What's the best addition to your brewery?

[droid]

wot yob said

 

[pist]

100L stock pot. I dont get much opportunity to brew these days due to work commitments so knocking out double batches in 1 hit is a massive win for me

 

[Rocker1986]

My latest addition to the brewery, while I wouldn't class it as the "best", has definitely impressed me though, and that would be Polyclar. Bye bye fkn annoying chill haze, hello beautiful looking clear beer! Which also tastes good... :lol:

 

[yum beer]

yum beer, on 04 Jun 2015 - 11:58 PM, said:

immersion chiller, suddenly proper hop flavour and character.

Really? chilling faster improves hop flavour? What sort of time frame are we talking here? I currently do my partial boil and chill in an ice bath within half an hour to pitching temp....


I didn't say improves, but I get better control over the final product then I did with ice-baths or no chilling. I can now do a flameout addition and get a bang of aroma instead of losing it all during an extended chill. I am able to more accurately achieve the results I am after then I could before having the chiller. I was never happy with the results from no chilling which I thought was a revelation when I first started to use it. I can now get boiled wort under utilization temps in around 4 minutes and lock in the flavour and aroma I want.

 

[booargy]

Oxygen

 

[mckenry]

A wife that loves me making beer and drinks beer herself.
She is version 2.0

 

[CrookedFingers]

Version 2.0 sounds like a keeper mate ! [emoji106]

 

[michaeld16]

Where can I downloaded the upgrade version 1.0

 

[spog]

Comes at a price.

 

[michaeld16]

Yeah thought so free downloads come with the risk of viruses

 

[CrookedFingers]

Hahaha
Pay that one

 

[Weizguy]

Best addition here was the keg fridge, and then the ferment fridge.
Liquid yeast was a revelation back in the 90's, and then all-grain.
Overall, the best addition is an intangible, and that's experience: brewing, tasting and beer judging.

*I believe that it helps if you taste a lot of beer to get a handle on beer styles and work out what suits your tastes. Brew a lot to work out which flavours come from which grains, hops and malt, and judge a lot, to see how good your beer is comparatively and strive for the best brews.

 

[Droopy Brew]

Gladwrap

 

[Spiesy]

Fermentation fridge closely followed by a stainless fermenter.

 

[pvan340]

IanH's spread sheet and the collective wisdom of AHB. Allowed me to really experiment, and to discover more than just the mega breweries offerings. Oh, and a father in law who is happy to encourage my brewing and chip in for the cost! And temp controlled fermentation. AND, the perspective to look at everything with the "can that be used to brew beer?" mindset.

 

[Ditchnbeer]

In order:
Electronic controller (PID etc) so I have absolute control over mash temp and set-and forget for multi temp mashes. Previously I used to get frustrated with over shooting or being under temp so the investment has made my brewday way more enjoyable and helps towards better beer.

Immersion chiller - almost no cleaning, 45 mins with tank water = chilled to approx. 17 degrees

STC controlling fermenting fridge. For years I had an older style controller that did heat OR cool not both. Then one day I bought an STC by chance and WHOA - it does heat AND cool!?! All my beers ferment out well since.

 

[Truman42]

3 graduated measuring jugs 1, 3 and 5 litres, that are boiling water and chemical resistant, made in Australia, have proper markings that won't fade and don't leach so I can use them for another hobby that is a lot higher in alcohol.

Before this I had crappy Chinese jugs and wondered why my volumes were always out. I re calibrated everything (kettle etc) using these and now volumes are spot on.

And my brew controller with PID and sestos. Although more importantly the alarms I added which allows me to set and forget and go back at end of mash out to transfer first runnings and sparge.

 

[niftinev]

Fermenter fridge with temperature control has made the biggest improvement to mine so far.

 

[Mikeyr]

Things that started the leap forward

Bottle tree, twin unit , clean bottles ready to fill

Starsan ..... made the above even easier!

Then the Esky mash tun, so much better than trying to keep a pot hot on an electric hot plate!

 

[Forever Wort]

A $5 pulley system for hoisting the grain bag out of the urn. This shortened my brew day and improved my efficiency overnight, saving me time and money. Should have done it ages ago.