Re: Wine Fermenter

[Jared Englund]

We use 50 gallon (well, 200 Liters) stainless steel wine fermenters
for our commercial brewing. They make them in 100 Liters as well.
The Kombucha tastes great brewed in it, but the first time you use it
you have to scrub the heck out of it with an oxygen based cleaner,
then scrub it again, then scrub it again.
The fermenters and the cleaner can be obtained at F.H. Steinbarts in
Portland (or other established brewing supply stores). They get them
from Italy.
Other brewers in town use plastic fermentation buckets. They're cheap
and durable and not as big, but I am just superstitious about plastic
and willing to shell out the bucks to get stainless steel.

Shameless promotion: We have 12, 15, and 20 gallon fermentation
crocks for sale ($50-$100). Stoneware, in my opinion is better than
stainless steel but heavier and a little more fragile. They are glass
coated so it gives you more of a home brew taste. Let me know if you
want to check them out.

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This reply was in response to the question:

I read on your website that you use a wine fermenter?

How many gallons does yours hold and did you do anything special to
allow it to brew Kombucha without distorting the taste?

Also, where would you recommend somebody get one similar at?

Thank you!

[dburkh...@gmail.com]

I have seen elsewhere that your kombucha and scoby shouldn't come in contact with metal - is stainless steel different?

thanks - Daniel

[Jared Englund]

Yes wine-grade stainless steel is okay.  Pretty much all other metal should be kept away from Kombucha because it will rust and if there are heavy metals it can even absorb those, the same way Kombucha can remove heavy metals from the body.

Wine makers also use these tanks, and wine like Kombucha should for the most part stay away from metal.  It will rust metal kitchen utensils, and if you re-use a metal lid too many times, it can rust and make your Kombucha taste metallic.  Homebrewers usually stick to the "no metal" rule of thumb, which is smart, though wine-grade stainless steel is great. 

[elli...@gmail.com]

Can you say more about the scrubbing the stainless steel and at what point it is appropriate (or conditioned) for use with kombucha?

Thank you!

[Jared Englund]

If equipment is made for wine or cider, it can be used for Kombucha.  They all have the same problem of acidity corroding metals, but not high grade stainless steel.  Our tanks have been used for years but we clean them out every batch and they look brand new.  We clean with PBW (kind of like oxy-clean for homebrewers) and sanitize with acid sanitizer.  We have a large brush made for cleaning kegs that helps us clean the tanks by hand.

[amourn...@gmail.com]

Hey Jared,
How do you heat the 55 gallon fermenters? Also, do you drain from the bottom spigot? If so, do you ever have issues with yeast plugging the spigot?
Corey

[Jared Englund]

Space heaters put under the fermenter work but not the most efficient or safe.  We are now using tanks that are jacketed so we can pump warm water in to get the temp right.

The bottom spigot works but you have to replace the chrome faucet with a stainless one (which you can also get with larger openings to prevent clogging).
Our yeast all floats to the top which we take out the day before it's done, so we don't get clogged spigots. 

[elixirk...@gmail.com]

Cool! Thanks for responding! After you remove the booch from the fermenters do you strain through cheesecloth/milk bags? I have a few questions, but I'll try not to rapid fire them at you lol.
Corey

[Jared Englund]

Thanks for posting on the forum!  We do not filter or strain our Kombucha.  We just allow natural settling to occur at each step, and our final product ends up very clear.

There is very little sediment in our bottles, however if you leave the bottle out of the fridge for even a few hours it will get lots of sediment and a Kombucha culture on top :)

What other questions do you have?