BREWING BEER

EQUIPMENT

At the time when I started all grain brewing in Singapore, the companies importing equipment for home brewers were focusing on Kit users. They could supply fermenting bins, hydrometers, thermometers and bottle cappers, but not much more except the ingredient kits. Even when using kits, I felt the need to be able to ferment at a lower temperature than normal Singapore air temperature, so my first additional purchase was a second hand fridge and a temperature controller.

For all grain brewing I also acquired a grain mill, a boiler, a grain bag and a wort cooler.

1. The Grain Mill.

After failing to crush grain using a pasta rolling machine (the rollers were too smooth). I did quite a lot of internet research to clarify my requirements and identify suitable products. I listed my preferences as follows:-

Rollers at least 10cm (4") long

The longer the rollers greater the throughput.

Rollers adjustable at both ends

Provides controllable even crush.

Rollers can be hand cranked or driven from an electric drill

Rollers made of stainless steel or plated

Iron likely to rust in Singapore's humid climate.

Stainless steel is expensive.

Sensible price for home brewing

Compare like with like (consider shipping costs)

Some charge extra for crank handle, base and hopper.

Some options I considered included Marcato, PhilMill, Valley Mill, MaltMill, Barley Crusher, Crank & Stein. More information about these models can easily be found using search engines such as Google. Sometimes they can be found for sale on eBay. In the end taking into account availability, delivery lead times and the points above, I purchased a Barley Crusher using online ordering from the US. I think all of the models would have done the job, with perhaps the exception of the Marcato, which looked rather like hard work for crushing 5+kg of grain in one session.

The Barley Crusher

The Barley Crusher came supplied with a hopper, crank handle and a base. The base fits over a bucket, which is used to receive the crushed grain.

Inside the Hopper

Some models required the purchaser to improvise their own hopper. Suggestions included using an inverted plastic water bottle, with the base cut off. I like the hopper which came with the Barley Crusher, because the shape of the hopper directs the grain evenly onto the rollers.

The Rollers from Underneath

The gap between the rollers is preset to 39 thousandths of an inch, which apparently is the ideal gap. Grains vary however, so there is an adjuster at each end of one of the rollers, so it can be changed (the adjusters are visible in the top picture of the Barley Crusher). The rubber O ring on the right of the bottom roller causes the second roller to turn in the opposite direction to the cranked roller. In practice this should not be necessary, since the friction of the grain should cause the same effect.

2. The Mashing Tun.

I use my boiler as a mashing tun. It is not insulated, but has a thermostat which can be used to keep the temperature constant, by switching the heating element on or off, as set on the temperature control dial.

3. The Boiler.

Based on my former experiences with my Burco nappy boiler (described in the "Background" section), I knew that this time I would buy a boiler that was a lot larger than my planned brew volumes. Some overseas homebrew suppliers offer boilers, which are basically large plastic bins, with a kettle element fitted into them. By the time you take shipping into account, these are still quite expensive. So I searched a couple of catering equipment supply shops in Temple Street in Singapore's China Town, and ended up buying a 40 litre stainless steel Crown (made in Australia) boiler. I planned to boil 25 litres of wort at a time, so this gave me 15 litres of space to accommodate the foaming. Like the Burco this had a temperature control knob. The main disadvantage compared to my original Burco was that in the Crown boiler the heating element is exposed to the liquid.

Boiler from Above

(Note the coiled heating element and the thermostat)

It is important that the grain is kept away from the element, or it may burn. Also if grain is allowed to float free it will most likely block the tap, when draining off the wort. I have chosen to use the grain bag method to keep the grain separate. This boiler is 34cm (13½") in diameter and the water compartment is 48cm (19") deep.

Raised Grid

I'm not sure what this grid, which has legs, is meant for (maybe it is a cake stand or for putting hot pots onto so they don't burn work surfaces). I found it in the same shop in China Town where I bought the boiler. It is 32cm (12½") in diameter. It is an added precaution to prevent the grain bag from touching the element. The legs are high enough to keep the grid above the element and they are far enough apart not to touch it.

4. The Grain Bag.

Previously I have used grain bags, where the sides and "ears" were canvas and the bottom was curtain netting. The netting seemed not to survive many brews before giving way, so for my first batch in Singapore, I tried a homemade all canvas bag (I got the canvas from Spotlight in Plaza Singapura). This was not a success. It worked fine, except the rate at which the liquid dripped through it was so slow, that I had to stay up until 4:30am, to obtain required 25 litres of wort, drip by painful drip.

