The brewhouse is the heart and soul of the brewery.
For many brands, it is the centrepiece of the space, tying everything together. If the aesthetic is on point, it can also be a major feature – being the primary attraction to get people in the door.
Good brewery design can also lead to huge cash savings. Time is money – so we design our brewhouses to reduce time spent on tasks. Poor brewery design leads to inefficiencies, haphazard processes and over extended resources.
While many parts of brewery design definitely come down to preference and opinion – there are some staples to getting it right that we follow, to give our clients the best results.
When we are helping a client lock in their brewhouse design, we focus on three main points – heating method, configuration and controls. (To help everyone keep up, we have created this handy Glossary of Terms!)
MT – mash tun
LT – lauter tun
KT – kettle
WT – whirlpool
MLT – mash and lauter combination tun
KWT – kettle and whirlpool combination tun
HLT – hot liquor tank
CLT – cold liquor tank
Brewery Heating Method
This is a really critical question – as your heating method could possibly dictate your entire configuration.
The heating methods we offer are steam, direct-fire and electric – and we prefer them in that order as well.
Before deciding on your heat source it is best to look at your site and the utilities coming in.
Do you have a natural gas line? Can you put gas bottles onsite? (These are important for gas steam boilers or direct-fire.) What are your electricity costs? (This is important for electric heating elements and electric steam boilers.)
Steam Heating Method
This, in our humble opinion, is the best option. Primarily because it gives you efficiency (make sure to return the condensate) and flexibility.
With a steam heating method you are able to perform step mashing in a mash and lauter combination vessel. Not to mention steam can be used in other equipment in the brewery, for example cleaning and packaging equipment.
We can also utilize external HEX for hot liquor tanks – not only for heating your ambient water coming in, but also faster temperature gains altogether by recirculating liquor in the HLT.
It’s also useful to note that the same method of employing a HEX for steam heating can be used on the cold side for cooling liquor in the CLT, with exactly the same process as described above, but using glycol as opposed to steam.
An important note – in terms of installation cost, it is typically the most expensive option as steam boilers are expensive and installation of steam lines and componentry is also pricey. In terms of maintenance and upkeep, the steam boilers require professional engineers to maintain the longevity of these units, so choosing the best boiler supplier is crucial.
Pros: flexibility, efficiency, multi use around the brewery, fastest heating.
Cons: expensive installation, regulations and maintenance.
Direct-Fire Heating Method
Imagine a big flamethrower aimed at the bottom of a vessel via a firebox this is essentially a direct-fire system! The burners used are intense, but you will get a good rigorous rolling boil with a direct fire flame.
At Bespoke Brewing Solutions, we prefer this option better than electric, as you can start heating shortly after covering the bottom of the kettle like steam.
Pros: cheap installation, low maintenance, faster heating
Cons: least efficient, single infusion mashing, more expensive due to the firebox
Electric Heating Method
Depending on your electricity rate this can be pretty expensive. This is why we generally don’t recommend this heating method for anything over 7BBL or 10BBL – unless you have crazy cheap electricity.
You can get good boils from heating elements, but they can also prove problematic for cleaning and also whirlpooling, as they can disrupt the effects.
Pros: cheapest installation, low maintenance (but can be expensive depending on electric bill)
Cons: not the best when using a kettle and whirlpool combination vessel, scorching of wort, no heat source for mash tun
Alternatives
We are actually working on a project at the moment which will use a thermal fluid system! We are excited to see how that works out, and will be an interesting challenge for us to undertake.
We have also worked with Lanemark Combustion Engineering on a gas burner solution utilizing a coil inside of the kettle (or copper as they say in the UK).
Configuration
Over the years we have designed many different combinations of systems.
However, the most common would be our 2-vessel with a mash and lauter combination vessel and kettle and whirlpool combination vessel. With a 2-vessel system you can do double brews – but they can prove to be long days!
Once you have the need to do 2+ brews a day then you should look into a 3-vessel system.
We have mainly done the configuration of mash tun, lauter tun, and kettle and whirlpool combination vessel – but have done mash and lauter combination vessel, kettle and whirlpool. Each has their own pros and cons and it really depends on the brewer and beer styles.
Beyond a 3-vessel solution you get into a 4-vessel or even 5-vessel brewhouse. This splits each process out into its own vessel and you are then able to really push out some volume.
We are currently working on a project which will be implementing a 2nd stream as they grow, essentially utilizing 1 mash tun and then splitting to 2 different lines containing a lauter tun and kettle and whirlpool combination vessel.
Controls
The two main control methods are manual and semi-automatic (varying degrees) and fully automatic (not seen a lot in craft).
When we design a manual system we try to make the main bulk of valves and componentry in 1 or 2 locations. This is so the brewer is not constantly having to move around the brewhouse.
We also implement a double control panel design, with functionality crossing between both. This way the brewer is not constantly running up and down the stairs to adjust pump speeds, turn on rakes, etc.
Hot Tip: Don’t forget your liquor tanks play an important role in the brewhouse. You should think about the sizing and positioning when deciding on your brewhouse design as they are correlated and very much depend on each other.
The Bespoke Difference
At Bespoke Brewing Solutions, we don’t believe in the ‘one size fits all’ approach.
Each of our clients is given their very own, custom designed brewhouse. Each design is different from the next – we have never built the exact same brewhouse twice!
We take all the factors into consideration – the size and shape of the space, the physical location, utilities – and most important, the needs and wants of the brewer.
What you’re trying to achieve and the type of beer you’re planning on brewing are the two most important details.
So contact our team if you want to work with exports on your brewery design.
And as a side note – if you have read this article and you’ve got some thoughts about some of the ideas we have put out there, get in touch.
We put this piece together to help people and share the knowledge – but we understand there are many different ideas out there, around brewhouse design.
Want to learn together! So we are keen to hear your feedback and comments.
