Brewery System Sizing
Choose a System Properly Sized for your Business Model
Breweries come in many different shapes and sizes. Let us help you select the proper system for your Brewery, MicroBrewery or Brewpub.
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Estimate annual production of barrels (bbls) per year
- 5,000 barrels of annual production
- 75% of production are Ales (3,750 barrels), 25% of production are Lagers (1,250 barrels)
- 50 brewing weeks per year, 2 weeks to ferment Ales (25 cycles per year) and 4 weeks to ferment lagers (12.5 cycles per year)
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Select the proper brewhouse system size in accordance with planned brews per week
System Size (Brewhouse Size) x Number of brews per week x 50 weeks per year = Annual Production
- Option 1 – 10 Barrel System:
- 5,000 barrels / 10 barrel brewhouse / 50 brew weeks = 10 brews per week
- Option 2 – 20 Barrel System:
- 5,000 barrels / 20 barrel brewhouse / 50 brew weeks = 5 brews per week
- Option 3 – 50 Barrel System:
- 5,000 barrels / 50 barrel brewhouse / 50 brew weeks = 2 brews per week
- 2-3 brews per week is common for new operations
- Labour component must be considered
- A brewpub should consider the number of beers to serve on tap now and in future
- Option 1 – 10 Barrel System:
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Select the appropriate cellar size
- Ales: 3,750 / 25 = 150 barrels of required fermentation capacity
- Lagers: 1,250 / 12.5 = 100 barrels of required fermentation capacity
- 250 barrels of total fermentation capacity required
- A 10 barrel system would require 25 x 10 barrel fermenters
- A 20 barrel system would require 13 x 20 barrel fermenters
- A 50 barrel system would require 5 x 50 barrel fermenters
- Double or triple sized fermenters and conditioning/bright tanks are sometimes used if back-to-back brews occur
- A brewpub should consider the number of serving tanks required and the use of kegs for serving beer
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Possible Configurations
- 50-barrel system with 5 x 50 barrel fermenters and 1 x 50-barrel bright beer tank
- This will comfortably allow for future expansion
- 20-barrel system with 3 x 20 barrel fermenters and 5 x 40 barrel fermenters, 8 x serving tanks and serving kegs
- Factors that influence the selecting of the size of system are:
- Manpower utilization
- Floor space
- Expansion capabilities
- Price
- Satisfying system/production requirements
- 50-barrel system with 5 x 50 barrel fermenters and 1 x 50-barrel bright beer tank