve that I can stick on the bottom to make it easy to drain into one of my fermenters.
Having inadvertantly read the standards on chemical migration from food-grade plastics (Plastics and Mashing) I would like to eliminate plastics from my brewing setup.
Which leaves me with two avenues at the minute (both of these are for a bit later as I don't yet have a dedicated space for brewing and distilling).
Option 1: A set of 30L kegs, set up as per my mash tun (but probably with just blanking plates instead of valves to keep the costs down). I imagine a rack on the wall (like a shelf with cutouts) onto which they sit allowing me to gravity drain them once fermentation is complete. With some everlasting gaskets and the right saucepan lids I can probably even make them air-tight for fitting air-locks. I figured I could use the cutouts from the bottom as filters by drilling a lot of small holes (not my idea, but I like it) and putting them inside over the drain hole. This way I can ferment on the grain and then drain off the bulk of the liquid at the end before removing the grain and squeezing it. A set of four such kegs would probably allow me to keep enough ferments going that I can always strip when I have the time without having to worry about a completed ferment.
Pros:
- Being stainless they're easy to clean and won't harbour flavours or beasties that could impact future runs.
- I have a source about an hours drive that could provide me with the kegs for a not excessive sum of money.
- Shiny and pretty!
- A full 30L keg can still be moved if necessary. They can be stored off the ground which liberates floor space.
- It ties me to a multiple of 30L. If I ever upgrade my boiler to say a 50L keg then my fermenting system becomes unwieldy as it will take 1.5 ferments to make a boiler charge.
Pros:
- More efficient wash / mash preparation. While it may take slightly longer to set-up than a 30L batch, the total time should be less than for 3 or 4 individual kegs
- Cheap... like less than 1/4 of the price.
- It's wood. I'm a carpenter. I like wood. Available in oak or chestnut.
- Heavy. The barrel itself is going to be relatively weighty. It'll have to have a dedicated space in my future brewshed (which is going to be pretty cramped already). If I need to get it outside to clean it then that's a whole project right there.
- It commits me to one project at a time (this is not necessarily a bad thing, but doesn't really line-up with the way my mind works).
- While not unsanitary, we're at the polar opposite of stainless steel here. A good wash out with a pressure washer should clean it up fairly well but a barrel is a good breeding ground for beasties.
- To prevent drying and to limit infections I will need to commit to keeping a project on the go at all times. While I like a good tipple, I'm not that heavy a drinker.
Well done if you read this far! Thanks for making the effort.
Does anyone have any pros / cons that I've not thought of? Anyone out there tested one of these options (especially interested to hear from wooden barrel users regarding cleaning protocols / infections or flavour carry-over)?