Real general question here
I know it will cost more, less beer afterwards, & more work/beer. But I like actual making of the beer more then drinking it (might be funny I know), I like a good beer like anyone but making it it what I really enjoy.
What are some of the pitfalls I am not thinking about here besides cost, time, & less beer?
Ingredients aren’t really packaged for brewing small volumes, so you’ll end up wasting a lot of yeast and hops. If you use dry yeast and brew frequently it will be fine, and repitching from batch to batch will help. For the hops, investing in a vacuum sealer will solve the problem.
Those are the biggest issues I see, and they’re pretty small. I’ve never done a 6-pack, but I’ve done some 1-gallon batches. It’s great, I recommend it.
I am kind of like you so I do almost all 2.5-3gal batches. Lets me brew weekly if I want to. The only thing to be aware of with small batches, is that theres a certain amount of loss in some of the steps. You can dump the cooled wort through a mesh strainer to minimize loss at this step, and you’ll invariably lose a little when you rack the beer off the yeast cake. I’d use a fermentor that has a small bottom to minimize the loss, and I’d rack it off as completely as possible since the yeast will settle out again in the bottle. As long as you have enough extra to still get your sixer filled, you’re good to go.
The other thing I do is kind of wasteful but I’ll dump beer when I don’t like it or I get tired of it. I’m doing all grain so its not a huge waste of money.
Man, this has gotten me thinking about brewing 3 gallon batches again. That was fun and turnover was faster so I could brew more often, stretch out ingredients a bit, brew inside on the stovetop, etc. I need to get a smaller chiller and some 3 gallon kegs though. Before I bottled and chilled in an ice bath; don’t think I want to go back to doing that.
I use 5gal kegs, as long as you purge I wouldn’t see why this wouldn’t be acceptable right? The 3gal variety is expensive. I do chill in the sink with several changes of tap water, I get below 140F quickly enough and only use ice at the end when its in the swamp cooler, to get down to pitching temps.
Yes, I think so. If you fill it with sanitizer and pump the sanitizer out it will be full of CO2. If you push the beer into it then there’s no problem. You can easily push the beer in by venting the keg, hooking the racking cane to the out post, and pushing with 1-2 psi from the carboy. Or you can open the keg and rack and RDWHAHB. 
I do the latter, I’m not a huge worrier when it comes to my beer.
I figure if you have purged the keg and you are careful when opening the lid and don’t move the keg around to much it stays pretty much full of CO2 anyway
I’m relying on the near-saturation of the beer with CO2 from fermentation. No pre-purging, just racking. Honestly I think the whole idea that oxidation from the brief exposure to air during racking/kegging processes is a significant threat to most beer styles, is overblown. Overblown with an inert gas of course.
GREAT INFO
Thanks everyone!!
Well, it’s obviously working for you. :) Congratulations by the way. ;D
How about this idea
Doing a 12 pack instead of a 6-pack here is my reasoning: if you brew a 6-pack you will need to start off with about 1 gallon & i quart saw that on the Basic Brewing video podcast. If I brew a 12-pack I will need 2.5 gallons (might be a 13-14 pack) but this way it is 1/2 of a “normal” batch amount if you have a 5 gallon recipe.
My reasoning making sense? Or am I way out in right field again.
2.5gal makes about a case of beer (24 bottles). And a half batch is a great way to brew.
For a 2.5 gallon batch - is a 5 gallon carboy bad to use? Or should I get a 3 gallon?
Thanks - might be a basic question but not for me.
5 gallon is fine, unless you’re going to secondary. I do 2.5 and 3 gallon batches a lot and ferment in a 5 gallon carboy or 6 gallon bucket, even.
Awesome. I’m not buying any 3 gallon kegs then as I’ve got 3 cornies already. All I need to do is swap my ball valve from my 10 gallon cooler to my 5 gallon cooler and make myself a smaller wort chiller. This is exciting!
Thanks
OK, for those of you who do really small batches, like 1/2 to 1 gallon, are you doing these all grain? I recently tried this with a dark mild and my efficiency really sucked and I had a heck of a time with temp control. What are you using for your MLT? Anyone going this small with a fly sparge? This would be a great size for me to experiment with, but not given the results I’m getting so far…
If I were doing something this small I’d do no-sparge, use 3qt/lb and do it in a pot on the stove. It would take constant attention and stirring while heating at a low heat.
Maybe do it in a dutch oven. Get it to the low end of your mash temp on the stove. Put the lid on and pop it into the oven preheated to 170F and then turn off the heat.