But really, we do several things with 5 or 10 gallon batches:
Production mode (10g), used for light lagers or low gravity stouts
Investigation mode (10g), used for when I want to brew something similar to what Myles wants to brew, but he wants to do something crazy to it
“Just for us” mode (5g), used for when we just want to make the beer and not fuss about it, e.g. bocks, fest-biers, RIS, IIPA, or similar
But back to OP - talk to your LHBS! Shipping on things as large as you will need is going to be fairly high anyway, so it would be best to get it local. 25g kettle, chest cooler, 15g+ HLT, and pumps will do you some good.
FWIW, I run a taproom (of sorts) for my friends too, but I set the beer menu. They’re free to come over and have all they like, but I’m brewing what I like or want. Generally though, there is always a hoppy beer, malty or dark beer, and a Belgian style on tap. Lagers now too. Some bring craft beer (some of it hard to get, primo stuff), others don’t. The guys that want cream ale can wait until summer, but the real beer geeks just enjoy coming over to try a new style or beer trade and hang out.
Thanks everyone for the replies! Smaller batches are not going to work for me. Not only do my girlfriend and I drink a lot of our own beer because it tastes better than any of the stuff we buy, but everyone who has tasted both beers we’ve made love them and want more also! We go through a 5 gallon keg in NO time! and We have a beer-gun, so we bottle it too. Which means, we never have a need to dump batches. I will get more kegs as needed. I can fit 3 in my kegorator nicely. I am determined to purchase a 1/2bbl or 1bbl system or set of equipment. I just need to know if there are some out there that are better than others…
Yeah, don’t listen to the naysayers on larger batches. A real home brewer has to brew at least 10 gallon batches to be considered ligit in my book. If you can’t drink 10 gallons of beer in 2 weeks your beer just must not be very good.
Some things you can get a better deal on at a restaurant supply store. That’s where I got my 15 gallon brew pot, a 32 gallon food grade bucket and lid for fermenting 15-25 gallon batches of mead and beer, and a stainless steel paddle stirrer. Also stuff like strainers, spoons, etc. Some things you can get used as these places buy all the equipment when a restaurant goes under, which is all the time. You can also get higher quality food processors, immersion blenders, scales. stuff like that.
The whole point about being a pro-brewer is people buy the beer.
I’m seriously just needlessly trolling here. In fact, I have been making some 2 gallon batches on my home gas stove just so I can still consider myself a homebrewer. And so I have some variety of beer on hand still that I don’t brew at YHB. I like the small batches because I can do it in a few hours and the mess is a lot easier to clean up. I’ve even been bottle conditioning.
But when I did homebrew full time I found 10 gallons was the sweet spot for both experimentation and keeping my belly full of beer. So I understand wanting to go bigger batches. Especially if you don’t drink very much commercial beer.
When I first started brewing in the early 90’s it was because of the severe lack of beer here in Alabama compared to where I moved from in PA. The best beer you could get here was Sam Adams. Now, of course, we can get just about anything but I always preferred the stuff I made compared to the stuff I could buy. And still do.
Smaller batches are not going to work for me. Not only do my girlfriend and I drink a lot of our own beer because it tastes better than any of the stuff we buy, but everyone who has tasted both beers we’ve made love them and want more also! We go through a 5 gallon keg in NO time! and We have a beer-gun, so we bottle it too. Which means, we never have a need to dump batches. I will get more kegs as needed. I can fit 3 in my kegorator nicely. I am determined to purchase a 1/2bbl or 1bbl system or set of equipment. I just need to know if there are some out there that are better than others…