Click here for a quick overview of the brewing process. Otherwise, clicking on any part of the brewery picture will bring up the name of that part along with a brief description of its purpose and use in the brewing process.
The sparge water tank is used to hold the hot sparge water, after it has been heated in the brew kettle. Sparging is the process of rinsing the sugars from the grains to create a sweet wort after the mash has been completed. Water is released from the control valve to allow the sparging process to begin. Typically, the tower brewing system uses a 30-60 minute sparging.
Valves are used to control the flow water within the brewery. The upper valve is used to regulate the flow of sparge water into the mash tun. The lower valve is to regulate the flow of wort from the mash tun into the brew kettle. By adjusting the valves, the sparge rate can be controlled. Typically, the tower brewing system uses a 30-60 minute sparging.
The Mash Tun is used to convert the grains (such as barley or wheat malt) and adjuncts (such as torrified wheat and flaked maize) into a hot wort. This is the process of converting the starches in the grains to sugars. Mash water is heated in the brew kettle and transferred to the mash tun. Water treatments and the cracked grains and adjuncts are then added to the heated water in the mash tun to begin the mashing process. Since the mash tun is insulated, very little heat loss will occur and the contents of the tun will remain relatively constant for the entire mash duration. It is during this time that the starches are converted to sugars. Typically, the tower brewing system uses a 90 minute mash at a temperature between 145 and 155 degrees Fahrenheit.
The Brew Kettle serves multiple purposes in the Tower Brewing System. First, the brew kettle is used to heat the mash water to strike temperature before the water is transferred to the Mash Tun. Second, the brew kettle is used to heat the sparge water before the water is transferred to the Sparge Water Tank. Third, the brew kettle is used to collect the hot wort during the sparging process and to boil the wort. Hops are added to the kettle at various times throughout the boil. Typically, the tower brewing system uses a strike temperature which is 17 degrees Fahrenheit above the desired mash temperature, sparge water is always heated to 178 degrees Fahrenheit and the wort is usually boiled for 90 minutes.
The propane burner provides heat to the brew kettle. It is used to heat mash and sparge water and for boiling of the wort. The tower brewing system propane burner is 160,000 BTUs.
After the boil is completed, the hot wort is rapidly chilled using the wort chiller. The tower brewing system uses a counter-flow wort chiller. This type of chiller passes the hot wort through a cold water bath as the wort is transferred from the brew kettle to the primary fermentation vessel.
After the wort has been chilled and transferred to the primary fermenter, the wort is aerated and yeast is pitched. Initial signs of fermentation usually seen within one day. After an initial fermentation period, the beer is transferred to a secondary fermenter. After secondary fermentation completes, the beer is then kegged, carbonated and served. Typically, primary fermentation lasts about four days and secondary fermentation lasts anywhere from six to ten or more days.
Storage space is provided for spare parts!
My home brewery is based on the Victorian Tower Brewery, which uses gravity to do most of the work! Before the brewing process can begin, ingredients (such as barley malt, yeast and hopes) are purchased from my local home-brew store. Afterwards, the brewery is setup and the brewing process can begin as shown below. Details of each step can be seen by following by the hotlinks and using your browser's back key.