Serving straight from a 30ltr Fermzilla allrounder

[Tinlife]

Hi Everyone, Tinlife here!

I know there's already a few posts on the Fermzilla but looking through them I'm not sure if anyone has answered my question:

Has anyone any experience of using the fermzilla to serve directly from? I don't have a keg and like the idea of brewing in and serving from the same vessel.

Tinlife!

 

[Rodcx500z]

I have just got one today just pressure testing now, i can't see any reason why you can't serve from it other than the fact it's tying it up when it could have another brew in it

 

[Braufather]

Depends how long it’s going to stick around. Personally I wouldn’t want it sitting in trub for a couple of months.

 

[Tinlife]

Depends how long it’s going to stick around. Personally I wouldn’t want it sitting in trub for a couple of months.

I struggle to keep mine brews for a fortnight unless I'm ill!

 

[Tinlife]

I have just got one today just pressure testing now, i can't see any reason why you can't serve from it other than the fact it's tying it up when it could have another brew in it

Yeah, I suppose that's the big issue - tap from it and I can't have a rolling stock.
Fella in this vid taps straight off it (at around 50second in)

 

[AJA]

You'd probably want to keep it in the dark, otherwise go ahead :)
I guess another consideration is how long it would be sitting on any dry hops used. Some notice vegetal notes after over a week, some don't, depends on who you ask.

 

[Rodcx500z]

For me it has to be kegged were no uv can get at it

 

[AnimatedGIF]

I plan to serve straight from it when I have a BBQ with friends, as it'll go all in one afternoon. This is especially useful if it's a NEIPA which should be consumed "fresh". Anything requiring conditioning is probably best packaged (be it keg, bottle etc) so it isn't taking up valuable fermenting space.

 

[Davegase]

Hi Everyone, Tinlife here!

I know there's already a few posts on the Fermzilla but looking through them I'm not sure if anyone has answered my question:

Has anyone any experience of using the fermzilla to serve directly from? I don't have a keg and like the idea of brewing in and serving from the same vessel.

Tinlife!

The best option is to buy a keg! and once you've got a keg, you'll probably do the same as I did after a couple of months you'll buy another keg then maybe another fermenter. Once you start it's hard to stop

 

[fgoulding]

You can definitely serve direct from the All Rounder. But once you have a keg or two, you can increase your production!

 

[TC]

A year ago, I moved from a home where I enjoyed a huge, well equipped shop for my brewing into a small mobile home, so I had to redesign my system from the ground up. I ended up getting a Fermzilla All Rounder (I had previously had two of the Fermzilla's with the dump valve at the bottom, but managing that valve and trying to use it for collecting yeast, getting rid of true, and adding dry hops was giving me fits). I also finally pulled the trigger on ordering a Komos kegerator, with the idea of fermenting, force carbonating, and serving directly from the All Rounder.

I just finished cleaning out the All Rounder and beer line after we finished my first batch, a NEIPA, and I've been pleased with the results overall. My mash and boil processes are pretty much unchanged, but post-boil, I no longer have the option of running my wort chiller (too much water use, no place to drain it). Instead, once the wort temp was down to about 170, I added a few ounces of hop pellets for a "hop stand" of sorts, then applied a thin film of food grade keg lube to the underside of my kettle (SS Brewtech) lid and let the kettle sit overnight. By the next morning, the wort was down to 76 degrees, and I pumped it from the kettle into the All Rounder, housed in the Komos kegerator. After cooling the wort down to 68, I ran some O2 into it and then pitched the yeast. Fermentation started by the next morning and lasted about 5 days. After a few days of diacetyl rest, I then cold crashed the beer at 36 degrees for a few days, keeping a low PSI CO2 cover in the head space, then turned up the pressure to 30 for a couple of days to force carbonate.

My first pours were extremely foamy, the beer over carbonated from, I think, too much time at 30 psi (unlike the corny keg I used to use, the surface area of the beer in the All Rounder is much larger). I disconnected the gas line, depressurized the All Rounder, gently agitated the beer a few times, then let it sit for a few hours. After that, I reconnected the gas, turned it up to 10 PSI for serving, and poured a perfect glass of NEIPA.

At that point, the NEIPA became our "house beer" and so, with two beer lovers in the house and visits by some friends, we finished that beer in about 10 days. A contact a Kegland in Australia, told me in an email that the All Rounder (and regular Fermzilla) will, unlike a corny keg, allow a bit of oxygen in after 2-3 weeks, but if you're brewing IPAs and finishing your batches within a couple of weeks, I don't see any issue with using the All Rounder this way. And I am sure liking the simplicity of this system.

 

[Joetp]

I've used it as a fermenter and keg quite a few times! There is nothing wrong with it if you drink it fast. Once cold crashed in the fermentation fridge, a lot of the yeast falls out. As long as you don't disturb or shake up the all rounder, you can get right down to just before hitting the trub with little to no ill effects on the beer. I've done this a few times when I'm feeling lazy, however, now I've got a kegerator and a few kegs, I like to get transferred into a corny and onto the kegerator. Some beer styles benefit from being taken off the yeast and conditioned for a week or two, so that's something to consider.

I think it all depends on your setup and the beer, but there's definitely nothing wrong with using it for both. The All Rounder was a game changer when all I had was a simple peco boiler and a fermentation fridge/inkbird. Great fermenter and pressure fermentation is a great tool!