I think I scored but not sure. So I was at a resale shop and bought a 55L copper pot. I’ve brewed with SS and aluminum pots. Was this a smart buy to do my brewing?
Copper was used for brewing before stainless steel. Stainless is much more durable, so it is most used in brewing. Copper is still used in some traditional breweries.
A guy in my club has a copper kettle that he uses for historic brews, heated by a wood fire.
So I should have no worries. I think it was a steal for $35/30€. I’m heading back stateside next month. I just don’t want to jack up a brew by using a kettle that will ruin it. I use a copper IC.
Copper does accelerate staling reactions in beer. If this proves to be a problem, you can use gallotannin (BrewTan B) to chelate some of the copper.
Copper has been named as a hazard when present in drinking water at above 1.3 ppm. The good thing is that yeast sequester virtually copper during a ferment, so beer is generally considered copper-free…even when produced in copper kettles. Copper’s capability to produce a Fenton-reaction does increase oxidation in wort and limiting its presence does appear to be a somewhat good idea. However, having a copper-free brewery can result in higher prevalence of sulfury compounds in finished beer.