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How many batches?

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scout

NewBee
Registered Member
Sep 4, 2005
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I was trying to work out whether I was going to need to buy more carboys last night, and I was just wondering how many batches everyone tends to have working at any particular time. So, how many batches do you have fermenting right now, and what size are they? Meaning stuff that is still in a carboy, or other fermentation vessel, hasn't been bottled yet.

Me, I have three 1 gallon batches right now, but am planning on starting 3 more next month, and I have some plans for November, too so I will prolly have to buy some more jugs at that time.
 

Miriam

Senior Member
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Feb 2, 2005
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11 assorted fruit wines and meads in 1-gallon carboys
3 ditto in 2-gallon carboys
3 Merlot wine in 2-gallon carboys
1 Merlot pyment in a 2-gallon carboy

The 2-gallon size is the biggest I can handle; if I want more of one thing I have to split it up among several carboys. So I actually have 16 varieties of wine going, although the carboys add up to 18.

If I had more carboys free, I'd be brewing more. ;D

Miriam
 

memento

NewBee
Registered Member
Aug 3, 2005
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I have 1 5 gallon and 1 1 gallon of sweet vanilla mead, 5 gallons of traditional dry that I will be putting oak in soon, and 5 gallons of peach cinnamon. I have 1 5 gallon carboy on order that I'll be using to rack the peach, then I'll do a cinnamon cyser in that carboy. The vanilla is cleared and bulk aging. The peach is clearing nicely.

Like miriam, I will make as much as I have carboys for! I still have 30 pounds of honey to use.
 

Dmntd

NewBee
Registered Member
Apr 18, 2005
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At this time,
3 gal. Spiced Coffee - fermenting, 3 gal. Tupelo Varietal - aging, 3 gal. purple sage - aging, 1 gal. Black Corinth Pyment - aging. 4 - 6 gal., 1 - 3 gal. carboys, 3 - 1 gal. jugs & about a dozen buckets from 2 - 7 gal. not in use.

The most I've had going at one time, 24 gallons.

I prefer to have at least 1 empty carboy for every 2 full. I often make / start 3 or 4 meads at a time, it's a real pain having to rack a mead & clean the carboy so you can rack into it.

Anthony
 

Pewter_of_Deodar

NewBee
Registered Member
Sep 23, 2004
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Cedar Rapids, IA
At this time...
10 gallons Blackberry Wine (aging)
5 gallons Red Raspberry Wine (aging)
5 gallons Red Raspberry Melomel (aging)
5 gallons Ancient Orange (aging)
5 gallons Blueberry Wine (4th ferment) - just keeps going
5 gallons Chocolate Mead (2nd ferment)
6 gallons Blueberry Wine (primary ferment)
6 gallons Blackberry Wine (primary ferment)
6 gallons Christmas Metheglin (primary ferment) - started last night

I should soon be pitching...
2 or 3 x 6 gallons Show Mead
6 gallons Christmas Metheglin
2 x 6.5 gallons Christmas Cyser
6 gallons Apple Wine
6 gallons Progressive Grape Wine (using already pressed grapes)
6 gallons Progressive Grape Pyment (using already pressed grapes)
6 gallons Vanilla Metheglin

So I am keeping out of trouble... and anxiously awaiting the next installment of Miriam's tale... *ahem* hint... hint... ::) ::) ::)

My limitation is the bigger carboys of which I have two 6.5 gallon and four 6 gallon... I have a bunch of 5 gallons waiting to age the existing batches in as well as 8 refurbished corney kegs I can use to age in... So the primary fermentations have to be progressed to the point where I can rack them into the smaller carboys for aging...
 

HomeBrew

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 13, 2005
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Dmntd's rule of 1 empty vessel for every two full is a pretty good one. You may want to think about increasing your "perfected" batch sizes to 5 gallons in order to cut down on the overall number of runs.

