I've decided that I don't need bigger batches, I need another temp controlled fermentation freezer. I like brewing and I like variety. I'd rather run four 5 gallon batches than one 20 gallon.
I hear you, Jim. I brew 10 gallon lagers for the crowd and 5 gallon batches for myself and samplers who can venture off the path. I went to two dedicated freezers (1 for fermenting and 1 for lagering) and run my ales in a separate brew chiller bag, rotating ice bottles, in the late spring/summer/early fall and in my garage on heater wraps in the late fall/winter/early spring. Variety is what I have come to look forward to - but consistency on the standard offerings that my friends prefer.
Your friends are lucky that you run a taproom for them
What? This isn't normal?
But really, we do several things with 5 or 10 gallon batches:
- Production mode (10g), used for light lagers or low gravity stouts
- Investigation mode (10g), used for when I want to brew something similar to what Myles wants to brew, but he wants to do something crazy to it
- "Just for us" mode (5g), used for when we just want to make the beer and not fuss about it, e.g. bocks, fest-biers, RIS, IIPA, or similar
But back to OP - talk to your LHBS! Shipping on things as large as you will need is going to be fairly high anyway, so it would be best to get it local. 25g kettle, chest cooler, 15g+ HLT, and pumps will do you some good.