You want flavor control and repeatability—but your current setup holds you back. Missed targets, long days, hazy results. Here’s the simple, pro-grade path to plan your all-grain brew so you hit numbers, save time, and scale with confidence.
All-grain brewing equipment for a first all-grain brew typically includes a cuve d'empâtage, bouilloire, heat source, accurate thermometer, refroidisseur, fermenter (bucket or carboy), transfer tubing with spigot, and sanitation tools. Plan water, grain bill, and chill method; then mash, lauter, boil, chill, fermentation, and package. Use the checklist and sizing table below to choose capacities for a 5 gallon or pilot 3 gallon lot.
What is an all-grain brew and how is it different from extract?
When you brassage all-grain, you convert starches from malted grain into fermentable sugars in your own purée. In contrast, extract brewing (or brewing with malt extract) skips conversion by using concentrated syrup or powder. Both methods make great beer, and beer can be made with either path, but all-grain gives you finer control over body, color, and beer style, plus lower long-term ingredient cost.
For many brasseurs maison, kits are a great entry point. Then, advancing to all-grain is a natural switch from extract for a brasseur who wants to tweak the grain recipe, water profile, and hop schedule. This guide lays out the complete list of basic equipment plus the steps of the processus de brassage so your first grain day feels smooth.
The complete list of basic equipment for a grain brew (table + quick picks)
Below is a compact gear map for your first grain brew. It shows what each item does, the size that fits a 5 gallon batch, and when you might upgrade.
| Equipement | Objectif | Starter Size | Pro Tip |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tunnel de trempe (cooler or vessel) | Holds purée et grain bed during conversion and lautering | 8–10 gallon | Add a false bottom; ensure a reliable spigot. |
| Kettle / brew kettle | Boil the moût | 10–15 gallon | Use volume markings; strong heat source. |
| Refroidisseur (immersion or counterflow) | Cool moût chaud quickly | Match kettle volume | Faster chilling improves clarity and taste. |
| Fermenteur (bucket or carboy) | Hold cooled moût pour fermentation | 6.5–7 gallon | Add a blow-off tube; keep it clean. |
| Thermomètre + hydromètre/refractometer | Control temps and track gravity | N/A | Accuracy prevents off-flavors. |
| Transfer gear | Siphon/tubing, clamps | N/A | Keep oxygen low after chilling. |
| Cleaning & sanitize kit | No-rinse sanitizer, brushes | N/A | Désinfecter everything touching cold moût. |
| Optional Moulin à grain | Crush grain fresh | N/A | Improves efficiency and foam stability. |
| Refroidisseur de moût | Dedicated term; see above | Sized to kettle | Choisir immersion to start. |
| Emballage | Bouteilles de bière or kegging | N/A | Kegging speeds your finished beer. |
“Dialing in process beats chasing shiny gear. Start simple, then upgrade with purpose.”
Choosing your mash tun and kettle: sizes, features, and heat
A cooler-style cuve d'empâtage with a false bottom is classic for a first system. It’s insulated, cheap, and stable. A stainless tun adds valves and sight glasses for visibility and control. The tun must comfortably hold your amount of grain plus water. Rule of thumb for strike water is about 1.25–1.75 quarts of water per pound. That ratio sets the temperature of the mash and viscosity so the grain bed flows right.
For the boil, a 10–15 gallon bouilloire is ideal for a 5 gallon batch; a gallon stock pot may work for very small pilots, but headspace matters for foam and evaporation. If you’re running larger batches later, step to 20+ gallons of wort capacity. Choose weldless valves for easy cleaning. One mention of bouilloire à brasser: stainless, tri-clamp ports, and internal markings save your brassage jour.
Une fiabilité heat source—propane burner or electric element—keeps the le moût en ébullition consistent. Propane is flexible outdoors; electric is quiet and indoor-friendly with great control. Either way, plan good ventilation and safe hose routing.
Mash water, lautering, and sparging explained (hit your numbers)
Add strike water to the mash, stir, and hold steady. Enzymes work best when the temperature of the mash is stable; a 148–156°F target is common, depending on the beer style. After conversion, the grain bed settles, forming a natural filter.
Now the flow moments: wort from the mash tun begins clear as you recirculate. Then runoff wort from the grains into the kettle. To lift efficiency, you may sparge water over the mash (batch or fly sparging). Keep the flow gentle so you don’t compact the bed. A good rule is to collect wort from the mash until you reach your pre-boil volume.
Do not rush—steady beats fast. If you’re newer, single-infusion mashing is fine. Later, experiment with step mashes. Either way, track pH and gravity to learn your system. This gives all-grain brewers consistent attenuation and clarity across lot after lot.
Boil, hops, and chilling: manage flavor and time
Bring it to a vigorous boil and watch for boil-overs. Add sauter additions on schedule and boil your wort for 60 to 90 minutes depending on recipe needs. Use nutrition additions only as needed—most malt bills don’t require extra sugar unless you’re chasing a big gravity or adjunct character.