I have enough glass carboys, plastic fermenters and corny kegs to have 6-8 batches going at any one time, but three at a time is my unofficial limit...Anymore than that and I feel like I don't give each batch enough "special attention". This rule does not apply if I am producing a batch following a "tried and true" recipe (requires less attention). None of my batches are less than 5 gallon and my yearly production of beer+mead varies from 20 gallons to 100 gallons depending on time available and whether or not I am supplying special events (okay, parties).

What's going on now:
1 batch of sparkling raspberry melomel - in the bottle and conditioning
1 batch of orange-ginger melomel - just bottled this week
1 batch of ancient orange - still in the carboy (maybe 3 weeks from bottling)
1 batch of morat - still in the primary and 2 weeks out from mulberry addition

Plans for the rest of 2005:
1 batch of Saisson (extract) - to be started in October
1 batch of Schwarzbier (extract) - to be started in November
1 batch of hard cider - to be started in October as well

I am also in the process of planning my 2006 batches. I use a lot of fresh picked, wild berries and like to plan the fermentations around picking times so that the fruit spends minimal time in the freezer.

Peace.
 

Angus

Lifetime Patron
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Aug 19, 2005
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Milwaukee, WI
New into this, so I only have -

5 gal Ancient Orange (per recipe)
1 gal Ancient Orange (k1 yeast) - 3/4 of a gal by now due to impatient 'friend'
5 gal Antipodal Mead (see Brewlog)
2 x 1 gal Hibiscus Mead

Will be starting in couple of weeks -

1 gal Orange Blossom Show Mead
1 gal Wild Flower Show Mead

I feel I want to get as many batches going as my basement will hold to catch up on the years missed. So many recipes, so little time :'(.
 

jaysbrew

NewBee
Registered Member
Jan 20, 2004
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I currently have 26 fermenters going - split about evenly between 3 gal and 5 gal. Several blueberry; a raspberry; a cyser; a maple; a few traditionals using tupelo, tulep poplar, alfalfa, and mesquite; a sprinkling of meth's.

I dread bottling these so I too have an evil twin who keeps sucking some out of the fermenters.... ;D


Cheers,
Jay
 

Mynx

NewBee
Registered Member
Apr 8, 2005
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I'm stepping up production now that the weather is cooler (pouring rain today) ... right now I have:

1 - 5 gallon Blackberry
1 - 1 gallon Blackberry (really just for topping up the other, but it's under airlock right now)

Planned for the next couple weeks:

1 - 5 gallon (total, will be more at first of course) Crabapple cyser (making for a friend's parents)
1 - 6.5 gallon Vanilla (I need to buy this carboy still)
1- 5 gallon (total) Xmas spice meth (cinnamon/clove/nutmeg)
1 - 5 gallon Pumpkin Ale (extract)
1 - 5 gallon Oatmeal Stout (I have to make this every time I brew)

I am slightly limited by space however, as all my meads and beers go in a corner of our apartment, so I tend to only have 1-2 meads and 1-2 beer on the go at any given time...this set coming up will be the most I've had going ever, lol.

Hey, HB, mind sharing your Saisson recipe? :)
 

Oskaar

Got Mead Partner
Administrator
Dec 26, 2004
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Lemme see here:

Underway in various stages of fermentation:
12 gal dry mead - traditional - buckwheat, sage, mesquite
12 gal sweet mead - traditional - wildflower, mesquite, orange blossom
12 gal semi-dry mead - traditional - buckwheat, wildflower, mesquite
6 gal sweet mead - traditional - wildflower, buckwheat
6 gal cider - semi-dry
6 gal Irish-Red Honey Ale
1 gal Croatian Acacia (False Locust) Sweet mead - Show

Aging:
6 gal Cyser - Mutiny on the Bounty
6 gal Cyser - New Year
10 gal sweet mead - traditional - Orange Blossom
6 gal Zinfandel
6 gal Rose
5 gal yeast tests (1 gal each)

Planned:
Pomegranate melomel
More sweet, dry and semi-dry traditional meads.
More melomels depending on what's available at a good price.

