$30 BIAB vs $1000+ 3v herms

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timmi9191

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22 km east of Melbourne
I dont claim to be the worlds best or most experienced brewer but my basic BIAB system produces beer I rate better than commercial brews and receives praise from family and friends. So I'm happy... Kind of...

I'm also a gadget fanatic which creates the dilemma of urges to build a complex brew set up..

But is it really worth it? Using same ingredients would the 2 systems make such vastly different beer that on your first sip you will say wow- that's clearly not BIAB it's 3v herms that cost over $1k??
 
Don't start this up. Brew how you want, build what you want.

Been done before. Forget the versus shit - it's pointless.

Build something if you feel like it. You won't save the world.
 
Drunken rants should usually go in "Off Topic" section at the bottom, timmi9191.
 
You'd be better off looking at improving on yeast health, temperature, and sanitisation, they have a larger impact than the method of wort production.
 
timmi9191 said:
I hear you manticle.. Ok forgot the equipment, which produces a better product?
Your question makes no sense. Forget the equipment but what equipment makes better beer?

None. All equipment can be used well or badly. Most highly awarded member of my brewclub brews stovetop BIAB, no chilled. I have tasted delicious HERMS, RIMS and braumeister beers too and shit ones from every camp, including my own half arsed 3V.
 
I hear you also, yob.. But mark webber won't go as fast in a Mazda 3 and even Maro Pierre White can't make strawberry jam without strawberries..
 
timmi9191 said:
I hear you also, yob.. But mark webber won't go as fast in a Mazda 3 and even Maro Pierre White can't make strawberry jam without strawberries..
Even though you're "hearing" things, what you aren't "understanding" is that the man maketh the beer, not the gear. You want to improve then you have to learn some stuff then practice it. The only way to buy you way to better beer is to go to a good brewery.

Work out what process you think suits you best then research then do.

[EDIT: drunken typos are okay in any of the fora]
 
manticle said:
Your question makes no sense. Forget the equipment but what equipment makes better beer?

None. All equipment can be used well or badly. Most highly awarded member of my brewclub brews stovetop BIAB, no chilled. I have tasted delicious HERMS, RIMS and braumeister beers too and shit ones from every camp, including my own half arsed 3V.
For a question that makes no sense you answered it well... Thank you

Bum - Understanding is a relation between the knower and an object of understanding. If i knew and understood i would not have asked!!
 
But I am talking about your acceptance on the replies rather than your asking of the question.

It has been said at least three times now, in three different ways. Perhaps it is beyond your ken?

Bottom line, you say your beer is good (and I believe that it is so because you have nothing to gain by lying) - why change? If the reason to change is that anther method appeals more then just do it (after researching that method fully first).
 
It's like I say to guys I know with $500 fishing rigs: the fish don't care how much your rod costs - they'll take my bait all the same.

Likewise, it don't matter how much your brew rig costs.

Your $30 BIAB can be just as good as a $3500 Braumeister and as good as a custom BeerBelly $5000 3V system. You might not get as good efficiency/repeatability but doesn't mean your beer won't be just as good.
 
pommiebloke said:
Your $30 BIAB can be just as good as a $3500 Braumeister and as good as a custom BeerBelly $5000 3V system. You might not get as good efficiency/repeatability but doesn't mean your beer won't be just as good.
But his enjoyment of the process will be different for each system.

Well worth investigating but not exclusively from the perspective of cost.
 
Change.. Without it the world would still be flat!!

I started on a coopers kit, I thought the beer I was making was good. Then I discovered hops, that made it better, then I moved to extract brewing, saf yeasts now to AG BIAB and wyeasts and Yeast starters?. Moved from bottles to kegs..

Much of it based on knowledge from this forum..

My reason for asking and exploring otherwise benign answers is out of a desire to find where the next improvement comes from..

With my current brew knowledge, skill and technique - will a change of brew equipment bring about an improvement?? Maybe, maybe not! Only took 12 posts and 40 mins for my understanding of this issue to improve to where my ability and disposition with respect to this particular object of knowledge is now sufficient to support intelligent behavior.
 
If u can make 60L high grav beer in a $30 ag rig then its an easy answer. Ur not comparing apples with apples.
 
timmi9191 said:
I dont claim to be the worlds best or most experienced brewer but my basic BIAB system produces beer I rate better than commercial brews and receives praise from family and friends. So I'm happy... Kind of...

I'm also a gadget fanatic which creates the dilemma of urges to build a complex brew set up..

But is it really worth it? Using same ingredients would the 2 systems make such vastly different beer that on your first sip you will say wow- that's clearly not BIAB it's 3v herms that cost over $1k??
I think you are asking a great question & there seems to be in all of us, a burning desire to improve on something that's probably not needed.
I went down this road & spent a shitload on a brewing sculpture that made absolutely, without a doubt, no better beer than I was making before.
I had some great gear, temperature controllers, a pump & some automation that I felt would surely make me better beer. The thing I didn't realize or quite understand at that point in time, was I was already making great beer & simply changing the equipment I brewed it on was nothing but a total waste of time & money. It's all about the recipe & how you brew, not so much what you brew on that makes the difference. If you feel you need to spend & purchase some shiny new stuff then all the power to you. If you think that you will be producing better beer than you are now just because you have fancier equipment, you'll be bitterly disappointed. I Biab in an electric urn, cheap, simple & hassle free. My PID Rims setup was more hands on & I wanted to simplify the process & turned to Biab. I expected, from what I read, my efficiency would suffer due to full volume mashing & not sparging, I'd never achieve clear wort to the boil kettle ( which at the time I thought was a must ) & would just have to accept that I'd just do the best I can with an entry level all grain technique. Several years on, I now know that Biab can & does produce fantastic beers. I no chill & achieve low 80%+ efficiency. As far as repeat ability goes, I have no problems at all replicating a beer recipe from last week, month or year resulting in the same efficiency, IBU & ABV.
 
timmi9191 said:
Only took 12 posts and 40 mins for my understanding of this issue to improve to where my ability and disposition with respect to this particular object of knowledge is now sufficient to support intelligent behavior.
Trust me - this is temporary.

My advice (for what it is worth) is to look at what bits you like about your current process (not product) and what you don't like and see where changes could be made then work out which system fits.

For me, gravity feed 3v ended up being the best fit (swap a hose over every hour or so and the job is done). You might want to fiddle with a bunch of electric gizmoes, or you might want to avoid cleanign extra vessels, or whatever. No one can tell which is best for you.
 
citymorgue2 said:
If u can make 60L high grav beer in a $30 ag rig then its an easy answer. Ur not comparing apples with apples.
60L of high gravity beer in one batch? That's not homebrewing. That's a slow suicide.
 
Crusty - thank you.
I'm removing the chrome edging from my brew bag as we speak.. Brew bling is now dead!!

Seriously though you've answered the questions based on practical experience. Couldn't ask for more, cheers!
 
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