FAQ
Brewing Frequently Asked Questions
How long will it take before I can drink the first beer?
Generally from 4 weeks onwards, depending on recipe & maturation vessel.
For brewing you need a good half a day. Fermentation lasts 3-10 days (depending on recipe) and maturing in bottles is from 2 weeks. Kegs or pressure vessels can speed up the process with carbonation instead of re-fermentation in bottle.
Can I brew all types of beer that exist?
Yes, all types of beers can be brewed with the Braumeister: pilsner, IPA, wheat beer, Helles, Märzen, strong beer, Kölsch, and many more. Brewing success mainly depends on the recipe, the ingredients and the fermentation temperature.
Is the Braumeister suitable for beginners?
Yes. The Braumeister is so easy to use that even beginners can brew their own great beer on their first brew. A detailed brewing and instruction manual is included with the Braumeister. It also includes a quick start guide that takes you step by step through the brewing process.
Allow yourself some extra time for your first brews and take some time to familiarise yourself with the process the day before your first brew. We recommend at least one trial run of your first recipe, (it’s a good time to clean everything too!).
Is it possible to complete two brews per day with a 500L Braumeister?
Yes, you can do two brews per day, using a seperate hot liquor tank and a flow through heat exchanger (purchased separately). Two cycles would take approximately 15 hours, allowing for cleaning.
Recommendation would be to do a double mash to speed up the process, achieving greater than 85% efficiency and yielding around 850L of wort.
The 500L Braumeister holds up to 900L – a double mash would be topped up with water to reduce it to 1060 S.G.
Is it possible to brew high gravity beer / how to proceed?
It is possible to brew strong beer as well.
Here, the necessary higher wort extract of over 16 °P or 1068 SG is achieved by reducing the liquid during boiling.
If the full volume is to be retained and a very high original wort is still to be achieved, the mashing process can be repeated a second time with the same wort.
This allows original gravity of up to 24 °P or 1.101 SG.
What are the maximum malt quantities?
In order to ensure good rinsing and washing of the malt, the following filling quantities must not be exceeded:
> Braumeister 10 litres: max. pouring capacity 2.8 kgs
> Braumeister 20 litres: max. pouring capacity 6 kgs (with LOB set max. 7 kg)
> Braumeister 50 litres: max. capacity 13 kgs (with LOB set max. 15 kg)
> Braumeister 200 litres: max. capacity 45 kgs
> Braumeister 500 litres: max. capacity 120 kgs
Can I brew any small amount?
Due to the system, a certain minimum quantity must be brewed. It is important to ensure that the heating coils are still covered even when the filled malt pipe overflows.
> Minimum quantity 20 litres Braumeister: 16 litres of beer
> Minimum quantity 50 litres Braumeister: 40 litres of beer
For both devices there is a short malt pipe, which allows only half or less to be brewed.
Do I need a thermal sleeve and what are the benefits of the stainless steel hood?
The thermal cuff helps to save energy and speeds up the heating process, especially when brewing outdoors in cool temperatures or wind. Last but not least, the cuff protects against burns if the skin comes into contact with the hot kettle.
The hood ensures even more intensive boiling and allows the hop vapors to be discharged directly outside via a 100 mm spiral hose that fits the opening.
Tip: The hood is ideal as a malt filling funnel for filling the malt pipe.
Does the pump run while cooking and why are there pump breaks?
To avoid damage to the pump due to cavitation, the pump switches off at approx. 88 °C. At this point, the wort is already circulated by its own thermal energy.
In the automatic program mode, pump breaks are carried out automatically at regular intervals for one minute each. This ensures optimal washing out of the malt, which is then deposited again after each pump break.