After reading many posts over several months on various forums, there seems to be one thing evident with this hobby/obsession that I share as many others may. I thought I could dive in with the basic start up kit and make some OK beer to satisfy my craving for a hobby that produces an end product which I have adored for many years.

My conclusion is that I could make the OK beer, and I bet with experience even really great beer with the equipment I had, which included the “optional” glass primary and glass secondary carboys. I am sure there are many homebrewers out there that do just that, and with experience, (albeit a lot) anybody can make toe curling beer even with these basics. I on the other hand wanted it now, and was willing to pony up a little to do it. Not to say my beer is better than anyone else’s, however with a lot of research and upgrades the quality definately improved rapidly.

After 3 or 4 batches I realized that All Grain brewing may be the thing for me. My brewpartner was faithful and contributed to every batch thus far, and we agreed let’s make the jump to AG. With the new processes added to brewday and my 5 gallon rubbermaid mashtun and 5 gallon rubbermaid hot liquor tank, seemed like all the bases were covered.

Then I realized that you can only mash so many pounds of grain in a 20 quart MT, so I needed a bigger tun! Got a nice 60 quart MT, and figured once again I am all set to brew even the biggest of beers if I would like. I of course needed to also upgrade from my 20 quart aluminum brewpot to a stainless 40 quart pot. All was well for a few batches.

Then we realized that with two of us brewing each week, and the mashtun had the capacity to do 10 gallon batches (would of course need another brewkettle to handle the volume) it would make sense to finish the day each having our own carboy filled. So naturally I needed more primaries and more secondaries as well as my brewpartner getting well invested. So up to 10 gallon batches and 15 gallon boils we went.

Now the old equipment was building up somewhat like a homebrew graveyard of extra stuff. We figured out a way to incorporate all these extras into the cycle of a normal brewday, whether it is hauling water out in an old pot or using the old mash tun as a second HLT. Keep everything. I have so many spare parts of stainless braid, bazooka tubes, rubber hosing, (old immersion chiller turned into a HERMS), never know what you may need when upgrading your process or equipment.

Now with that all being said is the point to my article. When choosing an upgrade from your basics that you thought were all you needed, keep in mind that it is exactly that- an upgrade. When making the decision to invest the question you need to ask is “will this upgrade support future needs and upgrades?” Then the more important question, “is this a permanent or trial upgrade?” If it is a trial upgrade, then the beer forum is a great place to check out advice on other’s trials. If it is permanent then advice is always great but make sure you get exactly what will fit your application.

Now budget always seems to come up as well. Although there are many items that are just plain and simple come one way, there are also many things like a mashtun or chiller that you can spend $20-$400, then another big question needs to be asked, “if I do not get the better or bigger one, will I eventually wind up replacing it?” Some items in my process I know will never change, so I know when it comes time to replace, get the best available. A burner would be a great example.

 All of this comes down to the level of passion and commitment to this hobby/obsession. Again some seem happy with brewing a few times a year and like to keep hauling out the “brewday gear” as simple as possible. Others may brew with the frequency of several times a month or even week, and look at the operation in a different point of view.

The last thing to think of is equipment that truly will enhance the quality of your beer. These may include water filtration, oxygenation systems, yeast starter and propegation equipment, counterpressure or beergun fillers, etc, etc.

The list can go on and on, if I knew all this when I first started buying eqipment, I would have wanted to look at a catalog of equipment to try to prioritize and simplify my future upgrades. Fortunately many of these catalogs exist and most are free when making an online order, many things I laughed at before thinking “why would I ever need one of those”, I now find I can’t live without. (i.e. march pump)

I shared this again because I see so many posts asking things like “should I select fermentation buckets, glass carboys or better bottles?” Is there really an answer? You can look at everyone’s advice, or you could get one of each and try yourself. Extra brew equipment never goes to complete waste and may wind up in a future project!

Whatever your passion level may be, make sure it is always fun on brewday, and always keep dreaming of great beer!

 Prost!