My Current Grain Bag

For my next and subsequent brews, I retained the canvas bag with ears, but replaced the canvas base with a metal sieve, which I also obtained from one of the shops in Temple Street. The sieve and the bag are 30cm (12") in diameter. Originally the sieve was a type of straining ladle with a bamboo handle. I removed the handle. The canvas bag is 28cm (11" deep). The ears are 11½cm (4½") long. Wooden poles are threaded through the ears to support the bag. There is a picture of the bag in boiler in the "Making the Wort" section. Because the sieve is convex, the centre of the bottom of the grain bag is further from the top rim than the edges of the bottom.

When making a grain bag avoid using dyed canvas, since the colour may run. I always boil my grain bag in hot water prior to each use and then discard the water.

5. Temperature Control.

Some kits supplied to countries with warm climates, come with specially adapted yeasts, which will survive in hotter conditions. Normally if you were brewing without one of these specially adapted yeasts, you would aim to brew at 18°C - 20°C for bitter type beers and 10°C - 12°C for lagers. So unless you want to run your air-conditioner non stop during fermentation, with the associated expense, then another solution is required. Incidentally, I have found it quite common for fermentation to take between 2 - 3 weeks, when brewing with grain at these lower temperatures.

I found a second hand fridge large enough to accommodate my fermenting bin. I have since discovered that I can run it at up to 12°C, so it is ideal for brewing lagers. To do this I have to set two dials. One in the freezer compartment, which I set to it's coldest setting, and one in the fridge compartment which has to be set to it's warmest setting.

For bitters though I use an external temperature controller. This switches the power to the fridge off when the temperature gets below what I have set it to, and on again when the fridge gets too warm. I persuaded the staff in a shop at Sim Lim Tower (3rd Floor) to recommend and supply the required components. I also purchased a plastic box to house it in, and an extension cable from another shop. When I assembled the whole thing I found that although the temperature controller was working, the relay supplied was not tripping the mains supply to the fridge. I returned to Sim Lim Tower, where after some debate they added an additional relay between the temperature controller and the mains power switching relay. This time round they did the fitting of the additional relay for me, since it needed some soldering (previously I had connected everything using one of those cheese block type connectors).

When choosing a temperature controller, an important factor is to choose one that does not switch on and off every few seconds. If that happens it may well damage the pump in the fridge. Mine switches on and off every 5-10 minutes. This happens because the controller is programmed to switch off at a slightly different temperature to that which it switches on at. The difference seems to be about 0.5°C

The temperature controller remains outside the fridge and the thermocouple is placed inside. The wire connecting the controller to the thermocouple is taped to the door frame of the fridge. The fridge door rubber gasket is sufficiently thick to absorb it's profile without leaking.

After several years of using the temperature control method mentioned above, I also came across another solution, which I have described on a separate page on Temperature Control.

6. Wort Cooler.

I made this myself. I purchased 4 metres (approx.12 feet) of 1cm diameter copper tubing and wound it tightly around a saucepan of suitable diameter. The fact the tubing I bought was already in a coil, albeit of much larger diameter than I needed, helped. The diameter of the coil needs to be less than the diameter of the boiler so the coil can be immersed. To this I attached plastic tubing which I fastened securely with screw tight Jubilee clips. On the other end of one of the plastic tubes, I attached a kitchen tap connector.

Wort Cooler

The copper coil is immersed in the boiling wort. One end is attached to a cold water tap, the other end is inserted into a drain. After the boiler is switched off, cold water is run through the coil, cooling the wort much more quickly than leaving it in a fridge would do. This is important to reduce the chance of bacterial contamination of the wort.

There are three tips I would like to highlight:-

First of all, 4 metres of copper tube is not long enough. It would have been better if I had used twice that. With only 4 metres, the wort does not cool as rapidly as it could and more water is wasted. The second picture (on the right above) is of my second attempt at a wort chiller. It is much more successful, being of finer bore tubing (.7cm) and 8 metres in length. As soon as I started using it, the heat of the water emerging at the outlet was noticeably higher than in my earleir version.

Secondly, check the tightness of the Jubilee clips before each use. Somehow they seem to loosen between boiling sessions and you don't want to contaminate your cooling wort with cold unfiltered unsterilized tap water.

Thirdly, rather than waste the cooling water, collect it in spare bins, especially the early flow, which is very hot and will later be ideal for cleaning equipment at th end of the brewing process.

In Singapore there is a hardware shop called the Handyman Centre on the 4th Floor of Shaw Centre, on the corner of Scotts and Orchard. It is very handy for things like tubing, tap fittings, water filters, screws, nuts & bolts, digital thermometers, odd pieces of wood and just about any tools you may need. If you can't find what you want in there, it is unlikely that you will find it in any other shops in the Orchard area of Singapore.

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