Chilling matters. Rapid chilling limits DMS and locks in aroma. An immersion coil is the easiest refroidisseur de moût to start with; stir the coil for better heat exchange or run an ice bath if groundwater is warm. A counterflow unit cools moût chaud even faster when you’re ready to upgrade your brassage setup. Keep the chiller clean and sanitized before and after use so your brassage stays bright.
When you hit pitching temperature, transfer to the fermenter carefully to reduce oxygen pickup. This is where the pro habit pays off: protect the brassage from air once it’s cold, and your finished beer will taste cleaner, every time.
Fermentation vessels and controls (clean beer starts here)
Choose a bucket or carboy sized with headspace—6.5–7 gallon for a typical 5-gallon lot. Stainless conicals add dump ports and pressure capability later. Aerate, then pitch a healthy levure culture at the right temperature. Control temperature from start to finish; small swings can dull hop aroma or create fusels.
Measurement drives learning. Use a hydromètre ou refractometer to track gravity on day 2–3 and near terminal. Keep gear spotless and sanitize anything that touches post-boil moût. Most primary fermentation finishes in 5–10 days; give the brassage a few more to condition. Cold-crash if you want bright beer before packaging.
Packaging a 5 gallon batch: bottles, kegs, and timelines
For bottling, clean and prime your beer bottles carefully. Carbonation takes 1–3 weeks at room temperature; colder storage then polishes flavor. Kegging shortens the wait: force-carb, pull a sample, and the brassage can pour in days. Either path is valid—pick the one that fits your space, time, and service.
Tip: Label your kegs or cases with brew day date, OG/FG, and any process notes. Future-you will thank you.
BIAB vs. traditional three-vessel (and when to scale)
BIAB (brew-in-a-bag) is the leanest route to an all-grain brassage: one bouilloire, a mesh bag, and you’re off. Lift the bag, drain into the bouilloire, and you’ve essentially mashed and lautered without a separate vessel. It’s a great pilot method for a 3 gallon test lot, or to try a new grain recipe.
Three-vessel systems (mash, hot liquor tanket bouilloire) improve repeatability and speed—especially for a larger brew day or multi-turn schedule. Recirculation helps clarity, while separate heating zones hold stable temperatures. When your brassage schedule fills, three-vessel systèmes de brassage pay back in throughput.
Planning water volumes and grain: hit targets the first time
Before you brassage, write out: pre-boil volume, boil-off rate, loss to trub, and fermenter target volume. That defines strike water, sparge plan, and final volume. A typical starting point is 1.5 quarts of water per pound and a steady run-off to pre-boil. Then check gravity to confirm your efficiency.
Know your amount of grain et grain bill composition (base malt vs adjunct). A small difference of a pound can swing original gravity noticeably, especially on smaller systems. Record everything so you can repeat the brassage or adjust the next lot.
Recipe kits, grain recipe design, and style targets
Recipe kits save time—measurements are done for you—and starter kits often include tools a first brassage needs. Still, designing your own grain recipe lets you chase a beer style target on your terms. Balance base grain, specialty malts, and hops for your flavor goal.
If you’re coming from extract, know that malt extract is still useful for gravity tweaks and high-gravity beers. But the heart of all-grain is the mash. The thing to remember: taste your runnings, log your gravity, and keep notes so the next brassage starts closer to the mark.
Safety, cleaning, and quality checks most new brewers forget
Hot surfaces, wet floors, and heavy vessels make a brassage day risky if you rush. Wear gloves and eye protection around burners and le moût en ébullition. Keep hoses tidy. Label your cleaning chemicals clearly.
Quality is 80% cleaning: clean first, then sanitize. Measure frequently with your thermometer, hydromètreou refractometer to steer the brassage instead of guessing. If something goes off, isolate the cause and fix one thing at a time. Consistency wins.
Where to source professional gear when you outgrow the garage
When your homebrew setup is dialed and demand grows, step into professional tanks and turnkey lines. Explore équipement de nano-brasserie for tight spaces and pilot production, plus a flexible path to expand. If your taproom is bustling, compare équipement de micro-brasserie packages that streamline hot-side, cellar, and utilities. For cellaring and service, pair a conical fermenteur de bière with a bright beer tank to condition and serve. Round out the line with a beer bottling machine when retail sales ramp, or consider kombucha and RTD expansions with purpose-built équipement de brassage de kombucha.
- Équipement de nano-brasserie
- Micro brewery equipment
- Beer fermenter tank
- Réservoir de bière brillant
- Beer bottling machine
- Matériel de brassage de kombucha
These resources match the path we build for clients every week—from pilot to production—with global install and after-sales support.
