All Grain Beer Making Equipment

The process of brewing all-grain beer can be traced back to 6,000 B.C. when ancient Egyptians made it in conjunction with prayers to the goddess Ninkansi. Today, most beer is made in factory-sized breweries or microbrews inside bars and taverns. Yet it is still possible to make all-grain beer within your home, provided you have the right equipment.

When making all-grain beer, you must find a way to filter the sugar from the grains. This process is called sparging. Sparging, however, is no easy task because it involves having the exact pH balance and temperature, or you end up with a bitter brew. A sparge tun is a specially designed container that helps control those factors.

The wort chiller is usually made of copper tubing designed to sit inside a container. The wort is the sugary liquid that's extracted from the sparge tun. Wort needs to be cooled and mixed with other ingredients. With a wort chiller, the process is done faster because the copper keeps the liquid from adapting to room temperature.

The grains and don't crush themselves. A grain mill is an apparatus that allows you to crush grain without damaging the husks. A good grain mill will also leave you with minimal flour, producing quality grains just like those in larger-scale breweries. Grain mills with a 500 RPM drill motor can create 6 pounds of malt in a minute.

Fermentation must also take place in special conditions. Fermenting tuns are designed to properly manage the air pressure that's developed when the beer ferments. Air must be allowed to escape without allowing any outside air back in. Fermenting tuns come with specially designed valves made of glass that allow proper pressure control.

Beer kettles are beyond your average stewing pot. Brewing all-grain beer involves several temperature changes throughout the entire process. Beer kettles are strong enough to withstand changes without warping or adversely affecting the brew mix. Although you could brew beer on your stove, it's best to use a separate heating method. Beer kettles should be paired with sturdy propane burning units made of welded steel. Most propane burners reach temperatures of 54,000 BTUs.