# Piggy Back Brew Day - Two Beers, One Boiler.



## Bribie G (9/3/12)

I was in Aldi the other day and they were clearing a pallet of 36L eskies for $19.95 and in an instant it occurred to me that for very little extra outlay $$ I could do two brews in far less time than two separate BIAB brews end to end, by *piggy backing a mash tun onto a standard full volume BIAB mash. *

Batch #1 is a Malt Bomb Vienna ale with Vienna, Munich, Melanoidin, NZ Hallertau and US-05
Batch #2 is a Pom with Halcyon, Crystal, the usual suspects hops and Wy 1768

Equipment: one urn, one esky, one bag - and two grain bills.







Batch #1 is mashed as a bog standard BIAB in urn, which I won't elaborate on, further details here.
As shown I have a skyhook with double pulley, and the brewstand is on castors and can be accurately positioned. 

While the bag is draining in #1, prepare 30L strike liqour in the esky, using immersion heater to adjust temp.






When bag drained and emptied, wash it out and fit into esky, while bringing #1 to boil.
Dough in #2, seal esky and mash while #1 is boiling. 











When #1 boil is complete and BrewBright has been added, put lid on urn and allow to sit for 20 mins to settle trub

Meanwhile slide brewstand along so that #2 is under skyhook, and hoist bag, allow to drain.






(notes: the schedule really slotted in well, as I was waiting for the trub to settle in the urn prior to cubing, the mash of #2 was complete and I had time to bring it to mashout with the OTS element and also hoist the bag, so by the time the cube was full, #2 was begging for its shot at the urn. Noice)

Fill cube with #1 while #2 is draining.
Immediately clean and wash urn with particular attention to the element.
Return urn to brewstand and start jugging in wort #2, turning on power once element well covered. 
Remove drained bag from #2 and pour remainder of wort into urn. 
Complete boil of #2

Wash bag and esky and dry. 

Continue with #2 as normal.

Cube the #2 brew






Result is that I completed (from dough in of #1 to 2 cubes) two brews in five and a half hours (dough in 2.30, two cubes at 8.00 godzone time), as opposed to around nine hours for a back to back series of 2 full BIAB brews. All I need now is to clean up the urn, everything else done during the boil of #2.
Very happy. 

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A couple of answers in advance:

Q Briber, haven't you got into your thick skull yet that here's an opportunity just screaming out to fit some braid and do a full sparge method and throw away the carcinogenic curtain material?

A World Health Organisation statistics now reveal that braid is the number two cause of botulism (after no chill cubes). Anyway voile pisses all over braid any day of the week. 

Q Hahaha laugh @ Bribie, I thought the idea of BIAB is that it's dead simple for dirt-poor wannabe brewers who can't be bothered to do real brewing and here you are complicating it with extra vessels, why not just go the whole hog and build a simple HERMS with Blichmann vessels, an Arduino, multiple pumps and PIDS, all on a laser welded titanium frame and brew real beer from the comfort of your remote laptop. 

A Actually BIAB is a bit of a misnomer, if the founding fathers of BIAB had their time over I don't think they should have called it Brew in a Bag, because it's not an entire brewing method, it's really just Sweet Wort Production that uses a bag as one single stage in the grain to brain pathway. The resulting wort produces excellent beer as has been tested in comps for several years now. In this instance I have used the bag twice for this exact purpose. #1 was single vessel methodology, #2 was two vessel methodology, but apart from a bit of jugging, no extra complexity that anyone with an IQ over single digits couldn't handle. And no need to fit pumps or drill the poor esky etc. Also I need my laptop for porn. I should point out that of course I'm not really knocking HERMS or any other method of sweet wort production, and I am glad that there is a HERMS fellowship out there, beats hanging around in parks, the poor little mites. 

Q Why would a semi retired bloke want to do double batches?

A Comp season is fast approaching, so I'll be able to do my comp brews without interrupting my regular house brews. Anyway it's not double batches of the same beer, it gives me the flexibility of doing two entirely different styles in one session as I have done today. 



B) B) B) B)


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## bignath (9/3/12)

Nice mop and bucket  

Welcome back mate - youve been missed!


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## felon (9/3/12)

You make me laugh


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## Dazza88 (9/3/12)

He's back!


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## Mayor of Mildura (9/3/12)

Good to see you're still alive old mate!


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## RdeVjun (9/3/12)

OMG, its Bribie, fancy seeing you here!  
Are you sure you haven't taken up fishing, bowling etc or are you serious about the porn? I.e. less time brewing, more time in pursuit of other more serious interests. Actually, I can relate, particularly with comp season bearing down on us.  
100% Aldi elegance, but a cheap, functional solution- just don't mix those cubes up! B)


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## TidalPete (9/3/12)

We've already gone through this drama (sort of?) in This forum & it's starting to pale a little. :lol:

Welcome back mate although I'm not too sure why you are allowed two days early as you said last Sunday?
Anyway, no more countdowns. OK! :lol: 

TP


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## yum beer (9/3/12)

Bribie G is back from the dark side....



with a double brew no less.. B)


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## stux (12/3/12)

> Wash bag and esky and dry.



Fill esky with strike water from handy pail which you've heated with an immersion heater and dough in 3rd batch.

You can then use the handy pail as a HLT, and the esky as a mash tun and the urn as a kettle! 

You'll be able to knock out back to back batches all night 

Noice


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## Bribie G (12/3/12)

Stux said:


> You'll be able to knock out back to back bitches all night
> 
> Noice



Yup that was great in the old days, but getting a bit past that now  

Funny you should mention that, It had occurred to me that same thing, in a way it's what the commercials do, making full use of the available equipment and time to maximise output. Hmm bitches yup...