Cheers,

Oskaar
 

HomeBrew

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 13, 2005
175
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Mynx,

I plan to follow the recipe from the book Radical Brewing by Randy Mosher. If you don't have it already, this is a great book. If you don't have the book, or access to it, let me know and I will post a reprint. (I am at work now, so I don't have the book handy.)

The only thing that I plan to change from the printed recipe is the hop rate. I believe that the hop quantities listed are for a full 5 gallon, all-grain boil. Since I will be doing the extract version with a 2.5 to 3 gallon boil, the quantities will be increased slightly. The hop balance in Saissons is pretty delicate, so I hope that I get it right.

Peace.
 

Mynx

NewBee
Registered Member
Apr 8, 2005
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Yeah I havent had a chance to get any books yet (bad me!) ... Radical Brewing and the Compleat Meadmaker are on the list tho.

TIA for posting it :D
 

byathread

NewBee
Registered Member
Mar 8, 2005
644
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0
Boulder County, CO
IIRC,
5 gal - Dry, oaked Orange Blossom - traditional
5 gal - Sweet Sage Blossom - show
5 gal - Trippel
5 gal - Saison
1 gal - Date melomel
1 gal - Raspberry Vanilla
1 gal - Cherry mel
1 gal - Sweet cyser
1 gal - Dry, oaked cyser
1 gal - Avocado blossom show mead
1 gal - Heather braggot
1 gal - Cinnamon-vanilla
1 gal - ??? 1 more that I can't remmeber at the moment

All further batches are on hold while I prepare to move in a few weeks.
 

Pewter_of_Deodar

NewBee
Registered Member
Sep 23, 2004
1,867
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68
Cedar Rapids, IA
byathread said:
IIRC,
5 gal - Dry, oaked Orange Blossom - traditional
5 gal - Sweet Sage Blossom - show
5 gal - Trippel
5 gal - Saison
1 gal - Date melomel
1 gal - Raspberry Vanilla
1 gal - Cherry mel
1 gal - Sweet cyser
1 gal - Dry, oaked cyser
1 gal - Avocado blossom show mead
1 gal - Heather braggot
1 gal - Cinnamon-vanilla
1 gal - ??? 1 more that I can't remmeber at the moment

All further batches are on hold while I prepare to move in a few weeks.

You know... Angus' evil twin, Oskaar, and I would be glad to create a situation where you did not have as much (or even any) alcohol to move...
 

Oskaar

Got Mead Partner
Administrator
Dec 26, 2004
7,874
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The OC
Oskaar <----------- Dusting off the humonga-stein to drink some of byathread's mead because I would hate to see him hurt himself lifting those carboys for the move ;)
 

Oskaar

Got Mead Partner
Administrator
Dec 26, 2004
7,874
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The OC
Life is a box of evil chocolates, you never know what you'll get . . . I like the dark evil chocolate with the deviled cherry filling.
 

storm1969

NewBee
Registered Member
Jun 13, 2005
600
1
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54
Columbia, MD
Let's see:

10 gallons peach wine, waiting to be bottled
6 gallons cranberry wine, 3 gallons waiting to be sweetened, 3 to bottle
6 gallons orange bloosom semi-sweet mead, aging.
5 gallons semi-dry orange blosoom, oaked mead, aging.
8 gallons Blueberry wine, ageing
6 gallons Blueberry mead, ageing
12 gallons Sangiovese, ageing
10 gallons Val-de-pena, ageing
6 gallons Syrah/Zinfandell, ageing
8 gallons Strawberry Mead, ageing
3 gallons Vanilla mead, in secondary
24 gallons Cabernet Sauvignon, just pressed into secondary
4 gallons pyment, in primary


I think that's all... I'd have to go down and check to make sure...

Brian
 
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