Case study: from pilot to production with smarter choices
A small team began with a cooler cuve d'empâtage, 10-gallon bouilloireet immersion refroidisseur. They brewed twice weekly, packaged in beer bottles, and rotated styles to test demand. After six months, they moved to jacketed conicals, added a réservoir lumineux, and standardized on two flagships. Throughput doubled without changing the brassage schedule—because the process was already solid.
What changed? Heat, chilling, and handling. Faster chilling protected aroma. A sealed transfer kept oxygen out. A steadier fermentation profile made the hop pop. The lessons scale cleanly whether you’re making 10 gallons of wort or a much bigger lot.
Quick numbers you can use today (reference table)
| Étape | Rule of Thumb | Why it helps |
|---|---|---|
| Strike water | ~1.5 qt per lb water per pound | Hits mash thickness fast |
| Mash rest | 148–156°F | Flavor and attenuation control |
| Pre-boil gravity | Measure & log | Confirms efficiency |
| Boil vigor | Steady roll | Drives off volatiles |
| Chill time | < 20 minutes if possible | Flavor, clarity, and stability |
| Oxygen after chill | Avoid it | Protects aroma |
“Equipment is a tool. Process is the edge.”
Your partner: a manufacturing team that scales with you
If you’ve read this far, you want control—hit targets, shorten days, and serve better pints.
Nous sommes une Brewing Equipment Manufacturing team that designs, builds, and installs systems sized from pilot to regional production.
Jacketed tanks, CIP-ready piping, and cleanable surfaces reduce labor and risk. Data-friendly panels put power in the hands of your brasseur.
Tell us your volume, room sketch, and utility plan—we’ll design a line that lets you brassage more reliably tomorrow than you did today.
We’ll spec all-grain brewing equipment layouts that match your style, budget, and growth curve, plus équipement de brassage de céréales accessories that keep the line moving during peak hours. From layout to training, we build systems that are easy to clean, easy to scale, and built to last.
FAQ
Can I start with one vessel and still make great all-grain beer?
Yes. Start with BIAB in a single bouilloire and upgrade as you learn. A bag + a good burner + an immersion coil can deliver consistent moût and clean brassage days. Add a small pump later for recirculation.
What volume should I choose for my first kettle?
Pick at least twice your target volume. For 5 gallon fermenter targets, a 10–15 gallon bouilloire gives boil-over room, better hop utilization, and easier temperature control.
Do I need a pump for lautering and chilling?
Not at first. Gravity works. A pump adds speed and recirculation for clearer moût pendant lautering, plus faster chilling through a plate or counterflow unit once your brassage volume grows.
What tools help me track quality?
Une fiabilité thermometer, hydromètreet refractometer. Log mash temps, pre/post-boil gravities, and final gravity. Over a few lot cycles, your brassage will land on target more often.
How do I chill in warm climates?
Pre-chill water with an ice bath feeding your immersion coil, or upgrade to a counterflow setup. Faster chilling protects aroma and helps yeast start clean.
When should I move from bottles to kegs?
When time matters. Kegging cuts wait time and oxygen exposure. Bottling is fine, especially early, but most teams keg once they’re running more than one lot weekly.
Sources & further reading
- John Palmer, How to Brew (fundamentals of mash, moût, and process)
- Brewer-run blogs and guild resources that document repeatable brassage methods and safe cellar practices
- Manufacturer datasheets for pumps, burners, and controls for exact sizing
One-page process recap (step list)
- Heat strike water, dough-in, and hold the purée.
- Recirculate until clear; draw wort from the mash, then sparge water over the mash if desired.
- Boil, add sauter charges, boil your wort to schedule.
- Chill with immersion/counterflow gear; transfer cooled moût to fermenter.
- Pitch levure; control fermentation temp; package and enjoy.
Final notes on capacity planning
- Start small, think big: pilot in 3 gallon ou 5 gallon sizes, then plan headspace for future demand.
- Upgrade the few things that move the needle—heat, chilling, and transfers.
- Add équipement supplémentaire only when it solves a bottleneck.
Key terms you’ll encounter as you grow (quick hits)
- Réservoir de liqueur chaude: dedicated hot water vessel for strikes and sparges.
- Embout: valve on tuns, kettles, or fermenters for clean transfers.
- Counterflow / immersion / chiller: your options for rapid cooling.
- Wort from the mash tun: the sweet liquid headed to the boil.
Bullet-point summary (remember these)
- Size your bouilloire et cuve d'empâtage for headspace and future growth.
- Control the temperature of the mash and flow during lautering.
- Chill fast; protect moût from oxygen post-boil.
- Measure often (thermometer, hydromètre, refractometer).
- Clean first; sanitize everything cold-side.
- Scale gear only when process is stable; partner with a manufacturer when you’re ready to expand your brassage line.
You’ve got this—one clean, well-planned brassage day at a time.