The "L" part is about a 30 minute drive, depending on traffic. He's a good guy and all, but also a beer judge (accreditations unknown to me), and tends to be very opinionated about a lot of things. Saying 'conical fermenter' around him will get you a good lecture, and though my eyes tell me I'm making cleaner beer, he tells me I'm wrong and rants about how I'm ruining the beer by removing the trub for diacetyl rest. I see krausen and trub as something the yeast didn't want, so how is that going to make the beer any better?. Don't even THINK about saying 'cold-crashing' or "BIAB" to him. Maybe that's part of my justification for getting a mill and just ordering ingredients. I think I've learned what he's willing to teach, and simply don't want to endure more [unsolicited] criticism about what I want to try. I'm finding it more comfortable to go in there knowing EXACTLY what I want, or even sending him an e-mail with a list so I can just pop in, pick it up, and leave. I probably won't completely stop using his shop completely, but I'm certainly not going to discuss my brewing with him much more. I have no problem with criticism or opinion,
IF I ask for it. Using his shop will likely be to obtain something I don't have and don't want to wait for.
He will indeed crush anything I ask for, and provide any ingredients I ask for, for the most part. He does, however, tend to substitute things that he doesn't have without a lot of asking, which suddenly just completely changed the target I was aiming at. Thus, the morphing of
@Bulin's Milker Bucket Brews Three Day Weekend into what I brew. The point is, I wind up making what he wants me to make, not what I intended to make. Substitution isn't necessarily a bad thing, unless it's not what was wanted. I go in there ready to pay for what I get, and often leave with something totally different that cost just as much or more.
When I said 'kit' I was referring to the aggregate of ingredients for a brew. Whether I buy a list of ingredients from the LHBS, or a kit from Brewer's Best, I call it a 'kit' if it's just enough stuff for one batch. The only difference is one of them comes in a shiny box with more literal instructions for the brewing, and there are a lot fewer iterations of recipes from BB than I can get from him. But I daresay there's a lot more recipes on this site than I can get from him. It's why I paid for membership, as well as to get the advice I solicit, or I just read until I find what I'm looking for. In this case, yep, I'm asking for summaries of what some do to better inform myself.
So far, my take on having a mill is that a 2-roll mill is fine, though running the grist through twice may be required, according to some opinions. Knowing how they work, I can see a 3-roll mill being (some?) better than a 2-roll mill, but not enough to warrant the bigger investment. I'll take the difference and use it for an electric one (don't have to get the drill out). But I had to ask. Wider mills will process more grain, obviously, however, the rolls will also flex and affect the grist size / efficiency. I'm not in a hurry anyway, but I don't think I want to stand there hand-cranking 8 pounds of base malt through one of those things. Electric drive, it will be. I would likely do what Josh does, and make up a grain bill earlier and store it in the vittles boxes in the fridge until ready to use it. That might make me improve at planning the next brew, too. So yep, storage boxes were already on the agenda, and the missus gets some good ones that I'd likely use. That was never a question. I live in Alabama where the humidity is often higher than the temperature. EVERYTHING here gets damp and will mold unless it's kept dry. Storing anything in a sack here is asking for mold. I already know it's gotta be kept dry, real dry. I've considered tossing desiccant packets in the grain containers, similar to what is used in jerky packets. Any thoughts?
As for malt quantity, I'm thinking something like 50 lbs or so for base malt, split between pils and ale as you say
@Trialben, and then just order the specialty grains I need when I want something I don't already have in a quantity suitable for keeping a little in inventory. I've already noticed the site has an inventory system, but haven't looked at it much as far as features. That should at least be a benchmark for helping me keep everything straight and know when to use up whatever grains I have in inventory. I'm not too shabby with Excel and Access, so there's no reason I couldn't build my own inventory system with one or the other. Otherwise, stickers on the containers to show me the date stuff was bought and what it is will have to do. Controlling and recording inventory will let me get a better idea of batch costs, too. I've only ever purchased ingredients for a single batch which the LHBS does not itemize, so I have no idea what I'm spending on what. It isn't as much about saving tons of money as it is about knowing more about what I'm spending it on. For that matter, I use Quicken, so it would be easy to call out everything I spend for brewing if I just set up the categories.
Already planned on keeping the hops frozen. Plenty freezer space for that. Yeast, well, I even keep the dry yeast in the fridge. It'll push the expiry date some if it's kept cool. Not much choice in the matter with liquid yeast. I also occasionally re-pitch when I happen to be making a brew that uses the same yeast or back-to-back batches, but rarely do I ever plan a brew based on what yeast I have in the mason jars, so a lot of it goes bad. I'm also thinking about exploring the preservation in glycerin idea, too, but one thing at a time. I could certainly utilize equipment to make starters. I've NEVER had a batch that didn't benefit from a good starter. I already keep a few pounds of DME on hand for that.
This is more about better organizing and improving my processes, understanding the costs better, and being ready to brew without having to go get ingredients. I would be more likely to brew something I have all the ingredients for than to wait for an order to come in, but I'm not really in that big a hurry. I officially joined the old fart's club last month (turned 65) and I'm retired, so I refuse to hurry for anything.
Thanks for all the info, folks. Keep it coming. I overthink things a lot and try to make sure I get the right thing. Impulse buying can get expensive. Less hasty decisions often wind up being the best ones.
