Basic tips for choosing your own brewery
- Nov 18, 2017
- 162
- beer
Basic tips for choosing your own brewery
When we decide to open a brewery and go to chose the appropriate brewing equipment, we should consider from those points:
Brewery equipment volume:
When you decide to open a brewery, you firstly need to know how many liters of beer to brew per day or per year. Then we can calculate the suitable volume accordingly and thus to chose the suitable brewing equipment and other configurations.
For example, if you plan to brew beer of around 100000 liters per year.
Normally the craft beer is brewed/fermented with 3-4 weeks.
Here we can take 3-week for calculation.
Then there will be around 365 days/20 days=18 cycles per year.
100000 liters/18 cycles=5555 liters/cycle (around 6000L)
Then here comes the solutions:
If you plan to brew 1 time per brewing cycle (every 3 weeks), then you could have 6000L brewhouse+1x6000L fermentation tank.
If you plan to brew 2 times per brewing cycle (every 3 weeks), then you could have 3000L brewhouse plus 2X3000L or 1x6000L fermenters.
If you plan to brew 3 times per brewing cycle (every 3 weeks), then you could have 2000L brewhouse plus 3X2000L fermenters.
If you plan to brew 4 times per brewing cycle (every 3 weeks), then you could have 1500L brewhouse plus 4X1500L or 2x3000L fermenters.
If you plan to brew 5 times per brewing cycle (every 3 weeks), then you could have 1200L brewhouse plus 5X1200L or 3x2400L fermenters.
...
So this will bring you initial ideas for deciding the volumes range.
Normally, we think that 4-6 brews per week is a suitable working load for brewers.
If you brew less or more with the beer equipment, then we normally think that the equipment is under-sized or over-sized.
Brewhouse structure:
The brewhouse comes with two-vessel, three-vessel, four-vessel and even five, six... vessels.
In craft brewery industry (or microbrewery industrial), 2-5 vessels are common used.
The brewhouse structure is mainly effected by the brewing method and brewing times per day.
The 2-vessel brewhouse is popular in America, as the American brewer prefer easy brewing way, so they mostly use infusion for brewing many beers in different flavors.
The 3-vessel brewhouse is preferred by those who take decoction mashing.
Besides, it save time for brewing 2-3 times per day. So it is also popular in bigger volumes and normally above 2000L.
The 4-vessel brewhouse is used for brewing 3-4 times per day. The investment is much higher.
So it is suitable for bigger brewery such as above 3000L. If you are thinking a 4-vessel 500L brewhouse to increase the brewing capacity, then we think you might consider the 2-vessel 1000L brewhouse rather than 4-vessel 500L brewhouse. The reasons are: 4-times/day means you need pay more salary to brewer (maybe higher for night work), and you need to invest more on the extra brewhouse tanks, however you only get extra 2x500L wort. If with 2-vessel 1000L brewhouse, the brewer only need to work in day time and you do not need to pay extra brewing tanks, and you own a bigger brewhouse for bigger expanding capacity in future.
Expanding plan:
If you plan a bigger expanding capacity in future based on the same brewery system, then you can consider bigger brewhouse in above solutions, such as 2000L brewhouse,1500L brewhouse.
If you do not plan to expand based on the same equipment (might have a completely new brewery in future), then you could just feel free to decide the most economical solution. But of course, you should also reference the brewery space etc.
Hope the above information bring you initial ideas on considering your brewery plan.
We are manufacture of beer brewing equipment in China. Welcome to your comments or any questions.
Thank you.
Edited by Jana Wang
Sales Manager
[email protected]
When we decide to open a brewery and go to chose the appropriate brewing equipment, we should consider from those points:
Brewery equipment volume:
When you decide to open a brewery, you firstly need to know how many liters of beer to brew per day or per year. Then we can calculate the suitable volume accordingly and thus to chose the suitable brewing equipment and other configurations.
For example, if you plan to brew beer of around 100000 liters per year.
Normally the craft beer is brewed/fermented with 3-4 weeks.
Here we can take 3-week for calculation.
Then there will be around 365 days/20 days=18 cycles per year.
100000 liters/18 cycles=5555 liters/cycle (around 6000L)
Then here comes the solutions:
If you plan to brew 1 time per brewing cycle (every 3 weeks), then you could have 6000L brewhouse+1x6000L fermentation tank.
If you plan to brew 2 times per brewing cycle (every 3 weeks), then you could have 3000L brewhouse plus 2X3000L or 1x6000L fermenters.
If you plan to brew 3 times per brewing cycle (every 3 weeks), then you could have 2000L brewhouse plus 3X2000L fermenters.
If you plan to brew 4 times per brewing cycle (every 3 weeks), then you could have 1500L brewhouse plus 4X1500L or 2x3000L fermenters.
If you plan to brew 5 times per brewing cycle (every 3 weeks), then you could have 1200L brewhouse plus 5X1200L or 3x2400L fermenters.
...
So this will bring you initial ideas for deciding the volumes range.
Normally, we think that 4-6 brews per week is a suitable working load for brewers.
If you brew less or more with the beer equipment, then we normally think that the equipment is under-sized or over-sized.
Brewhouse structure:
The brewhouse comes with two-vessel, three-vessel, four-vessel and even five, six... vessels.
In craft brewery industry (or microbrewery industrial), 2-5 vessels are common used.
The brewhouse structure is mainly effected by the brewing method and brewing times per day.
The 2-vessel brewhouse is popular in America, as the American brewer prefer easy brewing way, so they mostly use infusion for brewing many beers in different flavors.
The 3-vessel brewhouse is preferred by those who take decoction mashing.
Besides, it save time for brewing 2-3 times per day. So it is also popular in bigger volumes and normally above 2000L.
The 4-vessel brewhouse is used for brewing 3-4 times per day. The investment is much higher.
So it is suitable for bigger brewery such as above 3000L. If you are thinking a 4-vessel 500L brewhouse to increase the brewing capacity, then we think you might consider the 2-vessel 1000L brewhouse rather than 4-vessel 500L brewhouse. The reasons are: 4-times/day means you need pay more salary to brewer (maybe higher for night work), and you need to invest more on the extra brewhouse tanks, however you only get extra 2x500L wort. If with 2-vessel 1000L brewhouse, the brewer only need to work in day time and you do not need to pay extra brewing tanks, and you own a bigger brewhouse for bigger expanding capacity in future.
Expanding plan:
If you plan a bigger expanding capacity in future based on the same brewery system, then you can consider bigger brewhouse in above solutions, such as 2000L brewhouse,1500L brewhouse.
If you do not plan to expand based on the same equipment (might have a completely new brewery in future), then you could just feel free to decide the most economical solution. But of course, you should also reference the brewery space etc.
Hope the above information bring you initial ideas on considering your brewery plan.
We are manufacture of beer brewing equipment in China. Welcome to your comments or any questions.
Thank you.
Edited by Jana Wang
Sales Manager
[email protected]
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