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## stux (12/3/12)

Bribie G said:


> Yup that was great in the old days, but getting a bit past that now



We making NZ jokes now?



> Funny you should mention that, It had occurred to me that same thing, in a way it's what the commercials do, making full use of the available equipment and time to maximise output. Hmm bitches yup...


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## jlm (12/3/12)

Thought you were giving the comps away like the Jack Russells?
Edit: Breeding, Jack Russell breeding.


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## Bribie G (12/3/12)

jlm said:


> Thought you were giving the comps away like the Jack Russells?



Got pissed off by the dysfunctional judging in a certain comp last year (no apologies for that statement) and rather than being shitty and walking away from comps, which doesn't benefit newer members, I realise that as part of the local HB community I should still participate, whilst looking at ways I can help out in rounding up some more support for the comp this year. As it happens some radical, really radical, changes have come up in the State level running of the comps recently, drawing in other clubs, and excited about the possibilities this year. 

(Bribie walks out to car to get violin)


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## Lord Raja Goomba I (12/3/12)

Good to see you again, Bribie.

Seriously - don't let issues with a minority of idiots (wherever and whatever form they may be), stop you from engaging with the rest of the community.

It means the idiots win, and AHB will be poorer for the loss of knowledge.

Goomba


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## QldKev (12/3/12)

BribieG 
The man who invents a new brewing technique for every brew he does 
The BIAB man with more vessels than a 3V'er 

haha, welcome back.


With your 2 urns and an esky why not go 3V, then as you mash out from the esky into the kettle, have your HLT ready to mash into the esky for the back to back brew?


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## bradsbrew (12/3/12)

Guys I cleaned up the last couple of posts. 

Bribie good time saving idea. With your two urns and another esky you could pump out 4 different styles in 6 hours. :icon_chickcheers: . Ive been contemplating doing something similar but it would probably take about 6.5/7 hours and I would end up with 6 or 7 cubes but only 2 different styles.

Good idea by Kev to utilise urnie as well.

Cheers


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## beerdrinkingbob (12/3/12)

QldKev said:


> BribieG
> The man who invents a new brewing technique for every brew he does
> The BIAB man with more vessels than a 3V'er
> 
> ...


 think he sold the other urn, surely he doesn't have another vessel........


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## Lord Raja Goomba I (12/3/12)

Thanks Brad, much appreciated. Sick of the garbage that sometimes goes on here.

Goomba


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## kelbygreen (3/4/12)

will be doing a back to back (well side by side) brew tomorrow. I will be doing a 42 lt batch and a 21lt batch. I will be mashing the 42lts in the 70lt esky and boiling in the 80lt pot (like normal) but at the same time (or close to it) I once the 42lts is mashed in I will heat the water for my 21lt batch and it will be mashed into my 33lt esky. I will use my 20lt pot to do a mash out and sparge and then when the sparge has been put threw the 42lt batch my HLT and my pump will be free so I will pump the wort into the HLT and do a side by side boil.

The 42lt will be cubed and the 21lts will be chilled and put straight into a fermenter to get it going. Will pitch one of the other cubes from the 42lts the next day. 

I have all kegs empty and need to get ontop of things. Got a Sparkling ale clone fermenting and one in a cube but I hate having 2 of the same beer in my 2 keg set up. This way I get to have some variety.


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## kelbygreen (4/4/12)

Well done mine, Not bad 4.5 hrs from set up to pack up. I could of got it down faster but had a few dramas lol It would help to have 1 more guy to help with the mash out and sparging as heating water on the stove and burner while flysparging keeps you running around . 

Infact my efficiency for both brews where very well. The pilsner I done a decoction thats why I had to run around so much. I aimed for 1050 and got 1059. The PA I aimed for 1052 and got 1056. only place I could see it getting more is from sparging slower so I did not drain the tun dry when heating to decoction mix lol. 

Prob will not do this all the time but to catch up on beers it can be done and only takes 30mins more if that once I got the hang of it. Not a bad day 66lts in 4.5 hours


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## Bribie G (4/4/12)

Yup, crank it out Kelby, keep on cranking it out  

I sold one of my urns last October because it was just sitting idle in between comp seasons but the idea of the esky is that it is perfectly good for mashing but not for boiling. No problem, just mash in it anyway and the wort can go into the urn as soon as it's free (after brew no. 1 has been cubed).

Kev, It is a 3 vessel system - most people, when they say 3 vessel system mean HLT, mash tun and kettle. Really I wouldn't count HLT as being a vessel in the sense that it's just a source of hot liquor. I prepare mine by just heating it in situ in the esky with an over the side element. 

The only difference between a "conventional" 3 vessel system and my system is that instead of braid (which causes botulism  ) I just use voile. Thus no need to drill the poor esky or use yet another vessel to collect the wort and the spargin's. They get left in the Esky and just tipped into the urn. I know a few guys who do just that as their main system and make some killer beers (guy who took out the specialist beer at QABC last year for example)


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## kelbygreen (4/4/12)

yeah might have to do another one again soon found out my sister is coming to visit soon and she will prob need 5 kegs just for the week lol


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## thedragon (30/10/13)

Great post Bribie. Can't believe that I missed it last year. 

I now have a reason to buy this:

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/2200-Watt-Stainless-Steel-Heating-Element-Home-Brew-Distillation-Spirit-Boiler-/301001512599?pt=AU_Barware&hash=item4615169697

... with the added benefit of knocking out double batches in little added time.


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